While some people may claim to consider advertising a type of fine art, they seldom actually treat advertisements as such. One would be hard-pressed to find, for example, people at an upscale cocktail party who would rather talk about magazine ads than about Picassos, and while numerous homes have paintings hung over their mantles, I have yet to encounter a homeowner who frames advertisements, however well-done, in his or her living room. Even advertising executives shy away from the thought of calling their works “fine art,” with one advertiser stating in the trade magazine Adweek that he becomes “annoyed when people call [advertising] art […] it’s a very dopey notion to me, [as] you’re there to sell ideas or products” (Melillo). Of course, …show more content…
Those whom we now call the era’s greatest artists did not actually view themselves as artists – instead, they often referred to themselves as craftsmen or artisans with a practical purpose, not unlike the graphic designers responsible for creating the advertisements of today (Galenson 3). As craftsmen, these talented individuals worked to attract the patronage of powerful people, who commissioned works demonstrating their superiority and opulence. Michelangelo and his peers, for instance, created a “repertory of images that communicated Medici power and dynastic rule, [and the Medici’s ability to pay for these expensive images suggests…] the marvelous bounty enjoyed by Florence under Cosimo [Medici’s] rule” (“Exhibition Themes”). One can draw a myriad of parallels between Renaissance art and modern advertising: Renaissance dynastic families, for instance, mirrored modern multinational corporations; craftsmen served the role of today’s advertising agencies; and instead of pushing a good or service, the “advertisements” of the Renaissance sought to convince subjects of a ruler’s political legitimacy. Even the contracts negotiated between Renaissance artisans and their patrons share similarities to contracts between modern corporations and their associated advertising agencies. Indeed, historian Michelle O’Malley reveals in her book The …show more content…
Acquired from natives in Sumba, Indonesia sometime during the 19th century, this ladle exemplifies so-called primitive art. People unaware of this ladle’s past would likely use it for its intended purpose – as a utensil to serve soup – but people who have seen the ladle at a museum would balk at performing such a sacrilegious action. These opposing reactions stem from the different ways the ladle is presented in each scenario. In the first scenario, we would find the ladle in the dishwasher or a pot of stew, but in the second, we would find it in a museum, a place which Carol Duncan deems a center for cultural rituals that “provide a frame and create a mood receptive to fantastic tales” (11). In this case, the museum certainly provides a frame and a tale for the ladle – by putting the ladle in an enclosed pedestal surrounded by bright lights, an airy atmosphere, and an ever-watchful security guard, the museum subconsciously gives the object a mysticism, inducing audiences to view its past users as some strange alien species with a fascinating culture. Context matters in our perceptions of many other works of “art” as well. In an introduction of his book Why Africa? Why Art?, Kwarme Appiah explains why Europeans may sometimes wonder how Asante weights, otherwise beautifully carved, have “limb[s]
In the essay “Why Africa? Why Art?” by Kwame Anthony Appiah, he talks about basically how Africa is thought to be an uncivilized barren and that’s the stereotypical thing that comes to most people’s mind when thinking about this continent. African art has to look a certain way to be able to be called “African.” It has to be made by a tribe, not just one person which is why he says that most African pieces are signed with a tribe name, not just one name. Appiah gives an example of these Asante gold weights that his mother had a collection of. Their use value was to weigh gold dust, which used to be the method of currency. They were made as a utilitarian product, not for art, but many people started to recognize the aesthetic value. He says, “…in appreciating and collecting these weights as art, we are doing something new with them…” These days art is defined to be a certain way and look a certain way. It can’t just be anything, it has to have an aesthetic value to be considered art and to fall into the “guidelines”.
In “Beauty… and the Beast of Advertising” Jean Kilbourne argues that advertisements sell a lot more than just their products: “They sell values, images, and concepts of success and worth, love and sexuality, popularity and normalcy” (1). Kilbourne states that in advertising there are two types of women, “Housewives” and “Sex objects”. Kilbourne calls the sexually objectified women “a mannequin, a shell” because their beauty is flawless, they lacks all of the imperfections that make people appear human (2). Kilbourne also states that these women are all skinny, often tall and “long-legged”, and youthful (2). She claims that all “beautiful” women in ads obey this “norm” (Kilbourne 2). Kilbourne strongly states that advertisements lack the sense
Advertising is so prominent in American culture, and even the world at large, that this media form becomes reflective of the values and expectations of the nation’s society at large.
