Western Art Research Articles

Contemporary Painting and Spiritual Landscape--Re-examination of the History and Theme of Shelf Paintings

This paper and the graduation piece continue the course of my research. By investigating the history and development of contemporary painting, of how painting going from representational to abstract, this paper and my graduation piece is aimed to find a new interpretation to integrate the ideas of painting; to achieve the "landscape of spirit" of artist and to interpret the expressive principle of art fully. Finally, combining the landscape of spirit and painting together, highlighting an important factor of creation-"spirit". This paper has taken the analysis from Chinese and Western to be the main content-from representational to abstract; from the West to the East; and from the combination of the East and the West. Of western artists, Picasso, Rothko was chosen to be the representative while the integration of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism from the Wei and Jin Dynasty was chosen to represent the East. Whether it is the religion of the West of the philosophy or the East could be found in painting easily, this show that spirit is necessary in painting. Nowadays, the East and the West are closely linked, Chinese artist's self-study and the "landscape of spirit" could be easily seen. How to explain the "landscape of spirit" is also a problem. This paper tries to explain the "landscape of spirit" by combining art history, study of the connection and development of art and technology, and my own art.

Research on the Intervention and Integration of Calligraphy Aesthetics in Oil Painting Creation

From the comparative perspective of Eastern and Western art, this paper discusses and analyzes the unique aesthetic characteristics of Oriental calligraphy. We will focus on the use of brush skills in calligraphy, the clever arrangement of cloth and the layout of calligraphy art, all of which are crucial elements in Eastern calligraphy. Through the detailed analysis of these typical aesthetic characteristics, we will further combine with the current situation of Chinese oil painting creation in the new era and explore how to extract the beauty of form in calligraphy and apply it to oil painting creation. This process not only involves the modern transformation of traditional art forms, but also involves how to find new creative inspiration and expression techniques in cross-cultural artistic exchanges.

Analysis of music teacher education programs in Puerto Rico

This article presents a descriptive analysis of eight music teacher education programs in Puerto Rico. Within the international landscape, music education in Puerto Rico faces obstacles similar to other countries in the form of government cutbacks and limited offerings in school settings. This study presents an analysis and evaluation of the curricular characteristics of music education bachelor’s degrees and a depiction of preservice music teacher education in the country. This was achieved through the use of the Project ALFA II-0448-A analysis matrix, an instrument that compiles four forms of data: (a) general information; (b) history of the program, (c) structure and duration; and (d) curricular principles. Information was obtained from the official web pages of each institution and/or department. Comparisons with programs in other countries reveal a propensity to adopt foreign music education models, with our analysis also outlining the implications of adopting external approaches. Musical instruction in Puerto Rican music teaching degrees is exclusively on Western art music; none of the programs offer musical instruction through popular music or the country’s traditional music or music-pedagogical lessons conducive to teaching such art forms. The lack of education in popular and Indigenous music renders it challenging for music educators to offer school-level students culturally responsive music lessons. The case of Puerto Rico thus demonstrates the perpetuation of European cultural hegemony in higher music education spaces, driven by adherence to foreign standards and approaches to music pedagogy that emanate from the global north.

The Beauty of the Raku technique in the Works of Potters Shenyar Abdullah and Yaqoub Al-Atoum

Art is an aesthetic message and a means of human communication with its surroundings, as it influences and is influenced by everything that surrounds it, as scientific and intellectual development has a great role in developing the means used in it with the multiplicity of options offered in terms of raw materials and techniques. Undoubtedly, the art of ceramics is one of the arts developed in terms of technology, indicating the development and sophistication of societies throughout history. It offers an aesthetic and utilitarian taste to the community. The color is one of the main elements in the process of adding an aesthetic touch to the surface of the ceramic piece, and this was evident in ceramics of all ages and times, and the implemented idea plays a role in showing an expressive and aesthetic vision in the ceramic surface and in order to keep pace with the rest of the plastic arts. Therefore, the potter always tries to innovate by experimenting with materials and techniques. Accordingly, the potter, especially the Arab potter, relied on coexistence with the modern intellectual dimensions of the era's culture, directing him to research, experimentation, modernization and acculturation from Western arts. This prompted research into Arab ceramics and the study of its ceramic products, especially the art of ceramics and the aesthetics of the raku technique, which is considered the Technique of most potters. The research is part of the methodological framework of the research, as it contains the research question, which concludes with the following question: What is the aesthetic of the raku technique in the works of potters Shunyar Abdullah and Yaqoub Al-Atoum, then the importance of the research, which lies in highlighting the aesthetic effects of the raku technique by identifying the features and characteristics of this Technique reflected in the formal structure of Arab ceramic work and identifying the different reduction processes in this Technique and its impact on the artistic works of potters Shunyar Abdullah and Yaqoub Al-Atoum, to benefit researchers and specialists and enrich scientific libraries and students in the field of ceramics. After that, the aim of the research was discussed: The objective of the research was to identify the raku technique in the works of potters Shinyar Abdullah and Yaqoub Al-Atoum, and then the limits of the research were reached in terms of the objective limits, which were determined by the aesthetic of the raku technique in the works of potters Shinyar Abdullah and Yaqoub Al-Atoum and the temporal limits, which were represented by the period between (2012-2021), the spatial limits (Iraq and Jordan) and the human limits of the potters Shinyar Abdullah and Yaqoub Atoum, and the chapter ends with the definition of the most important terms.

