Ceramics 1
Ceramics 1
Unity-Principle of Design
Unity-Principle of Design
Unity-Principle of Design
Unity-Principle of Design
Unity-Principle of Design
Unity-Principle of Design
Line- Element of Art
Line- Element of Art
Classwork & assignments
Presentation slideshow
Presentation slideshow
Classwork & assignments
Classwork & assignments
Lines are everywhere. You can see lines in the grain of a piece of wood or in the cracks on a sidewalk.
In art, Line is an element of art that is the path of a moving point through space.
Lines are used to:
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Create boundaries between shapes
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Create boundaries between colors, textures or values
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Lead the eye from one space to another
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Create textures
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Suggest emotional qualities
Lines are everywhere. You can see lines in the grain of a piece of wood or in the cracks on a sidewalk.
In art, Line is an element of art that is the path of a moving point through space.
Lines are used to:
-
Create boundaries between shapes
-
Create boundaries between colors, textures or values
-
Lead the eye from one space to another
-
Create textures
-
Suggest emotional qualities
Classwork & assignments
Grid drawing is a very old technique of transferring images (from sketches to a full size canvas or fresco, etc...)
Always make sure that the number of squares on the original picture and your working area are exactly the same (even if the size of the squares are bigger on the paper). This is because no matter how many times bigger (or smaller) you make the drawing, the proportions and dimensions can only stay the same if the number of boxes (squares) matches exactly.
Make sure you follow all steps below.
2.3.2 The Van Eycks and Rogier van der Weyden
The Artist's Environment
Remember, to actively observe and appreciate art, you need to constantly ask questions about what you're seeing, what the message is, and why.
Each artwork's message naturally comes from the artist. So, it's not enough to ask questions about the art. You need to ask about the artist as well.
Over the years, artists have slowly changed from painting on rocks to painting, well, rocks. So, what changed?
Artists are products of their environments. From the earliest humans, artists have always responded to events and ideas of their own societies and time periods. Religion, politics, literature, music, and science have all shaped art over the centuries.
Take a quick tour of these influences throughout history. All of these art movements will be addressed in more detail later on. This is just an overview to get you thinking about an artist's motivations.
Complete the questions on your study guide as you work through this activity. Reviewing your notes before quizzes and tests will help you succeed. You'll be able to check your answers once you've completed the study activity.
Purpose of Painting: Constant Shifting
Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man, painted circa 1487, became the hallmark for depicting realistic images of man. How might Georges Braque have depicted this same man?
What do you think the purpose of painting is? The answer changes depending on whom you ask and, more importantly, when he or she lived. Every artist is influenced by his or her historical context or what was happening at the time.
Leonardo da Vinci lived in the Renaissance, during which science was a major focus. He once said, "The merit of painting lies in the exactness of reproduction. Painting is a science, and all sciences are based on mathematics."
Yet, 500 years later, in an age of photography and movies, the purpose of painting shifted. Realism and exactness of reproduction were no longer the primary goal of art. Now, artists might try to paint movement, emotion, or music. None of these can be painted "realistically" because none of them can be compared to what the eye can see.
The co-creator of the abstract movement known as Cubism, Georges Braque, suggested almost the opposite of da Vinci. He said, "Art is made to disturb. Science reassures. There is only one valuable thing in art: the thing you cannot explain."
Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man, painted circa 1487, became the hallmark for depicting realistic images of man. How might Georges Braque have depicted this same man?
This painting (ca. 1120) by an unknown artist is of Mary Magdalene announcing Jesus's resurrection. Although it does show a very basic attempt at perspective, it does not use the mathematical system that the Greeks created.
Painting the Faith
Ancient art was largely focused on showing how something was done. Its purpose was more or less to instruct or inform on a variety of matters, from how to hunt to how to move safely into the afterlife. The next unit will focus on ancient art.
Here, we'll start with the history of Western art as it is known today. And that starts with the fall of Rome and the advent of the Middle Ages.
In the Middle Ages (500 – 1400), religion was at the heart of just about everything, so artwork was devoted to religious ideals.
The most important goal was spreading a religious message. It wasn't important that the paintings be realistic, but rather that they inspired or encouraged faith in the viewer.
Although some very limited use of perspective can be seen, the techniques of perspective that had been developed by the Greeks and Romans went mostly unused during this time.
Faith Meets Science
During the Renaissance in the 15th and 16th centuries, artists started to lose interest in religious painting. They were more interested in science and philosophy.
