ART STUDIES

PRELIM

THE MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OF THE HUMANITIES

The term humanities is derived from the Latin word “humanus” meaning human,
refined, and cultured. The word connotes diverse meanings. To be human is to have or
show qualities like rationality, kindness, and tenderness. It is based on the philosophical
view humanism which stresses the dictum of Protagoras, a Greek philosopher, that
“man is the measure of all things,” implying that the humanities emphasize the dignity
and worthiness of man and recognizes creative expressions.
The term humanities refer to the arts – the visual arts (the art that we perceive
through our eyes) such as architecture, painting and sculpture, music, dance, the
theater or drama, and the literature. They are the branches of learning concerned with
human thought, feelings, and relations. The importance of the human being and his or
her feelings and how these are expressed have always been the concern of the
humanities. On the whole, humanities deal with the nature of human being and realities
of life. It helps develop positive attitude of individuals.
THE MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OF ART
Art is derived from the Latin word “ars” which means ability or skill. In this
sense, art is used in many varied ways. Art, like love, is not easy to define. It covers
those areas of artistic creativity that seek to communicate beauty primarily through the
senses. Art embraces the visual arts, literature, music, and dance.
In a more specialized sense, art applies to such activities that express aesthetic
ideas by the use of skill and imagination on the creation of objects, environment, and
experiences which can be shared with others. In this sense, we can say way are
involved in art work when we plan, design and construct our houses artistically; when
we landscape the garden artistically; when we paint a poster; and when we write
poems, essays, biographies, short stories and plays.
We can also say that we are involved in art when we compose a melody, sing
songs beautifully, and dance gracefully. All these imply that anything accomplished with
great skills is art. Hence, there is the art of dressing, of relaxing, art of cooking and in
almost human activities.

Relationship Between the Arts and the Humanities

The relationship between the arts and the humanities is that they are completely
entwined. Art is symbolic of humanities. Both humanities and arts help us express
ourselves. In humanities, we learn how other people express their cultures and beliefs,
but in art, we learn how people use different methods and styles express their feelings
on paper.
THE NATURE OF ART
 Art is Everywhere. Art is found everywhere. It is very much part of our lives.
We cannot ignore its presence even if we try to. Art exists in all forms of human
society and in every generation because it serves some fundamental needs.
-art in the clothes and accessories we wear, in the design of our furniture
and furnishings, and the likes.
 Art as Expression and Communication. Through arts, we can freely express
ourselves and communicate our emotions with others through some visible signs
and activities. Expression in the arts, however, is not limited to the revelation of
emotions alone. The personal and social values of the artist and his or her
penetrating psychological insights into human reality are also conveyed through
the arts.
-we can use songs when we are happy or sad; we can convey our deep
emotions in poetic language.
 Art as Creation. The “creation” in this sense refers to the act of combining or
re-ordering already existing materials so that a new object is formed. Art is a
planned activity.
 Art and Experience. At least three major kinds of experience are involved in
the artistic activity: (1) an experience which the artist wants to communicate, (2)
the act of creating the art object or form, and (3) the artist’s gratifying
experience of having accomplished something significant.
-a varying combination of sensory, emotional, and intellectual responses is
involved in experiencing art.
-our reaction to art is personal and individual.
 Art and Nature. Art is not nature. A distinction must be made between the two.
The colorful sunset over Manila Bay, the sky full of stars on a summer evening,
the sound of mayas singing in the fields – these are natural things. They are not
works of art. A work of art is man-made, and although it may closely resemble
nature, it can never duplicate nature. Nature has been a constant source of
models for art, and great artists have drawn their subjects from nature, but they
have never tried to make an exact copy of a natural thing.
-we use art to improve on nature.
 Art and Beauty. The desire for beauty and order around us is another basic
human need. Somehow these provide the much-needed comfort and balance to
our lives. We may find beauty in nature, as in the loveliness of a volcano rising
majestically to the skies, or of a slender waterfall that looks like a bridal veil from
a distance.
 -a thing of beauty is one which gives is pleasure when we perceive it. The
delight that we experience is called aesthetic pleasure, “aesthetic” coming
from a Greek word which means “to perceive with the senses.”
-concepts of beauty change as time passes. An artist’s own concept may
change as he or she grows older.
-concepts of beauty vary between cultures, too.

