Course Title: Art Appreciation

Course No.: GE 104

Course Description: Art appreciation is a three-unit course that
develops student’s ability to appreciate, analyse, and critic works of art.
Through interdisciplinary and multimodal approaches, this course
equips students with a broad knowledge of the practical, historical,
philosophical, and social relevance of the arts in order to hone student’s
ability to articulate their understanding of the arts. The course also
develops students’ competency in researching and curating art as well as
conceptualizing, mounting, and evaluate art productions. The course
aims to develop students’ genuine appreciation for Philippine arts by
providing them opportunities to explore the diversity and richness and
their rootedness in Filipino culture.

Course Credit: 3 units (54 Hours)

Placement: First Year, First Semester

Pre-requisites: None

INSTITUTIONAL OUTCOMES
1. Graduates can display Christ-like characters in the practice of their
profession, endowed with faithful service for God and humanity.
2. Graduates can demonstrate and share their knowledge, skills and
attitude with expertise and specialization.

3. Graduates have the ability to communicate English language and

language major using simple to complex concepts, such ability to
understand and write reports and documentation and have the ability to
give feedback effectively and efficiently to instruction given.

4. Graduates can conduct research, investigations and designs in a

broad range of context.

5. Graduates have the ability to engage activity in different workplace

with respect to different cultural orientations.

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6. Graduates can understand and practice the highest standard of
ethical, social, professional roles and responsibilities.

7. Graduates have the ability to work harmoniously, effectively and

efficiently as member and leader of the team.

8. Graduates who have the ability to identify and to address their

educational needs by upgrading their skills and competence and to allow
them to contribute to the advancement of knowledge. Has the capacity to
engage self-reflection and lifelong learning.

9. Graduates can appreciate and demonstrate strong to manage and

facilitate in increasing participation and involvement in achieving ASEAN
goal and objective that can accelerate economic, and social growth of the
country.

PAC CORE VALUES

P- Professionalism and A- Accountability C-Committed to

Academic Excellence- We and Integrity – Serve God and
shall perform and As faculty and Mankind – We
staff are held
discharge our duties and shall serve God
responsible in
responsibilities with our professional, with full
professionalism, devotion, personal and commitment and
dedication and excellence; spiritual growth. dedication, as to
in teaching and delivering Serving with serve students,
quality services at all integrity and parents and
times. with strong mankind.
relations to God
Committed to
and with faithful
adherence to the prepare students
word of God. to serve with
excellent
performance and
with distinctive
behavior as they
practice their
profession.

PROGRAM OUTCOMES

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 1. Demonstrate an understanding of the terminology and
conventions of visual expressions.
2. Critically analyse and interpret works of art in terms of form
and content.
3. Communicate knowledge of art practices, meaning, values, and
methods within diverse historical and cultural contexts.
4. Participate in the current discourse of visual arts and culture.

LEVEL OUTCOME
After the semester, the students are expected to create, describe,
and understand the different activities of art. It also helps to develop
critical thinking and the ability to interpret the world around us.

COURSE OUTCOMES:
KNOWLEDGE

1. Demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of arts in

general, including their function, value and historical
significance
2. Define and demonstrate the elements and principles of design
3. Explain and evaluate different theories of art
4. Situate Philippines arts in a global context

SKILLS
1. Analyze and appraise works of art based on aesthetic value,
historical, context, tradition, and social relevance
2. Mount an art exhibit (concept development, production and
postproduction, marketing, documentation, critiquing)
3. Create their own works of art and curate their own production
exhibit
4. Utilize art for self-expression and for promoting advocacies

VALUES
1. Deepen their sensitivity to self, community, and society
2. Discover and deepen their identity through art with respect to
their nationality, culture, and religion
3. Develop an appreciation of the local arts

TABLE OF CONTENTS
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MODULE 1
Chapter 1- What is Art: Introduction and Assumption
Assumptions of Art
(Art is universal; art is cultural; art is not nature; art
involve experience)

Chapter 2- Art Appreciation: Creativity, Imagination and

Expression
Art Appreciation as a Way of Life
The Role of Creativity in Art Making
Art as a Product of Imagination, Imagination as a
Product of Art
Art as an expression
Visual arts
Film
Performance art
Poetry-Performance
Architecture
Dance, Literary Art, Theater
Applied Arts

Chapter 3- Functions and Philosophical Perspectives on Art

Functions of art:
Personal Functions of Art
Social Functions of Art
Physical Functions Art

Philosophical Perspectives on Art:

Art as an Imitation
Art as a Representation
Art as a Disinterested Judgment
Art as a Communication of Emotion

Hi! I’m your Art Appreciation instructor.

