Ways in Which Asian Artists have Responded to the Influence of Western Art Practice - Assignment Example

Name: Course instructor: Course: Institution: Date: Discuss some of the ways in which Asian artists have responded to the influence of Western art practice and artistic mediums in the 20th century The Asian artists have responded to the influence of western art practice and mediums in the 20th century in various ways. First, the Asian artists of the twentieth century adopted the western artistic practices that were particularly aimed at making the work of art to be more modern,1. Due to the influence of western art practices and artistic mediums, the Asian artists of the 20th century started creating hybrid artistic works that showed their readiness to modify the traditional art forms. The Asian artists also reformed traditional painting in order to make it help their people. They also started painting from life instead of imitating traditional forms of art as they had formerly done. The artistic and cultural modalities of the Asian artists show the influence of western art practice and artistic mediums of the 20th century. The Asian artists also started using equipment that had western origin. Such instruments include piano and saxophones that are used in Asian music. They also responded to western art practices by adopting new forms of art such as architecture, music and dance. According to2, artistic styles that were characteristic of the west were also adopted by most Asian artists of the 20th century. Such artistic styles included Gothic, Doric and Victorian styles of art. Another response of Asian artists on the western influence of art practice can be seen in their new architectural designs that emphasized on repetition of undemanding straight lines, planes that had no decoration and expansive lines. New principles of design are also another way through which the Asian artists responded to the influence of western art practices and artistic mediums of the 20th century. The Asian artists adopted the new principles of design which they had copied from the western culture. 20th century Asian artists also started using oil painting which was due to the influence of Western art practices and artistic mediums. The Asian artists could take photographs and make paintings of nude bodies which were also another influence of western art,3. Example of a painting of nude body In addition, they could represent God and other religious objects as it was common with the western act practices. The Asian paintings would formerly show patterns and not pictures and thus the western art practices influenced Asian artists in the 20th century and they could now paint pictures instead of patterns. In their dances, they imitated the western art practices and made sure that the performers in their dances did not have masks most of the time. The lack of masks in the Asian artist’s performers ensured their performances depicted realism. Japanese painting was among the first Japanese artworks that were modified due to the influence of western art practices and artistic mediums. The Indian artists of the 20th century took from the western art a vernacular language that was visual to be included in their works of art,4. Some of the Indian artists of the 20th century like Souza and Husain made attempts to come up with oriental art that was common in the western art practices. Other Indian artists responded to the influence of western art practices by using hybridized style in their works of art. On the contrary, some Indian artists like Roy rejected the influence of western art practices in his works. Many other Indian artists who came after Roy made use of the western art practices but they still embraced their Indian artistic practices. They also emphasized on the use of color in their paintings as a result of the influence from western art practices Copy of 20th century Indian painting Indonesian artists adopted the use of batik art from western art practices. According to5, Batik was a medium of art that was invented by the American artist Nia Fliam. It was used in Indonesian art as a medium of expressing the work of art. In this connection, the western art practices and artistic medium can also be said to have influenced the way Asian artists expressed their artistic works. The aesthetic capabilities of the western artistic mediums motivated the Asian artists to adopt them. The use of batik as a medium of art enabled the Indonesian artists express visual language in their artistic works in a more effective manner. Another way in which the Asian artists responded to the influence of western art practices is by creating artistic works that made use of a variety of cultural signs with more detailed skill. The western artistic practices and mediums influenced the Asian artists in the 20th century by making them not to concentrate on technical fineness of their works,6. The standards of beauty in the western art were also adopted in areas like India and Indonesia to act as the benchmarks for their works of art. Japanese artists of the 20th century responded to the influence of the western art practice by translating, transforming and assimilating the aspects of the western art practices and mediums. Indonesian artist adopted a western artistic practice that had the view that a person’s work art reflected his/her intelligence. This western ideology helped the Indonesian artists to understand the meaning of art. According to7, the definition of the work of art as reflecting the artist’s intelligence and morality made the Indonesian artists to ensure morality in all their works of art. Moreover, the Asian artists also concentrated in portraying nature