Art Matters A Contemporary Approach to Art Appreciation

What is art? Is it something confined to a museum or gallery, or can it occupy our communities, our schools, our bookshelves, and even our text message conversations? Is it something beautiful, moving, confusing, or perhaps all of the above? What gives Art meaning? And why is Art so important to us--all of us?

Art Matters introduces students to the wide range of art that is around them. Featuring an enormous assortment of types of art that diverse artists have created for different people around the world, it demonstrates how pervasive and critical art is in our lives--from the emojis we text, to the furniture we sit on, to the buildings we live in, to the photographs we see.

Through stories, examples, thoughtful pedagogy, and in-depth discussions of process and history, Art Matters motivates students to experience art actively and meaningfully. By asking questions and exposing students to different viewpoints and ideas, the author gives them the tools to speak, write, think critically, and form conclusions about what they see in familiar and unfamiliar works.

This book will show students that art is everywhere, art is vibrant, and art matters.

Pamela Gordon has been teaching at Norwalk Community College in Connecticut since 2009. At NCC, Pam offers two classes: Art Appreciation and The Creative Voice (an interdisciplinary class in which students explore their own creative processes). Pam teaches both in-person and online classes.

Preface
PART 1. INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1. Art Matters
HOW ART MATTERS: Maya Lin's Vietnam Veterans Memorial
The Importance of Art
A Central Part of Our Lives
A Strongly Supported Endeavor
DELVE DEEPER: Conserving Art
A Benefit to Society
A Basis of Power
Practice Art Matters 1.1. Explore Whether Some Art Should Be Censored
Practice Art Matters 1.2. Explain Why a Memorial Shows How Art Matters
The Purposes of Art
Religion and Spirituality
Politics and the Social Order
Practice Art Matters1.3. Figure Out the Purpose of a Work of Art
Recording and Communicating Information
Practice Art Matters 1.4. Judge Whether an Image Is Reliable
Decoration
Expression
Social Action
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Chapter 2. What Is Art?
HOW ART MATTERS: Barnett Newman's Voice of Fire
Defining Art
Art as a Physical Object Made from Artistic Materials
Art as an Aesthetic Experience
Art as an Object of Value
Art as Part of the Canon
Art as a Work Crafted with Skill
Art as a Work That Has Meaning
Practice Art Matters 2.1. Consider How Cultural Perception Impacts Views
Practice Art Matters 2.2. Explore How Physical Perception Changes Meaning
Art as a Creative Work
Practice Art Matters 2.3. Discover How to Approach a Difficult Work of Art
The Themes, Types, and Ingredients of Art
Themes of Art
Practice Art Matters 2.4. Judge What Theme a Work of Art Concerns
Types of Art
Ingredients of Art
HOW ART MATTERS. A Look Back at Voice of Fire
PART 2. THE LANGUAGE OF ART
Chapter 3. The Visual Elements of Art
HOW ART MATTERS: Vincent van Gogh's Letters and Art
Line
The Character of Lines
The Direction of Lines
Actual and Implied Lines
The Different Uses of Lines
Practice Art Matters 3.1. See How Lines Draw Attention
Shape
The Character and Direction of Shapes
Geometric and Organic Shapes
Positive and Negative Shapes
Overall Shapes
Mass
The Character and Direction of Masses
Geometric and Organic Masses
Mass and Negative Space
Practice Art Matters 3.2. Explore the Masses of a Car
Texture
Actual and Simulated Texture in Two-Dimensional Works
Actual and Simulated Texture in Three-Dimensional Works
Light and Value
Light
Value
Light Hitting Three-Dimensional Opaque Objects
Chiaroscuro
Value to Heighten Expression
Light as a Material
Color
The Visible Spectrum
Why We See Color
The Subtractive and Additive Color Systems
DELVE DEEPER: The Additive Color System