Enjoy answering your Module!

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TOPIC

Chapter 1- What Is Art: Introduction and Assumption

A. Why Study Humanities
B. Art is universal
C. Art is not nature
D. Art involves experience

OVERVIEW

This lesson is about this yearning for the beautiful, the

appreciation of the all-consuming beauty around us, and some
preliminary clarifications on assumptions that people normally hold
about art.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:
At the end of the chapter 1, the students will be able to:
1. Understand the role of humanities and arts in man’s attempt at fully
realizing his end;
2. Clarify misconceptions the art;
3. Characterize the assumptions of arts; and
4. Engage better with personal experiences of and in art.

LEARNING CONTENTS AND INFORMATION

What is Art: Introduction and Assumptions

Art is something perennially around us. Some people may deny
having to do with the arts but it is indisputable that life presents us with

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many forms of and opportunities for communion with the arts. A bank
manager choosing what tie to wear together with his shirt and shoes, a
politician shuffling her music track while comfortably seated on her car
looking for her favorite song, a student marveling at the intricate designs
of a medieval cathedral during his field trip, and a market vendor
cheering values that are undeniably, despite tangentially, artistic.

Despite the seemingly overflowing instances of arts around people.

One still finds the need to see more and experience more, whether
consciously or unconsciously. One whose exposure to music is only
limited to one genre finds it lacking not to have been exposed to more.
One, whose idea of a cathedral is limited to the locally available ones,
finds enormous joy in seeing other prototypes in Europe. Plato had the
sharpest foresight when he discussed in the Sympossium that beauty,
the object of any love, truly progresses. As one moves through life, one
locates better, more beautiful objects of desire (Scott, 2000). One can
never be totally content with what is just before him. Human beings are
drawn toward what is good and ultimately, beautiful.

Why Study the Humanities?

The word “art” comes from the ancient Latin, ars which means a
“craft or specialized form of skill, like carpentry or smithying or surgery”
(Collingwood, 1938).

Art in Medieval Latin came to mean

something different. It means “any special
form of book-learning, such as grammar or
logic, magic or astrology” (Collingwood, 1983).
It was only during Renaissance Period that
the word reacquired a meaning that was
inherent in its ancient form of craft. Early
Renaissance artists saw their activities merely
as craftsmanship, devoid of a whole lot of
intonations that are attached to the word
now.

“The humanities constitute one of the oldest and most important

means of expression developed by man” (Dudley et al., 1960). Human
history has witnessed how man evolved not just physically but also

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culturally, from cave painters to men of exquisite paintbrush users of the
present. Even if one goes back to the time before written records of man’s
civilization has appeared, he can find cases of man’s attempts of not just
crafting tools to live and survive but also expressing his feelings and
thoughts. The Galloping Wild Boar found in the cave of Altamira, Spain
is one such example. In 1879, a Spaniard and his daughter were
exploring a cave when they saw pictures of a wild boar, hind, and bison.
According to experts, these paintings were purported to belong to Upper
Paleolithic Age, several thousands of years before the current era. Pre-
historic men, with their crude instruments, already showcased and
manifested earliest attempts at recording man’s innermost interests,
preoccupations, and thoughts. The humanities, then, ironically, have started
even before the term has been coined. Human persons have long been
exercising what it means to be a human long before he was even aware of his
being one. The humanities stand tall in bearing witness to this magnificent
phenomenon. Any human person, then, is tasked to participate, if not, totally
partake in this long tradition of humanizing himself.

Art is Universal
Literature has provided key works of art. Among the most popular ones
being taught in school are the two Greek epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey. The
Sanskrit pieces Mahabharata and Ramayana are also staples in this field.
These works, purportedly written before the beginning of recorded history, are
believed to be man’s attempt at recording stories and tales that have been
passed on, known, and sung throughout the years. Art has always been
timeless and universal, spanning generations and continents through and
through.

