Lesson 3

The Visual Arts

The Visual Arts

The visual arts are art forms that create works that are primarily visual in nature, such as
ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, design, crafts, photography, video, film making and
architecture. These definitions should not be taken too strictly as many artistic disciplines (performing
arts, conceptual art, textile arts) involve aspects of the visual arts as well as arts of other types. Also
included within the visual arts are the applied arts such as industrial design, graphic design, fashion
design, interior design and decorative art.

The current usage of the term “visual arts” includes fine art as well as the applied,
decorative arts and crafts, but this was not always the case. Before the Arts and Crafts Movement in
Britain and elsewhere at the turn of the 20th century, the term ‘artist’ was often restricted to a
person working in the fine arts (such as painting, sculpture, or printmaking) and not the handicraft,
craft, or applied art media. The distinction was emphasized by artists of the Arts and Crafts Movement
who valued vernacular art forms as much as high forms. Art schools made a distinction between the fine
arts and the crafts maintaining that a craftsperson could not be considered a practitioner of art (Grau,
2007).

Visual arts include the following:

1. Fine Arts. The term “fine art” refers to an art form practiced mainly for its aesthetic value
and its beauty rather than its functional value. Fine art is rooted in drawing and design-based
works such as painting, printmaking, and sculpture. It is often contrasted with “applied art”
and “crafts” which are both traditionally seen as utilitarian activities. Other non-design-
based activities regarded as fine arts, include photography and architecture, although the latter
is best understood as an applied art (Severney, 2013).

The area of fine art is constantly being extended to embrace new activities arising
because of their new technology, or artistic invention. The former is exemplified by acrylic
painting, as well as silkscreen printing and giclee prints; the latter by the invention of mixed-
media artworks employing collage, decollage, photomontage, or “found-art”. Because of
this gradual widening process, it is almost impossible to define or fix a meaning for fine art.
2. Contemporary Arts. The visual arts also include a number of modern art forms, such as:
assemblage, collage, mixed-media, conceptual art, installation, happenings and performance art,
along with film-based disciplines such as photography, video art and animation, or any
combination thereof. This group of activities also includes high tech disciplines like computer
graphics and giclee prints.

Another modern visual art, is the new environmental or land art, which also includes
transitory forms like ice/snow sculpture, and graffiti art.

3. Decorative Arts and Crafts. In addition, the general category of visual arts encompasses a
number of decorative art disciplines and crafts, including ceramics and studio pottery, mosaic
art, mobiles, tapestry, glass art (including stained glass), and others.
 4. Other. Wider definitions of visual art sometimes include applied art areas such as graphic
design, fashion design, and interior design. In addition, new types of body art may also fall under
the general heading of visual arts. These include tattoo art, face painting, and body painting.

Philosophical Perspective of Arts

Philosophical perspective points to the nature of art, including such concepts as interpretation,
representation and expression, and form. It is closely related to aesthetics, the philosophical study of
beauty and taste.

Some of these philosophical perspectives are:

1. Art as mimesis (Plato). Mimesis is derived from the Greek word “mimos” meaning to imitate.
Mimesis is a critical and philosophical term that carries a wide range of meanings, which include
imitation, representation, mimicry, imitation, receptivity, nonsensuous similarity, the act of
resembling, the act of expression, and the presentation of the self (Gebauer, 1992).

Mimesis was an idea that governed the creation of works of art, in particular, with
correspondence to the physical world understood as a model for beauty, truth, and the good.
Plato contrasted mimesis, or imitation, with diegesis, or narrative. After Plato, the meaning of
mimesis eventually shifted toward a specifically literary function in ancient Greek society, and its
use has changed and been reinterpreted many time since.

According to Plato, all artistic creation is a form of imitation: that which really exists, in the
“world of ideas” is a type created by God; the concrete things man perceives in his existence
are supernatural representations of this ideal type. Therefore, the painter, the tragedian, and
the musician are imitators of an imitation, twice removed from the truth. Example, God created
a bed; then the carpenter created a bed; the artist in turn, painted the bed in his canvass.
 2. Art as representation (Aristotle). Similar to Plato’s writings about mimesis, Aristotle also
defined mimesis as the perfection, and imitation of nature. Art is not only imitation but also the
use of mathematical ideas and symmetry in the search for the perfect, the timeless, and
contrasting being with becoming. Nature is full of changes, but art can also search for what is
everlasting (Auerbach, 1953).

Aristotle’s Poetics is often referred to as the counterpart to this Platonic conception

of poetry. Poetics is his treatise on the subject of mimesis. Aristotle was not against literature as
such; he stated that human beings are mimetic beings, feeling an urge to create texts art that
reflect and represent reality.

Aristotle thought of drama as being “an imitation of an action” and of tragedy as

“falling from a higher to a lower estate” and so being removed to a less ideal situation in
more tragic circumstances than before. He posited the characters in tragedy as being better
than the average human being, and those of comedy as being worse.

