ElnMENTs

tTtn" visual arts constitute a signifying practice and through their system of
I signs convey a vast range of meanings, including concepts, ideas, values,
I emotions, and attitudes. At the same time, they are a signifying practice in
the nehryork of sernantic exchange, which is an essential part of human life and
thus is situated in society and history.

The visual arts have their own vocabulary, and by the visual arts we mean
two-dimensional artistic expressions including drawings, illustrations. cartoons. com-
ics, posters, paintings, engravings, collages, murals, frescoes. stained glass,'tapes-
tries, photographs, and so on: and three-dimensional artistic expressions, including
all kinds of sculpture in relief or in the round, assemblages. installations, constructivist
sculptures, kinetic works, environmental art. box art. earthworks. paper sculpture,
fiber sculpture, jewelry. luminal sculpture, and the various folk artistic productions
such as woodcarving. pottery, and basketry. The visual arts are also part of the
performing arts or the combined arts, such as the theater, dance, and cinema.

In semiotics or semiology of which the Swiss philologist Ferdinand de

Saussure was the pioneering theorist, a work of art is called a pictorial or iconic
sign. As such, it has a particular and inherent meaning or complex of significa-
tions. It is different from a conventional sign in which the connection between
visual expression and content is not mandatory or internally motivated. A common
example is found in traffic lights: there is no necessary connection between
the green light and "go" and the red light and "stop." The rules underlying these
colors are observed because of social convention, for they could well mean
the contrary.

47
 A sign has two aspects: the signifier and the signified. The signifier is the
material or physical aspect of the sign. In the visual arts, line, value, cJor, texture,
and composition as they are used concretely and specifically in a workare signifiers.
The media or materials and the associated techniques are likewise signifiers; so are
presentation and style on the level of the image.

The material signifier is bound up with the signified which is the non-
material aspect of the work. While the signifier is concrete, the signified is abstract,
being a concept or value. A straight veriical line is a concrete signifier whlch
conveys the abstract signified or set of signifieds which includes order, discipline,
poise, alertness, uprightness, and so on. However, the meanings of the signifiers
are not isolated from one another but are relative to one another in differential
relationships. A vertical line acquires its meaning in contrast to the horizontal line,
which conveys reposeJ calmness. inactivity, and so on. Light acquires its meaning
in contrast to dark. Thus, to understand a work of art, one considers the semiotic
elements or signifiers not in isolation from one another, as though one moved
categorically from one element to the next, but in a highly relational manner as
constifuting the strucfure of the work of art.

Aside from the signifier and the signified, there is one other element to
take into accourt and this is the referent. While semiotics originally bracketed off
the referent in a formalist view of a closed system or text, thJ semiotic approach
must necessarily resituate the work in its grounding in reality which is where the
referents or the concrete phenomena or things in the world are. Reterents can
be
people. objects. events in the real world in which we live and with which we con-
tinually interact. Art, although mediated fu artstic language and codes, forms part
of our intemction with the realworld.

The meaning of a work of art is shapd by the artist's particular use of

artistic resources, including the elements, materials, and techniques. Thousands
of
paintings have been done on such subjects as mother and child, the
Crucifixion, or
peasants in the field, but no two of them are alike because of the wide variety
of
approaches depending on the artist's training and skill, attitude towards the subllct,
tempemment, ideology, worldview and social conditions. Because the meaning
of
a,work o{ art emerges out of its unique semiotic stmcture, the meaning or content
of a work is not reducible to a statement. paraphrase, theme,
-"..ug" or lesson,
but is a total complex of concepts and values-a rich and highly nuanced inte[ec-
tual,/emotional experience in which the personal and the social i.,te.sect. Interact-
ing in a dynamic relationship, the elements in a visual work of art confirm, support,
vgrify or complement one another or create contrasts and oppositions in terms
of
what they signify or mean; and this vital interplay constitutes tire semantic richness
of the work of art.