In every country and in every generation, there is always art. Oftentimes,

people feel that what is considered artistic are only those which have been
made long time ago. This is a misconception. Age is not a factor in determining
art. An “...art is not good because it is old, but old because it is good” (Dudley et
al., 1960). In the Philippines, the works of Jose Rizal and Francisco Balagtas
are not being read because they are old. Otherwise, works of other Filipinos
who have long died would have been required in junior high school too. The
pieces mentioned are read in school and have remained to be with us because
they are good. They are liked and adored because they meet our needs and
desires. Florante at Laura never fails to teach high school students the beauty
of love, one that is universal and pure. Ibong Adarna, another Filipino
masterpiece, has always captured the imagination of the young with its timeless

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lessons. When we recite the Psalms, we feel in communion with King David as
we feel one with him in his conversation with God. When we listen to a
kundiman or perform folk dances, we still enjoy the way our Filipino ancestors
whiled away their time in the past. We do not necessarily like a kundiman for
its original meaning. We just like it. We enjoy it. Or just as one of the characters
in the movie Bar Boys thought, kundiman makes one concentrate better.

The first assumption then about the humanities is that art has been
crafted by all people regardless of origin, time, place, and that it stayed on
because it is liked and enjoyed by people continuously. A great piece of work
will never be obsolete. Some people say that art is art for its intrinsic worth. In
John Stuart Mill’s Utilitarianism (1879), enjoyment in the arts belongs to a
higher good, one that lies at the opposite end of base pleasures. Art will always
be present because human beings will always express themselves and delight
in these expressions. Men will continue to use art while art persists and never
gets depleted.

Art is not nature

In the Philippines, it is not entirely novel to hear some consumers of local
movies remark that these movies produced locally are unrealistic. They contend
that local movies work around certain formula to the detriment of substance
and faithfulness to reality of the movies. These critical minds argue that a good
movie must reflect reality as closely as possible. Is that so?
Paul Cezanne, a French painter, painted a scene from reality entitled
Well and Grinding Wheel in the Forest of the Chateau Noir. The said scene is
inspired by a real scene in a forest around the Chateau Noir area near Aix in
Cezanne's native Provence. Comparing the two, one can see that Cezanne’s
landscape is quite different from the original scene. Cezanne has changed some
patterns and details from the way they were actually in the photograph. What
he did is not nature. It is art.

One important characteristic of art is that it is not nature. Art is man’s

expression of his reception of nature. Art is man’s way of interpreting nature.
Art is not nature. Art is made by man, whereas nature is a given around us. It
is in this juncture that they can be considered opposites. What we find in
nature should not be expected to be present in art too. Movies are not meant to
be direct representation of reality. They may, according to the moviemaker’s
perception of reality, be a reinterpretation or even distortion of nature.

This distinction assumes that all of us see nature, perceive its elements
in myriad, different, yet ultimately valid ways. One can only imagine the story of
the five blind men who one day argue against each other on what an elephant
looks like. Each of the five blind men was holding a different part of the

8
elephant The first was touching the body and thus, thought the elephant was
like a wall. Another was touching the beast’s ear and was convinced that the
elephant was like a fan. The rest were touching other different parts of the
elephant and concluded differently based on their perceptions. Art is like each
of these men’s view of the elephant. It is based on an individual’s subjective
experience of nature. It is not meant, after all, to accurately define what the
elephant is really like in nature. Artists are not expected to duplicate nature just
as even scientists with their elaborate laboratories cannot make nature.

Art Involves experience

Art is just experience. By experience, we mean the “actual doing of
something” (Dudley et al., 1960). When one says that he has an
experience of something, he often means that he knows what that
something is about. When one claims that he has an experienced falling
in love, getting hurt, and bouncing back, he in effect claims that he
knows the (sometimes) endless cycle of loving. Art is always an
experience. Unlike fields of knowledge that involved data, art is known by
experiencing. A painter cannot claim know how to paint if he has not
tried holding a brush. A sculptor cannot produce a work of art if a chisel
is foreign to him. Dudley et al. (1960) affirmed that “all art depends on
experience, and if one is to know art, he must know it not as fact or
information but as experience.”

A work of art then cannot be abstracted from actual doing. In order

to know what an artwork is, we have to sense it, see or hear it, and see
AND hear it. To fully appreciate our national hero's monument, one must
go to Rizal Park and see the actual sculpture. In order to know Beyonce’s
music, one must listen to it to actually experience them. A famous story
about someone who adores Picasso goes something like this: “Years ago,
Gertrude Stein was asked why she bought the pictures of the then
unknown artist Picasso. ‘I like to look at them,’ said Miss Stein” (Dudley
et al., 1960). At the end of the day, one fully gets acquainted with art if
one immerses himself into it. In the case of Picasso, one only learns
about Picasso’s work by looking at it. That is precisely what Miss Stein
did.

