Rationale - Why Talk about Arts?

Factors Influencing Our Response to Art

Some Approaches

An Art Critique Format

 

Elements and Principles of Design

 

Benefits

Visual Elements of Design

Principles of Visual Design

In addition to promoting visual awareness and a better understanding of our material culture, talking about art provides students with an opportunity to clarify, verbalize, articulate, and better understand their own responses to objects and images in their environment, as well as learn to appreciate others' responses.

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• Social attitudes toward a specific work
• Cultural view of the art form
• Perceptual skills (awareness and experience)
• Recognition of formal qualities (such as the elements and principles of design)
• Knowledge of specific symbols
• Associations with personal experience
• Historical significance
• Judgment
• Relationships of artwork to life

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Regarding art particularly, these approaches assume that objects and images are purposefully created (with intent): that there are reasons why the object or image looks and/or functions the way it does and that often there are messages or meanings that are intended to be communicated to the viewer.

For students, one useful analogy is to think of themselves as visual detectives, looking for clues. For older students this could also include a discussion of the different styles, processes, types of clues, in detection--from Sherlock (descriptive and empirical) to Magnum PI (intuitive).

The following approaches are not presented in any particular order--and it should be noted that they may be blended together as appropriate depending on your instructional objectives.

Imitative (subject-matter content) &
Expressive Qualities

Questions focus on the literal, symbolic, or abstracted content, and are aimed at understanding and/or interpreting the meanings, messages, feelings, or mood being conveyed to the viewer.

This approach is particularly accessible to younger students because it begins with talking about their own responses to the image or object.

The teacher's role should be to validate all responses while asking clarifying questions. The elements and principles of design can be useful tools in this dialogue (and extend understanding of Why I like "that"); however subject-matter associations will usually play a more powerful role in influencing student responses. It can be useful to point out that one student's reasons for liking an image may be the very reason another student dislikes the image--both are valid.

Formal Visual Qualities

Questions focus on the structural organization of the work and aim at describing and analyzing the visual content in terms of the formal elements and principles of design in order to evaluate the visual "success" of the work and better understand how the work is "put together" and accomplishes its intent.

Young students can learn about and identify the elements and principles of design in visual imagery; however this approach tends to down-play the subject-matter content and with young children is most appropriate when discussing nonrepresentational or some abstract images. As students acquire abstract thinking skills, this approach is useful in developing "objectivity" and analytical thinking processes.

Cultural Heritage &
Historical Significance

Questions are aimed at understanding the context in which the work was created--who, what, when, where, why (for whom and for what purposes). It is helpful to include in this discussion how the image/object is similar or different from related objects/images that students are familiar with from their own culture or time.

Historically: How was the work thought of or used then; and how is that similar or different to how we think of or use it now in our own culture and time? How has it changed? Why?

Culturally: How is this work similar to or different from works serving similar purposes in our own and other cultures? Why?

This focus can be adapted to most age levels--from basic awareness and exposure to objects/images from other cultures or times, to more in-depth inquiries by older students.

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Response
This is the part that is hard to ignore and often a useful place to start. Present your own personal attitudes, feelings, responses to the object/image. It is essential to clarify what specifically you are responding to (subject matter, visual qualities, other?). Aim at promoting understanding of why you respond the way you do.

Description
Conduct a detailed examination of the object/image; focus on the form. Be objective and just describe what you see (setting feelings and interpretations aside for the moment). Identify and describe the subject matter and composition. The elements and principles of design are useful tools; as appropriate use them in your description.

Analysis and Interpretation
Based on your examination in part 2, now begin to consider the content (meaning) and function of the work. Why was the image/object designed the way it was? Based on the visual information, what was the intent of the artist? What messages, feelings, attitudes was he/she trying to communicate? Provide specific evidence supporting your statements-- What visual clues and information are you drawing upon to support your interpretations? How does the visual information convey and accomplish the artist's intent?

Evaluation and Judgement
This portion closely relates and builds upon the previous two, and can include three areas of focus.Based on previous statements, begin to form an opinion as to how effective the object/image has been in accomplishing "its" intentions. Support your statements. Are there aspects of the work that might be improved or changed? Are there aspects that worked well visually? Include any other information related to the artist, audience and contexts.What does this object/image reflect or tell us about the society/culture that produced it? What is its significance in relationship to "the larger picture." Reconsider your first response. Has it changed, intensified, stayed the same? Why?

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• A specific vocabulary and terms that can be agreed upon.
• Provide a descriptive and objective way of responding to art and the visual environment.
• Can be used in a variety of situations.

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Line
A visual path of action, our eyes tend to follow lines.
Line is the connection between two points, it may be actual or implied. Line defines the edge and shape two dimensionally. Line has different qualities: thick, thin, light, dark, long, short, and broken. Line can create directional effects. Lines grouped together make patterns and textures. Lines define the contour of shape by moving in and out, back and forth.

