ART APPRECIATION
INTRODUCTION

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
At the end of this lesson, the students should be able to:
1. differentiate art history from art appreciation,
2. differentiate art from nature,
3. characterize the assumptions of the art,
4. discuss the nature of art’s preliminary expression, and
5. categorize works of art by citing personal experience.

MOTIVATION:
My Encounters with Arts Why?
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.

ART is something that is perennially around us.
Some people may deny having to do with the arts but
it is indisputable that life presents us with many forms
of and opportunities for communion with the arts.

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 then suggested the capacity to produce an intended result from carefully
planned steps or method.

The Latin word 'ars' signified skilled work; it did not mean art as we might
understand it today, but a craft activity demanding a high level of
technical ability.
The Ancient world did not have any conceived notion of art in the same
way that we do now. To them, art only meant using the bare hands to
produce something that will be useful to one’s day-to-day life.

DEFINING HUMANITIES

DEFINING THE HUMANITES
This time, let’s see where you can
categorize your own definition. Ortiz et al.
(1976) in their book presented different
definitions of humanities from ancient Latin
to present

DEFININGHUMANITIES
The term “humanities” was first
applied to the writings of ancient
Latin authors which were read not
only for their clarity of language
and forceful literary style, but also,
and more specially, for their moral
teaching.

DEFINING HUMANITIES
During the Medieval Age, the
humanities dealt with the metaphysics
of the religion philosopher. The goal
was the cultivation of the spiritual life
and the preparation for the hereafter

DEFINING HUMANITIES
During the Renaissance, the word came to
refer to the set of disciplines taught in the
universities, which included grammar,
rhetoric, history, literature, music,
philosophy, and theology- a body of
knowledge aimed to make man “human,
cultured, and refined.

DEFINING HUMANITIES
Further, the sciences enable man to
understand and control nature and to harness
its energy to make his life more comfortable
and convenient.

DEFININGHUMANITIES
At present, the humanities
serve to provide the student
with certain skills and values
through arts.

DEFINING HUMANTITES
Elaborating and relating humanities from arts,
Sanchez (2001) said that the term ‘humanities’
refers to the arts- the visual arts such as
architecture; painting and sculpture; music; dance;
the theater or drama; and literature.
They are the branches of learning concerned with
human being and his feelings and how he
expresses those feelings have always been the
concern of the humanities.

DEFINING HUMANITIES
What are the differences
and similarities of the
Humanities and the
Sciences?

DEFINING HUMANTIES
As mentioned by Ortiz et al. (1976), the
sciences and the humanities are two
different terms with the same goal. The
sciences deal with the external world of
man, as well as with the facets of man’s
being that can be subjected to observation,
measurement, and experimentation.

the sciences enable man to
understand and control nature and
to harness its energy to make his
life more comfortable and
convenient.

The humanities deal with man’s
internalworld-with his personality
and experiences, matters that
cannot be exactly measured,
classified, or controlled.

The humanities’ approach is subjective; it
makes much use of perception, feeling,
intuition, and insight. The focus of the
humanities is on man as an individual,
while in the social sciences the main
interest is on types and groups of human
beings, and on the institutions and
processes of society

Ars in Medieval Latin came to mean something different. It meant “any
special form of book-learning, such as grammar or logic, magic or
astrology” (Collingwood, 1938).
Medieval Latin

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.
It was finally in the eighteenth century when the word was evolved to
distinguish between the fine arts and the useful arts. The fine arts would
come to mean “not delicate or highly skilled arts, but ‘beautiful arts”
(Collinwood, 1938).
RENNAISANCE PERIOD

Human history has witnessed how man evolved not just physically but also
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.

Assumptions
of Art

Art is Universal
01
03
Art involves
experience
02
Art is
NOT
nature

Art is Universal
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 misconception. Age is not a factor in
determining art.
In the Philippines, the works of Jose Rizal and Francisco Balagtas are not
being read because they are old.

Art is Universal
The pieces mentioned are read in school and have remained to be with us
because they are good.
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 lessons.
When we listen to a kundiman or perform 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.

Art is Universal
A great piece of work will never be obsolete.
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 get depleted.

Art is NOT Nature
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
given around us.
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.

Art is NOT Nature
This distinction assumes that all of us see nature, perceive its elements in
myriad, different, yet ultimately valid ways.
Art is based on an individual’s subjective experience of nature. Artists are not
expected to duplicate nature just as even scientists with their elaborate
laboratories cannot make nature.

Art involves Experience
Getting this far without a satisfactory definition of art can be quite weird for
some. For most people, art does not require a full definition. 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. Knowing a thing is different from
hearing from others what the said thing is.

Art involves 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.
At the end of the day, one fully gets acquainted with art if one immerses
himself into it.
An important aspect of experiencing art is its being highly personal,
individual, and subjective. In philosophical terms, perception of art is always
a value judgement. It depends on who the perceiver is, his tastes, his biases,
and what he has inside him.

Art involves Experience
One cannot argue with another person’s evaluation of art because one’s
experience can never be known by another.
An important aspect of experiencing art is its being highly personal,
individual, and subjective. In philosophical terms, perception of art is always
a value judgment.
It depends on who the perceiver is, his tastes, his biases, and what he has
inside him.

Finally, one should also underscore that every experience with art is
accompanied by some emotion. One either likes or dislikes, agrees or
disagrees that a work of art is beautiful.
Humanities and the art have been part of man’s growth and civilization.
Since the dawn of time, man has always tried to express his innermost
thoughts and feelings about reality through creating art.

Three assumptions on art are its universality, it’s not being nature,
its need for experience.
Art is present in every part of the globe and in every period of time.
This is meant by its universality.
Art not being nature, not even attempting to simply mirror nature.
Finally, without experience, there is no art. The artist has to be
foremost, a perceiver who is directly in touch with art.

Art Appreciation:
Creativity, Imagination,
and Expression

It takes an artist to make art. Art is product of man’s creativity, imagination,
and expression.
ART APPRECIATION AS WAY OF LIFE
In cultivating the appreciation of art, one should also exercise and develop
his taste for that are fine are 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).

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.

He does not imitate the lines, flaws, colors and patterns in
recreating nature.
For instance, then 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 tourism slogan “It’s more fun in
Switzerland”, back in 1951. DOT’s defense, former DOT Sec.
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
German physicist Albert Einstein who had made significant and major
contributions 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 there ever will be to know and understand”.

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 will stimulate change.

ART AS EXPRESSION
According to Collingwood, 1938 “if you try to release yourself from this
tormenting and disabling state by doing something, which is called
expressing oneself.”
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 emotion is something different from describing emotions.
Expression, on the other hand, individualizes.

ART AS EXPRESSION
According to Collingwood, 1938 “if you try to release yourself from this
tormenting and disabling state by doing something, which is called
expressing oneself.”
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 emotion is something different from describing emotions.
Expression, on the other hand, individualizes.

APPLICATION/INTEGRATION
Direction: 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?
3.) Why is art ageless and timeless?
4.) Why does art involve experience?