LEARNING ACTIVITY

In the first column of the table below, list down your most striking
encounters with arts. On the second column, explain why you think each
encounter is an experience with art.

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My Encounters with Arts Why?

ASSESSMENT
Let’s Work On This

Answer the following questions as precisely yet as thoroughly as

possible

1. If you were an artist, what kind of artist would you be?

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________

2. Why is art not nature?

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

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 3. Why is art ageless and timeless?

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

4. Why does art involve experience?

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________

5. Why we should study Humanities?

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

Let’s Make It Happen

Choose one artwork under each given category that you are
familiar with. This can be the last artwork that you have come across
with or the one that made the most impact to you. Criticize each using
guide questions provided.

Categories:

1. Movie
2. Novel
3. Poem
4. Music
5. An architectural structure
6. A piece of clothing

Category: ____________________________________

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Artwork: _____________________________________

1. What is it about? What is it for?

2. What is it made of?

3. What is its style?

4. How good is it?

TOPICS

Chapter 2- Art Appreciation: Creativity, Imagination and Expression

Art Appreciation as a Way of Life
The Role of Creativity in Art Making
Art as a Product of Imagination, Imagination as a
Product of Art
Art as an expression
Visual arts
Film
Performance art
Poetry-Performance
Architecture
Dance, Literary Art, Theater
Applied Arts

This Chapter of module was designed to know that art is a product of

man’s creativity, imagination, and expression. It gives us a role in the
field of art appreciation.

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OVERVIEW

LEARNING OUTCOMES:
At the end of the chapter 2, the students will be able to:
1. Differentiate art from nature;
2. Characterize artistic expression based on personal experiences with
art;
3. Discuss the nature of art’s preliminary expression; and
4. Categorize works of art by citing personal experiences.

LEARNING CONTENTS AND INFORMATION

Art Appreciation as Way of Life

Jean-Paul Sartre, a famous French philosopher of the twentieth
century, described the role of art as a creative work that depicts the
world in a completely different light and perspective, and the source is
due to human freedom (Greene, 1995). Each artwork beholds beauty of
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 ca experience and
see the art the same way the artist did. Because of this, numerous
artworks go unnoticed, artists are not given enough credit, and they miss
opportunities. It sometimes takes a lifetime before their contribution to
the development of art is recognized. Hence, refining one’s ability to
appreciate art 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 (Collins & Riley, 1931). This continuous demand
for aesthetically valuable things influences the development and evolution of art
and its forms.
Frequenting museums, art galleries, performing arts theaters, concert halls, or
even malls that display art exhibitions that are free in admission during leisure
time will not only develop an understanding of the art, but will also serve as a
rewarding experience. Learning to appreciate art, no matter what vocation or

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profession you have, will lead to a fuller and more meaningful life (Collins &
Riley, 1931).

The Role of Creativity in Art Making

Creativity requires thinking outside the box. It is often used to solve

problems that have never occurred before, conflate function and style, and
simply make life a more unique and enjoyable experience. In art, creativity is
what sets apart one artwork from another. We say something is done creatively
when we have not yet seen anything like it or when it is out of the ordinary. A
creative artist does not simply copy or imitate another artist’s work. He does not
imitate the lines, flaws, colors, and patterns in recreating nature. He embraces
originality, puts his own flavor into his work, and calls it his own creative piece.
Yet, being creative nowadays can be quite challenging. What you thought was
your own unique and creative idea may not what it seems to be after extensive
research and that someone else has coincidentally devised before the idea in
another part of the world. For instance, the campaign ad "It’s More Fun in the
Philippines’’ used by the Department of Tourism (DOT) boomed popularity in
2011, but later on it was found out that it was allegedly plagiarized from
Switzerland’s tourism slogan “It’s More Fun in Switzerland,” back in 1951. In
DOT’s defense, former DOT Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr. claimed that it was
“purely coincidental.” Thus, creativity should be backed with careful research
on related art to avoid such conflicts.