THE SUBJECT OF ART

The subject of art refers to any person, object, scene, or event described or
presented in a work of art. Some arts do not have subject, others do not. The arts that
have subject are called representational or objective arts. Those that do not have
subject are known as non-representational or non-objective arts.
Painting, sculpture, the graphic arts, literature, and the theater arts are generally
classified as representational, although a good deal of paintings, prints, and sculptures
are without subject. Music, architecture, and many of the functional arts are non-
representational. Some musical compositions have subject, though. They are generally
referred to as program music. This kind of music may imitate natural sounds, like
Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Flight of the Bumblebee”; set a mood, like Debussy’s “Claire de
Lune”; or narrate a story, like Dukas’s “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.”
The non-objective arts do not present descriptions, stories, or references to
identifiable objects or symbols. Rather, they appeal directly to the senses primarily
because of the satisfying organization of their sensuous and impressive elements. Most
musical pieces are not imitations of natural sounds, but we enjoy listening to them
because the sounds have been pleasingly arranged and because they evoke certain
emotional responses in us.
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 is the matter to be described or to be portrayed by the artist.
It 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 Art- represents objects or events in the real world, usually
looking easily recognizable. It uses “form” and its concerned with “what” is to be
depicted in the artwork. Example: painting, sculpture, graphic arts, literature and
theater arts.
Examples:
A. Still life is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically
common place objects which may be either natural (food, flowers, plants, rocks, or
shells) or man-made (drinking glasses, books, vases, jewelry, coins, pipes and so on) in
an artificial setting.
B. Portraiture(portrait) is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic
representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant.
C. Landscapes, Seascapes, Cityscapes
2. Non-representational Art- 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.
Some of these sources of art as subject are:
1. Nature- animals, people, landscape. 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 is 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 Aporcrypha, the
rituals of the church.
5. Oriental Sacred Texts- The countries of the orient, especially China, Japan, and
India, have all produced scared texts of one kind or another, and thesed 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
Artist usually draw their arts through the different kinds of subject. These include:
1. Still life- is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically
common place objects which may be either natural (food, flowers, plants, rocks, or
shells) or man-made (drinking glasses, books, vases, jewelry, coins, pipes, and so on)
in an artificial setting.
2. Portraiture (portrait)- is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic
representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant.
3. Landscapes, Seascapes and Cityscapes- Artist 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 pure landscapes without human figures were almost
unheard of until the Renaissance period. They only served as backgrounds prior to this
Modern painter seem to be attracted to scenes in cities. Vincente Manansala, Arturo
Luz, and Mauro Malang Santos are some local painters who have done cityscapes.
4. Animals- They have been represented by artist 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 favorite 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 lamb are symbols of Christ.
c. The phoenix is the symbol of resurrection.
d. The peacock is the symbol of immortality through Christ.
5. Figures- the sculpture’s 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 abstact.
6. Everyday Life- artist 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 the 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 has held
them so far. In so far, 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. Example: 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. 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 life like
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
have not gotten from the idea of a dream although the artist may have not 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. Examples: 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.
FUNCTIONS OF ART
1. Personal Functions of Art (public display or expression) are varied and highly
subjective. This means that its function depend on the person----the artist who created
the art. An artist may create an art out of the need for self-expression. This is the case
for an artist who needs to communicate an idea to his audience.
2. Social Functions of Art (celebration or to affect collective behavior) Art is considered
to have 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. Often, art can also depict social conditions.
Photography, as an art form, delivers this kind of function 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. Moreover, a performance art like plays or satires can also rouse emotions and
rally people toward a particular end. In these and more, the social function of art is
apparent.
3. Physical Functions of Art (utilitarian) are the easiest to spot and understand. 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, and even interior design are all
forms of arts that have physical function.