The Color Wheel
The Properties of Color
Color Schemes
Practice Art Matters 3.3. Discover How Scheme Impacts Content
The Characteristics of Color
Space
Three-Dimensional Space
Two-Dimensional Space
Time
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at Vincent van Gogh's Letters and Art
Chapter 4. The Principles of Design
HOW ART MATTERS: The Taj Mahal
Unity and Variety
Practice Art Matters 4.1. Identify How an Artist Created Variety and Unity
Balance
Symmetrical Balance
Asymmetrical Balance
Practice Art Matters 4.2. Determine What Makes Something Visually Heavy
Radial Balance
Emphasis and Subordination
Scale
Proportion
Practice Art Matters 4.3. Consider How Size Affects a Painting
DELVE DEEPER: The Golden Section
Rhythm
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Taj Mahal
PART 3. THE MEDIA
Chapter 5. Drawing
HOW ART MATTERS: Pablo Picasso's Guernica Drawings
What Drawing Is
An Intense Way to See
Practice Art Matters 5.1. Observe a Piece of Fruit with Intensity
A Way to Understand the Creative Process
A Way to Take Notes
A Finished Work of Art
Different Drawing Materials
Drawing Surfaces and Tools
Practice Art Matters 5.2. Use Different Surfaces and Tools
Dry Media
Liquid Media
DELVE DEEPER: Mixed Media
Digital Drawing
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Guernica Drawings
Chapter 6. Painting
HOW ART MATTERS: Judy Baca's The Great Wall of Los Angeles
What Painting Is
An Application of Paint
An Artform Created with Layers, Tools, and Techniques
A Message to Viewers
Different Painting Media
Encaustic
Practice Art Matters 6.1. Observe an Encaustic Painting Up Close
Fresco
Practice Art Matters 6.2. Consider the Fresco Painting of a Modern Artist
Tempera
Oil
Practice Art Matters 6.3. Compare Two Annunciations Created in Oil Paint
Transparent Watercolor
Gouache
Acrylics
Digital Painting
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at The Great Wall of Los Angeles
Chapter 7. Printmaking
HOW ART MATTERS: The Prints of Honor? Daumier
What Printmaking Is
An Indirect, Two-Dimensional Art
A Collaborative Process
An Art of Multiple Originals
An Art Form
Practice Art Matters 7.1. Compare Two States
Different Printmaking Techniques
Relief
DELVE DEEPER: Color Woodcut
Intaglio
Practice Art Matters 7.2. Compare an Aquatint and an Etching
Planographic
Stencil
New Directions
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Prints of Honor? Daumier
Chapter 8. Photography, Film, and Video
HOW ART MATTERS: D. W. Griffith's Film The Birth of a Nation
Photography
What Photography Is
Practice Art Matters 8.1. Contrast Two Photographers' Different Visions
Different Types of Photographs
Film
What Film Is
Practice Art Matters 8.2. See How a Film Helped Make a Difference
Different Types of Films
Video
What Video Is
Different Types of Videos
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at The Birth of a Nation
Chapter 9. Graphic Design
HOW ART MATTERS: The Graphic Design for the Beijing Olympic Games
What Graphic Design Is
A Client's Message to a Specific Audience
A Straightforward and Multiple Form of Communication
DELVE DEEPER: The Ancient Art of Graphic Design
An Art Form
Components of Graphic Design
Images
Type
Practice Art Matters 9.1. Determine Why a Typeface Might Be Incompatible
Layout
Different Types of Graphic Design
Signs, Publications, and Packaging
Corporate Identities
Practice Art Matters 9.2. Compare an Updated Logo with the Original
Motion Graphics and Interactive Digital Media
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Graphic Design for the Beijing Olympic Games
Chapter 10. Sculpture
HOW ART MATTERS: Akua'mma Sculptures
What Sculpture Is
A Three-Dimensional Work of Art
An Art Form Created from Tangible Materials
Practice Art Matters 10.1. Examine How Gold Affects a Sculpture
A Meaningful Expression
Different Types of Sculptures
Freestanding Sculptures
Relief Sculptures
Earthworks