Art as a Product of Imagination, Imagination as a Product

of Art
Where do you think famous writers, painters, and musicians get
their ideas? Where do ideas in making creative solutions begin? It all
starts in the human mind. It all begins with imagination.
German physicist Albert Einstein who had made significant and major
contributions in science and humanity demonstrated that knowledge is
actually derived from imagination. He emphasized this idea through his
words:

“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.”

Imagination is not constrained by the walls of the norm, but goes

beyond that. That is why people rely on curiosity and imagination for
advancement. Through imagination, one is able to craft something bold,
something new, and something better in the hopes of creating something
that will stimulate change. Imagination allows endless possibilities.

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 In an 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
(Collingwood, 1938). Take for example a musician who thinks of a tune
in his head. The making of this tune in his head makes it an imaginary
tune, an imaginative creation, an imaginary art (Collingwood, 1938). It
remains imaginary until he hums, sings, or writes down the notes of the
tune on paper. However, something imaginary does not necessarily mean
it cannot be called art. Artists use their imagination that gives birth to
reality through creation.

In the same way that imagination produces art, art also inspires
imagination. Imagine being in an empty room surrounded by blank,
white walls, and floor. Would you be inspired to work in such a place?
Often, you will find coffee shops, restaurants, and libraries with
paintings hung or sculptures and other pieces of art placed around the
room to add beauty to the surroundings. This craving and desire to be
surrounded by beautiful things dates back to our early ancestor. Cave
walls are surrounded by drawings and paintings of animals they hunted:
wild boars, reindeers, and bison. Clay were molded and stones were
carved into forms that resemble men and women: burial jars were
created with intricate designs on them. These creative pieces were made
not only because they were functional to men, but also because beauty
gave them joy ( Collins & Riley, !931).

Art as Expression
Robin George Collingwood, an English philosopher who is best
known for his work in aesthetics, explicated in his publication The
Principles of Art (1938) that 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. Collingwood further illustrated that expressing emotions is
something different from describing emotions. In his example, explicitly
saying “I am angry” is not an expression of an emotion, but a mere
description. There is no need in relating or referring to a specific emotion,
such as anger, in expressing one’s emotion. Description actually destroys
the idea of expression, as it classifies the emotion, making it ordinary
and predictable. Expression, on the other hand, individualizes. An artist
has the freedom to express himself the way he wants to. Hence, there is
no specific technique in expression. This makes people’s art not a
reflection of what is outside or external to them, but a reflection of their
inner selves.

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Visual Arts
Creation that fall under
this category are those that
appeal to the sense of sight
and are merely visual in
nature. Visual arts is the
kind of art form that the
population is most likely
more exposed to, but its
variations are so diverse-they
range from sculptures that
you see in art galleries to the
last movie you saw.

Sometimes mediums of
visual arts include paintings, drawings, letterings, printing, sculptures,
digital imaging, and more.

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 as both an art and
an industry.

Performance Art
Performance art is a live art
and that artist 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. It usually consists of four
important elements: time, where the
performance took place, the
performer’s or performer’s body, and
a relationship between the audience
and the performer(s) (Moma Learning,
n.d.) The fact that performance art is
live makes it intangible, which means

16
it cannot be bought or traded as a commodity, unlike the previously
discussed art expressions.

Poetry Performance
Poetry is an art form from 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, sorrow, and the list
goes on. 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. Some poets even make
poems out of their emotions picked up from other works of art, which in
turn produce another work of art through poetry.

Architecture
As discussed, art is the pursuit and creation of beautiful things
while architecture is the making of beautiful buildings. However, not all
buildings are beautiful. Some buildings only embody the functionality
they need, but the structure, lines, forms, and colors are not beautifully
expressed. Thus, not all buildings can be considered architecture.

The Grand Theatre de Bordeaux

Dance
Dance is a series of movements
that follows the rhythm of the music
accompaniment. It has been an age-
old debate whether dance can really
be considered an art form, but here
we primarily describe dance as a
form of expression. Dancing is
creative form that allows people to
freely express themselves. It has no

17
rules but are free to create and invent their own movement as long as
they deem graceful and beautiful.

Literary Art
Artist who practice arts use
words- not paint, musical
instruments, or chisel- to express
themselves and communicate
emotions to the readers. However,
simply becoming a writer does not
make one a literary artist. Simply
constructing a succession of
sentences in a meaningful manner is
not literary art. 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 specific format or norm. It
may include both fiction and non-
fiction such as novels, biographies,
and poems. Examples of famous William Shakespeare
literary artist and their works
include The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery and Romeo and
Juliet by William Shakespeare.