3. Art for Art Sake (Kant). In the minds of late 18 th century and early 19 th century philosophers, the
role of art could be nothing less than to create beauty. The beautiful, for Emmanuel Kant (1724-
1804), is “that which without any concept is recognized as the object of necessary
satisfaction.” In other words, the appropriate stance of the spectator, perceiving “beauty” is
one of indifference. This indifference does not imply, as it would in the contemporary sense
today, that one is uninvolved; it simply means acknowledging that the beauty possessed by the
object is necessary and that the agreement as to the beauty would be universal. In
contradiction, taste is always ordered upon the indifferent, but this indifference is also the key
to the recognition of the universality of beauty. The status of aesthetic judgment is not empirical
but logical, based upon the powers of human reason and rationality, which excludes internal
and external purposiveness or “interest”. Kant introduces purposiveness without a
purpose, allowing the mind of the one who contemplates art freely to an unrestricted play of
the mental faculties (Wilette, 2010).

As Kant wrote in the Critique of Judgment, “For judging of beautiful objects as

such, taste is requisite; but for beautiful art, for the production of such objects genius is
requisite.” In a very famous statement, he asserted that “Genius is the talent (or natural gift)
which gives the rule to art.

The Subject of Art

To a majority of people, the appeal of most works of art lies in the representation of familiar
objects. Their enjoyment of painting, sculpture, and literature comes not from their perception but from
the satisfaction they get out of recognizing the subject or understanding the narrative content.

The subject of art refers to any person, object, scene or event described or represented in a
work of art.

There are two types of subject of art as follows:

 1. Representational or Objective. Representational art or figurative art represents objects or
events in the real world, usually looking easily recognizable. It uses “form” and is
concerned with “what” is to be depicted in the artwork. Example: painting, sculpture, graphic
arts, literature and theater arts.

2. Non-representational or Non-objective. These are those arts without any reference to anything
outside itself (without representation). It is non-objective because it has no recognizable
objects. It is abstract in the sense that it doesn’t represent real objects in our world. It uses
“content” and is concerned with “how” the artwork is depicted.

Sources of Subject Art

1. Primary sources provide first-hand testimony or direct evidence concerning a topic under
investigation. They are created by witnesses or recorders who experienced the events or
conditions being documented. Often these sources are created at the time when the events or
conditions are occurring, but primary sources an also include autobiographies, memoirs, and
oral histories recorded later. Primary sources are characterized by their content, regardless of
whether they are available in original format, in microfilm/microfiche, in digital format, or in
published format.
2. Secondary sources interpret and analyze primary sources. Because they are often written
significantly after events by parties not directly involved but who have special expertise, they
may provide historical context or critical perspectives. Secondary sources routinely include
pictures, quotes or graphics of primary sources. Depending on the subject, newspaper and
journal articles can fall into both categories. For example, Paul Goldberger’s architectural
review of the new Citi Field and Yankee Stadium in New York is a primary source because he is
commenting directly on a current event whereas an article surveying the history of New York
City stadiums would be considered a secondary source. However, years from now, scholars may
look to the survey article as a primary example of key evaluator architectural principles.
Some of these sources of art subject are:
1. Nature – animals, people, landscapes. These three are the most common inspiration and
subject matter for art.

2. History – artists are sensitive to the events taking place in the world around them. The
dress, the houses, the manner of living, the thoughts of a period are necessarily reflected in
the work of the artist.

3. Greek and Roman mythology – these are the gods and goddesses. Its center is on deities
and heroes.
 4. The Judaeo Christian tradition – religion and art, the Bible, the Apocrypha, the rituals of the
church

5. Oriental Sacred Texts – the countries of the orient, especially China, Japan, and India, have
all produced sacred texts of one kind or another, and these inspired various kinds of art.
Most fruitful have been the texts and traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism.

6. Other Works of Art – these are the subjects that can be found in those works that take their
subject directly from other works of art.

Kinds of Subject

Artists usually draw their arts through the different kinds of subject. These include:

1. Still Life – These are groups of inanimate objects arranged in an indoor setting. Example:
flowers and fruits arrangements, dishes, food, pots and pans, musical instruments and music
sheets. The arrangement is that like to show particular human interests and activities. The still
life of Chinese and Japanese painters usually show flowers, fruits and leaves still in their natural
 setting, unplucked from the branches. Today, focus is on the exciting arrangement ad
combinations of the object’s shapes and colors.