as it is in their works of art of the 20th century and this was a way of responding to the western artistic influence and artistic mediums. The combination of extensive technological changes increased exposure to other cultures, coupled with the rapidity of these changes led to an acute sense in western cultures of the world is lack of the fixity or permanence,8. The avid exploration of the conditions of modernity and of the people’s position relative to a historical continuum permeated the western art world as well and led to the development of modernism. The 20th century Indonesian artists also responded to the influence of western art practices by copying the western styles. The western styles led to new forms of art in the Asian countries like Indonesia and Japan. Indonesian artists like Raden Saleh acquired new western romantic styles in their painting that brought improvement in their artistic works,9. Other Asian artists responded to the influence of the western artistic practices and art mediums by having tension in themselves. The western art practices and artistic mediums of the western artists influenced the growth of art in Indonesia. The western artists made the Indian artists aware of the modern artistic styles. The Indonesian artists thus started using the new styles of art from the western world that involved the use of high knowledge in designing the works of art. The Indonesian art forms such as ceramics and wood sculpture were greatly influenced by the western art practices. In this connection, such art forms aesthetically stylish and depicted daily lives of the people Indonesia particularly their religious practices,10. In response to the western art practices, some Asian artists used painting for scientific purposes where they painted scientific pictures. Nationalistic philosophies were other ways in which Asian artists responded to the western art practices. The Asian artists had the beliefs of nationalism that were used to determine their lives and this influenced their works of art. The spirit of nationalism made the Asian artists produce artistic works that were evidence of their struggle for liberation. The artists were thus interested searching for good political statements rather than aesthetic values in their works of art. Another way in which the Asian artists responded to the western art practices is by emphasizing on the expression of emotions. Formerly, Asian artists emphasized on scrupulous techniques in their art works rather than the expression of their emotions, 11. Asian artists of the 20th century produced works of art that were meant to promote ideas of the educated nationalists in their societies. Moreover, with the introduction of formal education in art work, the Asian artists became more organized due to the influence of western art practices. In addition, greater numbers of Asian people joined the work of art and logical fashions were adopted in performing the work of art. New scopes of art came into being due to the influence of western art practices. Apart from painting, the Asian artists adopted the use of sculpture, graphics, industrial design and lithography which were all as a result of influence of the western art practices and mediums, 12. Moreover, the Asian artists accessed the information required for internationals artistic standards and this made them to produce internationally recognized works of art. In this connection, we can say that another way in which the Asian artists responded to the influence of western art practices and artistic mediums is by producing artistic works that were internationally accepted. The production of internationally standardized works of art made the Asian artists to gain prominence all over the world. According to13, the response of the Asian artists to the influence of western art practices and artistic mediums included the development of the ability of the artists to analyze their work of art. In addition, it also showed the ability to deal with issues of form of art and its composition. The Asian artists were influenced by western modernism which also involved modernized artistic practices and mediums. The influence of western art practices and artistic mediums influenced the Asian artists in the 20th century in their judgment of their works of art. Due to these influence, the Asian artists judged the work of art by its incorporation on western culture. The artworks that had the influence of western culture were considered better than other works which made use traditional art mediums. The response of the Asian artists to the influence of western art practices and mediums made the Asian artists to neglect the traditional culture and produce works that were dominated by the culture of the western world. This was a negative influence of the western art practices because it made the western artists to leave their culture and adopt the culture of the European world. The Asian artists responded to the western art practices influences by producing contemporary art forms. Some Asian artists did not heed the influence of western art practices. For example, some Indonesian artists concentrated on their traditional art practices instead of adopting the practices of the western art14. This made the Indonesian modern art to differ with the modern western art. In the 20th century, Indonesian artists were independent of their own practices and showed no influence from the western art practices. The Indonesian artists of the 20th century represented great and minor pictures in realistic paintings. Their works of art were also detailed because they had been influenced by social practicality. The Indonesian artists also placed great value on fine