Brushstrokes of Change: Hieronymous Bosch and Rachel Gadsden's Evolving Portrayals of Disability

Historically, there has been a notable lack of representation of disability in western art history. Where disabilities are displayed, the artists’ intentions were often to convey moral corruption, religious infidelity, and the faults of society. Other times, the representations functioned scientifically as medical records. In fact, one of the most anatomically accurate representations of physical disability is credited to the early modern artist Hieronymous Bosch, who was known for his unfiltered commentary on the flaws of human society. Contrary to his typical surreal, vibrant, and sarcastic style, Cripples and Beggars (after 1570) (Fig. 1), a naturalistic and observational piece, offers a rare lens into how disability was portrayed during the early modern period. In contrast, Rachel Gadsden, a contemporary, disabled artist, foregrounds her identity as a disabled artist in her work Ubuntu (2012) (Fig. 2) and utilizes an expressive, abstract style to convey the fluidity of the disabled human form. Cripples and Beggars and Ubuntu, separated by centuries, provide a captivating shared subject for comparative analysis that transcends temporal boundaries. Cripples and Beggars provides an early explicit and moralizing depiction of physical disability as an isolating scourge while Rachel Gadsden focuses on abstract, yet recognizable human bodies in optimistic motion and community. Analysis of the varying style, medium, and intention reveals the evolved reception and, thus, depiction of disability. The evolution of the reception and depiction of disability from Hieronymous Bosch's Cripples and Beggars to Rachel Gadsden's "Ubuntu" signifies a shift from viewing disability as a symbol of moral corruption and societal decay to an expression of identity, resilience, and community.

Landscape between Representation and Performativity

This article explores the concept of landscape through the lens of performativity, challenging the traditional visual-centric understanding rooted in Western art and culture but without denying the visual and representational character of landscape. It examines the evolution of landscape representation, from its origins in linear perspective and Cartesian dualism to contemporary approaches that integrate performative practices. The analysis highlights the dialectical tension between visual representation and immersive, multisensory experiences, arguing for a more integrated view that acknowledges the performative aspects of the visual. By re-evaluating the role of distance, vision, and representation, the article advocates for a nuanced understanding of landscape that balances the visual with embodied practices, ultimately proposing that landscape should be seen as a dynamic interplay between seeing and performing.

Die Politik von Caligari: Totalitarian Anxieties in Adaptations of Robert Weine’s Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari

Contemporary politics is filled with anxiety about the survival of democracy—particularly within a framework pitting liberal representative democracy against authoritarianism. In times of anxiety about authoritarianism, Western artists repeatedly return to a masterpiece of relatively early cinema: Robert Weine’s silent film Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari, or The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. This essay examines three twenty-first century adaptations: David Lee Fisher’s 2005 remake of the film; James Morrow’s 2017 novel, The Asylum of Dr. Caligari; and Georgie Bailey’s 2022 play Caligari. I argue that while the direct politico-cultural anxieties of Weine’s film have often been overstated, the emergence of adaptations during periods of heightened concern about authoritarianism reflects a deep-seated reception of the film as anticipating autocratic governance. However, for all its fears about power, control, and the loss of self-determination, Weine’s movie also contains the seeds of liberation. Cesare ultimately sacrifices his own life rather than murdering Jane. And it is this gesture that the adaptations examined here seek—a gesture of resistance. The sleepwalker can awaken and assert a form of just resistance in the world, even if the penalties are steep.

