Subject & Content: Ms. Bianca Nuestro

SUBJECT &
CONTENT
MS. BIANCA NUESTRO
The primary stage of engaging with art is its perception.
Looking at art is much like any instance of taking in
information or stimulus that originates from the world
around us.
In most cases, there are clues that mediate between the
artwork and the viewer , allowing the viewer to more
easily comprehend what he is seeing. These clues are the
three basic components of a work of art: subject, form,
and content.
● Subject- visual focus or the image that may be extracted
from examining the artwork.
● Content- meaning that is communicated by the artist or
the artwork.
● Form- the development and configuration of the artwork.
● In the arts, there are also observable qualities that the
artwork holds that will point to its subject, and sometimes
even to its content.
TYPES OF SUBJECT
● It is relevant to note that
there is a consensus that the
Mona Lisa--whoever she
is--is based on a real person.
● Representational art- have
subjects that refer to objects
or events occurring in the
real world.
Leonardo Da Vinci “Mona Lisa”
TYPES OF SUBJECT
● Non-representational art- does
not make a difference to the real
world, whether it is a person,
place, thing, or even a particular
event. It is stripped down to
visual elements such as shapes,
lines and colors that are
employed to translate a particular
feeling, emotion, and even
Jackson Pollock “Number 1A”
concept.
REPRESENTATIONAL VS. NON-
REPRESENTATIONAL ART
Viewers find a greater degree
of comfort when what they
see registers as something
familiar.
NON-REPRESENTATIONAL &
ABSTRACT ART
● One source of confusion is the
notion that non-representational
art is the same as abstract art.
This is essential to discuss
because it introduces the fact that
representational art and non-
representational art is not a clear-
cut divide; rather, they exist in a
spectrum.
Pablo Picasso “Head of a Woman, Mougins”
NON-REPRESENTATIONAL &
● ABSTRACT
An artwork, depending on the degreeART
of distortion or
abstraction, may be judged as leaning more toward one over
the other. Abstract art is in itself is a departure from reality,
but the extent of that departure determines whether it has
reached the end of the spectrum, which is non-
representationality-- a complete severance from the world.
● A proponent of non-representational art was Russian artist

Vasily Kandinksy.
SOURCES & KINDS OF SUBJECT
● For non-representational art, a higher level of perceptiveness
and insight might be required to fully grasp the feeling,
emotion, or concept behind the work. It is perhaps easier to
infer where the subject matter comes from if the artwork is an
example of representational art.
● However, in discussing the sources and kinds of subject in
artworks, it is important to note that these two are often
inextricably related. Often, a singular source of inspiration can
yield multiple translations. A good starting point is nature.
"...if I felt no love for nature and my work, then I would be unhappy.“
(Van Gogh Museum, 1882)
Vincent Van Gogh “Die Ebene von Auvers”

(Wheat Fields Near Auvers) (1890).
● Landscapes & seascapes: Claude Monet,
Camille Pisarro, Paul Cezanne, and JMW
Turner.
● In the Philippines, National Artists for
Painting, Fernando Amorsolo and Fabian de la
Rosa gained prominence from their painted
rural scenes such as women in the fields
gathering harvest.
SOURCES & KINDS OF
Jan SUBJECT
Van Kessel the Elder
● Greek and Roman mythology were also ripe with
references: from episodes that transport the viewer
to heroic encounters of Achilles and Aeneas;
warnings about man's folly like the vanity of Icarus;
the wit and cunning of Odysseus, etc.
● Another integral aspect of human life is the distinct
relationship with a higher controlling power.
Commissioned by Pope Julius II, the intricate fresco that lines the Sistine
Chapel was created by Michelangelo.
● Unlike in Islam for example, practicing Jews and
Christians were allowed to depict their God and
other important biblical figures.
● The formative years of church architecture can be
traced in the fourth and fifth century, but different
styles and plans were developed since then.
1. Soaring
heights
2. Volume
3. Light
An example of Gothic Church
● In Central India, the kind of art that was produced
was deeply rooted in Vedic texts such as
Upanishads, Puranas, and other important texts like
Sanskrit epics Mahabharata and Ramayana.
● Historically significant events particularly in the

affairs of humanity are abundant references for art
production.
Francisco de Goya, “El Tres de Mayo” (1814)
● History, as a resource for artists in search of subjects, brings into
consideration events that are familiar and sometimes even
common or shared in world context: the establishment of nations
and the resulting ideologies that they breed.
● In the history of art, it is important to remember that the source
and kind of subjects were not merely a product of artist's
inclination and choice. It may be traced in relation to the art
patrons, the favored artistic style and most importantly, the norms
and trends prevailing in the artist’s milieu.
● During the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines, art was
predominantly representational. During the 1st century of their
dominance, art came as an aid for communication--a means of
propagating religion to locals who spoke a different
communication.
● The momentum that secular art later gained in the 19th century
can also be attributed to this contact, with the opening of the Suez
Canal and the growth of export economy in agriculture.

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SUBJECT &

● A proponent of non-representational art was Russian artist

Vincent Van Gogh “Die Ebene von Auvers”

● Historically significant events particularly in the

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