Practice Art Matters 10.2. Consider the Changing Nature of Earthworks
Installations
Different Sculpture Techniques
Carving
Modeling
Casting
DELVE DEEPER: Casting Human Figures
Constructing and Assembling
Practice Art Matters 10.3. Evaluate Who Should Decide the Fate of Public Art
Digital Sculpting
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at Akua'mma Sculptures
Chapter 11. Traditional Craft Media
HOW ART MATTERS: The Pottery of Maria Martinez
Conflicting Definitions of Craft
Skill versus Intellect
Utility versus Appearance
Individuality versus Mass Production
Practice Art Matters 11.1. Consider Whether Mass-Produced Pots Are Art
Handmade Feel versus Perfection
Reflections of Societies versus Lone Visions
Practice Art Matters 11.2. Explore How a Work Challenges Definitions of Craft
Media Traditionally Associated with Craft
Clay
Glass
Metal
Wood
Fiber
DELVE DEEPER: Computer-Controlled Looms
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Pottery of Maria Martinez
Chapter 12. Architecture
HOW ART MATTERS: The Pantheon
What Architecture Is
A Functional Place
A Three-Dimensional Work
A Work in an Environment
A Collaborative and Individual Art Form
An Art Form Structured to Withstand Forces
Shell Construction Methods
Load-Bearing and Corbel
Post-and-Lintel and Cantilever
Practice Art Matters 12.1. Explain Why a Paper Lintel Falls Down
DELVE DEEPER: The Three Orders
Arch, Vault, and Dome
Practice Art Matters 12.2. Determine the Forces That Act on a Paper Arch
Practice Art Matters 12.3. Describe Why a Paper Pointed Arch Nearly Stands
Practice Art Matters 12.4. Explore the Effect of a Cup's Continuous Surface
Reinforced Concrete Construction
Skeleton-and-Skin Construction Methods
Frame Construction
Suspension
Practice Art Matters 12.5. Consider the Two Forces That Act on a Necklace
Recent Innovations in Structures and Materials
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Pantheon
PART 4. THE HISTORY OF ART
Chapter 13. The Art of Prehistory and Ancient Civilizations in Europe and the Mediterranean
HOW ART MATTERS: The Parthenon Sculptures
Prehistoric Cultures
The Paleolithic Period
The Neolithic Period
Early Civilizations
Mesopotamia
Egypt
Practice Art Matters 13.1. Compare Sculptures of Elite and Non-Elite People
The Greco-Roman World
Greece
Practice Art Matters 13.2. Describe a Hellenistic Sculpture
Rome
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Parthenon Sculptures
Connections: Power, Servitude, and Ambition
Chapter 14. Early Jewish and Christian, Byzantine, and Medieval Art
HOW ART MATTERS: The Lindisfarne Gospels
The Late Roman Empire
The Diverse Roman World
Christianity in the Period of Persecution
Christianity under Constantine
Practice Art Matters 14.1. Label the Parts of Old St. Peter's
The Byzantine Empire
The Emperor Justinian and the Empress Theodora
Icons and Iconoclasm
Practice Art Matters14.2. Compare Images on a Chalice and an Icon
The Middle Ages
Early Medieval
Romanesque
DELVE DEEPER: Relics and Reliquaries
Gothic
Practice Art Matters 14.3. Contrast Romanesque and Gothic Churches
Toward the Renaissance
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Lindisfarne Gospels
Connections: The Divine, Sacred Spaces, and Prayers
Chapter 15. Renaissance and Baroque Art
HOW ART MATTERS: Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel Paintings
The Renaissance
The Early Renaissance in Italy
Practice Art Matters 15.1. Identify Early Renaissance Ideals in a Work
The High Renaissance in Italy
The Renaissance in Venice and Mannerism
DELVE DEEPER: Mannerism
The Renaissance in Northern Europe
The Reformation
Practice Art Matters 15.2. Explore an Artist's Relationship with the Divine
The Baroque
The Baroque in Italy
Practice Art Matters 15.3. Recognize Baroque Ideas in a Work
The Baroque in Spain and Flanders
The Baroque in France
The Baroque in the Dutch Republic
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Sistine Chapel Paintings