The Artistic Characteristics of Chinese Impressionist Painter Wu Guanzhong

This study aims to explore the artistic characteristics of Chinese Impressionist painter Wu Guanzhong. By combing through Wu Guanzhong's artistic experience, it analyzes the evolution of his painting style and its unique expression in the fusion of Chinese and Western art. The study provides an in-depth analysis of Wu Guanzhong's works in terms of subject matter, materials, composition, color, brushwork and other aspects, revealing his unique artistic language and his contribution to the development of modern Chinese painting. At the same time, this study combines literature review and case studies to explore the impact of Wu Guanzhong's art on contemporary Chinese art education, and suggests how to inherit and innovate Chinese national art in the contemporary context. This study provides new perspectives for understanding Wu Guanzhong's artistic achievements and his position in cultural exchanges, and offers useful references for the future development of Chinese art.

A Post-Soviet Experiment

This article revisits the politics of naming and investigates the origins of the term ‘Moscow Actionism’. Why was the term introduced in curatorial literature published around 1995 in Western Europe? Why was it coined to present performances by Anatolii Osmolovskii, Aleksandr Brener and Oleg Kulik, if these artists had already made names for themselves in Russia? Touted by the Moscow press as ‘revolutionaries’, they were already invited to participate in exhibitions abroad. Their success came prior to the term ‘Moscow Actionism’. The author argues that the term was coined to counteract persistent Western stereotypes about Russia as wild, primitive and exotic. The coinage mimicked Western art history nomenclature in an attempt to secure a positive reception for Russian artists, yet it simultaneously succumbed to the hegemony of the Western art history lexicon. As the term entered scholarly literature, it prevailed and generated the erroneous view that Moscow Actionism stands for all Russian performance art in the 1990s.

Cézanne’s paintings and Judd’s Specific Objects: from objects in painting to objects in space

ABSTRACT This article examines Judd’s Specific Objects in light of Cézanne’s paintings and suggests that the two artists share a conception of the relation between objects and space. I argue that, much like Cézanne, Judd saw objects and space as related elements that constantly define each other. Cézanne and Judd are prominent figures who represent two distinct positions in the history of Western art. I consider these positions in relation to the topic of artistic autonomy and suggest that, even though theoreticians have framed Judd’s work in opposition to the modernist concept of the autonomous work of art—the American founding figure of Minimalism has something in common with the French ‘Father of Modern Art’. The proposed phenomenological analysis of works by Judd and Cézanne moves beyond period-based and medium-oriented interpretations and differs from much art-historical discourse, to suggest an additional perspective on their works.

Il paesaggio tra estetica e geografia: un confronto tra Joachim Ritter e Augustin Berque

In this essay I compare the landscape philosophy proposed by Joachim Ritter in his famous essay Landschaft (1963) and the landscape theory elaborated by French geographer and orientalist Augustin Berque, focussing primarily on the volume La pensée paysagère (2008). The perspective from which the comparison is advanced concerns the problem of aesthetic appraisal and experience and its relation to the geographical reality to which landscape refers. The confrontation between Ritter and Berque brings the tradition of philosophical aesthetics into confrontation with that of human geography, as part of a path aimed progressively at overcoming the separation of the aesthetic (of which the aestheticized concept of landscape typical of the tradition of Western art history would be an expression) from the other spheres of meaning with which space is invested, from the ecological- environmental to the ethical-political.

Research on Emotion Expression in Painting Art Based on Resemblance Theory

In the face of paintings, people will have a variety of emotions, but it is not a matter of course that art can express emotions. Art itself cannot produce emotions, it is human beings who express emotions from the beginning to the end. Based on people's use of resemblance theory to express emotions through artworks, this paper probes into the nature of resemblance theory and the problems brought by the convention and seeks interaction of artists, audience and artworks in art expressing emotions. Art expressing emotion needs participation of the three, can not be one-sided demonstration. Resemblance theory is not invulnerable, but more of a hope to point to the root cause of this theoretical behavior, to thinking of the "mind", about this differentiating mind that defines emotion, the coexistence of empathy and prejudice, and so on. In addition, this paper also uses the uniqueness of ancient Chinese painting, which is different from Western art, highlights the connected forms of multi-emotion expression in painting art, and enriches and improves the research system of emotional expression in the field of Eastern painting art.

Research on Emotion Expression in Painting Art Based on Resemblance Theory

In the face of paintings, people will have a variety of emotions, but it is not a matter of course that art can express emotions. Art itself cannot produce emotions, it is human beings who express emotions from the beginning to the end. Based on people's use of resemblance theory to express emotions through artworks, this paper probes into the nature of resemblance theory and the problems brought by the convention and seeks interaction of artists, audience and artworks in art expressing emotions. Art expressing emotion needs participation of the three, can not be one-sided demonstration. Resemblance theory is not invulnerable, but more of a hope to point to the root cause of this theoretical behavior, to thinking of the "mind", about this differentiating mind that defines emotion, the coexistence of empathy and prejudice, and so on. In addition, this paper also uses the uniqueness of ancient Chinese painting, which is different from Western art, highlights the connected forms of multi-emotion expression in painting art, and enriches and improves the research system of emotional expression in the field of Eastern painting art.

