Power point discussing "What is Art?" - for an intro to art class. Includes photos with discussion questions for engagement. Used with a high school art class.

1. WHAT IS ART?
Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing
which ones to keep.
-Scott Adams

2. OBJECTIVES
• Identify the purposes of art.
• Compare and contrast sources to which artists turn for
inspiration.
• Create visual solutions using direct observation and imagination.
• Compare and contrast the use of the elements in artworks.

3. Key Vocabulary Terms
• Artwork
• Artist
• Perceive
• Symbol
• Commission
• Sketchbook

5. WHAT IS ART?
• Drawing
• Printmaking
• Sculpture
• Architecture
• Photography
• Videography/Film
Making
• Graphic arts
• Industrial and
commercial design
• Digital arts
• Crafts (folk art)
An artwork is the visual expression of an idea or
experience created with skill.

6. ART IS COMMUNICATION
• Art is a language used to express ideas and feelings.
• How do you experience it fully?
• By Perceiving
• To perceive is to become deeply aware through the sense
of the special nature of a visual object.
• How do you perceive other things on a daily basis?
• To understand a work of art, you must train yourself to
perceive.

7. THE 4 MAJOR PARTS OF ART
1. Form: HOW the piece is made or created
a. Elements
b. Principles
c. Medium
d. Materials
2. Function: What was the purpose of this? What was it for? What
was it meant to do?
3. Content: What is in it or NOT in it? What’s happening IN the work?
What is the message the work communicates?
4. Context: What was going on OUTSIDE the work when it was
made?
a. Time period
b. Location
c. Culture
d. Geographical Region
e. Audience

8. WHY LOOK AT ART?

9. YOUR TURN TO PERCEIVE
Meyer Straus. Bayou Teche. 1870. Oil on canvas. 30 x 60”. Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, Georgia.
Try to perceive
what Meyer
Straus is
expressing.
• What do you
sense if you
concentrate
on his image?

10. What are the purposes of art?
1.Think silently to yourself (20 seconds.)
2.Turn to your neighbor and share
your ideas. (1 min.)
3.Share with the class.

11. THE PURPOSES OF ART
• People created art to record ideas and feelings long before
they had written words.
• Often, they used symbols. A symbol is something that
stands for, or represents, something else.
• Some of the most common functions of art:
• Personal- feelings, tragedies, etc.
• Social function - shared sense of identity-family, community,
civilization
• Spiritual - spiritual beliefs about the destiny of life controlled by a
higher power
• Physical - new ideas and technologies to give functional objects,
such as cars and buildings, new and interesting forms
• Educational - create art to teach people

12. WHAT AND WHO IS AN ARTIST?
• What is an artist?
• Creative individuals who use imagination and skill to communicate
in visual form.
• They use the materials of art to solve visual problems.
• They are able to see their surroundings in new & unusual ways.
• Artists exhibit the courage to take risks.
• You do not have to have formal training to call yourself an artist.
• Everyone can BE an artist and everyone has the ability to be creative.
You just have to learn how to access and tap into your creativity and
then apply it.
• The creative impulse is often suppressed if one becomes afraid of
making mistakes.
• Has this ever happened to you?

13. WHY DO ARTISTS CREATE?
The impulses that drive artists to create vary.
• For Fun/Entertainment
• Express or Work Through Emotions
• Happiness
• Sadness
• Fear
• Etc.
• Environmental
• Depict Beauty Around Them
• Celebrate Humanity
• Social/Political Commentary
• A Sense of Purpose
• Tell Stories
What are some things that spike your creativity?

14. WHERE DO ARTISTS GET IDEAS?
• Nature
• People and Real World Events
• Myths and Legends
• Spiritual & Religious Beliefs
• Creative Techniques
• Artists of the past
• Ideas commissioned by employers

15. NATURE
George Inness. The Lackawanna Valley. 1856. Oil on canvas. 86 x
127.6 cm. National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC.
This painting celebrates nature
and industry.
• Why do you think the artist
has included all the tree
stumps in this painting?
• What symbols of
industrialization has he used?

16. PEOPLE AND REAL WORLD EVENTS
Grant Wood. American Gothic. 1930. Oil on
beaverboard. 74.3 x 62.2 cm. Art Institute of
Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
• Symbols tell a story:
• People - Who are they
symbolizing?
■ Expressions
• Items in painting - What do they
symbolize?
• Identify other symbolism in the
painting and tell me what you think it
means.
• Clothing?
• Environment?
• Time Period
■ Hint: Look at when the
painting was created in the
credit line.

