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FUNCTIONS OF ART and ITS
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES
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Generally, art serves numerous functions throughout history. It can be

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divided into two: motivated or non-motivated art as discussed below
(adapted from Stecker, 1997)

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● Motivated art or Directly Functional Art refers to the intentional objectives of
the artist in creating a piece of art. At its simplest, it serves an obvious

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purpose, which can bring about changes at the personal or even societal level.

● Examples include those that benefit us because of its utilitarian purposes. It can

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be for the following functions:
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As Communication

● Since most forms of communication are directed towards another individual,

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art as a form of communication is a motivated purpose. From ancient times,
people have used images to communicate. Emotions, moods, and feelings are

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communicated through art. Think of early cave art or Egyptian hieroglyphics -
visual art can explore concepts or ideas without requiring written statements.
Illustrative arts are also a form of art as communication where a decoration, an

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interpretation, illustration, or a visual explanation of a text, concept or process,
is integrated in published media such as posters, flyers, magazines, books,
teaching materials, animations, video games and films.
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As Entertainment

● Art also seeks to bring about a particular emotion or mood for relaxation or

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entertainment purposes. This is often evident in the artworks of Motion Pictures
and video games.

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OTHER
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As Avant-Garde

● Visual images are normally critical of the status quo which can bring about

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political change. Art as avant-garde expresses an unorthodox way of advocating
a social or political revolution, where the avant gardist is viewed as an outsider,

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a rebel or a martyr.

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As a Psychological Healing Tool

● Art therapists, psychotherapists, and clinical psychologists make use of art

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therapy to diagnose a patient, and provide an avenue for therapeutic recovery
aside from the conventional forms of psychiatric therapy, suitable for the patient.

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OTHER
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For Social Inquiry

● Graffiti or street art are graphic and images spray-painted or stenciled on

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publicly viewable walls, buildings, buses, trains, and bridges usually without
permission. While similar to art for political change, this kind of art seeks to

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critic the society without any political reason.

OTHER
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For Propaganda or Commercialism

● Oftentimes, art is used a form of propaganda, which can influence popular

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conceptions or mood or sell a product that also influences mood and emotion.

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OTHER
 SLIDESMANIA
SLIDESMANIA
Generally, art serves numerous functions throughout history. It can be

NOTES

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divided into two: motivated or non-motivated art as discussed below
(adapted from Stecker, 1997)

TO DO
● Non-Motivated art or Indirectly Functional Art are artworks that incorporate
functional objectives but do not serve its utilitarian purpose. Think about the

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thoroughly crafted Ancient Chinese vases that were created for a particular use
but are appreciated not by its use but by its historic or aesthetic value. These are
masterpieces that collectors prefer to keep on the display shelf even it they are

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still capable of performing their original-intended function.
 SLIDESMANIA
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Generally, art serves numerous functions throughout history. It can be

NOTES

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divided into two: motivated or non-motivated art as discussed below
(adapted from Stecker, 1997)

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● In short, non-motivated art are for the following purposes: (1) for internal
appreciation of beauty; (2) as an experience of the mysterious where art

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provides a way to experience one’s self in relation to the universe; (3) as an
expression of the imagination where art provides a range of forms, symbols
and ideas with flexible meanings; and (4) for ritualistic and symbolic

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functions, where art is used as part of one’s culture.
● Other functions of art are categorized according to: Personal function, Social
function, and Physical function. Let us discuss them one by one:
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Personal Function

● Artists indulge in art for personal reasons. For them, it can be a form of

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expression of a whole dimension of one’s personality — their inner or
psychological states of being. Vincent Van Gogh, an artist from the

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Netherlands who suffered from anxiety and was eventually placed in an asylum
in France, was able to create one of his most famous works, “The Starry Night”,
which depicts a reality of the beautiful nighttime view from his hospital room

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coupled with his memory and imagination (Naifeh & Smith, 2011).
Michelangelo’s sculpture of David on the left, which involves nudity or
nakedness, is not intended to cause embarrassment or any uncomfortable tone .
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Personal Function

● Some artists create art because of their passion for their respective art forms.

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As stated in Menoy (2014), Gary Valenciano performs in concerts for free
because of his love for singing and Geleen Eugenio gives free dance instructions

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because of her love for dancing.

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Personal Function

● Other artists create art for economic reasons - literary artworks like the highest-

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selling Harry Potter series in British history earned millions of dollars; music
records of Michael Jackson are also worth millions of dollars; Disney Pixar’s

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Frozen overtook the Lion King and landed on the first spot as the number one
highest-grossing animated Disney film ever produced; and of course, the
Filipino film about Popoy and Basha entitled, A Second Chance, has been

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known as the top-grossing Filipino film up to date.
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Personal Function

● Art of spiritual concern is also a personal function of art. Churches are built

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for religious worship, the pyramids were constructed to entomb the pharaohs,
the mausoleum of Rome served as a cemetery. Any artwork that is of religious

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inspiration and motifs, often intended to uplift the mind to the spiritual is a
personal function of art. Think about the religious relics and figurines of a
typical Filipino home that depict the family’s personal religious beliefs to the

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divine God.
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Personal Function

● Another personal function of art is for social inquiry and intellectual inquiry.

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The former talks about the changes in all aspects of the human existence (i.e.
industrial, scientific, and even political revolutions) that are most of the time

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expressed in art — through writing, documentary films, painting, etc. The
latter deals with questions about the nature of art, its role in the society and
culture. With the development of contemporary art, new forms of art that were

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not seen as art in the past were created (such as film and video art, conceptual
art, and performance art), which also deal with new ideas of the current
generation.
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Personal Function

● And last but not the least, art as personal function is for aesthetic expression.

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Most of us, if not all, are concerned with what is beautiful and pleasing — from
nature to things we found around us, including the objects that we use everyday.

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OTHER
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Social Function

● “No Man is an Island” - a famous saying by a poet named John Donne (1624)

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that tells us that man is in constant interaction with others. Art has a social
function when: it seeks to influence a collective behavior of people (as in Pablo

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Picasso’s Guernica, or advertisements that provide awareness for the consumers
and encourage them to buy through the product’s package design or political
cartoons and caricatures to effect societal changes); if it is made to be seen or

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used in public or social situations (such as the churches for communal worship,
…
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Social Function

● …a drama performed for an audience, novels to arouse social consciousness, or

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sculptures and statues of national heroes and other historical events for the
community to emulate); if it enriches part of the country’s material culture and

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non-material culture passed on from one generation to the next; and if it allows
individuals to interact with each other (such as common appreciation for a
particular music during an occasion, or literatures enjoyed by people of

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different.
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Physical Function
● Many artworks have both physical and aesthetic duties. Bridges are built to

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connect places that are far from each other, transportation are designed with
reasonable ease (i.e., more seaters for a big family), street signs are large or
small according to their function, houses and buildings are constructed to protect

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the occupants. Paintings are to protect the walls and ceilings of some
buildings, while sculptures in Greek and Roman architecture are sometimes used
as columns and pillars of the buildings. Aside from all these, dance serve as the

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best form of exercise, music played in spas to give people a soothing,
therapeutic feeling to relieve stress and a dramatic or a musical play provides
entertainment to its audience.