ART APPRECIATION

WHAT IS ART?

LESSON 1: INTRODUCTION AND ASSUMPTIONS

DEFINITIONS:

Art is from the Latin word "ARS" which means "Craft or specialized form of skill." (Collingwood, 1938)

ARS in Medieval Latin means "Any special form of book-learning, such as grammar or logic, magic or
astrology."

THREE ASSUMPTIONS OF ART:

1. ART IS UNIVERSAL

 Timeless, spanning generations and continents through and through. (Art can be passed on)
 Art will persist and art will not be depleted as long as there is someone who makes it.
 "Art is not good because it is old, but old because it is beautiful." (Dudley, et al. 1960)
 Art regardless of origin, time and place are liked and enjoyed by people continuously. Example:
works of Jose Rizal and Francisco Balagtas (not read because they are old but they are
beautifully written.)
 MISCONCEPTION: ARTISTIC MADE LONG TIME AGO, AGE IS NOT A FACTOR IN
DETERMINING ART.

2. ART IS NOT NATURE

 Art is man-made, whereas nature is given around us.
 Nature (which includes tree, landscapes or scenery) can be called art when it is painted,
photographed, sketched, etc.
 Art can be a representation of nature.
 Art not directed by a representation of reality, is a perception of reality.
 In representational theory, art is defined by its ability to represent reality. This does not mean
that art must always imitate reality, but it must in some form (even through abstraction) depict
reality. Thus, the foundational relationship between humans and art is one of perception, not
emotion.
3. Art involves EXPERIENCE
 It does not full detail but just an experience. “Actual doing of something.”
 For you to be able to appreciate art, you must first experience it.
 “All art depends on experience, and if one is to know art, he must know it not as fact or
information but as experience.”
 Making judgments of value requires a basis for criticism. At the simplest level, deciding whether
an object or experience is be considered art is a matter of finding it to be either attractive or
repulsive. Though perception is always colored by experience, and is necessarily subjective, it is
commonly understood that what is not somehow visually pleasing cannot be art. However,
“good” art is not always or even regularly visually pleasing to a majority of viewers. In other
words, an artist’s prime motivation need not be the pursuit of a pleasing arrangement of form.
Also, art often depicts terrible images made for social, moral, or thought-provoking reasons.
 For example, the painting pictured above, by Francisco Goya, depicts the Spanish shootings on
the third of May, 1808. It is a graphic depiction of a firing squad executing several pleading
 civilians. Yet at the same time, the horrific imagery demonstrates Goya’s keen artistic ability in
composition and execution, and it produces fitting social and political outrage. Thus, the debate
continues as to what mode of aesthetic satisfaction, if any, is required to define “art.” The
revision of what is popularly conceived of as being visually pleasing allows for a re-invigoration
of and a new appreciation for the standards of art itself.
 Art is often intended to appeal to and connect with human emotion. It can arouse aesthetic or
moral feelings, and can be understood as a way of communicating these feelings. Art may be
considered an exploration of the human condition or what it is to be human.