2. Landscapes, Seascapes and Cityscapes - Artists have always been fascinated with their physical
environment.
a. Favorite subject of Chinese and Japanese painters
b. Fernando Amorsolo is well-known for having romanticized Philippine landscape.
c. In Europe, the paintings of the pure landscapes without human figures were almost unheard
of until the Renaissance period. They only served as background prior to this Modern
painter seem to be attached to scenes in cities. Vicente Manansala, Arturo Luz, and Mauro
Malang Santos are some local painters who have done cityscapes.
3. Animals – They have been represented by artists from almost every ages and places. In fact, the
earliest known paintings are representation of animals on the walls of caves. The carabao has
been a favourite subject of Filipino artists. The Maranaos have an animal form of sarimanok as
their proudest prestige symbol. Sometimes, animals have been used as symbols in conventional
religious art, example:
a. The dove stands for the Holy Spirit in representation of the Holy Trinity
b. The fish and lam are symbols of Christ
c. The phoenix is the symbol of resurrection
d. The peacock is the symbol of immortality through Christ

4. Portraits – People have always been intrigued by the human face as an index of the
owner’s character. As an instrument of expression, it is capable of showing a variety of moods
and feelings. Portraits are realistic likeness of a person in sculpture, painting, drawing or print
but it need to be a photographic likeness. A great portrait is a product of selective process, the
artist highlighting certain features and de-emphasizing others. It does not have to be beautiful,
but it has to be truthful. Besides the face, other things are worth noticing in portraits are
the subject’s hands, which can be very expressive, his attire and accessories for it reveals much
about the subject’s time.

Statues and busts of leaders and heroes were quite common among the Romans but it
was not until the Renaissance that portrait painting became popular in Europe. Many artists did
self-portraits. Their own faces provided them unlimited opportunities for character study.
5. Figures – The sculptures’ chief subject has traditionally been the human body, nude or
clothed. The body’s form, structure and flexibility offers the artist a big challenge to
depict it in a variety of ways, ranging from the idealistic as in the classical Greek sculptures to
the most abstract.

The grace and ideal proportions of the human form were captured in religious sculpture
by the ancient Greeks. To them, physical beauty was the symbol of moral and spiritual
perfection; thus they portrayed their gods and goddesses as possessing perfect human shapes.

Early Christian and medieval artists seldom represented the nude figures. The figures
used to decorate the walls and entrances of their churches were distorted so as not to call
undue attention and distract people from their spiritual thoughts. But Renaissance artists
reawakened an interest in the nude human figure. A favourite subject among painters is the
female figure in the nude.
6. Everyday Life – Artists have always shown a deep concern about life around them. Many of
them have recorded in paintings their observation of people going about their usual ways and
performing their usual tasks. Genre paintings usually are representations of rice threshers,
cockfighters, candle vendors, street musicians, and children at play.

7. History and Legends - History consists of verifiable facts, legends, of unverifiable ones. Although
many of them are often accepted as true because tradition as held them so far. Insofar as
ancient past is concerned, it is difficult to tell how much of what we know now is history and
how much is legend. History and legend are popular subjects of art.

While many works may not be consciously done historical records, certain information
about history can be pieced from them such as the costumes and accessories, the status
symbols, the kind of dwellings or the means of transportation.

Malakas and Maganda and Mariang Makiling are among the legendary subjects which
have been rendered in painting and sculpture by not a few Filipino artists.
8. Religion and Mythology - Art has been a hand maiden of religion. Most of the world’s
religions have used the arts to aid in worship, to instruct, to inspire feelings of devotion and to
impress and convert non-believers. The Christian church commissioned craftsmen to tell the
stories about Christ and the saints in pictures, usually in mosaic, murals, and stained glass
windows in churches. It also resorted to the presentation of tableaux and plays to preach and to
teach.

The term myth comes from the Greek word “Mythos,” meaning story or legend.
Myth tries to explain the relationships between gods and humans. Although the events in a
myth are usually impossible, they try to send a message that has an important social or religious
meaning.

9. Dreams and Fantasies - Dreams are usually vague and illogical. Artists, especially the surrealists
have tried to depict dreams as well as the grotesque terrors and apprehensions that lurk in the
depths of the subconscious. A dream may be lifelike situation. Therefore, we would not know if
an art is based on a dream unless the artist explicitly mentions it. But if the picture suggests, the
strange, the irrational and the absurd, we can classify it right away as a fantasy or dream
although the artist may not have gotten from the idea of a dream at all but the working of his
imagination. No limits can be imposed on imagination.
Different Levels of Meaning

A subject matter has three different levels of meaning. These are:

1. Factual Meaning – the literal meaning or the narrative content in the work which can be directly
apprehended because the objects presented are easily recognized. Examples: stones, river,
house, etc.

2. Conventional Meaning – refers to the special meaning that a certain object has in a particular
culture or group of people. Example: flag symbol of a nation, cross for Christianity, crescent
moon for Islam.
 3. Subjective Meaning - any personal meaning consciously or unconsciously conveyed by the artist
using a private symbolism which stems from his own association of certain objects, actions or
colors with past experience.

Reference:

Leaño, Roman D. Jr. et. al., (2018). Art Appreciation for College Students. Mindshapers Co., Inc.