ART APPRECIATION:

CREATIVITY, IMAGINATION, AND EXPRESSION

 It takes an artist to make art. One may perceive beauty on a daily basis.

 However, not every beautiful thing that can be seen or experienced may truly be
called a work of art.

 Art is a product of man’s creativity, imagination, and expression.

 Not everyone can be considered an artist, but all are spectators of art.

 We are able to distinguish what is fine and beautiful from what is not and what good
quality is and from poor.

 This gives us a role in the field of art appreciation.

ART APPRECIATION AS A WAY OF LIFE

“The role of art as a creative work is to depict the world in a completely different light
and perspective” – Jean-Paul Sartre
 Each artwork beholds beauty in its own kind, the kind that the artist sees and wants
the viewers to perceive.
 More often than not, people are blind to this beauty and only those who have
developed a fine sense of appreciation can experience and see the art the way the
artist did.
 Hence, refining one’s ability to appreciate arts allows him to deeply understand the
purpose of an artwork and recognize the beauty it possesses.
 In cultivating an appreciation of art, one should also exercise and develop his taste
for things that are fine and beautiful.
 This allows individuals to make intelligent choices and decisions in acquiring
necessities and luxuries, knowing what gives better value for time or money while
taking into consideration the aesthetic and practical value.
 Learning to appreciate art no matter what vocation or profession you have, will lead
to a fuller and more meaningful life.

1. THE ROLE OF CREATIVITY IN ART MAKING

 Creativity requires thinking outside the box.
 In art, creativity is what sets apart one artwork from another.
 When can we say that something is creative?
o When we have not seen anything like it
o When it is out of the ordinary
o When it is not just a copy or imitation of someone’s work
 …THERE IS ORIGINALITY!
 Nowadays, being creative can be quite challenging.
 …Creativity should be backed with careful research on related art to avoid
conflicts…
2. ART AS A PRODUCT OF IMAGINATION, IMAGINATION AS A PRODUCT OF ART

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all

we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world,
and all there ever will be to know and understand.” – Albert Einstein

 Imagination is not constrained by the walls of the norm, but goes beyond that.
 Through imagination, one is able to craft something bold, something new, and
something better in the hopes of creating something that will stimulate change.
 In artist’s mind sits a vast gallery of artworks
 An artwork does not need to be a real thing, but can be something that is
imaginary.
 However, something imaginary does not necessarily mean it cannot be called
art. Artists use their imagination that gives birth to reality through creation.
 Imagination allows endless possibilities.
 In the same way that imagination produces art, art also inspires imagination.
3. ART AS EXPRESSION

“What an artist does to an emotion is not to induce it, but express it. Through
expression, he is able to explore his own emotions and at the same time, create
something beautiful out of them.”
– Robin George Collingwood

 Expressing emotions is different from describing emotions.