LESSON 2: CREATIVITY, IMAGINATION AND EXPRESSION

 It takes an artist to make art.
 Not every beautiful thing that can be seen or experienced may truly be called a work of art.
 Art is a product of man’s creativity, imagination and expression.
 Nature is not considered an art, simply because it it not made by man.
 An artwork may be inspired by nature and other works of art, but an artist invents his own forms
and patterns due to what he perceives as beautiful and incorporates them in creating his
masterpiece.
ART APPRECIATION AS A WAY OF LIFE
 Jean-Paul Sartre – a famous french philosopher, described the role of art as a creative work that
depicts the world in a completely different light and perspective, and the source is due to human
freedom.
 Those who have developed a fine sense of appreciation can experience and see the art the same
way the artist did.
 Refining one’s ability to appreciate art allows him to deeply understand the purpose of an
artwork and recognize the beauty it possesses.
 In cultivating an appreciation of art, one should also exercise and develop his taste for things that
are fine and beautiful. This allows individuals to make intelligent choices and decisions in
acquiring necessities and luxuries, knowing what gives better value for time or money while
taking into consideration the aesthetic and practical value (Collins & Riley, 1931). This
continuous demand for aesthetically valuable things influences the development and evolution of
art and its forms.
THE ROLE OF CREATIVITY IN ART MAKING
 Creativity requires thinking outside the box. It is often used to solve problems that have never
occurred before, conflate function and style, and simply make life a more unique and enjoyable
experience.
 Creativity is what sets apart one artwork from another.
 A creative artist embraces originality and puts his own flavor into his work (making his own
style).
 Being creative can be quite challenging. What you thought was your own unique and creative
idea may not what it seems to be after extensive research and that someone else has
coincidentally devised before the idea in another part of the world.
Example: The campaign ad “It’s more fun in the Philippines” boomed popularity in 2011 but
later it was found out that it was allegedly plagiarized from Switzerland’s tourism slogan, “It’s
more fun in switzerland,” back in 1951.
ART AS A PRODUCT OF IMAGINATION, IMAGINATION AS A PRODUCT OF ART
 German Physicist, Albert Einstein demonstrated that knowledge is actually derived from
imagination.
 “Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know
and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world.”
 Imagination is not constrained by the walls of the norm, but goes beyond that.
  People rely on curiosity and imagination for advancement.
 Imagination allows endless possibilities.
 An artwork does not need to be a real thing, but can be something that is imaginary. Artists use
their imagination that gives birth to reality through creation.
 In the same way that imagination produces art, art also inspires imagination. Imagine being in an
empty room surrounded by blank, white walls, and floor. Would you be inspired to work in such
a place? Often, you will find coffee shops, restaurants, and libraries with paintings hung or
sculptures and other pieces of art placed around the room to add beauty to the surroundings. This
craving and desire to be surrounded by beautiful things dates back to our early ancestors (Collins
& Riley, 1931). Cave walls are surrounded by drawings and paintings of animals they
hunted: wild boars, reindeers, and bison (Figure 8). Clays were molded and stones were carved
into forms that resemble men and women; burial jars were created with intricate designs on
them. These creative pieces were made not only because they were functional to men, but also
because beauty gave them joy (Collins & Riley, 1931).
ART AS EXPRESSION
 An emotion will remain unknown to a man until he expresses it.
 Robin George Collingwood, an English Philosopher, explicated in his publication The Principles
of Art (1938) that what an artist does to an emotion is not to induce it, but express it. Through
expression, he is able to explore his own emotions and at the same time, create something
beautiful out of it.
 Collingwood further illustrated that expressing emotions is something different from describing
emotions. In his example, explicitly saying "I am angry" is not an expression of an emotion, but
a mere description. There is no need in relating or referring to a specific emotion, such as anger,
in expressing one's emotion.
 Description actually destroys the idea of expression, as it classifies the emotion, making it
ordinary and predictable. Expression, on the other hand, individualizes.
 An artist has the freedom to express himself the way he wants to. Hence, there is no specific
technique in expression. This makes people's art not a reflection of what is outside or external to
them, but a reflection of their inner selves.
POPULAR ART EXPRESSIONS

VISUAL ARTS
 Those that appeal to the sense of sight and are mainly visual in nature.
 Visual arts is the kind of art form that the population is most likely more exposed to.
Some mediums of visual arts include:
 Paintings
 Drawings
 Letterings
 Sketching
 Printing
 Sculptures
 Digital Imaging; etc.

FILM
 Art of putting together successions of still images in order to create an illusion of movement.
Filmmaking focuses on its aesthetic, cultural and social value and is considered as both an art
and an industry.
  Can be created by using one or a combination of some or all these techniques: motion-picture
camera (also known as movie camera), animation techniques, Computer-Generated Imagery
(CGI), and more.
 Filmmaking simulates experiences or creates one that is beyond the scope of our imagination as
it aims to deliver ideas, feelings, or beauty to its viewers.
 The art of filmmaking is so complex it has to take into account many important elements such as
lighting, musical score, visual effects, direction, and more.

PERFORMANCE ART
 a live art and the artist's medium is mainly the human body which he or she uses to perform, but
also employs other kind of art such as visual art, props, or sound.
 It usually consists of four important elements: time, where the performance took place, the
performer's or performer's body, and a relationship between the audience and the performer(s)
(Moma Learning, n.d
 It cannot be bought or traded as a commodity, unlike the previously discussed art expressions.

POETRY PERFORMANCE
 Artist expresses his emotions through words.
 It uses a word's emotional, musical, and spatial values that go beyond its literal meaning to
narrate, emphasize, argue, or convince. These words, combined with movements, tone, volume,
and intensity of the delivery, add to the artistic value of the poem.

ARCHITECTURE
 architecture is the making of beautiful buildings. However, not all buildings are beautiful. Some
buildings only embody the functionality they need, but the structure, lines, forms, and colors are
not beautifully expressed.
 Thus, not all buildings can be considered architecture. Take, for example, the Grand Théâtre de
Bordeaux where the functionality of the theater remains, but the striking balance of the lines,
colors, and shapes completes the masterpiece.
 Buildings should embody these three important elements- plan, construction, and design- if they
wish to merit the title architecture (Collins & Riley, 1931).