Theater
Theater uses live performers to present
accounts or imaginary events before a live
audience. Theater art performances usually
follow a script, though they should not be
confused with literary arts. Much like in
filmmaking, theater also considers several
elements such as acting, gesture, lightning,
sound effects, musical score, scenery, and
props. Some genres of theater include drama,
musical, tragedy, comedy, and improvisation.

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Applied Arts
Applied arts is incorporating elements of style and design to
everyday items with the aim of increasing their aesthetical value. Artist
in this field bring beauty, charm, and comfort into many things that are
useful in everyday life (Collins & Riley, 1931). Industrial design, interior
design, fashion design, and graphic design are considered applied arts.
Applied is often compared to fine arts, where the latter is chiefly
concerned on aesthetic value. Trough exploration and expression of
ideas, consideration of the needs, and careful choice of materials and
techniques, artists are able to combine functionality and style.

LEARNING ACTIVITY

Let’s Get Started

In one of your encounters with art through museum visits,

musicals, and plays, among others, have you ever felt disconnected from
an artwork? Was there a point in time when you did not understand
what message the art was trying to convey? If yes, write the name of the
artwork in the box and attach an image of an artwork, if possible.
Explain why you think you did or did not understand the art using the
space provided on the next page.

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 PICTURE

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________

ASSESSMENT
Let’s Work on This

Answer the following questions as precisely yet as thoroughly as

possible.

1. What art field will you explore? Why?

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 2. How can you utilize the arts to express yourself, your
community, and your relation to others?

Let’s Make It Happen

Using the table below, write down examples of the different forms
studied in this lesson. Provide ways on how these art forms express and
unmask creativity from the artist.

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 Types of Example How Does This How Does This
Expression Express? Unmask the
Artist’s Creativity

TOPICS

Chapter 3- Functions and Philosophical Perspectives on Art

Functions of art:
Personal Functions of Art
Social Functions of Art
Physical Functions Art

Philosophical Perspectives on Art:

Art as an Imitation
Art as a Representation

22
 Art as a Disinterested Judgment
Art as a Communication of Emotion

OVERVIEW

This Chapter of module was designed to distinguish the functions of Art

in the society and to criticize on its Philosophical Perspective.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:
At the end of the chapter 2, the students will be able to:
1. distinguish between directly functional and indirectly functional art;
2. explain and discuss the basic philosophical perspectives on the art;
3.realize the function of some art forms in daily life; and
4. apply concepts and theories on beauty and aesthetics in real life
scenarios.

LEARNING CONTENTS AND INFORMATION

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. Alternatively, the answer
to the question “what is it for” is the function of whatever “it” in the
question refers to. Suppose one asks, 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 its aesthetic
value? Or does it send a message to those who witness it? In this string
of questions, the inquirer is hoping to get the function of the piece of art
in Rizal Park.

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.
Architecture, for example, as an art is highly functional just like most
applied arts. A building as a work of art is obviously made for a specific
purpose. The Taj Mahal, a massive mausoleum of white marble built in
Agra was constructed in memory of the favorite wife of the then emperor,
Shah Jahan. On the other hand, jewelry-making as an art is known by
its product. The name of the art in these applied arts is basically denoted

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by its specified function. In this and other such functional arts,
“...function is so important that it has usurped the name of the art on
the identification of individual works” (Dudley et al., 1960). Other
examples are paintings, poems, and statues. The name of the art
basically points toward the direction of the product or its function.

Roughly and broadly, the functions of art are classified into three:
personal (public display or expression), social (celebration or to affect
collective behavior), and physical (utilitarian). Let us try to understand
each of these three.

Personal Functions of Art

The personal functions of art are varied and highly subjective. This
means that its functions depend on the person—the artist who created
the art. An artist may create an art out of the need for self-expression.
This Is the case for an artist who needs to | communicate an idea to his
audience, kit can also be mere entertainment * for his intended
audience. Often, the •rtlst may not even intend to mean anything with
his work.

An art may also be therapeutic. In some orphanages and home for

abandoned aiders, art is used to help residents process their emotions or
while away their time. Recently, the use of adult coloring books to de-
stress has been apparent too, now with a lot of designs being sold in
bookstores nationwide. These all fall under personal functions of art.