Artist References: Kanji, Paul Klee, Albrecht Durer, cartoons, Andy Warhol

Shape
A defined area. Two-dimensional shapes are areas that stand apart or out from the space around them because of a definite boundary or difference of value, color, or texture. Shapes may be geometric, organic, or composite. There are positive and negative shapes which is also referred to as a figure-ground relationship. A figure-ground reversal occurs when the eye switches from seeing a shape as foreground and sees it instead as background.

Artist References: Chagal, Paul Gauguin, Henri Matisse, Alexander Calder, M.C. Escher.

Value
The range of light and dark on a shape or form or in an entire space. Value is the amount of lightness or darkness in a color. Red when lightened by white is called pink but is actually a light red. When gray or green is added to red it is darkened and we may call it maroon. Pink and maroon are thus light and dark values of red.

Chiaroscuro is the process of taking light into dark to model an organic form to appear three dimensional on a two dimensional surface. This process was developed in the Renaissance.

Artist References: Carrivaggio, Rembrandt, Kathe Kollwitz, Goya, Monet, Edward Weston, Ansel Adams, Bourke-White.

Color
The character of a surface that is the result of the response of vision to the wavelength of light reflected from that surface. Color can have emotional, psychological and physiological effects.

Terms and vocabulary of color:

Hue: a color
Primary	in pigment: red, blue, yellow
Secondary	in pigment: orange, green, violet
Intermediate	in pigment: red-orange, blue-green, etc.
Complementary colors	two hues directly across one another on the color wheel. The complement of each primary is the secondary created by mixing the other two primaries (red-green; blue-orange; yellow-violet). When placed near each other, complementary colors tend to vibrate.
Value	lightness or darkness of a color
Intensity	brightness or dullness of a color due to its relative purity.
Shade	a color modified by addition of another (often black) resulting in a hue of darker value.
Tint	a color modified by addition of another (often white) resulting in a hue of lighter value.
Color Schemes
Monochromatic	color scheme limited to variations of one hue.
Analogous	color scheme limited to adjacent hues on the color wheel, usually within the scope of a primary through one of its related secondaries (blue, blue-green, green).
Polychromatic	having many colors, random or intuitive use of color combinations.
Warm colors	generally include red-violet, red, red-orange, orange, yellow-orange, and yellow.
Cool colors	generally include green, blue-green, blue, blue-violet, and violet.
Local color	actual hue of a thing as opposed to the ways different conditions of light might affect it.
Symbolic color	use of color unrelated to the actual color of an object, used to suggest some other meaning.

Artist References: Fauvists, Matisse, Mondrian, Monet, Impressionism, Expressionism, Van Gogh, Seurat

Texture
The surface feel of an object (actual) or the representation of surface character (implied). Texture can be experienced through both touch and vision.

Artist References: Rembrandt, Vermeer, Oppenheim

Space
The area around an object. Mass and forms occupy space. It can be actual (3-dimensional) or implied on 2-dimensional surfaces.

References: Architecture, Cubism

Mass/Form
Three-dimensional shape that occupies space and has volume. Forms may be open or closed.

Artist References: Egyptian sculpture, Giacometti, Henry Moore, Brancusi, Louise Nevelson

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Balance
Balance is a feeling of equality in weight, attention, or attraction of various elements within an artwork as a means of unifying a composition. It may be symmetrical, asymmetrical or radial

• Symmetrical (bilateral) balance is a form of balance achieved by the use of identical compositional units on either side of a vertical axis.
• Asymmetrical balance is a form of balance attained when unequal units create a sense of equilibrium in the pictorial field.
• A focal point is a radial type of balance. It occurs when two or more identical elements are distributed around a center point to create a repetitive equilibrium.

Proportion
In any composition, the comparison of and relationship between the parts to each other and to the whole. Proportion can be expressed in terms of a definite ratio, such as "twice as big" or be expressed by "darker than", "more neutral than", or "more important than."

Rhythm
A continuance, a flow, or a feeling of movement achieved by repetition of regulated visual units, the use of measure accents, directs the eye through a composition.

Emphasis
(Dominance) The principle of visual organization that suggests that certain elements should assume more importance than others in the same composition. Dominance contributes to unity because one main idea or feature is emphasized and other elements are subordinate to it.

Harmony
The related qualities of the visual elements of a composition. Harmony is achieved by repetition of characteristics that are the same or similar.

Variety
The use of opposing, contrasting, changing, elaborating or diversifying elements in a composition to add interest and individualism. The counterweight to harmony in a work of art.

Unity
The appearance of oneness, all parts working together.