DANCE
 A series of movements that follows the rhythm of the music accompaniment.
 Dance as a form of expression.
 Dancing is a creative form that allows people to freely express themselves. It has no rules. You
may say that choreography does not allow this, but in art expression, dancers are not confined to
set steps and rules but are free to create and invent their own movements as long as they deem
them graceful and beautiful.

LITERARY ART
 Artists who practice literary arts use words to express themselves and communicate emotions to
the readers.
 However, simply becoming a writer does not make one a literary artist. Literary art goes beyond
the usual professional, academic, journalistic, and other technical forms of writing.
 It focuses on writing using a unique style, not following a specific format or norm. It may
include both fiction and non-fiction such as novels, biographies, and poems. Examples of famous
 literary artists and their works include The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Romeo
and Juliet by William Shakespeare.

THEATER
 uses live performers to present accounts or imaginary events before a live audience.
 usually follow a script
 theater also considers several elements such as acting, gesture, lighting, sound effects, musical
score, scenery, and props. The combination of these elements is what gives the strongest
impression on the audience and the script thus becomes a minor element.
 Similar to performance art. since theater is also a live performance, the participation of the
viewer is an important element in theater arts.
 Some genres of theater include drama, musical, tragedy, comedy, and improvisation.

APPLIED ARTS
 incorporating elements of style and design to everyday items with the aim of increasing their
aesthetical value.
 Artists in this field bring beauty, charm, and comfort into many things that are useful in everyday
life (Collins & Riley, 1931).
 Industrial design, interior design, fashion design, and graphic design are considered applied arts.

LESSON 3: FUNCTIONS AND PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ART

 The Greek philosopher Aristotle claimed that every particular substance in the world has an end
 telos in Greek, which translates to “purpose”.
 Every substance, defined as a formed matter, according to fixed path toward its aim. A seed is
bound to become a full-grown plant, a cocoon can look forward to flying high when it morphs
into a butterfly.
 This telos according to Aristotle is intricately linked with function. For a thing to reach its
purpose, it has to also fulfill a function.
 Man, in Aristotle’s view of reality, is bound to achieve a life of fulfillment and happiness, or in
Greek, eudaimonia.
 All men move toward this final end. Happiness, however, the supposed end f man, is linked with
his function, which is being rational. One can only be happy when he is rational.
 Man’s natural end, telos, is connected with his function, which is his rationality.
 Moreover, the telos and function of a thing are both related to a thing’s identity. What makes a
table is the fact that it does perform its function and thereby, reach its telos. What makes a
human being a human being, according to some schools of thought, is its capacity for thinking.
 The telos, the function, and the “whatness” of a thing are all interconnected.

FUNCTIONS OF ART
 When one speaks of function, one is practically talking about the use of the object whose
function is in question.
 An inquiry on the function of art is an inquiry on what art is for. Alternatively, the answer to the
question “what is it for” is the function of whatever “it” in the question refers to. Suppose one
asks, what is the Rizal monument for?
 Roughly and broadly, the functions of art are classified into three: personal (public display,
expression), social (celebration, to, affect collective behavior), and physical (utilitarian).
PERSONAL FUNCTIONS OF ART
 The personal functions of art are varied and are highly subjective. This means that it depends on
the person-the artist who created the art.
 An artist may create an art out of the need for self –expression.
 An art may also be therapeutic. In some orphanages and home for abandoned elders, art is used
to help residents process their emotions or while away their time.

SOCIAL FUNCTIONS OF ART

 Art is considered to have a social function if and when it addresses a particular collective
interest as opposed to a personal interest.
 Political art is a very common example of an art with a social function. Art may convey message
of protest, contestation, or whatever message the artist intends his work to carry. Oftentimes, art
also depict social conditions.
 Photography, as an art form, delivers this kind of functions by taking photos of subjects in
conditions that people do not normally take a look at or give attention to. Pictures of poverty
may carry emotional overtones that may solicit action or awareness from their audience.

PHYSICAL FUNCTION OF ART

 The physical functions of art can be found in artworks that are crafted in order to serve some
physical purpose. A Japanese raku bowl that serves a physical function in a tea ceremony is an
example.
 Architecture, jewelry making, in even interior design are all forms of arts that have physical
function.

