READING VISUAL

ARTS
WEEK 3
MR. DERICK P. LABUGUEN
 Subjects and Uses of
UNIT 3:

Arts throughout History

 In any form of art, be it a painting, a dance, sculpture, music, or architecture – there is always a
subject that serves as a representation of the artwork.
Subject refers to what an artwork is all about. It is varied because it pertains to anything
such as person, object, scene, or event portrayed in art.
ORAL RECITATION

What is
ICONOGRAPHY?
 ICONOGRAPHY
Is the containment of deeper meanings in simple
representations.

Iconography is a particular type of image used by an artist

to convey a particular meaning. It is the traditional or
conventional images or symbols with a subject and
especially a religious or legendary subject. It may also mean
a particular depiction of a subject in terms of the image
content, like the number of figures used and their placing
and gestures.
 Iconography is being defined by Raymond Drainville in his article “Iconography for the Age of Social
Media as.

Iconography is a method for examining, categorizing, and interpreting imagery. It has been most
thoroughly employed in the investigation of works from both the Italian and Northern Renaissance
(Warburg [1912] 1999; Panofsky [1953] 1971, Panofsky [1955] 1982), but variations of it have been
used in archaeological contexts (Roller 1999) and, arguably, in Hariman and Lucaites’ study of 20th-century
iconic photography. The most well-known formulation of the method comes from the art historian Erwin
Panofsky. He divided it into three parts:
1. pre-iconographic description. The most fundamental step, identifying the components in a picture.
It is “the sphere of practical experience”, augmented by research when elements of the picture are
unfamiliar (Panofsky [1955] 1982, p. 33).

2. Iconographical analysis. Here, one uses the stuff of pre-iconographic description to identify symbolic
elements such as personifications, allegories, symbols, attributes, and emblems inherent in the artifact. It is
necessary to consult materials outside of the picture or sculpture (including books, myths, and standard
representational practices for the subject) to make sense of these elements.

3. Iconological interpretation. This is “iconology turned interpretative” (Panofsky [1955] 1982, p. 31),
wherein one synthesizes the materials collected from the iconographical analysis with knowledge of the
period in which the picture was created. To check the sanity of one’s
interpretation, Panofsky enjoined the iconographer to hew to the “general and essential tendencies of the
human mind” (Panofsky [1955] 1982, p. 39). (Drainville, 2018)
 The most famous paintings of all of Western
art to develop a deeper understanding of how
iconography works: Jan van Eyck’s, Arnolfini
Portrait painted in 1434.

Jan van Eyck, Arnolfini Portrait, 1434,

oil on canvas
Work is in the public domain.
 Each of the objects in van Eyck’s painting has a
specific meaning here beyond imagery. In fact, this
painting may be a painted marriage contract
designed to solidify the agreement between these
two families. It is especially important to remember
that this is not a painting of an actual scene, but an
image constructed to communicate specific things.

1. You notice that the bride holds her

garment in front of her belly in order
to appear pregnant. She wasn’t
pregnant at the time of the painting
but this is a symbolic depiction to
represent that she will become
fruitful.
2. The little dog at her feet is a symbol of
fidelity, and is often seen with portraits of
women paid for by their husbands.

3. The discarded shoes are often a symbol of

the sanctity of marriage.

4. The single candle lit in the daylight (look

at the chandelier) is a symbol of the bridal
candle, a devotional candle that was to burn
all night the first night of the marriage. Other
interpretations claim that the single candle is
a symbol of the presence of God.
5. The chair back has a carving of St. Margaret, the
patron saint of childbirth.
6. The orange on the windowsill and the rich
clothing are symbols of future material wealth (in 1434
oranges were hand carried from India and very expensive) and
fertility.
7. The circular mirror at the back reflects both the
artist and another man, and the artist’s signature
reads, “Jan van Eyck was present”—both are
witnesses to the betrothal in the picture. (We don’t think
of this much anymore, but a promise to marry was a legal contract).
The circular forms around the mirror are tiny
paintings of the Stations of the Cross– moments near
the end of the life of Jesus.
LESSON 3.1 Different
kinds
of Subjects in Art
 1.Narrative Art
This kind of art tells a story as a sequence of events or as a moment in an ongoing
story. This was very evident during the medieval period in the Christian tradition. The
Byzantine artists and the church itself depicted biblical scenes as a narrative.