So, as has been seen, the system of patronage was extremely important in Renaissance Italy. It brought with it mixed blessings for artists. On the one hand, it gave them the income to support themselves and continue to produce works. On the other hand, though, it could be very constrictive on what the artist could produce, and could even sometimes decide the quality of a work.
Interestingly, he also refers to Donatello as a ‘craftsman’. The correlation between the artist or sculptor and craftsman is an important aspect in Italian Renaissance art. The craftsman was something more than just an artist. This person was talented and considered by others in Italian Renaissance society as exceptional or as Vasari’s title suggests, ‘the most excellent’. They were also tradespeople rather than just artists. This is because they created works for other people, which often meant they expressed other people’s ideas. Through an analysis of Vasari’s biography on Donatello, this essay will explore the importance of culture in Renaissance Italian society, an examination of Vasari’s biography of Donatello as a historical document and the ways in which Vasari portrays Donatello, which ultimately was significant for future Renaissance craftsmen. This paper will analyze the life of Donatello through Vasari’s The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors and Architects to show the importance of Donatello not only as an artist but also as a
The Renaissance was the rebirth of Europe and it all started in the city of Florence. Florence and everything that made a standard Renaissance city: painters, sculptors, writers, architects, and a vivid culture. Soon all of Europe would follow in Florence’s footsteps and “the setting is so rich, varied, rambunctious, and inventive as Italy in the Renaissance” (Cohen 1). The painters and sculptors defined Renaissance culture and could actually make a living because they were being sponsored.
In the article “Conditions of Trade,” 1 Michael Baxandall explains that fifteenth-century Italian art is a “deposit” resulting from the commercial interaction between the artist and the purchaser, who he refers to as a client. These works, as such, are “fossils of economic life,” as money, he states, plays an important role in the history of art. In contrast to our current perceptions of the relationship between the artist and art, “in which painters paint what they think best, and then look around for a buyer” the author examines how the content and form of these paintings were, determined by the customers. He states that the artists and clients were interconnected as specified in the legal agreements of subject matter, payment scheme and the quality and quantity of colours, through the conditions of the artist’s painting style. He not only looks at the explanation of the style of painting that reflected a society, but also engages in the visual skills and habits that develop out of daily life. The author examines the situations between the painter and client within the commercial, religious, perceptual, and social institutions, centrally focusing on markets, material visual practices, and the concept of the Renaissance period overlooking art as an institution. Baxandall observes Renaissance paintings also relate to the clients’ motives through such ways as possession, self-commemoration, civic consciousness, and self-advertisement. The author considers discussions of a wide variety of artistic painters, for instance, Filippo Lippi, Fra Angelico, Stefano di Giovanni, Sandro Botticelli, Luca Signorelli, and numerous others. He defines and exemplifies fifteenth century art through the concepts used by contemporary critics of th...
In the article “Conditions of Trade,” Michael Baxandall explains the interaction serving of both fifteenth- century Italian painting and text on how the interpretation of social history from the style of pictures in a historical period, pre-eminently examine the early Renaissance painting. Baxandall looks not only on the explanation of how the style of painting is reflected in a society, but also engages in the visual skills and habits that develop out of daily life. The author examines the central focus on markets, material visual practices, and the concept of the Renaissance period overlooking art as an institution. He observes a Renaissance painting, which relate the experience of activities such as preaching, dancing, and assessing. The author considers discussions of a wide variety of artistic painters, for instance, Filippo Lippi, Fra Angelico, Stefano di Giovanni, Sandro Botticelli, Luca Signorelli, and numerous others. He defines and exemplifies concepts used in contemporary critic of the painting, and in the assembled basic equipment needed to discover the fifteenth- century art. Therefore this introductory to the fifteenth- century Italian painting and arise behind the social history, argues that the two are interconnected and that the conditions of the time helped shape the distinctive elements in the artists painting style. Through the institutional authorization Baxandall looks at integration in social, cultural and visual evaluation in a way that shows not only the visual art in social construction, but how it plays a major role in social orders in many ways, from interaction to larger social structural orders.