 This makes people’s art not a reflection of what is outside or external to them,
but a reflection of their inner selves.
 Description actually destroys the idea of expression, as it classifies the
emotion, making it ordinary and predictable. Expression on the other hand,
individualizes.
 An emotion will remain unknown to a man until he expresses it.
ART EXPRESSIONS
1. VISUAL ARTS
 Creations that fall under this category are those that appeals to the sense of
sight and are mainly visual in nature.
 Artists produce visual arts driven by their desire to reproduce things that they
have seen in the way that they perceived them.
 There are also other artistic disciplines that also involve a visual aspect, such
as performance arts, theater, and applied arts.
 Some mediums of visual arts include paintings, drawings, letterings, printing,
sculpture, digital imaging.
2. FILM
 Film refers to the art of putting together successions of still images in order to
create an illusion of movement.
 Filmmaking focuses on its aesthetic, cultural, and social value and is
considered both an art and an industry.
 Techniques in film-making process:
– Motion-picture camera (also known as movie camera)
– Animation techniques
 – Computer-generated imagery (CGI)
 Filmmaking simulates experiences or creates one that is beyond the scope of
our imagination as it aims to deliver ideas, feelings, or beauty to its viewers.
3. PERFORMANCE ART
 Performance art is a live art and the artist’s medium is mainly the human body
which he or she uses to perform, but also employs other kind of art such as
visual art, props, or sound.
 Elements of performance arts:
o Time
o Where the performance took place
o The performer’s body
o Relationship between the audience and the performer(s)
 The fact that performance art is live makes it intangible, which means it cannot
be bought or traded as a commodity.
4. POETRY PERFORMANCE
 Poetry is an art form where the artist expresses his emotions not by using
paint, charcoal, or camera, but expresses them through words.
 These words are carefully selected to exhibit clarity and beauty and to
stimulate strong emotions of joy, anger, love, and sorrow among others.
 It uses a word’s emotional, musical, and spatial values that go beyond its
literal meaning to narrate emphasize, argue, or convince.
 These words combined with movements, tone, volume, and intensity of the
delivery add to the artistic, value of the poem
5. ARCHITECTURE
 Art is the pursuit and creation of beautiful things while architecture is the
making of beautiful buildings.
 However, not all building are beautiful because some only embody the
functionality they need, but the structure, lines, forms, and colors are not
beautifully expressed.
 Important elements:
o Plan
o Construction
o Design
 Buildings should embody these three important elements if they wish to merit
the title architecture.
6. DANCE
 Dance is series of movements that follows the rhythm of the music
accompaniment.
 Dancing is a creative art form that allows people to freely express themselves.
 IT HAS NO RULES.
 Choreography may seem not to allow this, but in art expression, dancers are
not confined to set steps and rules but are free to create and invent their own
movements as longs as they deem them graceful and beautiful.
7. LITERARY ART
 Artists who practice literary arts use words to express themselves and
communicate emotions to the readers.
 Simply becoming a writer does not make one a literary artist.
  Literary art goes beyond the usual professional, academic, journalistic and
other technical forms of writing.
 It focuses on writing using a unique style, not following a specific format or
norm.
 It may include both fiction and non-fiction such as novels, biographies, and
poems.
o Romeo and Juliet – William Shakespeare
o The Little Prince – Antoine de Saint-Exupery
8. THEATER
 Theater uses live performers to present accounts or imaginary events before a
live audience.
 Theater art performance usually follows follow a script, though they should not
be confused with literary arts.
 Like in filmmaking, theater also considers several elements such as acting,
gesture, lighting, sound effects, musical score, scenery and props.
 Like performance art, theater also is a live performance.
 Genres: drama, musical, tragedy, comedy and improvisation
9. APPLIED ARTS
 Applied arts is incorporating elements of style and design to everyday items
with the aim of increasing their aesthetic value.
 Artists in this field bring beauty, charm, and comfort into many things that
were useful in everyday life.
 Industrial design, interior design, fashion design, graphic design
 FUNCTIONS AND PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ART
Aristotelian “telos”

 Every particular substance in the world has an end , or telos in Greek, which
translates into “purpose”.
 Telos is intricately linked with function: For a thing to reach its purpose, it also has
to fulfill its function.
 The telos and function of a thing are both related to a thing’s identity. What makes a
human being a human being is his capacity for thinking.
 The telos, the function and the “whatness” of a thing are all interconnected.

Functions of art

 When one speaks of function, one is practically talking about the use of the object
whose function is in question.
 An inquiry on the function of art is an inquiry on what art is for.
o What is the Rizal monument for? Why was it erected in Rizal Park or what then
was called Luneta or Bagumbayan? Is it for pure sentimental value? Is it for
aesthetic value? Or does it send a message to those who witness it?
 When it comes to function, different art forms come with distinctive functions. There
is no one-to-one correspondence between an art and its function. Some art forms are
more functional than others.
o The Taj Mahal, a massive mausoleum of white marble built in Agra was
constructed in memory of the favorite wife of the emperor, Shah Jahan.
 On the other hand, jewelry-making as an art is known by its product
 They are considered to be arts where the value of the art in question lies in the
practical benefits one gains from it.

What about the practical function of painting and literature?

