Visual Arts of the World Essay Example for Free

Visual Arts of the World Essay Visual arts ranged from a variety of objects. These are works of art that are crafted with visual in nature such as paintings, photography, architecture, filmmaking and sculpture. Thus, these pieces of art are primarily meant for visual consumptions. This study will tackle on wooden sculptures belonging to two different cultures: the bulol or Ifugao rice god of the Philippines and one of the early wooden sculptures of Yoruba Nigeria of Africa. The said art forms will then be examined, analyzed, compared and contrasted. The formal elements or physical appearance of the work will be discussed first and second, its cultural representations and significance. According to the British Council Arts, sculpture is the art or process of creating representational or abstract forms, either in the round or in relief. It is a form of art that is being carve either on wood, ivory or any material that the artist decide to do so. Ifugaos are inhabitants of the Central Cordillera in northern Luzon in the Philippines. Their origin is derived from the term Ipugo which means â€Å"from the hill†. According to Ifugao mythology, the name â€Å"Ifugao† is derived from Ipugo which refers to the rice grain given to them by their god Matungulan. Until today, this kind of rice grain is cultivated by the Ifugaos (Sianghio). On the other hand, according to The Africa Guide, Yoruba are people who live in Southwest Nigeria and Benin. They have developed a variety of diverse artistic forms which include pottery, weaving, beadwork, metalwork, and mask making. There are more than 401 known Yoruba gods so most of the artworks, which include sculptures, are made in order to honor the gods and ancestors The bulol, generally means deity, is specifically a granary idol. It is considered as an effigy of deceased ancestors (Asian Studies 63). In accordance to the C. E. Smith Museum of Anthropology, it is carved human figurines that is usually made in pairs—male and female—and are kept in the house or granary. Some bulols are standing while some are squatting with folded arms (Masferre and de Villa 54). It is an abstract art, according to Alfredo Evangelista of National Museum of the Philippines (1970), because the Ifugao carver expresses his feelings rather than attempts realistic representation. The deformations are results on the emphasis on the quality of other worldliness or the preternatural. The bulol is the most crucial art form because it embodies the Ifugao’s most sacred traditional values (Asian Studies 62). On the contrary, the Yoruba Nigeria sculpture follows the typical form of an African sculpture—cylindrical. African wooden sculptures are primarily cylindrical in appearance and are also made of wood. The statues are carved from trunks or branches (Segy 14). According to Frank Willet, the head is very much depicted because the Yoruba believes that it is the seat of one’s destiny, therefore it must be symbolically bigger and more prominent than any other part of the body. He has also identified three characteristics of Yoruba sculpture: bulging eyes, protruding lips and simplified ears which can clearly see in the chosen piece. The selected sculpture is not defined whether the art form is a female because the chosen Yoruba sculpture is naked, showing its stout breast or a male, exposing its phallus. Carving a bulol usually takes six weeks to finish and it is accompanied by rituals and dancing. The male and female bulols are carved at the same time (Masferre and de Villa 54). In contrast, the Africans believe that trees are home of spirits so in order to pacify the spirit of the tree, a special ritual is done before the cutting of the tree. The two selected sculptures are both anthropomorphic in forms which mean that the works of art ascribe human characteristics. They are both made of wood. If the bulol is often placed in a granary to protect the harvest, the Yoruba sculpture is used as an adornment and indicates a social status. The chosen works of art have utilitarian and historical relationship with the culture of the carver. They are both religious symbols and are accompanied by certain rituals. If bulols are considered as ancestors whose spirits can protect the living (Alvina and Sta. Maria 199), the Yoruba sculpture is a manifestation of the relationship of the African and the spirits of dead members of his family, which is extremely important in their culture. From the cultural background of bulol, it can clearly be seen that Ifugao are farmers. They live in an agricultural area where they primarily rely their lives. On the other hand, the Yoruba sculpture, as a social symbol, indicates that the owner is from a wealthy class, however, it is not clearly indicated or stated that the carver is also from a domineering class in their society, thus, the carver can come from the lower class in the society. Those chosen visual arts need to be seen, perceived and judged with an open mind. They should not be anchored to the Western standard of defining â€Å"what is beautiful† or â€Å"what is aesthetically pleasing† because they will definitely fail to abide to the Western standard with regards to â€Å"what is art,† which is confined then to fine arts—paintings, sculptures of artists that appeal to the senses and emotions—pieces that express the Western notion of â€Å"beauty† and portrays realistic figures especially when it comes paintings and sculptures just like how Michelangelo comes up with his â€Å"David,† the famous depiction of male beauty (History of Beauty). If the wooden sculptures of Yoruba and Ifugao are anchored to the Western standards and notions of ‘art’ and ‘beauty,’ those pieces will then categorically be labeled as â€Å"primitive† due to their irregular proportions and eerie appearance. Illustrations This Yoruba sculpture has originated at Yoruba Nigeria in Africa. It is an anthropomorphic figure and a manifestation of the nexus of the dead African family members to the living. It is a religious and status symbol. It is an early Yoruba sculpture. The artist or carver of the sculpture has not been stated but definitely he belongs to the culture of Yoruba. It is 34. 3 inches or 87 cm tall and made of wood (not specified). . This bulol is one of the forms of a rice god—sitting with folded arms. It is usually put in a house or in a granary for protection. It is often carve in pairs—a male and a female. It has a length of 6. 5 inches, a width of 6. 5 inches and a height of 24 inches. The artist or carver is not also stated but definitely he is an Ifugao. The sculpture is made of wood (not specified). Works Cited Asian Studies. University of the Philippines: Philippine Center for Advanced Studies Philippine Center for Advanced Studies, 1972.Alvina Corazon and Santa Maria Sta. Maria. Halupi. Capital Publishing House, 1989. Gagelonia, Pedro A. Concise Philippine History. Philippines: Far Eastern University Consumers Cooperative Incorporation, 1970. Masferre, E. and Jill Gale de Villa. A Tribute to the Philippine Cordillera. Makati City, Philippines: Brier projects, 1999. Perkins, Morgan and Howard Murphy. Anthropology of Art. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2006. Segy, Ladislas. African Sculpture. New York: Dover, 1958. Willet, Frank. African Art: An Introduction. Singapore: Thames and Hudson, 1971. â€Å"African People and Culture. † The African Guide. 02 December 2008. http://www. africaguide. com/culture/tribes/yoruba. htm. â€Å"Cutting: The Woodcarver. † 18 April 1995. Yoruba. Conner, Michael. 02 December 2008. http://www. fa. indiana. edu/~conner/yoruba/woodcarver. html â€Å"History of Beauty. † Answers. com. 02 December 2008. http://www. answers. com/topic/beauty â€Å"Ifugao. † Tripod. Sianghio, Christina. 02 December 2008. http://litera1no4. tripod. com/ifugao_frame. html. â€Å"Sculpture. † British Council Art. 02 December 2008. http://www. britishcouncil. org/arts-art-sculpture. htm List of Illustrations