Painter Leonardo da Vinci or Leonardo from Caffa in Crimea: Challenging the attribution of selected documents

This article reinterprets four documents attributed to the artist Leonardo da Vinci. These documents include a drawing considered to be a Tuscan landscape with an inscribed date of August 5, 1473, a single double-sided page with drawings, writings, and a tensioning crossbow design dated 1478, a drawing of a hanged man dated 1479, and a letter written in Turkish to the Sultan of Istanbul dated circa 1502. If the Tuscan painter created these documents, he was pursuing an alternative career as a scientist. However, the information is incomplete and inaccurate. First, the landscape does not represent Tuscany. Instead, further research indicates that it is the depiction of a fortress in Crimea that relates to significant events occurring in the Ottoman arena between 1473 and 1475. Second, biographers have failed to show evidence that the Tuscan painter had military connections, raising the issue of a non-affiliation with any militia. Third, the sketch of a hanged man focuses an unexplained attention on the victim’s Turkish style of dress. Finally, a letter sent to Istanbul around 1502 claimed Leonardo was Genoese. Taking note of these points, a cumulative reading of the evidence shows that the man who crafted these documents originated from Caffa, a Genoese colony on the Black Sea that the Ottomans captured in 1475. Although this might sound speculative, further documents discussed in the final section indicate that Florence banished the Tuscan painter Leonardo da Vinci around 1477 and that he later died in Bologna in 1499. Therefore, this Tuscan Leonardo could not have written the Notebooks, and the man who died in France in 1519 could not have been him. The research adds a deeper understanding of Turkish influences in the documents and highlights how information gathered outside Europe can better explain them. The findings urge Western art historians to expand their research and to reconsider other authors.

Bridging Cultural Perspectives: Developing a Sustainable Framework for the Comparative Aesthetic Evaluation of Eastern and Western Art

Sustainability in art is crucial for fostering intercultural understanding and preserving cultural heritage, which is essential to promoting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In previous research on Western and Chinese art, studies typically focused on individual artists and summarized their aesthetic values, often suffering from a lack of comparative analysis, a unidimensional sensory perspective, and a deficiency in comprehensive aesthetic evaluation standards. Consequently, this study selected representative watercolor works from five master artists in Western and Chinese art history as an example, constructing a comprehensive aesthetic evaluation system focusing on composition, color, themes, and techniques. Beginning with the influence of aesthetic and non-aesthetic perspectives by natural experimental method, the research employs correlation analysis and structural equation modeling to analyze the functional relationships between evaluative factors, perspective forces, and the overall aesthetic appeal of the paintings. Furthermore, the study reveals the distinctions between Eastern and Western paintings through multi-group analysis. Key findings include the following: Evaluation factors have varying effects on the influence of aesthetic and non-aesthetic perspectives. All factors, except conceptual expression (X12), brushwork expressiveness (X14), and watercolor language (X16), positively impact the overall aesthetic appeal. In mediation effects, X16 positively mediates between the influence of aesthetic perspectives and the overall aesthetic appeal. Factors such as warm–cool relationship (X8), X12, emotional atmosphere (X11), X14, and X16 positively or negatively affect the relationship between non-aesthetic perspectives and the overall aesthetic appeal. Multi-group analysis reveals significant differences in the evaluation factors and mediation effects that influence the overall aesthetic appeal. This study demonstrates the relationship between evaluation factors from different perspectives and aesthetics, providing valuable insights into evaluating Eastern and Western art. This evaluation system is applicable to academic research and practice in cultural heritage preservation and evaluation and art education, facilitating a deeper understanding of artistic values and promoting cross-cultural exchanges.

