CONTEMPORARY ARTS FROM THE PHILIPPINE REGIONS
experiences after having completed a work of
Art is human ingenuity in adapting natural things to
mans use. (Webster)
Art comes from the word ars which means skill.
It is synonymous with skill, cunning, artifice, and craft,
which all mean the faculty of what is devised.
Skill stresses technical knowledge and
proficiency.
Cunning suggests ingenuity and subtlety in
devising, inventing, or executing.
Artifice suggests mechanical skill especially in
imitating things in nature.
Craft may imply expertness in workmanship and
guile in attaining ones end.
Function of Arts
Personal or Individual Function Artists have
their personal reasons for indulging in art.
e.g. The poet, Edwin Markham, wrote the poem The
Man with the Hoe because he was inspired by the
painting of a farmer that he had seen earlier.
Others do their thing because of their passion
for their respective art forms.
Social Function
- Man is a social being and as such he associates
with his fellow beings.
Economic Function
- Many people believe that it does not pay to be
an artist. However, this belief is negated by
these facts.
Political Function
- When Imelda Romualdez-Marcos, a patroness
of the arts became the Governor of Metro
Manila, she promoted her political programs by
means of the arts.
- Cultural center of The Philippines (CCP)
- Philippine International Convention Center
Historical Function
- Paintings, sculptures, architectural works, and
other art forms serve to record historical figures
and events.
- Luneta
- OUR LADY OF EDSA
Cultural Function Buildings, furniture (chairs, table,
etc.), clothes, and the like form part of the countrys
material culture.
Religious Function
- Almost all, if not all, art forms evolved from
religion. People in olden times worshipped their
Gods in the form of songs and dances.
- The earliest dramatic forms were religious in
nature.
- PYRAMID OF GIZA
- MAUSOLEUM OF ROME
- Great Mosque of Kairouan
- PARTHENON
Physical Function
- Houses and other buildings are constructed to
protect their occupants and all others inside
them.
- There is no substitute to the ecstatic feeling one
art.
Aesthetic Function
- Artworks serve to beautify.
WHAT is contemporary art
Art made and produced by artists living today. - J.
Paul Getty Museum
- It is not restricted to individual experience but it
is reflective of the world we live in. Events in the
world having an effect to the Philippines.
- Artwork that is created by todays
contemporary artists and has a world view, and
is sensitive to changing times.
ELEMENTS/PRINCIPLES OF CONTEMPORARY ART
APPROPRIATION
- Existing artworks are appropriated to
produce another artwork. Usage of
prints, images, and icons to produce
another art form.
- Combines past from the present.
Revives interests to existing forms of
art.
PERFORMANCE
- Performance evolved to emphasize
spontaneous elements of chance.
(Walker Art Center)
- Interpreting various human activities
such as ordinary activities such as
chores, routines and rituals, to socially
relevant themes such as poverty,
commercialism and war.
SPACE
- Arts transforming space. For example,
flash mobs, art installations in malls and
parks.
- Site specific art forms art form that is
performed and positioned in a specific
space such as public places.
HYBRIDITY
- Usage of unconventional materials,
mixing of unlikely materials to produce
an artwork.
- For example, coffee for painting;
miniature sculptures using crayons.
TECHNOLOGY
- Usage of technology in the creation and
dissemination of art works.
- Video phenomenon from MTV to
Youtube. Recording performances,
video posting, sharing, live streaming.