OTHER FUNCTIONS OF ART

Music as an art is also interesting to talk about in relation to function. Music in its original form was
principally functional. Music was used for dance and religion. Unlike today when one can just listen to
music for the sake of music’s sake, the ancient world saw music only as an instrument to facilitate
worship and invocation to gods. Music also was essential to dance because music assures synchronicity
among dancers. Moreover, music also guarantees that marches, in the case of warriors, are simultaneous.
Today, music has expanded its function and coverage. Music is listened to and made by people for
reasons that were foreign to early civilizations. There is now a lot of music that has no connection
whatsoever to dance or religion. Serenade is one example. People composes hymns of love to express
feelings and emotions. Music is also used as wonderful accompaniment to stage plays and motion
pictures. Interestingly, piece of music can mean a multitude of meanings to different people, proof that
as an art, music has gone a long way.
Sculpture, on the other hand, is another functional art form that has long existed for various purposes.
Just like music, from the early days of humanity, sculptures have been made by man most particularly
for religion. People erect statues for the divine, in the Roman Catholic world, the employment of
sculptures for religious purposes has remained vital, relevant, and symbolic. Sculptures were also made
in order to commemorate important figures in history. Jose Rizal’s monument in Luneta and Andres
Bonifacio’s Monumento in Caloocan are common examples. In the University of the Philippines, the
iconic statue Oblation by Guillermo E. Tolentino has remained a pillar of the university and constant of
reminder of the need to offer oneself up selflessly for the country.
Coins are also manifestations of sculpting’s function. Every can in the Philippines features a relief of a
famous hero or personality. Recently, the Central Bank of the Philippines produced special,
commemorative coins for certain personalities like Pope Francis and the Jesuit, Horacio de la Costa.
Another art from that readily lends itself to multiple functions is architecture. In fact, architecture might
be the most prominent functional art form. Buildings are huge, expensive, and are not easily constructed
and replaced. Unlike other forms of art like pots, furniture, poetry, or even paintings, buildings take so
much time to erect and also to destroy. A lot of investment is put into making megastructures like the
pyramids of Giza, the acropolis, of the great cathedrals of the medieval world. One cannot simply
dismiss taking into consideration the function of a building before construction. It is also in architecture
where one can find the intimate connection of function and form. In planning out an architectural
structure, one has to seriously consider the national conditions like topography and climate of the place
of erection and the social conditions such as the purpose of the building itself.
In the Philippines, climate is a huge factor in building a house. Spanish colonial houses were designed to
allow for air to circulate inside the house. Large windows were staples then. Capiz shells were also
utilized to allow for light to enter the house even if the windows were closed. Moreover, social
conditions such as purpose play a huge role in architecture. To Christians, a church is primarily a place
of worship and assembly. Regular ceremonies, where members of the church are expected to come
regularly, are held inside the church. A huge, spacious church therefore is necessitated by this social
condition. Indeed, in whenever art serves a particular function, the form has to be determined by the
function.

DOES ART ALWAYS HAVE TO BE FUNCTIONAL?

 While it has been shown that most arts are functional, still there are some which are not. The
value of a work of art does not depend on function but on the work itself. The plays of
Aeschylus, the poetry of Robert Frost and Edgar Allan Poe are still counted as examples of great
works of art despite their not having a known function. In those whose functions are ascertained
however, it is different story.
 A functional object cannot be claimed to be beautiful unless it can perform its function
sufficiently.
 Adequate performance of function partly determines the beauty of a design in these functional art
forms.
 Despite these however, efficiency cannot be mistaken as beauty. While it certainly determines
beauty in some works of art, an efficient functional object is not necessarily beautiful. Art
demands so much more than mere efficiency.

PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVE ON ART

ART AS AN IMITATION
Plato (2000) in his masterpiece, The Republic, particularly paints a picture of artists as imitators and art
as mere imitation. In his description of the ideal republic, Plato advises against the inclusion of art as a
subject in the curriculum and the banning of artists in the Republic. In Plato’s metaphysics, or view of
reality, the things in this world are only copies of the original, the eternal, and the true entities that can
only be found in the World of Forms. Human beings endeavor to reach the Forms all throughout this
life, starting with formal education in school. From looking at “shadows in the cave,” men slowly crawl
outside to behold the real entities in the world. For example, the chair that one sits on is not real chair. It
is an imperfect copy of the perfect “chair” in the World of Forms. Much is true for “beauty” in this
world. When on ascribes beauty to another person, he refers to an imperfect beauty that participates only
in the Form of Beauty in the World of Forms. Plato was convinced that artist merely reinforce the belief
in copies and discourage men to reach for the real entities in the World of Forms.