18. MYTHS AND LEGENDS
Romare Bearden. Return of Ulysses. 1976. Serigraph on paper.
47 x 57.1 cm. National Museum of American Art, Washington,
D.C.
• This print is the last in a
series of serigraphs (silk-
screen printing) illustrating
the story of Ulysses, a
legendary Greek hero.
• Bearden has simplified
shapes and used unusual
colors but you can still
recognize people and
objects in the work.
• Describe three things you
recognize in this scene.

19. SPIRITUAL & RELIGIOUS BELIEFS
Yup’ik. North Wind Mask. Early 20th century. Wood,
paint, feathers. 114.9 x 54.3 x 45.4 cm. The Michael
C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection.
• The North Wind Mask was created
for a dance ceremony.
• Notice how the artist has used
natural earth pigments to color
the wood, plus natural materials
like feathers and sinew to
decorate it.
• What kind of objects can you
think of that we have in our
culture that are created with
spiritual & religious beliefs in mind?

20. CREATIVE TECHNIQUES
Jackson Pollock. Cathedral. 1947. Enamel and
aluminum paint on canvas. 71 ½ x 35 1/16”. Dallas
Museum of Art, Dallas, TX.
• Many artists developed
and experimented with
new techniques to create
art and a lot of times this
founded new art
movements.
• Jackson Pollock was a
leader of the Abstract
Expressionist movement.
• In 1947, he developed
action painting, the
technique of dripping
and splashing paint
onto a canvas
stretched on the floor.
• The idea for this style
of painting, which
influenced many
who came after him,
came from within
himself.
• Pollock wanted to
express his personal
feelings when he
created his art.
• He allowed his
feelings to influence
his choice of colors
and the manner in
which he applied
them to the canvas.

21. ARTISTS OF THE PAST
• Compare these
objects with the
ones depicted in
Velazquez’s work.
• What has Picasso
done to make the
work uniquely his
own?
• Do you think he
was exhibiting a
sense of humor?
Pablo Picasso. Las Meninas (The Maids of Honor). (After Velazquez). 1957. Oil
on canvas. (6’6 ¾ “ x 8’ 6 3/8 “). Museo Picasso. Barcelona, Spain.
Diego Velazquez. Las Meninas. 1656. Oil on canvas. (10’
5 ¼ “ x 9’ ¾ “). Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain.

22. IDEAS COMMISSIONED BY EMPLOYERS
• In art, a commission is the act of requesting the
creation of a piece by an artist.
• Artwork may be commissioned by private
individuals, by the government, or businesses.
• Examples:
• Graphic designers create corporate logos,
brochures, websites, and many other print
materials.
• Fine artists, like sculptors and painters, are often
commissioned to create artworks for display in
public spaces and buildings.

23. IDEAS FOR YOUR OWN ARTWORK
• Like all other artists, you may at times find yourself at a loss for ideas.
• One of the best ways to get the creative juices flowing, is to start with a
thematic idea (i.e., nature) and then brainstorm by using mind maps (or
another type of brainstorming that works for you) to narrow down your idea
of what you want to express or document.
• The work of your peers can also inspire you.
• Keeping a visual arts journal or sketchbook can be an enormous help.
• A sketchbook should be used to practice skills and techniques you learn in class.
• In addition to recording images, you may jot down ideas that come to you after
participating in other art events such as concerts, movies, and theater
productions.
• Cut out inspiration from magazines or print them from the internet and keep
them in your sketchbook for later use.

24. PURPOSE OF YOUR SKETCHBOOK
• The main purpose of your sketchbook is that it should be used to
practice skills and techniques you learn in class.
• You will be keeping a sketchbook of your own in this class.
• Artists develop perception and artistic skills by constantly sketching
the world around them.
• Practice using direct observation to draw anything that catches
your eye. The more you draw, the better you will “see” objects.
• Make written notes about your sketches, such as the quality of light
or the colors you notice.

25. REVIEW
• WHAT IS ART?
• What does it mean to perceive?
• What are some reasons artists create art?
• What do we mean when we say “commission”?
• What are some ways you can find inspiration?
• What are the purposes of a sketchbook?