 Even if painting and literature are not focusing on the practical benefits, it can never
be the case that they do not have any function.
 Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo
 They go beyond their literary worth. They are functional “in so far as they are
designed to accomplish some definite end” (Dudley et al. 1960)
Classifications of the functions of art
1. Personal functions of art
 The personal functions of art are varied and highly subjective.
 An artist may create an art out of the need for self-expression.
 It can also be mere entertainment for his intended audience.
 An art may also be therapeutic.
2. Social functions of art
 Art is considered to have a social function if and when it addresses a particular
collective interest as opposed to a personal interest.
 Art may convey message of protest, contestation, or whatever message the artist
intends his work to carry.
 Art can also depict social conditions.
  Pictures of poverty; performance art like plays or satires.
3. Physical functions of art
 The physical functions of art are the easiest to spot and understand.
 They are crafted in order to serve some physical purpose.
 Architecture, jewelry-making and even interior design are all forms of arts that
have physical function.
Other functions of art

 Music in its original form was principally functional because it was used for dance
and religion. The ancient world saw music only as an instrument to facilitate worship
and invocation to gods.
 Today, music has expanded its function and coverage. It can be used for self-
expression. It is also used as a wonderful accompaniment to stage plays and motion
pictures.
 Music can mean a multitude of meanings to different people.
 Like music, sculptures have been made by man most particularly for religion from
the early days of humanity.
 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.
o In the University of the Philippines, the iconic statue Oblation by Guillermo E.
Tolentino has remained a pillar of the university and a constant reminder of
the need to offer oneself up selflessly for the country.
 Coins are also manifestations of sculpting’s functions.
o They feature a relief of a famous hero or personality.
 Architecture might be the most prominent functional art form because buildings are
huge, expensive and are not easily constructed and replaced.
o Connection between Function and Form: consideration of the natural conditions
and the social conditions.
o Spanish colonial houses in the Philippine
Does art always have to be functional
 While it has been shown that most arts are functional, still there are some which are
not. The value of a work of art does not depend on function but the work itself.
 Meanwhile, those whose functions are ascertained have a different story. A
functional object cannot be claimed to be beautiful unless it can perform its function
sufficiently.
 Art demands so much more than mere efficiency. Efficiency cannot be mistaken as
beauty
Philosophical perspectives on art
1. Art as an imitation
 Plato’s The Republic
 It paints a picture of artists as imitators and art as mere imitation. In order for
the state to be ideal, Plato advised against the inclusion of art as a subject in
the curriculum and the banning of artists in the Republic.
 He was convinced that artists merely reinforce the belief in copies and
discourage men to reach for the real entities in the World of Forms.
2. Art as a representation
  Aristotle: Art is a form of imitation but it is considered as an aid to philosophy in
revealing the truth.
 The kind of imitation that art does is not antithetical to the reaching of
fundamental truths in the world.
 What art endeavors to do is to provide a vision of what might be or the myriad
possibilities in reality.
 Purposes of Art: (1) art allows for the experience of pleasure and (2) art also has
an ability to be instructive and teach its audience things about life.
3. Art as a disinterested judgment
 Immanuel Kant considered the judgment of beauty, the cornerstone of art, as
something that can be universal despite its subjectivity.
 He recognized that judgment of beauty is subjective but he advanced the
proposition that even subjective judgments are based on some universal criterion
for the said judgment.
 Every human being, after perception and the free play of his faculties, should
recognize the beauty that is inherent in a work of art.
4. Art as a communication of emotion
 Leo Tolstoy defended the production of the sometimes truly extravagant art, like
operas, despite extremely poverty in the world.
 Art serves as a language, a communication device that articulates feelings and
emotions that are otherwise unavailable to the audience.
5. Art as a communication of information
 As a purveyor of man’s innermost feelings and thoughts, art is given a unique
opportunity to serve as a mechanism for social unity.
 Art serves as a mechanism of cohesion for everyone.

EDITED BY:

ALEXIS GEE LAWAT

BSEd 1-5