Art Criticism

Aesthetic Theories: 'Commenting-- Like You Know What You're Talking About'

(Time: 30 min.)

It was in Visual Art 10, you first learned how to use the Famous Four Questions to decode and understand the artworks you encountered. In this course, you will become more sophisticated in your understanding of art by adding more to your knowledge bank (it's kind of like your piggybank- you save it up for the right occasion and then bust it open when you need it!) Here we go- it's really pretty straightforward.

The three most commonly discussed 'aesthetic theories & qualities of art' are:

Pear & Knife, pencil, Cea Winter 2005

Imitationalism -focuses on the realistic representation of the subject. ~ Literal qualities are the realistic qualities that appear in the subject of the work. For instance, if the artist depicts a realistic figure of a man on a horse in a fantasyland, the literal quality of the work is the image of a man on a horse (not the fantasyland details). "In this sketch, the pear & knife are rendered realistically and therefore the artwork has literal qualities and is an example of Imitationalism."

Formalism- places emphasis on the design qualities. ~ Design qualities, or how well the work is organized, are found when you look at the composition (or setup) of the work. Does it look balanced; is there a rhythmic quality; is there variety? Has the artist made a unified work of art? "All of these questions are quite apparent in this artwork- it is carefully balanced with a complete ring of 'bones' around a central design, there is a rhythmic quality with the 'bone/space/bone/space...' pattern. The emphasis is more on design elements (ex. balance & rhythm) rather than trying to represent reality or an idea or emotion. It's an excellent example of Formalism."

Through My Eyes Judge, installation, mixed media, Cea Winter 1989

Emotionalism- requires a strong communication of feelings, moods, or ideas from the work to the viewer.~ Expressive qualities, or those qualities that communicate ideas and moods, are those you notice when you study the content of a work. Is there something in the work that makes you feel a certain emotion or conveys an idea to you? Arttalk "This artwork possesses expressive qualities- it has quite an emotional feel and communicates both a distinct mood and message. Because communicating ideas and moods seem more important in this artwork, than design qualities alone (Formalism) or making the artwork realistic (Imitationalism), it's a good example of Emotionalism."

Read: p. 30 (half-way down the second column) to understand a little more about these three key qualities & be able to use them comfortably when describing art.

..Intimidated? You don't need to be. Here- let's try them out. The next activity will give you a little practice. Do a little background work & then go snack out at the gallery opening.