But Italian painters were still commissioned by the powerful Roman Catholic Church. In order to make a living, they had to paint religious subjects. Still, they could not ignore the influence of the times.
The Sistine Chapel ceiling (Italian: Volta della Cappella Sistina), painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512
This section of the Sistine Chapel ceiling, painted by Michelangelo circa 1511, is called Creation of Adam.
Renaissance artists began incorporating the new ideas and techniques of the time into their religious art.
Look at this section above of the Sistine Chapel ceiling. What do you think the two main goals of the painter were?
Painting the Faith, Naturally
When Michelangelo was hired by the church in 1508 to paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling, he had two major goals to reconcile. Naturally, he had to fill that ceiling with images from the Bible. But his real interest was in accurately showing human anatomy and movement.
This famous image shows how humanistic ideas transformed religious art.
Indirect Approach
Although many Renaissance artists turned their focus toward the scientific elements of art, it was still their main source of income, and they had to appeal to the church in order to make a living. The church was still the best customer for art, and religious scenes were still the most popular subjects.
Without betraying their new interest in realism and science, some artists chose to represent religion indirectly. This let them create realistic-looking paintings that still had the religious messages the church was after.
Pieter Bruegel the Elder's The Parable of the Blind Leading the Blind (1565)
Pieter Bruegel the Elder's painting The Parable of the Blind Leading the Blind (1565) is a classic example.
Bruegel uses everyday 16th-century people to represent a story from the Bible. It shows that it is dangerous for the ignorant (the first blind man in the painting) to preach to or "lead" others who are ignorant.
The Blind Leading the Blind was painted on linen canvas by Pieter Bruegel the Elder in 1568, just a year before his death.
It is a representation of the Biblical parable from the Gospel of Matthew 15:14 where Jesus Christ says "Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch."
In this case, Bruegel's depiction is very literal, as the leader of a procession of six blind men has fallen into a ditch and seems sure to drag his fellows down with him. This piece is widely considered a masterwork for its acute attention to detail and deliberate diagonal composition, which puts focus on the confusion and loss of balance of the blind men.
Check Your Understanding
Look at the painting on the left, and answer some questions about it as best you can.
1.) What examples of religion do you see in this painting?
2.) What examples of the Renaissance goal of accuracy do you see in this painting?
3.) How do you think science and accuracy in painting affected the religious messages of Renaissance paintings during that time period?
Raphael, The Miraculous Draught of Fishes, 1515
Baroque and Rococo: Period of Prosperity
After the Renaissance came the elegant, dramatic, and rich Baroque and Rococo periods of painting in the 17th and 18th centuries. These give another good example of how art parallels the artist's environment.
The Baroque style became popular in France in the mid-to-late 1600s, a time when the country was rich and powerful.
King Louis XIV ruled France from 1643 – 1715. Artwork from this time showed the beauty of the world and the power of his reign. At his demand, artists of this era painted brightly colored landscapes filled with happy subjects.
The Rococo period followed shortly after. Although it was different in many ways, it maintained the Baroque tastes for bright, extravagant paintings of picturesque scenes. (You will learn more about both of these periods later on.)
Only the upper classes were actually rich and comfortable, but they had no interest in the real life of the lower classes and certainly didn't want to see it in art. They much preferred imagining the lower classes as sweet, innocent people who spent all day lazing in fields alongside their farm animals.
This painting by Claude Lorrain is titled Pastoral Landscape. Is this the happy life you imagine the lower classes living in 1648, when it was painted?
Focus on Reality
After centuries of glorified portraits depicting wealthy classes and religious scenes, artists decided to confront the rest of the world with the plight of the working people.
Writers such as Charles Dickens and artists such as Gustave Courbet (the father of Realism, remember?) tried to show the dignity of common people despite their less-than-picturesque lives.
Honoré Daumier is famous for his painting The Third-Class Carriage, a classic example of this new dedication to real life. It is an examination of the unglamorous daily routine of lower classes.
Industrial Revolution: Real Life Wins Out
Prosperity cannot last forever, so the era of fanciful painting came to an end in the middle of the 18th century. The next era of painting would be far more depressing, but true to life.
The Industrial Revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries marked a worldwide shift from agriculture to industry. There was a new focus on machines, and the lower classes endured awful working conditions in factories with these new machines.
Daumier's paintings, including The Third-Class Carriage (1862), represented real life as most people lived it. It's not pretty, but it's honest.
