Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Visual Arts:Sense Stimuli: Contrasts and Dynamics


February 8, 2013

What does Art mean?  Truly defining art is quite difficult in reality, as the result all depends on the person interpreting and the reaction.  “Art must meet a criterion of functionality…we might define art as one person’s interpretation of reality manifested in a particular medium and shared with others” to interpret and also appreciate (Sporre19).  Various types of art can be defined and interpreted in many different ways.  It all depends on the person, situation, and eyes on the beholder.  Art awakens the imagination.  We as humans, are very creative naturally.  It allows an individual to express him or herself in such ways that he or she would deem possible.  Art delves into an individual’s creative gene and allows him or her to create masterpieces in all sorts of ways.  According to Sporre, “The arts comprise elements of life with which we can and must deal and to which we must respond every day.  We live with the arts because the principles of aesthetics permeate our existence…the arts play important roles in making the world around us more interesting and habitable.  Artistic ideas join with conventions to make everyday objects attractive and pleasurable” (15).  Art can different effects on different individuals.  Commitment and study of art is required to fully envelop the meaning of specific pieces of art.
What is Visual Art?  “Visual Art is human expression in a visual form” (South 1).  The Visual Arts refers to art that an audience can look at and view.  Some examples of Visual Arts include: Drawing, Painting, Sculpture, Architecture, Photography, Cinema, and Printmaking.  These are all types of art that an individual views as “functional” and creative.  It was only after the Middle Ages that Visual Arts got its name.  During the middle Ages, the term “the arts” was used to term scholarly disciplines.  They were seven in number: Grammar, Rhetoric, Dialectic Logic, Arithmetic, Geometry, Astronomy, and Music (Esaak 1).  These seven “arts” were termed Fine Arts in order to distinctly distinguish them from the “Useful Arts.”  The fine arts were termed “fine” because only those who were educated and did not do any manual labor studied them.  The Fine Arts came to be those that pleased the senses of others.  It was not until later, in times that are more modern did the arts become more specialized and categorized into Visual Arts, Auditory Arts, and Performance Arts (Esaak 1).  The Formal and Technical Qualities of Visual Art include: Media, Composition, and other Factors.  Media can include: Drawing, Painting, Mixed Media, Printmaking, and Photography.  Composition includes: Elements and Principles of Two-Dimensional Art.  Other Factors include: Perspective, Chiaroscurro, and Content (Sporre 38). 
When referring to two-dimensional Visual Art, the senses are relatively difficult to relate to at first.  An audience cannot touch pictures or feel the actual texture, roughness or smoothness of the art piece.  The coolness and or warmth of a visual piece of art cannot be interpreted quickly.  Pictures cannot be heard, smelled, or tasted.  Because of this realization, it has been concluded that when responding to visual two-dimensional art, the audience “uses visual stimuli that can change into mental images of touch, taste, and sound” (Sporre 62).  By visually using one’s senses to capture the message and meaning of the art work, an individual is participating in Sense Stimuli.  Using the five senses, individuals will be able to understand the meaning of the visual art piece in more than just a tangible way.  By incorporating one’s senses, the individual is reaching within him or herself to find a deeper and more powerful meaning to the piece of two-dimensional art.  A two-dimensional piece can conjure up smells, tastes, sounds, sights, and touch.  Sense Stimuli and Two-Dimensional Art can be better described through Contrasts and Dynamics. 
In Essak’s article, it states, “Contrast is a principle of art that refers to the arrangement of opposite elements in a piece so as to create visual interest, excitement and drama” (1).  Contrast appears when two related elements are different.  The more prominent the difference in related elements, the greater the Contrast.  Any level of Contrast adds diversity and variety to the complete and overall design and masterpiece.  Contrast brings unity to art, even though it involves two counter elements of the same component.  This unity enhances visual interest (Bernard 1).  Contrast can pull he viewer’s eye into the two-dimensional piece of Visual art and aid to the act as a guide of the art piece.  If there is too much monotony within the art piece, interest weakens and the design becomes plain.  But, if there is too much Contrast, the design becomes too complicated and over-designed, making it confusing.  “The most common ways of creating Contrast are by creating differences in: Size, Value, Color, Type, Texture, Shape, Alignment, Direction, and Movement” (Bernard 1).  If these art elements are all the same or become too complicated within an art piece, the Contrast results in uninteresting and confusing. 
In this watercolor painting, a 3rd grader is able to illustrate the concept of warm and cool colors contrasting each other in the same art piece.  The brushstrokes and colors used, allow the senses to be stimulated in such a way to feel as if the viewer is actually experiencing what is being depicted.  The contrasting colors bring a sense of drama, and create moods through the color choices.  It is because of the use of contrasting colors that the senses are immediately stimulated and attracted to this watercolor painting.
http://thinkcreateart.wordpress.com/2010/03/26/warm-and-cool-color-beach-landscape-paintings-3rd-grade/ Contrast can stimulate the senses.  Colors can be categorized into cool and Warm Colors; Blues and Greens being Cool Colors and Reds, Yellows, and Oranges being Warm Colors.  The cool colors bring about a sense of chill, lack of light, and they imply shade.  The warm colors on the other side of the spectrum bring about a sense of heat and strength (Sporre 62).  Other forms of Contrasts are black and white, positive and negative space, and fluidity and rigidness. 
            In Reality Through the Arts, Sporre states, “Also, highlight and shadowing creates contrasts, while predominantly red and gold hues warm the Composition” (62).  Chiaroscuro gives a picture a lot of its character with its use of “light and shade” (Sporre 60).  The technical element of the Chiaroscuro is essential in the application of artist illustrating the flesh on two-dimensional art.  Flesh can appear in many ways.  Because of its versatility, the sense that is stimulated is sense of touch.  The viewer has the urge to touch the picture and really feel the texture of the contrasting colors and elements presented in the art piece (Sporre 62).
The dynamics of art can affect a viewer’s interpretation and his or her senses when studying a piece of art as well.  The dynamics of art can stimulate the senses that each viewer possess.  The dynamics of Visual Art have the potential to give the piece that extra element of excitement.  It is the use of lines, shapes, movement, solidity, and how the brain perceives the present dynamics.  The use of line can create assorted levels of dynamics to art.  As an element of art, line affects our sense responders. 
                                                                 Figure 1.40
Figure 1.40, the Inverted-Triangular Composition brings about a sense of instability and movement.  Figure 1.40 would not take a lot of effort to knock over due to its instability (Sporre 64).  