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. Political
art is a very common example of an art with a social (unction. Art may
convey massage of protest, contestation, or whatever message the artist
intends his work to carry. Often, art can also depict social conditions.
Photography, as an art form, delivers this kind of function by taking photos of
subjects in conditions that people do not normally take a look at or give
attention to. Pictures of poverty may carry emotional overtones that may solicit
action or awareness from their audience. Moreover, performance art like pfays
or satires can also rouse emotions and rally people toward a particular end. In
these and more, the social function of art is apparent.

Physical Functions of Art

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 The physical functions of art are the easiest to spot and understand. The
physical functions of art can be found in artworks that are crafted in order to
serve some physical purpose. A Japanese raku bowl that serves a physical
function in a tea ceremony is an example. Architecture, jewelry- making, and
even interior design are all forms of arts that have physical function.

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
on the work itself. The plays of Aeschylus and the poetry of Robert Frost and
Edgar Allan Poe are still counted as examples of great works of art despite their
not having a known function. In those whose functions are ascertained,
however, it is a different story. A functional object cannot be claimed to be
beautiful unless it can perform its function sufficiently. Consider a house that
cannot even protect its resident from the nasty weather outside or a spoon that
spills the food on it. Adequate performance of function partly determines the
beauty of a design in these functional art forms.

Despite these, efficiency cannot be mistaken as beauty. While it certainly

determines beauty in some works of art, an efficient functional object is not
necessarily beautiful. Art demands so much more than mere efficiency. What
then really comprises beauty and art? What makes something truly beautiful?
What really makes a work of art? What really is art? The next section attempts
to provide different perspectives on the nature of art.

Philosophical Perspectives on Art

Art as an Imitation
Plato (2000) in his masterpiece, The Republic, particularly paints a
picture of artists as imitators and art as mere imitation. In his
description of the ideal republic, Plato advises against the inclusion of art
as a subject in the curriculum and the banning °f artists in the Republic.
In Plato’s metaphysics or view of reality, the things in this world are only
copies of the original, the eternal, and the true entities that °an only be
found in the World of Forms. Human beings endeavor to reach the Forms
all throughout this life, starting with formal education in school. From
looking at “shadows in the cave,” men slowly crawl outside to behold the real

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entities in the world. For example, the chair that one sits on is not a real chair.
It is an imperfect copy of the perfect “chair “in a World of Forms. Much is true
for “beauty” in this world. When one ascribes beauty to another person, he
refers to an imperfect beauty that participates only in the form of beauty in the
World of Forms. Plato was convinced that artist merely reinforce the belief in
copies and discourage men to reach for the real entities in the World of Forms.

Plato was deeply suspicious of arts and artists for two reasons:
they, appeal to the emotion rather than to the rational faculty of men and
they imitate rather than lead one to reality. Poetry and painting, the art
forms that Plato was particularly concerned with, do not have any place
in the ideal state that Socrates (as the protagonist) in Plato’s dialogue
envisions. First, Plato is critical of the effects of art, specifically, poetry to
the people of the ideal state. Poetry rouses emotions and feelings and
thus, clouds the rationality of people. Poetry has a capacity to sway
minds without taking into consideration the use of proper reason. As
such, it leads one further away from the cultivation of the intellect that
Plato campaigned for. Likewise, Socrates is worried that art objects
represent only the things in this world, copies themselves of reality. As
such, in the dialogue, Socrates claimed that art is just an imitation of
imitation. A painting is just an imitation of nature, which is also just an
imitation of reality in the World of Forms.
The arts then are to be banished, alongside the practitioners, so that the
attitudes and actions of the members of the Republic will not be corrupted by
the influence of the arts. For Plato, art is dangerous because it provides a petty
replacement for the real entities that can only be attained through reason.
Art as a Representation
Aristotle, Plato’s most important student in philosophy, agreed with his
teacher that art is a form of imitation. However, in contrast to the disgust
that his master holds for art, Aristotle considered art as an aid to
philosophy in revealing truth. The kind of imitation that art does is not
antithetical to the reaching of fundamental truths in the world. Talking
about tragedies, for example, Aristotle (1902) in the Poetics claimed that
poetry is a literary representation in general. Akin to other art forms,
poetry only admits of an attempt to represent what things might be. For
Aristotle, all kinds of art, including poetry, music, dance, painting, and
sculpture, do not aim to represent reality as it is. What art endeavors to
do is to provide a vision of what might be or the myriad possibilities in
reality. Unlike Plato who thought that art is an imitation of another
imitation, Aristotle conceived of art as representing possible versions of
reality.
In the Aristotelian worldview, art serves two particular purposes. First,
art allows for the experience of pleasure. Experiences that are otherwise
repugnant can become entertaining in art. For example, a horrible
experience can be made an object of humor in a comedy. Secondly, art

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also has an ability to be instructive and teach its audience things about
life; thus, it is cognitive as well. Greek plays are usually of this nature.