Connections: War, Death, and Remembrance
Chapter 16. The Art of Africa and Islam
HOW ART MATTERS: The Great Mosque in Djenn?, Mali
Africa
Early Africa
Traditional Africa
Practice Art Matters 16.1. Identify the Features of Traditional African Art in a Work
Islam
Muhammad and Islam
Early Islam
Medieval Islam
Practice Art Matters 16.2. Describe the Themes of Islamic Art in a Lamp
Later Islam
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Great Mosque In Djenn?, Mali
Connections: Love, Birth, and Growing Up
Chapter 17. The Art of the Pacific and the Americas
HOW ART MATTERS: Hawaiian Featherwork
The Pacific
Australia
Melanesia
Polynesia
Practice Art Matters 17.1. Compare Two Polynesian Sculptures
The Americas
Mesoamerica
Practice Art Matters 17.2. Determine the Features of Aztec Society in a Work
South America
Practice Art Matters 17.3. Identify South American Themes of Art in a Tunic
North America
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at Hawaiian Featherwork
Connections: Wildlife, the Land, and the Environment
Chapter 18. The Art of Asia
HOW ART MATTERS: The Japanese Tea Ceremony
The Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia
The Early Indian Subcontinent
Buddhism on the Indian Subcontinent and in Southeast Asia
Hinduism in India
Practice Art Matters 18.1. Identify the Aspects of Indian Art in a Work
Islam in India
China and Korea
Early China and Korea
Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, and Their Offshoots in China
Practice Art Matters 18.2. Recognize the Buddha's Attributes
Later China
Japan
Classical Japan
Practice Art Matters 18.3. Contrast Heian Period and Northern Song Dynasty Paintings
Medieval Japan
Early Modern Japan
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Japanese Tea Ceremony
Connections: Work, Play, and Relaxation
Chapter 19. Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century Art in the West
HOW ART MATTERS: Edouard Manet's The Luncheon on the Grass
The Eighteenth Century
The Rococo
Neoclassicism
Practice Art Matters19.1. Identify the Neoclassical Features in a Work
The Nineteenth Century
Romanticism
Practice Art Matters 19.2. Contrast Neoclassical and Romantic Images
Realism
Impressionism
Practice Art Matters 19.3. Identify Japanese Influence in a Work
Post-Impressionism
Art Nouveau
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at The Luncheon on the Grass
Connections: Art, the Artist, and the Inner Mind
Chapter 20. Modern Art in the Twentieth-Century Western World
HOW ART MATTERS: The Earth-Body Works of Ana Mendieta
The Early Twentieth Century through World War II
Expressionist Movements
Practice Art Matters 20.1. Identify the Features of Fauve Art
Cubism
DELVE DEEPER: Responses to Analytic Cubism
The Art of the Irrational
Practice Art Matters 20.2. Explain Why a Work Is Classified as Dada
Art for a Better World
Art in the United States
Post-World War II through 1980
The New York School
Art and Reality
Minimalism
The Art of Ideas
Practice Art Matters 20.3. Contrast the Goals of Minimalism and Conceptual Art
Earthworks
Combatting Prejudice
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Earth-Body Works of Ana Mendieta
Connections: Suffering, Health, and Survival
Chapter 21. Art Since 1980
HOW ART MATTERS: The Art of Yinka Shonibar MBE
The Postmodern Period
Postmodern Ideas
Architecture
Painting
Diverse Media
Practice Art Matters 21.1. Explain Why an Installation Is Postmodern
Protest Art
Practice Art Matters 21.2. Consider Whether a Work Is Protest Art
Practice Art Matters 21.3 Explore How Museums Influence Our Views
Art That Draws on Prior Work
The Contemporary Global World
Globalization and Art
Art of Diverse People
Practice Art Matters 21.4. Describe How a Work References Identity
Art of a Global World
HOW ART MATTERS: A Look Back at the Art of Yinka Shonibar MBE
Connections: Identity, Discrimination, and Social Ties
Glossary
Endnotes
Credits
Index