Other Functions of Arts

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 adjust listen to music for the sake of music’s sake, the ancient
world saw music only as 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, were
simultaneous.
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 status 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 Rizal Park and Andres Bonifacio’s Monumento in Caloocan are
common examples.
Another art form 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
destroy. A lot of investments is put into making mega structures like the pyramids of
Giza, the acropolis, or the great cathedrals of the Middle Ages. One cannot simply
dismiss taking into consideration the function of building before construction.

Methods of Presenting the Art Subjects

In presenting anything, certain methods are employed in order to be effective.
The manner of representing subject matter varies according to the inventiveness and
purpose of each artist. Likewise, the artist uses different methods to express the idea
he or she wants to make clear.
Authorities on art are on in their view that the different methods used by the
artists in presenting the art subjects are: (1) realism, (2) abstraction, (3) symbolism, (4)
fauvism, and (5) Dadaism.
1. Realism. It often refers to the artistic
movement, which began in France in the 1850s.
When things are depicted in the way they would
normally appear in nature, the representation is
realistic. Realists try to be as objective as
possible. Here, the artist’s main function is to
describe as accurately and honestly as possible
what is observed through the senses. The popularity of realism grew with the
introduction of photography - a new visual source that created a desire for
people to produce things that look “objectively real”. Undistorted by personal
bias, realism believed in the ideology of objective reality and revolted against
exaggerated emotionalism. Simply speaking, it is a method of portraying an art
subject according to the objective reality. It depicts what the eyes can see, what
the ear can hear, what the sense faculty may receive.

2. Abstraction. Its etymology is derived from Latin

“abstractus "drawn away," or Latin past participle
“abstrahere:” from ab(s)- "away" + trahere "draw,"
which means "withdrawn or separated from material
objects or practical matters." It is totally the opposite
of realism. Abstract art is art that does not attempt
to represent an accurate depiction of a visual reality
 but instead use shapes, colors, forms and gestural marks to achieve its effect.
Abstract art moves away from showing things as they really are. The picture is
not “realistic.” In abstract art, the artist does not show the subject at all as an
objectively reality, but only his idea, or his feeling about it (exaggerated
emotionalism). It is all about what the artists feel and what mood they might
want to portray. Abstract art is all shapes, no real-life images, scenery, or objects

Abstract subjects can also be represented in many ways like:

a. Distortion. This is clearly manifested when the
subject is in mishappen condition, or the regular
shape is twisted out. It is usually done to dramatize
the shape of a figure or to create an emotional
effect.

b. Elongated. It refers to that which is being lengthened, a

protraction or an extension. El Greco’s elongated body of
Jesus Christ in his “Resurrection” is an example of this.
c. Cubism. It began in the early 1900s when artists such as
Georges Braque (French) and Pablo Picasso (Spanish) began
painting in such a way that was far removed from traditional
art styles. The Cubists tried to create a new way of seeing things in art. Many of
their subjects, be they people or landscapes, were represented as combinations
of basic geometric shapes - sometimes showing multiple viewpoints of a
particular image. Cubist pictures are therefore often described as looking like
pieces of fractured glass.

3. Symbolism. A symbol, in general, is a visible sign of

something invisible such as an idea or a quality. It can be
simply an emblem or sign like % to represent percent, a lion
to represent courage, a lamb to represent meekness. These
well-known symbols arise from conventional usage,
association, and general relationship.

The Spoliarium is an old painting by Juan Luna. Here the method of presentation used by the artist is
symbolism. With the use of heavy and strong brush strokes, Juan Luna expressed his anger over the abuses
and cruelties during that time, being suffered by his countrymen, the Filipinos, from the Spanish authorities.
 The Lion Monument, Lucerne, Switzerland
The “Lion of Lucerne,” famous masterpiece of the early 19 th century, is dedicated to the
memory of the heroic fight and final defeat of the Swiss Guards in 1972 in Paris. The lion,
always considered a symbol of courage and strength, served the artist to demonstrate a
tragic event, a fight to the death. The heart pierced by a lance, the lion still holds its paw
over the shield with the lily coat of arms, emblem of the Bournbon kings.