details while composing their works of art. The introduction of western art practices in Japan had many influences on the Japanese work of art. The Japanese artists used the western art practices to build new structures such as the train station in Tokyo,15. The new architectural styles were as a result of the influence of western art practices. The Japanese artists first responded to the western art practices through open hearted reception of the western art practices and artistic mediums of the 20th century. After some time, the Japanese artists changed their minds and they aimed at maintaining their traditional art forms and practices instead of copying the new art forms that were western in origin. The Japanese artists also responded to the influence of the western art forms by shifting from traditional art forms to the use of modern art. Though the Japanese artists adopted the use of western art practices, they still kept their traditional artistic concepts such as spacing in dances and music, particular combination of colors and forms of literary art. The Japanese artists of the 20th century were greatly influenced by the western art. The Japanese artists responded to this influence by constructing buildings that had greater artistic outlooks than the previous ones,16. Japan’s contemporary art shows various ideas of the modern art. These ranges from painting, architecture, sculpture and video games. The Japanese artists also responded to the influence of western art practices and forms by new artistic styles and materials such as paints. Western art practices and artistic mediums also had influence on the Indian artists of the 20th century. The Indian artists of the 20th century adopted western styles of art and incorporated them with their traditional forms of art with an aim of improving their artistic works. The response of the Indian artists on the influence of western art practices was divided. There are these Indian artists who immediately embraced the western art practices while others were stuck to their traditional art practices. The adoption of the western forms of art and practices made the Indian artists to come up with new varieties of art which had not been experienced before. The modern forms of painting in India which were as a result of western art practices were far beyond the reach of common definition. According to17, Indian artists also responded to the influence of western art practices by making use of new styles that emphasized on western thoughts of composition, viewpoint practicality to show Indian themes. Indian artists also attended art schools that taught western art practices in order to get western ideas and techniques of art, 18. The Indian art of the 20th century thus had various features of the western art because the Indian artists had been influenced by the western art practices and mediums. Indian artists through the influence of western art also found new means to express their feelings after the colonial period. The Asian artists of the 20th century thus responded to the influence of the western art practices and artistic mediums in various ways. “Some of the Asian artists immediately accepted the western art practices and mediums while others were reluctant and decided to maintain their indigenous artistic practices, 19”. Asian artists started using expressive colors in their painting due to the influence of western art practices. They also made use of simplified designs that were characteristic of the western art. The simplified designs made their works more classic than it had been before the influence of the western art practices and mediums The other way in which the Asian artists responded to the influence of western art practices and artistic mediums is by using new artistic mediums such as modern paints. The use of modern paints made the Asian artists come up with better works of art. The works of Asian artists of the 20th century included high decorations which were also as a result of the influence of western art practices. Most paintings, drawings and sculptures of Asian artists of the 20th century emphasized on natural forms and this was also another response to the influence of the western art influence. Moreover, Asian artists embraced the use of new principles of design intense warm colors that were a characteristic of the western art practices. In conclusion, we can say that the Asian artists adopted western artistic practices which aimed at modernizing the work of art. References: Allan R. Desires wrought upon the surface of an image: photography as an art in india. 2010. Web. Retrieved on 15th April 2011 from http://www.goethe.de/ins/in/lp/prj/kus/bil/en6943633.htm Galeson D. Language in Visual Art: the 20th century. 2008. Web. Retrieved on 15th April 2011 from http://www.nber.org/papers/w13845 Gustay K. Learn about famous artist of the 20th century painting, view their famous art. 2010. Web. Retrieved on 15th April from http://www.arthistory-famousartists-paintings.com/TwentiethCenturyPainting.html Ikeda A. 20th century Japanese Art and the wartime state: reassessing the art of the ogawara shu. 2010. Web. Retrieved on 15th April 2011 from http://www.japanfocus.org/- Asato-Ikeda/3432 Levin C. unity in diversity: the formation of modern Indonesian art. 2008. Web. Retrieved on 15th April 2011 from http://artasiapacific.com/Magazine/59/UnityInDiversityTheFormationOfModernIndonesianArt Wanczura D. Modern art movements. 2009. Web. Retrieved on 15th April 2011 http://www.artelino.com/articles/modern_art_periods.asp Francis W. A revolution in the arts: art styles in 19th century- art map. 2010. http://www.all-art.org/history568_styles_movements_20centuri_.html Read More