                                                                  Figure 1.39       
                                                   

In Figure 1.39, the Upright- Triangular Composition brings about a sense of solidity and stability. Figure 1.39 would take a lot of effort to knock over dues to its stability, versus Figure 1.40 (Sporre 64). 
                                    Figure 1.41 
 

In Figure 1.41, the curvy line brings about a sense of relaxation, rest, and calmness (Sporre 64).  
                                                                Figure 1.42


In contrast, in Figure 1.42, the jagged line brings about a sense of violence, ferocity, and power (Sporre 64).  
           According to Sporre, “vertical composition can express, a sense of dignity and grandeur,” both being internal feelings, stimulating the senses, and “horizontality can elicit a sense of stability and [serenity]”(Sporre 64).  This can be illustrated with the use of a triangle.  The visual appearance of a piece of art creates the dynamics.  We must use our sense to interpret those dynamics and how they each contribute to the overall complexity of the art work.  Using one’s sense can elicit a new perspective on the way a viewer perceives a piece of art.  Although the use of shapes, lines, movement and solidity can demonstrate the sense stimuli of dynamics, only relying on either Contrasts and/or Dynamics to get a realistic sense of the art work being viewed should not be limited.  There are other aspects to consider when viewing a piece of Visual Art.    
Although some may feel Visual Arts are limited to two-dimensional views, Visual Art can show much more through the use of our senses being stimulated by the art’s Contrast and Dynamics.

Works Cited:
Bernard, Teresa. "Art Lesson: Principles of Good Design - Contrast." Principles of Good Design: Contrast, Lesson #6. Bluemoon Original Oil Paintinga, 2012. Web. Jan. 2013. <http://www.bluemoonwebdesign.com/art-lessons-6.asp>.
Esaak, Shelley. "Art History: Contrast." About.com Art History. About.com Guide, n.d. Web. Jan. 2013. <http://arthistory.about.com/cs/glossaries/g/c_contrast.htm>.
Esaak, Shelley. "What Is Visual Art?" About.com Art History. About.com Guide, n.d. Web. Jan. 2013. <http://arthistory.about.com/cs/reference/f/visual_arts.htm>.
South, Helen. "What Is Art?" About.com Drawing / Sketching. About.com Guide, n.d. Web. Jan. 2013. <http://drawsketch.about.com/od/drawingglossary/g/What-Is-Art.htm>.
Sporre, Dennis J. "Two-Dimensional Art." Reality Through the Arts. 8th ed. Boston: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2013. 19-64. Print.
ThinkCreateArt. "Warm and Cool Color Beach Landscape Paintings-3rd Grade." ThinkCreateArt. N.p., 26 Mar. 2010. Web. 31 Jan. 2013. <http://thinkcreateart.wordpress.com/2010/03/26/warm-and-cool-color-beach-landscape-paintings-3rd-grade/>.

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