LESSON 5- SUBJECT AND CONTENT IN ART

SUBJECT- serves as the foundation of the creation of the work of art.

SUBJECT MATTER- is what the work of art depicts or represents

 SUBJECT MATTER is the literal, visible image in a work while CONTENT includes the connotative,
symbolic and suggestive aspects of the image.

 The subject matter is the subject of the artwork, e.g. still life, portrait, landscape, etc. while
content is not subject or things in the work of art but it is the communication of ideas, feelings
and reactions connected with the subject.
 When we look at an artwork its content is what is sensed rather than what can be analyzed. It is
the ultimate reason for creating art.

TWO TYPES OF VISUAL ART ACCORDING TO SUBJECT

1. Representational or figurative art- represent actual objects or subjects from reality.
-Representational or figurative art represents actual objects or subjects from reality. They are based on
images which can be found in the objective world or in the artist’s imagination.

-Sub-categories under representational art include realism, impressionism, idealism and stylization. Painting,
sculpture, graphic arts, literature and theater arts are classified as representational art.

2. Non-representational or non-objective art- does not represent or depict a person, place or thing in a natural world.
-Non-representational or non-objective art does not represent or depict a person, place or thing in a natural
world. Usually, the content of the work is its color, shapes, brushstrokes, size, scale and in some cases its process.
- Music is also mostly non-objective or non-representational some music depicts as subject.
-Architecture is mostly non-objective or non-representational because it does not depict or portray a subject. It is
its own form.

LESSON 6- FUNCTION OF ARTS

 FUNCTION – direct and practical usefulness of the arts.
 Personal, social and physical function can and often overlap in any given piece of art.
-PERSONAL functions of art are the most difficult to explain in any great detail. However they serve as:
Self-expression or gratification
Aesthetic experience
Entertainment

SOCIAL FUNCTION
1. Political art
2. Social conditions
3. Religious services

 PHYSICAL- practical use or utility like architecture, painting or sculpture and crafts.
LESSON 7- MEDIUM AND TECHNIQUE IN THE ARTS
1. Medium
-Refers to the materials which are used by an artist to create works of art to interpret his feelings or thoughts.
-Without a medium, there is no art.
-The distinctive character of the medium determines the way it can be worked on and turned into a work of art.
-For example, Monet’s haystack pictures.

2. Technique
- Artist controls the medium to achieve the desire effect.
-Fulfills the technical requirements of his particular work of art.
-The way he manipulates his medium to express his ideas in the artwork.

Media Used in Painting, Sculpture and Architecture

Common paint media are:
-acrylic paint
-encaustic
-fresco
-gouache
-magna paint
-oil paint
-pastel
-tempera
-watercolor.

3. Sculpture
In sculpture, sculptors use a variety of materials to create their art.
These include the following:
1. Hard Materials
-Most recognizable and most popular form of sculpture has been created with hard materials.
Oldest form of sculpture.
Examples are: Statues, Kinetic Sculptures, and Environmental sculpture.
-Some materials used are concrete, bronze, clay, stone, marble, granite, limestone, alabaster, sandstone, schist,
wood, glass, stainless steel, aluminum, antimony, chrome, etc.
-Some alternative mediums are ice, sand , plastic and found objects.
-These may often by representational, or may be created in abstract form.

2. Sound
-Three dimensional structures produce sounds.
-This art may also be known as a sound installation because the sculptures are regularly installed in art
galleries.
-Artists who are known for their sound sculptures are Alexander Calder, Hugh Davies, and Nigel Helyer.
-This medium that makes this type of sculpture unique is the element of sound.
 3. Light
-It is the unique type of medium because they use a various form of light of lighting to create an aesthetic
effect.
-The medium of light may use fractal manipulations or gaseous form of light-electricity-to produce an image.
-Olafur Eliasson and Dan Flavin- The creator of light sculptures made via fluorescent lights.
-A man-made material is a material that is manufactured through human effort often using natural raw
materials.
-Man-made materials like glass, steel, and concrete cement.

LESSON 8- ORGANIZATION IN THE ARTS

1. Organization
-It refers to the order in a work of art.
-It also refers to the ways element are arranged , combined, and configured to make a whole.
-It must make sense and must be interesting.
Organizational Techniques
Example:
-A work of art is said to be aesthetically pleasing to the eye if the elements within the work are arranged in a
balanced compositional way.
- However, there are artists such as Salvador Dali whose sole aim is to disrupt traditional composition and challenge
the viewers to rethink balance and design elements within artworks.

ELEMENTS OF ART
1. Color- It enhances the appeal of an artwork because it has range.
2. Value- It refers to the brightness or darkness of color.
3.Distance-It is an extent of area along a route measured in a straight line.
4.Space-It is an area around, above and within an object.
5.Perspective-It is the appearance to the eye of objects in respect to their relative distance and positions.
6.Line- This refers to a point moving at an identifiable path.
7. Shape-This refers to two dimensions which are height and width.
8.Form- It is the visual appearance or configuration of an object.
9.Texture-This element renders the art object tactile.
10.Scale-It pertains to the size in relation to what is normal for the figure or object in question.

PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN
1. Rhytm- This is created when an element is repeated creating implied movement
2. Emphasis- It is the focal point of an image or when area or thing stands out the most.
3.Unity- This is achieved when all the elements and principles work together to create a pleasing image.
4. Balance-It refers to the distribution of the visual elements in view of their placement in relation to each other
5.Proportion- It is the size of the components or objects in relation to one another when taken
as a composition or a unit
6. Movement- It is a particular rhythmic flow of object or a mechanism that transmits a definite motion.
7. Pattern-It is a coherent system based on the intended interrelationship of component parts.
8. Contrast- It is used to differentiate between two things to create interest and tension