Plato was deeply suspicious of arts and artists for two reasons: they appeal to the emotion rather than to
the rational faculty of men and they imitate rather than lead one to reality. Poetry and painting, the art
forms that Plato was particularly concerned with, do not have any place in the ideal state that Socrates
(as the protagonist) in Plato’s dialogue envisions. First, Plato is critical of the effects of art, specifically,
poetry to the people of the ideal state. Poetry rouses emotions and feelings and thus, clouds the
rationality of people. Poetry has a capacity to sway minds without taking into consideration the use of
proper reason. As such, it leads one further away from the cultivation of the intellect which Plato
campaigned for. Likewise, Socrates is worried that art objects represent only the things in this world,
copies themselves of reality. As such, in the dialogue, Socrates claims that art is just an imitation of
imitation. A painting is just an imitation of nature, which is also just an imitation of reality in the World
of Forms. The arts then are to be banished, alongside the practitioners, so that the attitudes and actions
of the members of the Republic will not be corrupted by the influence of the arts. For Plato, art is
dangerous because it provides a petty replacement for the real entities that can only be attained through
reason.

ART AS A REPRESENTATION
Aristotle, Plato’s most important student in philosophy, agreed with his teacher that art is a form of
imitation. However, in contrast to the disgust that his master holds for art. Aristotle considered art as an
aid to philosophy in revealing truth. The kind of imitation that art does is not antithetical to the reaching
of fundamental truths in the world. Talking about tragedies for example. Aristotle (2016) in the Politics
claimed that poetry is a literary representation in general. Akin to other art forms, poetry only admits of
an attempt to represent what things might be. For Aristotle, all kinds of art including poetry, music,
dances, painting, and sculpture do not aim to represent reality as it is. What art endeavors to do is to
provide a vision of what might be or the myriad possibilities in reality. Unlike, Plato who thinks that art
is an imitation of another imitation. Aristotle conceives art as representing possible versions of reality.

In the Aristotelian worldview, art serves two particular purposes. First, art allows for the experience of
pleasure. Experiences that are otherwise repugnant can become entertaining in art. For examples, a
horrible experience can be made an object of humor in a comedy. Second, art also has an ability to be
instructive and teach its audience things about life, thus it is cognitive as well. Greek plays are usually of
this nature.

ART AS DISINTERESTED JUDGMENT

In “Critique of Judgment,” Immanuel Kant considered the judgment of beauty, the cornerstone of art, as
something that can be universal despite its subjectivity. Kant mentioned that judgment of beauty, and
therefore, art, is innately autonomous from specific interests. It is the form of the art that is adjudged by
one who perceives art to be beautiful or more so, sublime. Therefore, even aesthetic judgment for Kant
is a cognitive activity.
Kant recognized that judgment of beauty is subjective. However, Kant advanced the proposition that
even subjective the proposition that event subjective judgments are based on some criterion for the said
judgment. In the process, Kant responds to the age-old question at how and in what sense can a
judgment of beauty which ordinarily is considered to be a subjective feeling, be considered objective or
universal. How is this so? For Kant, when one judges a particular painting as beautiful, one in effect is
saying that the said painting has induced a particular feeling of satisfaction from him and that he expects
the painting to rouse the same feeling from anyone. There is something in the work of art that makes it
capable of inciting the same feeling of pleasure and satisfaction from any perceiver, regardless of his
condition. For Kant, every human being after the perception of the free play of his faculties should
recognize the beauty that is inherent in a work of art. This is a kind of universality that a judgment of
beauty is assumed by Kant to have. And so, when the same person says that something is beautiful, he
does not just believe that the thing is beautiful for him, but in a sense, expects that the same thing should
put everyone in awe.
ART AS A COMMUNICATION OF EMOTION
The author of War and Peace and Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy, provided another perspective on what art
is. In his book, What is Art (2016). Tolstoy defended the production of the sometimes truly extravagant
art like operas despite extreme poverty in the world. For him, art plays a huge role in communication to
its audience’s emotions that the artist previously experienced. Art then serves as a language, a
communication device that articulates feelings and emotions that are otherwise unavailable to the
audience. In the same way that languages communicate information to the other people, art
communicates emotions. In listening to music, in watching an opera, in reading poems, the audience is
at the receiving end of the artist communicating his feelings and emotions.
Tolstoy is fighting for the social dimension of art. As a purveyor of man’s innermost feelings and
thoughts, art is given a unique opportunity to serve as a mechanism for social unity. Art is central to
man’s existence because it makes accessible feelings and emotions of people from the past and present,
from one continent to another. In making these possibly latent feelings and emotions accessible to
anyone in varied time and location, art serves as a mechanism of cohesion for everyone. Thus, even at
present, one can commune with early Cambodians and their struggles by visiting the Angkor Wat or can
definitely feel for the early royalties of different Korean dynasties by watching Korean dramas. Art is
what allows for these possibilities.