4. Fauvism. This was the first important art

movement of the 1900s. The fauves did not attempt to
express ethical, philosophical, or psychological themes.
Most of these artists tried to paint pictures of comfort,
joy, and pleasure. They used extremely bright colors.
To a fauve, for example, a tree trunk need not to be
brown. It could be bright red, purple, or any other
colors.

5. Dadaism. A protest movement in the arts was formed in 1916 by a group of artists
and poets in Zurich, Switzerland. The Dadaists reacted to what they believed were
outworn traditions in art, and the evils they saw in society. They tried to shock and
provoke the public with outrageous pieces of writing, poetry recitals, and art
exhibitions. Much dadaic art was playful and highly experimental. The name “dada,” a
French word meaning “hobby horse,” was deliberately chosen because it was
nonsensical. Perhaps the best-known Dadaist was the French artist Marcel Duchamp.
Semiotics is concerned with everything that can be taken as a sign. A sign is everything
which can be taken as significantly substituting for something else. That ‘something
else’ does not necessarily exist exactly at the same time when the sign represent or
replace its position.
Therefore, it refers to as theory of lie, or deception because it can be used for
misleading or deceiving others.
SEMIOTICS PERSPECTIVES
Charles Saunders Peirce (born Sept. 10,
1839, Cambridge, Mass., U.S.—died April 19, 1914,
near Milford, Pa.), American scientist, logician, and
philosopher who is noted for his work on the logic of
relations and on pragmatism as a method of
research.
Charles Sanders Peirce is well-known as a
pioneer of pragmatism doctrine who has provided
 Charles Saunders Peirce

Peirce’s Theory of Sign includes sign, object, and interpretant.

Sign or representatum is synonymous with Saussure’s concept termed as signifier
which means physical signs (explicitly exist), but does not have to be material in nature.
Object refers to something that is represented or exemplified by the sign, which owns
both properties of concrete and abstract in nature.
Interpretant means any meanings conveyed by the represantatum about the object
which was previously unknown, and abstract in nature (implicitly exist) and does not
exist in human perception.

The main principles containing Peirce’s theory are the human mind and sign
boundaries, the three-dimensional system (triadic/trichotomy) and the relativity
regarding the three typologies or taxonomies of signs (icon, index and symbol).
SAUSSURE’S SIGN OF THEORY

Ferdinand de Saussure, (born Nov. 26, 1857, Geneva, Switz.

—died Feb. 22, 1913, Vufflens-le-Château), Swiss linguist
whose ideas on structure in language laid the foundation for
much of the approach to and progress of the linguistic sciences
in the 20th century. He is a linguist scholar who has
developed the basis or groundwork of general linguistic
theory. He is well-known as a founder of modern linguist.
The emergence of the sign theory in the field of linguistics
started when he felt that the theory of linguistic signs
should be placed in a more general basis theory. Inspired
and grounded from that thought, he has proposed the
term ‘semiology’ in a few compilations of lecture notes
taken by his students based on lectures given since 1907
to 1911, which eventually have been published as a book
Ferdinand de Saussure
entitled ‘Course in General Linguistics’. Finally, those works
or masterpieces became a high-impact source of linguistic theory which is known as
structuralism (Grenz, 2001).
The gist and primary focus of Saussure’s theory is the principle that emphasized
language as a system of sign, and besides language there are many other sign systems
that exist in the world of mankind.

