Western Versus Non-western art - Essay Example

Western Versus Non-western art Different traditions and cultures around the world have unique types of art works. They depict the strengths and weaknesses in those cultures and traditions. Art is an important vessel in the society that can be used to express feelings and emotions towards particular topics. They can be used to pass information from one generation to another. Different traditions have different pieces of artworks that identify their uniqueness. Traditional western civilization had developed in terms of art uniquely as art had developed in traditional Africa. This paper will compare and contrast two artworks that origination from the tradition of western civilization and traditional African culture. Artworks from western civilization tradition are among the most analyzed pieces of art because of their quality, style and depiction. It is important to point out that artworks from western civilization tradition were developed realistically with faithful depictions of beings and matter. This was done in both paintings and sculptures. It is also essential to note that it was the culture that invented ways of depicting three-dimensional objects in two-dimensional formats. In fact, it has been noted to be the unique style in all human cultures (Neer 31). The traditional western civilization that includes Greeks and Romans were known to develop artworks that were progressive in nature. Unlike, Egyptians from African traditions whose artwork did not change considerably in many years, traditional western civilization art changed and transformed as time progressed. As Camille Paglia states in her book, Sexual Personae Egyptians created a clear and perfect piece of art that was known as Apollonian form (Paglia). It later formed the basis of western civilization art. Egyptian art especially sculptures was meant for the preservation of the body after death. Artists used their memory and followed strict rules. Greek artists studied and imitated Egyptian work but developed new pieces unlike Egyptians who followed the traditional school of art (Paglia 17). In comparison to traditional African sculptures such as fang’s reliquary, sculptures from traditional western civilization were emotionless. They depicted the serenity of motion as opposed to static elements. They were always proportional. The sculptures were referred to as classical because of their qualities. It is important to note that the sculptures showing high-ranking people in the society, such as presidents were emotionless. Traditional western civilization artists believed that lack of emotion in a piece of art signified power. For instance, the Hellenistic Prince, Therme di Diocletiano illustrates the emotionless attribute in Greek art (Marquand and Frothingham 20). Traditional western civilization art were futuristic as opposed to traditional African art that addressed topics of the afterlife (Boardman 56). For instance, Greek artists were concerned about future representations that conveyed a vitality of life and a sense of permanence, harmony and clarity. They were free to form and use new styles and domains. For instance, Polykleitos of Argos formulated a system of proportions that articulated permanence and harmony and allowed other artists to modify it. One of his sculptures, Canon and Diadoumenos depicts tensile strength and beauty. Sculptures from western civilizations had more color and brightness unlike traditional African sculptures. This can be clearly seen in the comparison of Fang’s reliquary ensemble and Polykleitos of Argos’ canon (Boardman 56). Both ancient Greek sculpture and ancient Egyptian sculptures address issues that touch on human forms. They are manifested in human forms and address issues that affect human beings. Fangs reliquary ensembles and polykleitos’ canon and Diadoumenos are sculptures that exemplify human form (Dillon 55). These characteristics tell more of the origins and the shaping of art in traditional western civilization and traditional African cultures. Western art was influenced by traditional art to a certain extent. The modern approach in art came into existence with an influence of traditional African artworks. Many western modern artists copied styles from traditional African art and developed their own. This explains the addition of emotion to western art and the use of human form (Dillon 56). Both traditional western civilization art and traditional African art explored forms of abstraction. The two explored abstract art in detail. They combined white on white and color abstract art. White paintings and sculpture present art in the simplest way possible by eliminating things that can complicate or add other dimensions on a piece of art. It brings art clearly from its background showing every detail (Land, Leicht and Boer). Abstract art is about creating clarity and avoiding ambiguity. White on white paintings and sculptures eliminate aspects of ambiguity in art works by putting the piece of art against a clear background that highlights each detail that the artist wants to display. This is clearly seen in fang’s reliquary ensembles. Color abstract paintings and sculptures encourage free association and will. It does not tell or prescribe the type of piece of art that one should develop (Knell, 2007, 18). It does not impose the kind of meaning that an artist should achieve when the piece of art is fully developed. These are more developed in western civilizations