Contemporary Art

Forms and Practices

from the Regions

MODULE
 LESSON OBJECTIVES
After going through this module, you are expected to:
identify various contemporary art forms found in
Mindanao;
describe various contemporary art forms through
using subject and elements of art through making an
art analysis chart/map; and
show appreciation and awareness to contemporary
art forms from the regions through creating visual
design with own craftsmanship and creativity.
 LESSON 1
Contemporary Art
Forms and Practices
from the Regions
REFLECTION ACTIVITY
Imagine that you are riding a time machine that brings
you back to the past-ten years ago. You look at yourself,
and you notice that have also turned ten years younger!
Now you look around and study your surroundings. You
find yourself in the center of your hometown. What do
you see aside from the people? Walk around and
examine the scenery. Is there a commercial center? a
plaza? Are there houses, schools or churches? What
type of buildings do you see? Are there any monuments
or statues around? Drawings and posters?
You move on, and soon enough, you stop at a store where people are
watching a dance routine in a television program. What kind of music do you
hear from the program? What type of dance movements do you see? What are
the dancers wearing? Try to recall in detail the sights and sounds in your
hometown existing ten years ago. If you do not have a vivid memory of your
hometown, you can interview your parents, guardians, or other residents of
your town about how it was ten years ago. Then, provide answers to the
following:
1. Describe the scenery in your hometown ten years ago. Did it have any
works of art (architecture, visual arts, etc.) What did they look like?
2. Describe the present scenery in your hometown.
3. From what you have envisioned in numbers 1 and 2, make a
conclusion on what has changed and what has remained in the arts in
your hometown?
 CONTEMPORARY ART DEFINED

Contemporary art is the art that

springs out of the present-day events
and passions of the society. It is the
newest form of art, amusing people
from the middle to the late 20th
century up to this very minute.
 CONTEMPORARY ART DEFINED

Authorities in the arts place the emergence of

contemporary art sometime during the start of
postmodernism in the west, around the late 1970s.
This was the time when artists reacted to the
previous art called modernism, whose idea of using
a pure, simplified, and a streamlined form and style
was fundamental in creating something new at that
time. This gave birth to the idea that “less is more.”
 CONTEMPORARY ART VS. MODERN ART

The main distinction between modern art and

contemporary art is the time period in which they have
existed. Modern art emerged in the late 1800s and
continued to grow for more or less a century. It slowly
waned in the middle to late 20th century when
postmodernism came to light. Postmodernism then give
birth to what we know now as contemporary art. This art
exists up to this day, and no one knows when a new
period will arrive to veil contemporary art in its shadow.
The Subject and Elements
of Art
 REALISM
The first style is realism in which
the subject is done the way it
actually looks. An example of this
is the painting of Araceli Dans,
the Bridal White.
 DISTORTION
The artist uses his or her
imagination and alters the subject
according to his or her desire. A
stylized work is a form of distortion
like Norma Belleza’s painting, the
Fiesta.
 ABSTRACTION
The artist breaks a part a subject
and rearranges it in a different
manner. The paintings of the
National Artist Vicente Manansala
belong to this category.
 NON OBJECTIVISM
In here, there is no subject at all-just an
interplay of pure elements, like line,
shape or color, and so on. A good
example of this is the painting of
Roberto Chabet which is on Acrylic
paper.
Elements of Art
 SPACE
• Space in visual arts can be defined as a void, an
emptiness which can either be positive or negative.
• Space refers to the area that is occupied by an object
or a subject, as well as the area surrounding that
object or subject. An illusion of space can still be
created in a two-dimensional surface using
perspective. There are two types of perspective:
atmospheric perspective, which utilizes the
properties of light and air in depicting the illusion of
distance; and linear perspective, which involves the
use of vanishing points and receding hidden lines.
 LINE
• Line is the extension of a point, a short
or long mark drawn or carved on a
surface.
• This refers to a prolongation of a point
or a mark on a surface. Solid lines can
be used in order to define form while
broken lines are typically used to
suggest hidden forms.
 SHAPE AND FORM
• When the ends of a line meet, they form a
shape. It can also be described as a figure
separate from its surrounding area or
background.
• This element refers to an area with boundaries
identified or drawing lines. A shape may be
natural or living forms called an organic shape
and can be irregular or rounded. It may also be
measured forms called geometric shape.
 COLOR
• Probably the most striking art element that
catches the eye is color. It is a sensation created
by visible wavelengths of light caught in a
prism.
• This refers to visual perception that allows a
person to differentiate objects due to the way
various wavelengths of light are reflected. Color
is a very important element because it can
communicate information and emotion to the
viewer. These are the three properties of color:
1. HUE, which refers to the basic or pure color, and is
represented in the color wheel.
2. VALUE, which refers to the lightness and darkness of
color. A light color or tint is the result of adding white to
a hue, while a dark color or shade results from adding
black to a hue.
3. SATURATION, which refers to brightness and dullness of
color. It is also referred to as purity of the color. A bright
color can be produced by adding more pigment to the
same hue, while a dull color can be produced by adding
gray or the color’s complement to the pigment
The color wheel is an arrangement of
primary, secondary and tertiary colors.
It is important tool to identify which
colors can work well if used in a certain
artwork which is the color schemes or
color relationships. These are some of
the color schemes:
 VALUE