However, in his opinion the system of linguistic signs or language is the most
superior sign system compared to other sign systems that exist in the real world
because it plays an important role in constructing reality He focuses on the underlying
system of language (langue) as compared to the use of language (parole or speech).
There are several views or basic concepts underlying Saussure’s theory of sign, namely
the two-dimensional system, the consensus or conventional system , the networking
relationship between signs system and the arbitrary system.
In a nutshell, Saussure’s theory of sign gives more emphasis to internal
structure devoted to cognitive thought process or activity of human minds in structuring
the physical (material) or intangible (abstract) signs of their environments or
surroundings, and among them is the structure of linguistic signs in the language
system that allows them to function as human beings and communicate with each
other. Saussure’s theory is considered as the proponent to the thought that "language
does not reflect reality but rather constructs it" because we do not only use language or
give meaning to anything that exists in the world of reality, but also to anything that
does not exist in it” (Chandler, 2002, p. 28). Saussure’s principle is also known as
structuralism and has given the basic core to the mind of prominent scholars in other
fields, and one of the most important is the approach of structuralism by Levi Strauss.

SAUSSURE’S THEORY OF SIGN

Signifier refers to something that is in a material form (physical), explicitly exist and
can be distinguished by human senses.
Signified denotes to something literally and physically does not exist, which is in
abstract basis.

Roland Gérard Barthes was born on November 12,

1915. He was a French literary theorist, essayist,
philosopher, critic, and semiotician. Barthes's ideas
explored a diverse range of fields and he influenced the
development of many schools of theory,
including structuralism, semiotics, social theory, design
theory, anthropology, and post-structuralism. He was
particularly known for developing and extending the field
of semiotics through the analysis of a variety of sign
systems, mainly derived from Western popular culture.
He was a literary critic whose writings on semiotics, the
formal study of symbols and signs pioneered
by Ferdinand de Saussure, helped establish structuralism
Roland Barthes and the New Criticism as leading intellectual movements.
BARTHES’ ORDER OF SIGNIFICATION
Barthes' term for structural levels of signification, meaning, or representation
in semiotic systems. He adopted the notion from Hjelmslev.
The first order of signification is that of denotation: at this level there is a
sign consisting of a signifier and a signified. At this denotative level, a picture of a rose
signifies the flower. Connotation is a second order of signification (though not
secondary in significance) which uses the denotative sign (signifier and signified) as its
signifier and attaches to it an additional signified. At this connotative level, the same
picture connotes love. Barthes argues that the orders of signification called denotation
and connotation combine to produce ideology in the form of myth—which has
sometimes been described as a third order of signification. Other than for analytical
purposes, it is difficult to sustain any clear distinction between these levels.
 R
E
READING THE IMAGE
A
D

THE BASIC SEMIOTIC PLANE

1. The Visual Elements
2. Choice of medium and technique
Medium enters more and more into the meaning of the work.
Technique goes hand in hand with the nature of the medium
3. Format of the Work
4. Other physical properties and marks
Notations
Traces
Textual features
Marks

THE ICONIC PLANE OR THE IMAGE ITSELF

Particular features
Aspects
Qualities of the image

The image is regarded as an “icon sign,” which means – beyond its narrow
association that is unique sign with a unique, particular, and highly nuanced meaning,
as different from a conventional sign, such as traffic or street sign that has a single
literal meaning agreed upon by social convention.
Presentation of the image
facial expression
body language
costume and accessories
natural or social background
is it friendly?
ironic
aggressive

PART OF ICONIC PLANE

1. Positioning of the figure of figures
poised
relaxed
indifferent
provocative
aloof

2. Psychological insight:
costume
accessories

3. Setting:
natural social
domestic

THE CONTEXTUAL PLANE

Contextual plane includes a broad knowledge of a society’s history and its

economic, political, and cultural conditions, past and present, is called upon the
contextual plane.

The work of art may contain:

references and allusions

direct or indirect
historical figures and events
religions
literary
philosophical ideas
values

THE EVALUATIVE PLANE

Evaluative Plane has something to do with analyzing the values of the work.
After understanding the work is the difficult task of evaluating it.

Evaluation involves:
Form
Content
Intellectual/emotional contents
Medium
Techniques