where they use assorted equipments and materials, such as bronze to develop their art (Land, Leicht and Boer 35). In the 1900s, the aesthetics captured in traditional African sculpture became a powerful influence among western artists who had a formed a group of avant-garde in the development of their modern art (Land, Leicht and Boer 16). For example, Pablo Picasso and Henry Matisse borrowed from the stylized treatment of the human figure depicted in African sculptures. African sculpture had unique painting styles that acted as forms of attraction because of their beauty and colorfulness. This helped to enhance clear color palette and fragmented cubist shapes that helped to shape modernism. Therefore, this shows the importance of African sculpture in the modern art styles. African sculptures have conflated aesthetics that depicted emotional intensity of dissonant color tones and distortions of figures that showed anxieties of modern life (Land, Leicht and Boer 30). Traditional African sculpture had a sophisticated approach to the abstraction of the human figure. For instance, Fang reliquary ensemble (1979.206.229) and reliquary produced by Ambete (2002) clearly show the abstraction of the human figure (Land, Leicht and Boer 36). The sculpture by Fang shows the integration of form and function in sculpture. His sculpture can be said to be representative of an embodiment of an ancestor’s spirit because it was placed at the top of a bark vessel where the remains of notable people of an extended family had been preserved. Clearly, this piece of sculpture shows that traditional African art was used to show the value that Africans placed on families. Historically, Africans are known to have preserved the extended family as an important unit in the society. Therefore, Fang’s sculpture shows this essential aspect of African culture. In addition, Fang’s sculpture shows the belief that people placed on ancestors in traditional African societies. This was one of the important beliefs in traditional African value system. They believed that ancestors watched over them and protected them from untold or unseen danger. Fang captured this by putting his sculptural element at the top of a bark vessel where family members put the remains of most important members of their families who had deceased. This representational in the sculpture is abstract as opposed to naturalistic (Land, Leicht and Boer 28). The fang people had a sense of continuity through their communal and personal cohesiveness through an ancestral cult that was known as Bieri. This cult exemplified the qualities and values that the fang people admired. These qualities included tranquility and vitality among other values. The balanced forms of the sculptures depict these ideals. It significantly influenced modernist artists during the early twentieth century. It is rich in terms of juxtaposition straight lines, balanced symmetry and sinuous curves. The generalized representation of the ancestors depicted by the sculpture has been differentiated from the people who were remembered through the relics at the time of need. Despite the fact that traditional African art was abstract, it was more representational of the most important things in the society. They mostly touched on human qualities and issues that affected human beings directly. They were a form of communication as opposed to pieces of art that were developed for their aesthetics and beauty. Artists had an intention of influencing or communicating to the society rather than creating artworks that would just impress people as forms of beauty. In conclusion, traditional western civilization and traditional African art have similarities as well as differences as explained above. However, it is essential to state that western art borrowed from traditional art in the sense that Greeks borrowed from Egyptians and modified the art in their own way. Art in traditional western civilization is noted for its contribution to three-dimensional art. As explained, fang’s reliquary ensembles and polykleitos’ canon and Diadoumenos are good examples that show similarities and differences of traditional western civilization art and traditional African art in terms of sculptures. The development of the human form, the capture of societal values and important aspects among other issues are covered in both artworks. Both of these artworks show a representation of two different societies with different art styles. The comparison and contrast of western versus African artworks has helped in the understanding of the progression of art as an essential aspect in the two societies. The two societies are rich in artistic exemplification in their own unique ways. Works cited Boardman, John. Greek Sculpture: The Classical Period: A Handbook. London: Thames & Hudson, 1985. Dillon, Sheila. Ancient Greek portrait sculpture: contexts, subjects, and styles. London: Cambridge University Press, 2006. Land, Cees op 't, Bernd Leicht and Peter de Boer. Africa: tribal art. Michigan: Edition Schulte Weiss, 2006. Marquand, Allan and Arthur Frothingham. A Text Book of the History of Sculpture. London: Kessinger Publishing, 2005. Moore, Mary B. "The Hegesiboulos Cup." Metropolitan Museum Journal, Vol. 43 (2008). Neer, Richard T. The Emergence of the Classical Style in Greek Sculpture. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2010. Paglia, Camille. Sexual personae: art and decadence from Nefertiti to Emily Dickinson. London: Vintage Books, 1990. Read More