In visual arts, value

is the degree of
lightness and
darkness of a color.
 TEXTURE
❑ Texture is the surface of an artwork. A texture can
be actual or tactile, meaning, it can really be felt by
touch, or it can be simulated or illusory, which
mean it can only be seen, not felt.
❑ This element refers to the feel or appearance of a
surface. Person may describe as actual or implied.
Actual texture can be felt tangibly based on the
material that is used for the artwork while implied
texture can be exhibited, for instance, in a painting
of fur of an animal.
 TIME AND MOTION
Movement in the visual arts can either be
an illusion or an actual motion. An illusion
of movement is more common in two-
dimensional artworks. On the other hand,
actual motion is easily seen in kinetic
sculpture that moves with the wind or are
vibrating with the surrounding air.
Philippine Art Forms in Modern
and Contemporary Era in
Various Regions
DANCE
 A performing art that involves
rhythmic body movement within a
given space, choreographed
based on musical beat. Performed
either in front of an audience or by
everyone on a dance floor.
ELEMENTS OF
DANCE
 Examples of
Contemporary
(Folk/Ethnic)
Dance in
Mindanao
 PANGALAY
is a traditional Tausug dance, from Jolo and Tawi-Tawi,
characterized by elaborate body postures and gestures
and the graceful arm and hand movement of the
dancer, amplified by the use of janggay or metal claws.
The dance is performed to the music of the kulintangan,
gandang, agong and gabang. Commonly referred to as
the fingernail dance, Pangalay is usually performed
during weddings and other festive celebrations.
 SINGKIL
originated from the Maranao people who inhabit the
shores of Lake Lanao. It is derived from a story in the
Darangen, the Maranao interpretation of the ancient
Indian epic, the Ramayana. The name of the dance
itself means "to entangle the feet with disturbing objects
such as vines or anything in your path". It is a popular
dance performed during celebrations and other festive
entertainment.
 SINGKIL
Originally only women, particularly royalty, danced the Singkíl,
which serves as either a conscious or unconscious
advertisement to potential suitors. A kulintang and agung
ensemble always accompanies the dance. While often
erroneously referred to by non-Maranaos as a "Muslim dance",
the Singkíl is in fact secular in nature, performed by the Ummah
communities of the Maranao and Maguindanao. Initially, the
dance was performed with just one pair of bamboo poles,
eventually adopting the use of two criss-crossing pairs.
 Costume Used in Singkil
A Maranao costume is mainly
worn in this form of dancing. In
addition, the female lead
dancer wears an elaborate
dress of a princess and holds
“decorated fans” in both
hands, while the male lead
dancer holds either
handkerchiefs in both hands
and in some cases a sword
and a shield.
PAINTING
 Painting is the practice of applying paint,
pigment, color or other medium to a solid
surface (called the "matrix" or
"support").The medium is commonly
applied to the base with a brush, but other
implements, such as knives, sponges, and
airbrushes, can be used.
 In art, the term painting describes both the act and the
result of the action (the final work is called "a painting").
The support for paintings includes such surfaces as walls,
paper, canvas, wood, glass, lacquer, pottery, leaf, copper
and concrete, and the painting may incorporate multiple
other materials, including sand, clay, paper, plaster, gold
leaf, and even whole objects.
Among the famous artist in the field of painting is
Fernando Amorsolo. Below is one of his paintings.
 Fernando Amorsolo (1892-1972) was a dominant figure
in the visual arts of the Philippines during the decades
before the Second World War and into the post-war
period. The ‘Planting Rice with Mayon Volcano, Exhibits
the happiness across from the difficulties in planting rice.
The Filipino Villagers in their bright clothes and straw
hats plant together with a fresh and green landscape of
plenty. Behind the Filipino villagers is the peaceful flume
of steam
QUESTIONS?
 ACTIVITY!
• Create an abstract work using your own hand as the subject. On the
separate A4 size bond paper (utilize the spaces, no border), place your
palm. Make sure that your fingers are spread on the surface of the
paper.
• Carefully, trace the outline of your hand and wrist. Then, slightly move
your hand. Trace the outline of your hand and wrist again. Repeat the
process three more times, letting the succeeding outlines overlap the
first ones. (Tip: Before tracing your hand outline, plan the movement of
your hand first)
• By this time, you will notice that the overlapping lines have created
shapes. Fill these shapes with color of your choice. Apply these colors
creatively. Check and see if all the shapes are filled with color. Notice
how the colors affect each other.
RUBRIC