What is Art?What is Art?1.1. Art is the creativity of man as distinguished Art is the creativity of man as distinguished
from the world of naturefrom the world of nature
2.2. Art distills and preserves human experience – Art distills and preserves human experience – whether it is beautiful or ugly, pleasurable or whether it is beautiful or ugly, pleasurable or painful, even humorous and absurdpainful, even humorous and absurd
What is the Function of Art?What is the Function of Art?1.1. To be pleasing to the eyeTo be pleasing to the eye
2.2. To help us understand our lives by bringing To help us understand our lives by bringing order to the chaos of human experienceorder to the chaos of human experience
3.3. To enrich our lives by clarifying, intensifying To enrich our lives by clarifying, intensifying or otherwise enlarging our experience of lifeor otherwise enlarging our experience of life
4.4. Art is a witness to the nature of the times and Art is a witness to the nature of the times and places that produced itplaces that produced it
a)a) Art is a record describing how things, places and Art is a record describing how things, places and people have really lookedpeople have really looked
b)b) Art purifies and presents the essence of the faith or Art purifies and presents the essence of the faith or philosophy by which people of that time lived, or philosophy by which people of that time lived, or tried to livetried to live
A Mirror of SocietyA Mirror of Society
Example #1: Example #1: The ParthenonThe Parthenon
A work of art that is perfectly A work of art that is perfectly ordered, with no confusion ordered, with no confusion or uglinessor ugliness
Represents harmony and Represents harmony and clarityclarity
Clearly depicts the ancient Clearly depicts the ancient Greek rationality and Greek rationality and celebration of beautycelebration of beauty
Example #2: Example #2: Gothic CathedralsGothic Cathedrals
• Medieval structures that Medieval structures that rose into the heavens rose into the heavens and seemed built of and seemed built of lightlight
• By constructing vaults By constructing vaults to create a space that to create a space that was the symbol of God, was the symbol of God, they represent the Age they represent the Age of Faithof Faith
Elements of ArtElements of Art color color formform lineline shapeshape spacespace texturetexture value.value.
ColorColor How does color How does color
affect the affect the impression that a impression that a work of art makes work of art makes on a viewer?on a viewer?
Sir Isaac Newton used a prism to divide white light into the
spectrum of colors
CompositionCompositionHow the How the different different elements of an elements of an artistic work artistic work relate to one relate to one another to another to create a create a coherent whole coherent whole and produce and produce expressive expressive contentcontent
The Raft of Medusa, The Raft of Medusa, GericaultGericault
LineLine How does How does
compositional line compositional line guide a viewer’s guide a viewer’s eyes around a eyes around a painting, or painting, or communicate communicate information or information or emotional contentemotional content
Function of Art in WartimeFunction of Art in Wartime
Depicting war – Depicting war – pictorial record, pictorial record, how war shapes how war shapes lives (explore the lives (explore the visual and sensory visual and sensory dimensions of war)dimensions of war)
Propaganda – Propaganda – promoting or promoting or glorifying warglorifying war
Protest – depicting Protest – depicting violence and violence and suffering of war, suffering of war, questioning questioning necessity of warnecessity of war