food for thought

  1. The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls. Pablo Picasso
  2. Art is not what you see, but what you make others see. Edgar Degas
  3. No great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did, he would cease to be an artist. Oscar Wilde
  4. To send light into the darkness of men's hearts - such is the duty of the artist. Schumann
  5. The art of art, the glory of expression and the sunshine of the light of letters, is simplicity. Walt Whitman

September 30, 2025

2. BASIC TAXONOMY (course one continued)

Here are the most important terms we will be using throughout this year's study; please be sure you get well acquainted with all of them:

  • THEME: the general content of the artwork (general aspect/subject) (e.g., the landscape)
  • SUBJECT-MATTER: the sum of identifiable objects, persons, places, references in the artwork (e.g., the rose garden)
  • MEANING (or, CONTENT): is revealed through interpretation; sometimes the title may be of help, but most often than not, it is shown through careful iconographic and/or iconological interpretation
  • ICONOGRAPHY: the overt or hidden symbolism in the artwork, rendered through images (signs, symbols)


 


  • ICONOLOGY: the meaning revealed through the study of the cultural, social, and historical background of the artwork (through literary, historical, etc., texts)
  • DESCRIBING ART: the verbal pointing to the features; a means of gathering the support for interpretations; it concerns the subject matter, the most expressive formal elements, the principles of design, etc.
  • ANALYSING ART: explaining how the described elements get their meanings, the artist's choices; inferring meaning; evaluating technique
  • INTERPRETING ART: a most important and complex activity; the arriving at the meaning of the artwork by employing different strategies of interpreting based on the information gathered through iconographical and iconological insights
  • EVALUATING ART: determining how good the artwork is, according to some criteria, either clearly stated or implied, while providing reasons and evidence for judgments
Task: Watch the video. What is the role of iconography in understanding a work of art, and how does it work?

Deadline: Oct 13

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