Nature of Art and Its Forms - Essay Example

Art takes many forms and transcends several mediums.  Its modes of expression include painting, film, photography, sculpture, music, dance, and literature.  It communicates not only the artist's ideas but also its emotion.  It is largely based and facilitated more by intuition than reason as the receiver is more dependent on the experience and feeling evoked by the art.  While art can be interpreted by logical reasoning as what was impressed to the spectator, the experience however is still subjective and relative to the interpretation of the receiver.  Such, while the intellectual faculty is stimulated by the impression of a particular art form, it still appeals largely to emotion.

            And unlike the Scientific subject, art is generally organized in accordance to the technique or medium rather than the specialization of knowledge.  Artistic technique refers to the degree of fluency of the artist in rendering the art through the medium.  For example, about its classification according to the medium, art can be categorized as the performing arts or literature.  About other mediums such as the material or component in rendering the artistic by-product, it can also be classified as “painting” as the medium of paint of rendering the artistic impression.

            Art also requires a loftier sense of ability or mastery of its medium.  It can be the well-versed articulation and adept use of a language to impart meaning and substance that moves the readers.  That mastery of the language, whether it be the creative style or the originality of the approach of rendering the thoughts, or a combination of the two, has been best exemplified by the works of William Shakespeare as it enables the reader to grasp his meaning while regurgitating the manner it was conveyed with words.  The fluency of technical execution can also be construed as an art and even a requirement as manifested in Leonardo da Vinci’s works.

            For art is subjective and relative to the experience of its viewers, making judgments about its value can be difficult.  The quality or value of art is difficult to determine for the criteria of what makes good or bad art is also relative; whether it is the technical fluency of the artist or the intent and impact of the art to its receiver determines a good or bad art is difficult to say.  Perception differs from one person to another.  But regardless of its subjectivity, it is commonly agreed that what is not aesthetically satisfying cannot be considered as art.

            Aesthetic satisfaction is not only confined to beauty however; gory and horrible images that are intended for social or thought-provoking intention can also be considered art although its prime motivation is not an aesthetic pursuit.  A classic example of this would be Pablo Picasso’s Guemica (1937) In the twentieth century, where he utilized arresting cubist techniques and unembellished monochromatic oils, to portray the dreadful result of a contemporary bombing of a small, ancient Basque town.  Even blasphemous rendering can still be considered as an art as exampled by  Andres Serrano's Piss Christ (1989) where a photograph of a cross which is considered holy to the Christian religion, depicted Christ's sacrifice and final suffering in a manner that is immersed in the artist’s urine.  This may have created a public uproar and outcry, but it is still considered an art nevertheless.

            Because art’s nature merely appeals to the senses, it is often perceived to be an exclusive domain of the high society.  It is often associated with wealth as it is often expensive and the leisure and joy to pursue it can be neglected if one merely needs to exist. 

            While this can be partially true, art is not however merely confined to the province of the wealthy.  Its importance may have been appreciated due to the value judgment of its patrons but the emotions and thoughts it evokes are however blind to social class and circumstance.  Because when art was created, the only purpose of the artist was to express himself in whatever medium he is fluent in with the hope that he may be able to communicate.   Read More