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Functions of Arts

The document discusses the different functions that art can serve, including physical, social, and personal functions. It provides examples for each type of function and notes that a single piece of art may serve multiple functions. Context is important for understanding the intended functions of a work of art.

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Ralph Jan Lumilis Sajulga
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29 views

Functions of Arts

The document discusses the different functions that art can serve, including physical, social, and personal functions. It provides examples for each type of function and notes that a single piece of art may serve multiple functions. Context is important for understanding the intended functions of a work of art.

Uploaded by

Ralph Jan Lumilis Sajulga
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Within art, there exist purposes referred to as functions for which a piece of art

may be designed, but no art can be "assigned" a function—either in scholarly


studies or casual conversation—outside of the proper context. Art forms exist
within very specific contexts that must be considered when classifying them.
Whether a particular piece of art has existed for centuries or has yet to be created,
it is functional in some way—all art exists for a reason and these reasons make up
the functions of art.

Functions of Art
Ideally, one can look at a piece of art and guess with some accuracy where it came
from and when. This best-case scenario also includes identifying the artist
because they are in no small way part of the contextual equation. You might
wonder, "What was the artist thinking when they created this?" when you see a
piece of art. You, the viewer, are the other half of this equation; you might ask
yourself how that same piece of art makes you feel as you look at it.

These—in addition to the time period, location of creation, cultural influences,


etc.—are all factors that should be considered before trying to assign functions to
art. Taking anything out of context can lead to misunderstanding art and
misinterpreting an artist's intentions, which is never something you want to do.

The functions of art normally fall into three categories: physical, social, and
personal. These categories can and often do overlap in any given piece of art.
When you're ready to start thinking about these functions, here's how.

Physical

The physical functions of art are often the easiest to understand. Works of art
that are created to perform some service have physical functions. If you see a
Fijian war club, you may assume that, however wonderful the craftsmanship may
be, it was created to perform the physical function of smashing skulls.

A Japanese raku bowl is a piece of art that performs a physical function in a tea
ceremony. Conversely, a fur-covered teacup from the Dada movement has no
physical function. Architecture, crafts such as welding and woodworking, interior
design, and industrial design are all types of art that serve physical functions.

Social

Art has a social function when it addresses aspects of (collective) life as opposed
to one person's point of view or experience. Viewers can often relate in some way
to social art and are sometimes even influenced by it.
For example, public art in 1930s Germany had an overwhelming symbolic theme.
Did this art exert influence on the German population? Decidedly so, as did
political and patriotic posters in Allied countries during the same time. Political
art, often designed to deliver a certain message, always carries a social function.
The fur-covered Dada teacup, useless for holding tea, carried a social function in
that it protested World War I (and nearly everything else in life).

Art that depicts social conditions performs social functions and often this art
comes in the form of photography. The Realists figured this out early in the 19th
century. American photographer Dorothea Lange (1895–1965) along with many
others often took pictures of people in conditions that are difficult to see and
think about.

Additionally, satire performs social functions. Spanish painter Francisco Goya


(1746–1828) and English portrait artist William Hogarth (1697–1764) both went
this route with varying degrees of success at motivating social change with their
art. Sometimes the possession of specific pieces of art in a community can elevate
that community's status. A stabile by American kinetic artist Alexander Calder
(1898–1976), for example, can be a community treasure and point of pride.

Personal

The personal functions of art are often the most difficult to explain. There are
many types of personal functions and these are highly subjective. Personal
functions of art are not likely to be the same from person to person.

An artist may create a piece out of a need for self-expression or gratification. They
might also or instead want to communicate a thought or point to the viewer.
Sometimes an artist is only trying to provide an aesthetic experience, both for self
and viewers. A piece might be meant to entertain, provoke thought, or even have
no particular effect at all.

Personal function is vague for a reason. From artist to artist and viewer to viewer,
one's experience with art is different. Knowing the background and behaviors of
an artist helps when interpreting the personal function of their pieces.

Art may also serve the personal function of controlling its viewers, much like
social art. It can also perform religious service or acknowledgment. Art has been
used to attempt to exert magical control, change the seasons, and even acquire
food. Some art brings order and peace, some creates chaos. There is virtually no
limit to how art can be used.

Finally, sometimes art is used to maintain a species. This can be seen in rituals of
the animal kingdom and in humans themselves. Biological functions obviously
include fertility symbols (in any culture), but there are many ways humans adorn
their bodies with art in order to be attractive to others and eventually mate.

Determining the Function of Art

The functions of art apply not only to the artist that created a piece but to you as
the viewer. Your whole experience and understanding of a piece should
contribute to the function you assign it, as well as everything you know about its
context. Next time you are trying to understand a piece of art, try to remember
these four points: (1) context and (2) personal, (3) social, and (4) physical
functions. Remember that some art serves only one function and some all three
(perhaps even more).

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