How Art Communicates
- The main Argument. The text introduces the reader to art as a broader subject made up of different components. The fragments above are all useful to comprehend the message communicated by any creation of art.
- How the author supports the idea behind the text. The author supports his opinion of art as a language by undertaking a comparative approach between how language uses words to communicate and how art is a medium of communication through visual interpretation. In comparing, the author states what components are similar in both language and art order to assert that art is a language given the common objective of both art and language is the passing of information. Throughout the text, the author discusses the key components making up art and how each link up to impart meaning from a visual point. The main idea the author intends to inform the reader is that art is a language in itself; it borrows largely from written and spoken language to communicate effectively. The message passed through art is somewhat similar to that passed using language. The main difference between the two is the fact that art is designed to convey the message through visual cues. As an illustration, the pyramids of Egypt inform the contemporary society of the Egyptian political and socio-economic institutions by sight. The message to be communicated is dependent on the source. Unadulterated sources are the best since the message passed has a high degree of accuracy in comparison to secondary sources. As an example, the author uses the example of the inaccuracies and misrepresentation of African American history by the media as a secondary source because the black community did not actively participate in the process. The reading develops the main Argument by using examples that the reader can easily relate.
- The evidence of what the text is about. The text talks of visual literacy through art and the ability of art to relay information and effectively communicate as a language. The author asserts that the ability of art to accurately communicate to the object of the gaze is only through proper interpretation of the image. He supports the Argument above by stating that there are proven methodologies employed to decode messages from artistic presentation effectively. Iconography and formalism are the methods, and “the former informs the latter,” the author brings out the definition that the two are components unless they are both incorporated, the message may fail the accuracy test. In illustrating the main ideas, the sculpture of the Death Of Cleopatra(1876). For example, in discussing iconography, the author states that Hiawatha, a native American leader. By contrasting how two sculptures by the same artist bear communicate the different ages and environments in which both pieces are from independent of the artist’s perception. Cleopatra sculpture is used throughout the text in discussing other components of art and how they are all synchronized and channeled towards a common message.
- The lesson on art as a language is of great use to me when analyzing a piece of art. The application of iconography and formalism widens the scope of the themes. The reading opens imagination in critical thinking. By looking at a piece of art, I can appreciate the fragments that come together to help in the interpretation of the art. The most valuable lesson learned from the reading is the ability to view any piece of art beyond the viewers’ and the artist’s gaze. By analyzing the components and features displayed in a work art, it is possible to tell the way of life lived in the period in history associated with the piece of art.
Reference
Farrington, Lisa. (2017). African-American Art: A visual and cultural history.