INTRODUCTION

To explore a subject, we need first to define it. Defining art, however, proves
elusive. You may have heard it said (or even said it yourself) that “it might be art, but
it’s not Art,” which means, “I might not know how to define it, but I know it when I see
it.”

Everywhere we look, we see images designed to command our attention,

including images of desire, images of power, religious images, images meant to recall
memories, and images intended to manipulate our appetites. But are they art?

Some languages do not have a separate word for art. In those cultures,
objects tend to be utilitarian in purpose but often include in their design the intent to
delight, portray a special status, or commemorate an important event or ritual. Thus,
while the objects are not considered art, they do have artistic functions.

SCOPE OF ARTS

1. Visual Arts – art that we perceive through our eyes.

2. Literature – the art of combining spoken or written words and their meanings into forms which
have artistic and emotional appeal.
3. Music – art of arranging sounds in rhythmic succession and generally in combination.
4. Drama and Theater – a drama, or play, is a story re-created by actors on a stage in front of an
audience.
5. Dance – involves the movement of the body and the feet in rhythm.

VISUAL ARTS AND VISUAL ARTIST

The visual arts are art forms that create works that are primarily visual in
nature. Visual artists are simply artists that make work concerned primarily with the
act of looking or seeing. They create an experience that is initially retinal. They are
working with aesthetics.

2 Groups of Visual Arts

1. The Graphic Arts – two-dimensional forms. Graphic art covers a broad range
of visual artistic expression, typically two-dimensional, i.e. produced on a flat
surface. The term usually refers to the arts that rely more on line or tone than
on color, especially drawing and the various forms of engraving; it is sometimes
understood to refer specifically to printmaking processes

Major Forms of Graphic Arts:

a. Painting – this is the process of applying pigment to a surface to

secure effects involving forms and colors.

b. Drawing – the art of representing something by lines made on

surface or the process of portraying an object, scene or forms of
decorative or symbolic meaning through lines, shading and
textures in one or more colors.
 c. Commercial Art – Examples of computer art courses include
digital photography, Web design, animation, video games,
graphic design, sound design, and 3-D computer modeling. this
includes designing of books, advertisements, signs, posters and
other displays to promote sale or acceptance of product, service
or idea.

d. Photography – the art or practice of taking and processing

photographs; drawing with the lights.

2. The Plastic Arts – three-dimensional forms. Plastic arts are art forms which
involve physical manipulation of a plastic medium by molding or modeling
such as sculpture or ceramics.

Major Forms of Plastic Arts:

a. Architecture – is the art of designing and constructing buildings

and other types of structures.

b. Landscape Architecture – is the design of outdoor public areas,

landmarks, and structures to achieve environmental, social-
behavioral, or aesthetic outcomes.

c. Interior Design – the term is used to designate design and

arrangement of architectural interiors for convenience and
beauty.

d. Sculpture – refers to the design and construction of three-

dimensional forms representing natural objects or imaginary
shapes. Four basic
processes: carving, modelling, casting, constructing.

e. Crafts – refers to the designing and making of objects by hand for use
or for pleasure.

f. Industrial Design – refers to design of objects for machine

production. It features fabrication of objects in wood or metal
using a variety of hand, power, or machine tools.

g. Fashion / Dress and Costume Design – covers the design of

wearing apparel of all types.

h. Theater Design – design of setting for dramatic productions.

 THE SUBJECTS OF ART AND THE METHODS OF PRESENTING THEM

The Subjects of Art

What is a subject of art?

The subject of art is the matter to be described or to be portrayed by the artist.
This
may refer to any person, object, scene or event.

Two Kinds of Art as to Subject:

1. Representational Art or Objective Art – They are those arts which depict
(represent) objects that are commonly recognized by most people. They attempt to
copy, even if in a subjective manner, something that's real. It uses “form” and is
concerned with “what” is to be depicted in the artwork.

Examples:
A. Still life is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically
commonplace 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 or Non-objective Art – They are those arts without any
reference to anything outside itself (without representation). It is nonobjective
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.

Basic Methods of Presenting Art Subjects

1. Realism
It often refers to the artistic movement, which began in France in the 1850s. 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”.
 Realism is the attempt to portray the subject as is. The artist main function is to
describe accurately what is observed through the senses. Realists try to be as
objective as possible. Realism, sometimes called naturalism, in the arts is
generally the attempt to represent subject matter truthfully,
without artificiality and avoiding artistic conventions, or implausible, exotic, and
supernatural elements.

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. 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.

Abstraction is it means to move away or separate. Abstract art moves away

from showing things as they really are.
 Forms of Abstraction:

A. Distortion. This is clearly manifested when

the subject is in misshapen condition, or the
regular shape is twisted out. It is a form of
emphasizing detail to the point that
something is no longer “correctly” depicted.

B. Elongation. It refers to that which is being

lengthened, a protraction or an extension.

D. 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. Fauvism
It is derived from the French “les fauves (ley fowvz),” which means “the wild beasts.”
It is an artistic movement of the last part of the 19th century which emphasized
spontaneity and use of extremely bright colors. Most of these artists tried to paint
pictures of comfort, joy, and pleasure. To a fauvist, for example, a tree trunk need not
be brown. It could be bright red, purple or any other color.
Henri Matisse, French artist, was known for his use of color and his fluid, brilliant and
original draughtsmanship. As a draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor, but principally
as a painter, Matisse is one of the best-known artists of the 20th century. He was
initially labeled as a Fauve (wild beast).

4. Dadaism
The term “dada” is a French word, which means a “hobby-horse,” child non-
sense word. Dada was born out of negative reaction to the horrors of World
War I. They tried to provoke and shock the public with outrageous pieces.

5. Surrealism
It is an offshoot or a child of dada. It is also known as “super realism,” which
revolves on the method of making ordinary things look extraordinary. It focuses
on real things found in the imagination or fantasy or it has realistic subjects
that are found in the unconscious mind; depicting dreamlike images of the
inner mind. They claim to create a magical world more beautiful than the real
one though art.
 Surrealistic Techniques:

1. Scale – changing an object’s scale, or

relative size. Example: ordinary small
size of glass to a big extraordinary
size.

2. Levitation – Floating objects that don’t normally

float.
Example: Stone Floating

3. Juxtaposition – Joining two images

together in impossible combinations.
Example: Car running and on top of it is a
horse running with a man riding.
 4. Dislocation – Taking an object form
its usual environment and placing it in
an unfamiliar one.
Example: a face wrapped by a
piece of cloth; an electric burner
inside the car.

5. Transparency – Making objects transparent that

are not transparent.

6. Transformation – Changing objects in unusual way.