In the article “Conditions of Trade,” Michael Baxandall explains that fifteenth-century Italian art is a “deposit” resulting from the commercial interaction between the artist and the purchaser, who he refers to as a client. These works, as such, are “fossils of economic life,” and money, and they play an important role in the history of art. In our current perception of the relationship between the artist and art, “painters paint what they think is best, and then look around for a buyer” . However in the past, especially during the Renaissance period, the customers determined the content and form of paintings, as it was them who commissioned the work before it was created. He states that the artists and clients were interconnected and a legal agreement was drawn up specifying subject matter, payment scheme and the quality and quantity of colors, which would influence the artist’s painting style. Baxandall not only looks at the explanation of the style of painting that reflects a society, but also engages in the visual skills and habits that develop out of daily life. The author examines the situations between the painter and client within the commercial, religious, perceptual, and social institutions, centrally focusing on markets, materials, visual practices, and the concept of the Renaissance period, which saw art as an institution. Baxandall notes that Renaissance paintings also relate to the clients’ motives through such ways as possession, self-commemoration, civic consciousness, and self-advertisement. The author considers works of a wide variety of artistic painters, for instance, Filippo Lippi, Fra Angelico, Stefano di Giovanni, Sandro Botticelli, Luca Signorelli, and numerous others. He defines and exemplifies fiftee...
Artists in the Renaissance aided the continuation of Renaissance ideals. Renaissance art, including paintings, sculptures, and architecture,...
The shift between the Middle Ages and Renaissance was documented in art for future generations. It is because of the changes in art during this time that art historians today understand the historical placement and the socio-economic, political, and religious changes of the time. Art is a visual interpretation of one’s beliefs and way of life; it is through the art from these periods that we today understand exactly what was taking place and why it was happening. These shifts did not happen overnight, but instead changed gradually though years and years of art, and it is through them that we have record of some of the most important changes of historic times.
McFall, E. (2004). Advertising: A Cultural Economy, London: Sage, Page 3, Page 110, Page 111
During 14th and 15th century artists still worked under the guild system: to study art, younger students would become apprentices to accomplished artists and like any other occupation from blacksmithing and cooking, paining is nothing too respected by the society. Paintings didn’t give much space for artists to apply their imaginations and express their feelings. Instead, artists should painted artworks according to the special requirements of their patrons. However, during the Da Vinci’s age, the status of artists began to change as the Renaissance expanded its influence. The revival of artist encouraged people, especially artists to shed the restraint of theocracy and pursue humanism. What’s more, the city Florence Da Vinci lived in was the main platform for Renaissance. The increasingly free politics and democratic social context also fused energy into the creation of artworks. As it can be seen, the portrait of Mona Lisa glorifies the image of human beings and no longer like the serious picture of God, the main character of the painting is a worldly
The Illusion of Advertisements Advertisements are pieces of art or literary work that are meant to make the viewer or reader associate with the activity or product represented in the advertisement. According to Kurtz and Dave (2010), in so doing, they aim at either increasing the demand of the product, to inform the consumer of the existence, or to differentiate that product from other existing ones in the market. Therefore, the advertiser’s aim should at all times try as much as possible to stay relevant and to the point. The advert alongside is simple and straight to the point. It contains very few details but extremely large content with the choice of words and graphics.
Art is everywhere whether one likes it or not, and can be appreciated in the smallest of ways. It’s absolutely necessary for the growth of a society and its people. It’s mainly used for businesses today to either raise people’s opinions of their company or sell a product. For example if you go to the marketplace and you pick up a gallon of milk the first thing you may see on that gallon is a picture of a cow or the same milk being poured into a glass in a way that captures the eye and makes you think “wow that looks great!” This is the most common use for visual art today and often makes people “miss the point” of what it truly means (Why Art Matters, 1). Advertisement is one of the biggest fields in then visual arts and shapes the way we see a product as well as the choices we make on such judgment. This is where the illusion comes in making the visual arts, a potentially harmful thing. The illusion of it comes from what’s true and what’s made up or “altered truth”. A company could make their product seem way better than it really is essentially tricking people into buying it. One example is when you go to a fast food restaurant and you see signs of perfect looking sandwiches when in reality they don’t look like that. Most people don’t see any illusion but when they do it’s hard for them to see the other side of things, the ones that aren’t “stretching the truth”. People today tend to see that kind of advertisement as normal. In fact, it kind of helps with things like morale by making things seem much more worth it and just all around nicer. So there for the arts are the very “soul” of a successful business.