Figure 11 Diana and Callisto

by Peter Paul
Rubens
 2. Nudism
The art of nudism started way back from the upper Paleolithic
period showing the image of fertility deities. But the idea of nudism
became popular during the early Greek time, wherein almost all their
sculptural figure were all done in the nude.
Nude art is a work of art wherein its primary subject is the
unclothed human body. A nude figure is a tradition in Western Art that
was used to express the ideals of male and female beauty.
In modern art, the subject usually a female figure is not merely
copied from nature, but transformed into an aesthetic object without
significant utilitarian, commercial, or decorative purposes.
The modern and contemporary artists are no longer interested in
the ideals of the past but confront the viewers with all sexuality and
discomfort that is expressed by an unclothed body.
The judgment of whether this work is artistic or pornographic is
ultimately subjective and has changed through history.

Figure 12 Adam and Eve by Albrecht Durer

 3. Religious Art

Religion has utilized the arts for its purposes, usually for
rituals and for teaching. Most of the world’s religions used arts
for worship, for preaching, to inspire feelings of devotion, and
to convert non-believers.
The Christian Church commissioned artists and artisans to
tell Christ’s stories, the angels and the saints in pictures like
murals, paintings, mosaics, and stained-glass windows. Biblical
figures were sculpted, and more architectural structures were
seen in churches, basilicas, convents, mosques, and
monasteries.

Figure 13 Christ of St. John

of the Cross by Salvador Dali
 4. Personification and allegory

Talking about personification means talking about allegory because texts and images which are
considered allegories often contain personifications.
Personification art is attaching human attributes to a non-human object. It occurs when a
thing or abstraction is represented as a person.
Cat with a pearl earring is a painting by Delphimages Photo Mother Nature is a painting by Silpa Saseendran which was
Creations which was uploaded on January 19th, 2018. uploaded on October 31st, 2015.
Allegory in art is when the subject of the artwork or the elements that form the
composition, is used to symbolize a spiritual or moral meaning such as love, life, death,
etc.
Allegorical or symbolic scenes were depicted by the Greco-Roman Gods in the West
who stood for ideals like love, desire, or violence.
Allegory of Painting is a painting by
Francois Boucher which was uploaded on
June 17th, 2013.
 5. Genre
Artists have always shown a deep concern
and interest about life around them. Their
observations of people going about their usual
ways and performing their daily tasks were mostly
shown in their paintings. Examples of these are
candle vendors, cockfighters, children at play, etc.
These are called genre paintings.

Genre refers to works whose subject is

everyday life that is mostly seen in rural life. This is
usually being portrayed by some naturalistic-
realistic painters like Fernando Amorsolo who
loved to paint life in the province.

Figure 16 Pounding Rice by

Vicente Manansala
6. Portraiture

The portrait is a painting of a human figure

maybe the face, a bust figure or a full figure. It may
show a single person or a group of people standing,
sitting, or in motion.

Portraits are commonly used to mark

milestones in people’s lives. Occasions like baptisms,
weddings, and graduations are some of the events
people pose for their portraits.
 7. Nature

Artists have always been fascinated with their natural and physical environment, consisting of
seascapes, landscapes and cityscapes. Seascape is applied to works that show marine life, water forms and
sailing ships and boats. On the other hand, landscape depicts sceneries on land like mountain, forest, trees,
garden, etc. while cityscape shows urban life.
 8. Still Life
Still life refers to any inanimate objects usually arranged in an indoor setting. It is a work whose
forms are arranged deliberately like a basket of fruits, a bunch of flowers, dishes of food on a table,
musical instruments, etc. The goodness of having a still life as a subject is its availability and capability to be
organized. The artists usually arrange the objects to show particular human interests and activities.
 9. Protest Art
It is an art whose subject conveys strong hesitance to something, maybe satirical in nature.
This art as a form of disagreement was used by the artists of the early medieval period in expressing
their discontentment and disapproval against the tyranny of Rome. Early Christian art was done secretly
because the Roman empire was bent at consolidating rules under an emperor.
In the modern days, people fighting for their rights made effigies, placards and streamers to raise their
voice in protest.

Figure 20 Protest Art by Emory Douglas

 10. Fantasy Art

Fantasy art is an art of imagination, since the

subject drawn here are far from reality. It suggests
the strange, the irrational and the absurd. There can
be no limits imposed on an artist’s imagination for it
can go beyond the real and the possible.

Figure 21 Fantasy Art by Nestor

Ossandon
 11. Abstract and Non-Objective Art
Abstract art is just the same as Non-Objective art in the sense that both do not present descriptions,
stories or references to identifiable objects or symbols. They depart from what is present in real life by
stripping down to visual elements such as lines, shapes and colors to translates a particular feeling, emotion
and even concept.
The artist simplifies and reorganizes objects and elements according to his artistic expressions. The
original objects can be rarely identified unless the artist has named them in his title.
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