The Ugly and the Tragic in Art

There is nothing that maybe

considered an improper subject for a
work of art. The grotesque, the ugly
and the tragic are all ligitimate subjects
as much as the pleasurable and the
beautiful are. As a matter of fact,
artists have often deviated from the
sterotyped and beautiful subjects.
any have been attracted to decaying
or dilapidated objects whose forms,
colors and te!tures have intrigued
them. They have rendered these in
aesthetically pleasing paintings and
prints. "embrandt van "ijn#s painting of
the $ayed carcass of an o! hanging in a
butcher#s stall is an e!ample. And so ar
anuel %aldemor#s paintings and prints
of weather&beaten barong&barong.
A good number of works of art
are concerned with pain and evil.
Among the most appealing subjects of
painting and sculpture are the 'ruci(ed
'hrist and )a *ieta. The greatest
plays are invariably tragedies. And
many of our songs speak of love denied
or lost. +ur sweetest songs are those
that tell of saddest thoughts, *ercy
%ysshe ,helley wrote.
There are reasons for the wide appeal
of works of art that show human
su-ering. The interest does not have to
spring from a sadistic or a masochistic
tendency at all.
.ach of us has su-ered grief,
frustration or loss one way or another.
/n these works of art, we (nd an a0nity
with the rest of humanity who have
likewise e!perienced these painful
emotions and tensions. /t is as if by
vicariously e!periencing the su-ering
evoked by these works, we are purged
of the pain and we achieved a release
of tension.
THE FUNCTIONS OF ART
Function in Art
'ompared to other activities of
man, art is generally regarded as
impractical, not meant to meet the
requirements of day&to&day living. To
the layman, art has very little function,
the term function being taken to mean
practical usefulness. Architecture,
weaving, furniture&making, and a few
other crafts have obvious purposes and
are therefore classi(ed as functional.
%ut painting, sculpture, literature,
music, and the theater arts seem to
serve no other end than
to amuse or provide a pleasant escape
from life#s daily problems. Thus, they
are classi(ed as non&functional.
The Personal Function
1e said that the arts are vehicles
for the artists# e!pression of their
feelings and ideas. The arts also serve
as means of e!pression for us. usic,
for instance, and literature, at times,
have a way of e!pressing our emotions
for us. As we listen to certain musical
compositions, we feel that they re$ect
e!actly what we feel and thus release
the tension such emotions create in us2
or, as we read certain literary passages,
we note that the writer has presented
e!actly what we think, though we could
never have e!pressed it as clearly as
beautifully.
The therapeutic value of music
cannot be ignored. usic hat charms
to soothe the savage breast, wrote
1illiam congreve. ,oft, sweet crooning
can easily lull a baby to sleep. ,oft,
sweet music piped into modern hospital
rooms has been found to speed up the
recovery of patients, and music
sessions are e-ective in treating
mentally disturbed patients.#
The power of music make us feel
certain emotions and act in certain
ways has been written about by a good
number of poets. /n Ale!ander#s
3east, an ode on the power of music,
4ohn 5ryden describes how the court
musician Timotheur made Ale!ander
the 6reat respond his playing on the
lyre, now swelling the soul to rage,
now kindling love and desire.
As a defense against the many
upleasant and strident sounds and
sights that assault our senses today, we
tend to develop an indi-erence or a
capacity of being deaf or blind to a lot
of signi(cant things around us. Art
helps to educate our senses and
sharpen our perception of colors, forms,
te!tures, designs, sounds, rhythms, and
harmonies in our environment. 7isual
and auditory literacy through contact
with the arts can lead us to an
intensi(ed awareness of the beautiful in
life. /t can thus make our e!istence less
humdrum2 it can re(ne and elevate our
aesthetic taste.
1orks of art make us aware of
other ways of thinking, feeling and
imagining that have never occured to
us before. They o-er us fresh insights
into nature and human nature so that
we gain a better understanding of
ourselves and the world around us.
They help us improve our lives. This is
especially true of literature, drama and
cinema which capture and vivify human
e!perience.
PSYCHOLOY OF COLOR
!HITE
1hite fundamental characteristic is
equality8 all colors are equal with white.
1hite personalities have faith derived
from reason, and tranquility that
conjures up hope. They embody
fairness 9 unity 9 strive toward a purity
of spirit.
RE"