Art as a Disinterested Judgment

In the third critique that Immanuel Kant wrote, the “Critique of

Judgement,” Kant of beauty, the cornerstone of art, as something that
can be universal despite its subjectivity, Kant mentioned that Judgment of
beauty, and therefore, art, is innately autonomous from specific Interests, It is
the form of art that is adjudged by one who perceives art to be beautiful or more
so, sublime. Therefore, even aesthetic judgment for Kant is a cognitive activity.

Kant recognized that judgment of beauty is subjective. However, Kant

advanced the proposition that even subjective judgments are based on some
universal criterion for the said judgment. In the process, Kant responded to the
age-old question of how I and In what sense can a judgment of beauty, which
ordinarily is considered to be a subjective feeling, be considered objective or
universal. How is this so? For Kant, when one judges a particular painting as
beautiful, one in effect is saying that the said painting has induced a particular
feeling of satisfaction from him and that he expects the painting to rouse the
same feeling from anyone. There is something in the work of art that makes it
capable of inciting the same feeling of pleasure and satisfaction from any
perceiver, regardless of his condition. For Kant, every human being, after
perception and the free play of his faculties, should recognize the beauty that is
inherent in a work of art. This is the kind of universality that a judgment of
beauty is assumed by Kant to have. So when the same person says that
something is beautiful, he does not just believe that the thing is beautiful for
him, but in a sense, expects that the
same thing should put everyone in awe.

Art as Communication of Emotion

The author of War and Peace and Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy,
provided another perspective on what art is. In his book, What is art (2016),
Tolstoy defended the production of the sometimes truly extravagant art, like
operas, despite extreme poverty in the world. For him, art plays a huge role in
communication to its audience’s emotions that the artist previously
experienced. Art then serves as a language, a communication device that
articulates feelings and emotions that are otherwise unavailable to the
audience. In the same way that language communicates information to other
people, art communications emotions. In listening to music, in watching an

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opera, and in reading poems, the audience is at the receiving end of the artist
communicating his feelings and emotions.

Tolstoy is fighting for the social dimension of art. 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 is central to man’s
existence because it makes accessible feelings and emotions of people
from the past and present, from one continent to another. In making
these possibly latent feelings and emotions accessible to anyone in varied
time and location, art serves as a mechanism of cohesion for everyone.
Thus, even at present, one can commune with early Cambodians and
their struggles by visiting the Angkor Wat or can definitely feel for the
early royalties of different Korean dynasties by watching Korean dramas.
Art is what allows for these possibilities.

ASSESSMENT
Let’s Work On This

Answer the following questions as precisely yet as thoroughly as

possible.

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 1. What art/artwork has changed something in your life? Why? Account
for the experience.

2. Does art always have a function? Why? Support your response.

Provide your own example.

3. If an artwork ceased to have a function, will it remain an art? Why?

Let’s Make It Happen

Look around your house and identify a product of art. In the

bow below, paste a picture of that product of art in your household.
Trace the beginnings of this item and identify what functions it has
played in history (e.g., a painting of the Last Supper in your dining room).

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REFERENCES

Butcher, S.H. (Ed.) (1902). The Poetics of Aristotle. New York: The
Macmillan Company.

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Dudley, L., Fancy, A., and McGraw-Hill Book Company. (1960). The
Humanities. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Plato. (2000). 77?e Republic. Accessed November 2,2017. Retrieved from
http://catdir. Ioc.gov/catdir/samples/cam031/00024471.pdf.
Tolstoy, Leo. (2016). What Is Art? Accessed November 2, 2017. Retrieved
from http://
web.mnstate.edu/gracyk/courses/phil%20of%20art/printer-friendly/
Tolstoy_on_ Art_TWO_COLUMNS.pdf.

Prepared by:

LEODITH P. RODRIGO
Instructor

Approved by:

ARLENE B. BERAGO, MAN PIO M. CERNAL,Ed.D

VP-Academic Affairs College President

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