1863–65, oil on canvas, 25 3/4 x 35 1/2 in.
Beyond Realism
Once photography became popular in the mid-20th century, there wasn't as much of a need for realistic art to capture the details of everyday life. Art shifted from being a way to document history to being, well, anything it wanted.
Enter Abstract Expressionism. Abstract artists no longer wanted to paint realistically. Instead of focusing on their subjects, these artists explored the individual qualities of paint and painting.
Adding "What" to "How"
Pablo Picasso (1881 – 1973) created more than 18,000 works of art in his life and is one of the most famous artists of all time.
Spanish painter Pablo Picasso was the (much more famous) co-founder of Cubism, with Georges Braque.
Picasso once asked, "Are we to paint what's on the face, what's inside the face, or what's behind it?" His question opens up a whole new perspective on not simply how to paint, but what to paint.
This was yet another technique of art, and an explosive one at that. Now painting didn't have to copy reality. It could represent the ideas, desires, and feelings of the human mind.
Sound abstract? It is. Move on to learn more.
Abstract Art
Abstract or nonrepresentational art can be hard to understand. And when art is not easily understood, a common reaction is, "I don't like it."
This is not surprising. As a child, were you told to "stay inside the lines" when you were drawing? Were you scolded for making the sky green and the grass purple? We are trained from an early age to do things a certain way, to follow the rules or else. That is part of our environment.
Abstract Expressionism throws those rules out the window. So, in many ways, an abstract artist is actually working against his or her environment.
Abstract art is about posing new ideas, exposing society's raw responses to art, and trying to change how we perceive art. Rather than thinking about whether anyone could paint in such a manner, it is infinitely more exciting to think about why an artist would paint that image.
Check Your Understanding
Look at the painting on the right, and answer some questions about it as best you can.
1.) Describe what you see in this painting. Would you call it realistic?
2.) What might have been this artist's goal in creating this work?
Now look at the painting on the left, and answer some questions about it as best you can.
3.)What about this painting? Describe what you see.
4.) What might have been this artist's goal in creating this work?
5.) Think about both of the paintings you've seen here. Did you like them? Why or why not?
Lichtenstein paintings, like these displayed at the National Gallery of Art, are now easily recognized as classic comic-book style.
Mass Media and Pop Art
By the 1960s, most households had televisions. It's no coincidence that at this time, artists such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein started to explore the influence of mass media and commercialism on their lives.
Lichtenstein paintings, like these displayed at the Mumok Museum Of Modern Arts In Vienna, are now easily recognized as classic comic-book style.
Using movie stars, politicians, and even kitchen products as inspiration, these artists filled their canvases with figures and products of the modern world that were recognizable to the masses. Their style of painting became referred to as popular art, or Pop Art.
Lichtenstein's large, comic-like canvases often drew attention to the violence used in widely read cartoons.
Warhol silk-screened portraits of celebrities and household products that everyone recognized. Through his silk screens of an electric chair, Warhol tried to convey how the media cheapened death into a marketing tool.
In today's digital and Internet age, artists' responses to the rapid changes taking place in the world are sure to be equally fast paced
Check Your Understanding
From religious icons to pop icons, art has always reflected the culture and times of the artist.
Every piece of art you see was created by someone, and that someone was a product of his or her time period. Always try to think of the context in which a piece of art was created. This will help give you a better understanding of it.
For now, see if you can get the historical order correct in this exercise on the right.
In Review
Before moving on, review what you have learned in the study. Go over the notes you wrote on the study sheet. Ask your teacher any questions you might have.
If you have not filled out your study sheet, do it now before moving on to the next activity.
Study sheets are a very useful tool to help you study for quizzes and tests.
What Did You Learn?
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The artist's environment has a tremendous effect on the message he or she sends (subject matter) and how he or she sends it (medium).
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Artists like Gustave Courbet were interested in social issues and used their art in order to comment on those issues.
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During the Renaissance, realism and science were highly valued, as observed in the period's artwork.
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The general style of Baroque and Rococo was extravagant and ornamental, reflecting the wealth of the French nobility at the time.
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The Industrial Revolution brought about a renewed interest in realism and, in fact, spurred the creation of the school of Realism, which focused on bad working conditions and the dignity of common people.
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Abstract Expressionism explored both the medium and the process of art. It rejected representational imagery.
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Pop art examined the relationship between art and mass media/mass culture on the other.
Take this opportunity to check your work.