"ed character is full of spirit of physical
life, the will to live. They (lled with
adrenaline, determination, (re 9 drive.
*ossessed of tireless energy, they
embody courage, liberation, tenacity,
passion 9 e!citement. The red
character has a burning desire to get
somewhere, but ted to act without
thinking : it will get its own way, come
what may.
ORANE
+range represents knowledge8 it test,
and accept or rejects. /t has impetus, 9
persistence 9 a positive optimism trait.
They are friendly, and may be the life 9
soul of the party as well great
supporters of a community. )ike to work
in groups, 9 can take pride in the
achievement of the group rather than in
their own success.
YELLO!
;ellow people are mind&oriented,
precise optimism, clear, 9 in control
through the intellect. They are the one
of focused attention, yet $e!ible 9
adaptable, 9 lover of new ideas.
REEN
The green people are idealist 9 have a
strong social conscience. They are quick
to help others, even this is at their own
e!pense. They are dependable,
diplomatic 9 tactful.
#LUE
%lue is the color of the higher order of
intelligence2 it is the spirit of truth. They
are deep thinker 9 won#t leap without
much forethought. They possess a
tranquil spirit2 peace with a purpose.
/ntegrity, honor 9 sincerity are the blue
traits.
#LAC$
%lack personality lies something
dormant or buried. At the heart of black
lies discipline , which in turn brings
about freedom 9 liberation.
Understanding the %eaning o&
Colors in Color Psychology
The meaning of colors can vary
depending on culture and
circumstances. .ach color has many
aspects to it but you can easily learn
the language of color by understanding
a few simple concepts which / will teach
you here.
Non-verbal Communication
'olor is a form of non verbal
communication. /t is not a static energy
and its meaning can change from one
day to the ne!t with any individual & it
all depends on what energy they are
e!pressing at that point in time.
3or e!ample, a person may choose to
wear red on a particular day and this
may indicate they are ready to take
action, or they may be passionate
about what they are going to be doing
that day, or again it may mean that
they are feeling angry that day, on
either a conscious or subconscious
level. All are traits of the color red.
The Meaning of Colors
"ed is the color of energy, passion,
action, ambition and determination. /t is
also the color of anger and se!ual
passion.
+range is the color of social
communication and optimism. 3rom a
negative color meaning it is also a sign
of pessimism and super(ciality.
1ith the meaning of colors, in color
psychology, yellow is the color of the
mind and the intellect. /t is optimistic
and cheerful. <owever it can also
suggest impatience, criticism and
cowardice.
6reen is the color of balance and
growth. /t can mean both self&reliance
as a positive and possessiveness as a
negative, among many other
meanings.
%lue is the color of trust and peace. /t
can suggest loyalty and integrity as well
as conservatism and frigidity.
/ndigo is the color of intuition. /n the
meaning of colors it can mean idealism
and structure as well as ritualistic and
addictive.
*urple is the color of the imagination. /t
can be creative and individual or
immature and
impractical.

The color meaning of turquoise is
communication and clarity of mind. /t
can also be impractical and idealistic.
The color psychology of pink is
unconditional love and nurturing. *ink
can also be immature, silly and girlish.
/n the meaning of colors, magenta is a
color of universal harmony and
emotional balance. /t is spiritual yet
practical, encouraging common sense
and a balanced outlook on life.
The color brown is a friendly yet
serious, down&to&earth color that relates
to security, protection, comfort and
material wealth.
3rom a color psychology
perspective, gray is the color of
compromise & being neither black nor
white, it is the transition between two
non&colors. /t is unemotional and
detached and can be indecisive.
,ilver has a feminine energy2 it is
related to the moon and the ebb and
$ow of the tides & it is $uid, emotional,
sensitive and mysterious.
6old is the color of success,
achievement and triumph. Associated
with abundance and prosperity, lu!ury
and quality, prestige and sophistication,
value and elegance, the color
psychology of gold implies a=uence,
material wealth and e!travagance.
1hite is color at its most complete and
pure, the color of perfection. The color
meaning of white is purity, innocence,
wholeness and completion.
%lack is the color of the hidden, the
secretive and the unknown, creating an
air of mystery. /t keeps things bottled
up inside, hidden from the world.