The Origin of Artwork and Approaches to the Study of Art and Design - Essay Example

 Art In order to be a good artist, one must be well creative. Art enables us to realize the truth. It is good to love many things, for you can get to know where your true strengths are. If you love much, definitely you can do much and you can accomplish a lot. According to the oxford dictionary, the word art is defined as the expression of somebody’s creative skills and thoughts usually in a visual way such as painting, producing works to be appreciated basically for their beauty or emotional power (King & Claire, 37). On the other hand designing is the way of coming up with something usually slightly unique. Therefore the two words art and design interrelates. In order to be a good artist, one must be a good designer. In this work I am going to critically analyze the given picture, considering its social, political and cultural context. The origin of artwork Art started before anyone had even recognized it. It was like in the cave man times when things were written on walls and it was passed on by others in the tribe by example of what others had done or their own interpretation. It started 40000 years ago as a form of people expressing their thoughts. Research shows that artwork began at the same time when human beings advanced in making tools (James, 87). In this case, art work started as a way of keeping records for future references. It is used to let the current generation know how their culture should be. Styles of art Surrealism Surrealism is a recent painting style that shows different images together to provide a starting effect. The images are usually illogical with dream –like standards about them. Such is like the given picture. Conceptual art This is another modern art style where the artist knows that an idea is very important that the artwork itself. In the given picture the conceptual artists believe that it will be completed by the people viewing it. Pop art This happened as a reaction to expression that happened in 1950s and the British at that time believed it was art that was further taken to the current time. In the case of the given picture, the main reason of the artist is to let the current generation know what happened in the past (Moorehouse & Dominic, 48). Photorealism This is painting which really looks like a photograph. It is normally influenced by pop art and it is like a reaction to expressionism like the picture given really looks like a photograph. Approaches to the study of art and design Artful thinking is a curriculum formed by Harvard's project Zero together with the Traverse City Area Public Schools in Michigan. It is an approach to teaching imaginative thinking that uses some routines to make good use of artistic works and subjects across the program. These routines have strategies to intensify art experiences which really help in arts. By being a creative thinker is when one can be a good artist and also a good designer. Some of the strategies are; Reasoning By asking questions like what makes you say or do that in order to make students give examples in supporting their claims help them to reason well in life and also gain experience in dealing with situations and problems. This can help in a analyzing pictures like the one given. Perspective talking Another strategy is perspective talking which done by asking questions like what the character care does about in order to know different ways of dealing with problems. This helps students to make good use of some arts. They get to know what things like pictures symbolize. They get to understand artistic language and everything becomes meaningful to them. This can enable one to interpret ideas like the given picture. Questioning and investigating. By analyzing questions and using prompts to flash observations and inquiry Describing and elaborating upon what you see and/or hear is another useful strategy. This enables students to relate things like pictures with real life situations. Such is like interpretation of different colors example dark or black colour symbolizes sadness white symbolizes peace or hope for something. This also assists one to interpret things such as the given picture. Comparing and connecting new ideas to prior knowledge This strategy is done by asking questions to prompt thoughts and extending or challenging core ideas. It enables the students to think critically and hence become creative in their imaginative thinking. Lastly, finding complexity is another important strategy. For one to reveal many levels and layers by asking questions like, "How is it problematical?" "What are the different pieces?" "What are its purposes?" among others can really help in studying arts and design. All these approaches are really important and helpful in the study of arts and design. They help one to interpret things like pictures, charts among others well. In the picture there is a man and a woman representing a couple both dressed in black with some goats. Traditionally, the black colour shows that they are mourning. We can see the man, Conellis slaughtering a goat by removing the internal parts. The woman is besides the husbanding keenly watching at what he is doing. There are also other two goats hanged. The background of the picture is dark with some light reflection on them. This shows the action is taking place at night. The picture is enclosed in a brown frame. This shows that, the action is done in a secret and secure place. Social context Socially, a man should not do anything without the consent of his wife. In the picture Conellis is with his wife France when performing the action. The action of slaughtering a goat at night and in secret symbolizes that they are offering a sacrifice. They are offering this sacrifice at night meaning they are undergoing some difficult situations and as their way of believing, by offering sacrifice will help them solve their problem. By dressing in black, this couple is morning of something and thus why they are offering the sacrifice. Political context In the picture, Conellis is the one slaughtering the goat while his wife France just seated beside him watching what is happening. France is not participating in any way in the action. This shows the way men are given the higher authority in a family in this culture. A man is the head of a family, even mentioned in the bible, and a woman has no right to do anything apart from kitchen works. Instead she should obey his husband and whatever she is asked to do. She has no right to propose or decide on anything. The man is left to do anything he thinks is right whether good or bad. Mostly, men are ones given authority to rule a country, institution or organization. In most countries, the president is a Man, in most organizations, man is the manager, and even in learning institutions, men are the heads. In the picture, Conellis is the one slaughtering the goat while his wife France just seated beside him watching what is happening. France is not participating in any way in the action. This shows the way men are given the higher authority in a family in this culture. Cultural context The fact that the couple is offering a sacrifice and in secret in a secure place as symbolized by the brown frame indicates that this couple believes in tradition religion. Instead of going to church or in a mosque like Christians and Muslims, this people are traditionalists. They are too tradition in that they are killing a goat and other two hanged up facing each other. The goats are in the same color. They are doing this at night meaning that their god, only exists at night and are not supposed to be seen by anybody while undertaking this secret, thus the reason why they are doing it only two of them. Even their children are not supposed to witness the action. The wife is believed to be secretive. Thus why the picture is enclosed in a frame meaning they should not reveal the secret. Work Cited Doran, Madeleine. Endeavors of art: a study of form in Elizabethan drama.. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1954. Print. James, Milner. The art of art history a critical anthology. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998. Print. King, Penny, and Clare Roundhill. Portraits. New York: Crabtree Pub. Co., 1996. Print. Moorhouse, Paul, and Dominic Sandbrook. Pop art portraits. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2007. Print. Read More