PROPORTION AND SYMMETRY AS MUTUAL ANTAGONISTS IN TUNING: SOME QUARTER-TONE RESOURCES

AbstractQuarter-tones have the dubious honour of being the microtonal default in Western art music, yet they have been of little recent interest to those most involved with extended intonation. Other microtonal equal divisions have appealed as pragmatic approximations of consonant just-intonation intervals, something that quarter-tones do not offer. This article proposes that quarter-tones can be valued in a different way, for their ability to generate symmetrical harmonic resources that divide the fourth and fifth as the tritone does the octave. These resources are offered as examples of a broader aesthetic of symmetry, which is contrasted with an aesthetic of proportion. These antagonistic principles are explored through the case of the ever problematic tritone, illustrating how proportion and symmetry are best understood using the symbolic resources of just intonation and equal temperament respectively. Drawing on the work of Robert Hasegawa, Georg Friedrich Haas and Ivan Wyschnegradsky, the article argues for a hybrid approach that embraces both just intonation and equal temperament.

On the question of the periodization of the history of Western art criticism

The subject of the study is the Western historiography of the history of art from the middle of the XIX century to the present, the patterns that determined the nature of its development, general cultural and general scientific factors that determined the paradigm shift in art criticism. The time frame of the study is determined, on the one hand, by the emergence of scientific art studies, on the other hand, by the assertion of a postmodern worldview that denies the possibility of scientific study of any texts, including artistic ones. The paper examines the characteristics of each of the highlighted stages, as well as their relationship with the general trends in the development of humanitarian knowledge at each stage. Thus, the history of art is placed in a broad context of general scientific and general cultural processes, which makes it possible to identify and study the driving forces that determine the course of its development. The main method of research is the method of periodization, the criterion for which is the predominance of a particular methodology at a particular historical stage of the development of art studies. The paper proposes the following periodization of the history of art studies: 1. Pre-scientific art criticism (before XIX century). 2. The cultural and historical stage (XIX century). 3. Formal and stylistic stage (XX century). 4. The iconological stage (XX century). 5. Post-scientific art criticism (beginning of the XXI century). This classification allows us to present the history of scientific art studies as a natural and consistent process of changing dominant methodologies, starting with the formation of a scientific approach to the study of art and up to the present time, when the very possibility of its application was questioned by the postmodern worldview. The main factor determining the change of stages in the development of art criticism is a change in the general cultural situation, as well as a change in the prevailing paradigms in art knowledge.

1] Cao, Z. (2022). The Impact of Competence of University Teachers on Work Performance: An Analysis of the Regulating Mechanism Based on Perceived Organizational Support. Journal of Xingyi Ethnic Normal University, 4, 34-43. [2] Chen, N. (2022). Research

The essence of Chinese art is the crystallization of thousands of years of cultural accumulation, permeating the wisdom and emotions of the Chinese nation, and serving as the carrier and manifestation of the national spirit. However, due to historical reasons, a profound lack of this traditional artistic spirit is evident in modern Chinese art education. The most representative example is the complete focus on Western art as the assessment content and criteria in the art college entrance examination. This article will start with the differences between Eastern and Western artistic spirits to elucidate the uniqueness of Chinese art and ink painting. Furthermore, it will explore the influence of Chinese artistic spirit on the development of Western art from a historical perspective. By tracing its origins, the article aims to demonstrate the importance of Chinese artistic spirit in contemporary Chinese art and the necessity of incorporating it into higher education art examinations.

Story of the Wunderkind: An Erlangen Drawing from the Circle of Albrecht Altdorfer

Abstract The depiction of the apocryphal infancy stories of Christ is an important subject in the history of western art, and yet it is rarely investigated. This paper reveals the unidentified subject of an early sixteenth-century drawing at Erlangen by an artist from Albrecht Altdorfer’s circle. It represents the apocryphal stories of Christ gathering pools, animating clay birds, and reviving a fallen child named Zeno. In this paper, the context of this drawing is discussed, along with the history of depicted apocryphal infancy stories in German art and the reception of the Apocrypha in early sixteenth-century Germany around Altdorfer’s circle.

National culture symbols in murals of China: Chinese public art as a synthesis of aesthetics and politics of China / Símbolos de la cultura nacional en los murales de China: el arte público chino como síntesis de la estética y la política de China

The purpose of the study is to explore the social and psycho-emotional influence of traditional Chinese national symbols on the contemporary wall-paintings in Chinese public art as the synthesis of aesthetics and politics expressed in fine art. The scientific and practical significance of the study lies in the description of the influence of traditional wall-painting and Western art styles on modern Chinese public art. The group of respondents consisted of 96 students and teachers from Chinese art universities. The researchers used the method of expert assessments (semi-structured interview with the use of a special questionnaire), the ‘Health, Activity, Mood’ method and the D. V. Liusin method for determining the level of emotional intelligence. Having analysed the study results, the researchers proved the hypothesis that the use of traditional national symbols in contemporary Chinese public art is a factor that determines the artistic, psycho-emotional and ideological impact of this art form.