The capability of the formal elements to signifu, convey, or express mean-

ing-as concept. value, or feeling-is rooted in the person's piychophysical expe-
riences and in the particular culture, with its social and artistic codes,lts-history
and

48
traditions. Line, for instance, is associated with the body's axis as it adjusts to
various positions, such as standing, sitting or rechning, as it moves in different
directions. The cycle of day and night provides our fundamental experience of the
modulations of tone or value from light to dark and of the relative intensity of hues.
Our color sense is related to our experiences of cold and warmth and to the quality
of light of our tropical environment. But the significations of color also derive from
the unconscious with its instincts, kinetic drives, and eroticism. Shapes whether
organic or inorganic, open or closed relate to our experiences of pleasure and
pain, ease and difficulty, largeness and smallness, freedom and constraint. Com-
position in space is based on how we experience ourselves, our active physical
bodies, in the spatial environment and in relation to other bodies in space in differ-
ent combinations and form of grouping, interaction, affinity, relationships of at-
traction and repulsion, in isolation or collectivity. It is also based on our sense of
relative size and weight with respect to the surrounding space and to other bodies,
as well as in our sense of relative distance to and from specific points of relerence,
our experience of gravity and the coordinates of vertical and horizontal.

At the same time, the semantic potential of the signifiers is shaped by the
particular culfure, its values, priorities, worldviews and ideologies, whether domi-
nant or emergent, as well as its social and artistic traditions and conventions. For
the Florentine artists of the 14th cenfu4i, line drawing was given primary impor-
tance because of the stress on clarity of form, reflecting the classical idealist world-
view. In China, line takes the form of calhgraphic brushwork, an art of long tradi-
tion in writing and painting related to the Taoist principle of figure dynamically
interacting with space. While linear perspective was a High Renaissance conven-
tion which prevailed through cenfuries in Western art, perspective in Asian coun-
tries and Southeast Asia in general follows other principles. Values and tonal nu-
ances are paramount in the monochrome paintings of the Southern Sung (1127-
7279') ufi in Japanese zen paintings such as those of Sesshu, even as the 17th
centuy Japanese decorative styles which lent splendor to the palaces were a cel-
ebration of hues.

LINE

Dfferent kinds of lines as signifiers convey different concepts, values,

and feelings. The horizontal line is associated with the body at rest and thus gener-
ally expresses calmness, repose, stability, tranquility. It concludes with the horizon
line, which seems to divide the earth and the sky, and with the base lines of build-
ings and structures. landscapes often impart a feeling of rest and serenity because
of the dominance of horizontal lines. Other related concepts and values conveyed
by the horizontal are relaxation, informality, passivit5r, death, and the continuum of
infinig.

The vertical line is associated with the body in upright standing position
and generally expresses poise, alertness, balance, equilibrium, firmness, strength,
at the same time that it connotes a static position though not without tension. On

49
 the moral plane, it is translated into
the qualities of uprightness, integrity,
dignity, and formality, as well as the
impersonality of law, intellectual order,
and discipline.

The figure of Andres Bonifacio

in the Caloocan monument by
Guillermo Tolentino expresses aleft-
ness, dignity, and firmness of resolve.

The diagonal line is associated

with the body thrust foru,rarrd and charg-
ing purposefully towards an objective.
It signifies energy, dynamism, impulse,
will power, aspiration, passion, and
emotion. The diagonalis a relational
line because it is always relative to
something, whether it be the goal to
which it advances or the base from
Gulllermo Tolentino, Bonlfoclo Monument, which it springs forward and with
7933, cost bronze.
which it forms an acute angle. Like-
wise, the diagonal line suggests the element of movement and process as well as
the element of time because it cuts through space. Weak diagonals, as those which
form angles less than 45 degrees with the base, convey uncertainty, instability,
insecurity, and a sense of impending collapse.

Again, in the Bonifacio monument, the figures of the Katipuneros charg-

ing forward and brandishing their bolos in the cry to battle are based on strong
diagonals that surround the figure of Bonifacio portrayed as the still but powerful
center of the storm.

The curved line which suggests grace and beauty is associated with the
body in movements of dance that create a rhythm of curved lines in space. As arcs,
waves, spirals. scallops, and arabesque, cuned lines form rich ornamental designs
based on organic. floral, and plant forms.

While straight lines, in general, signifu firmness, precision, measwability,

purposefulness, discipline, logical order, rigidity, austerity, asceticism, and imper-
sonality, curved lines are allied to feeling, impulse, spontaneity, play, grace, charm,
sensuality, and eroticism,

The best example for the use of the curved line is the Maranao okir in
woodcarving designs such as the sarimanok, naga, pako rabong. In these, the
basic S-curve is enriched by multiple spirals and secondary curues creating an or-
nate and precious etfecf.

50
 The penchant for the curved line is likewise seen in the comics illustrations
of Francisco Coching in the 50s which established a romantic tradition of repre-
senting legendary heroines, usually from the aurif and corrido, with long flowing
hair. The same quality is found in the paintings of Carlos Francisco, such as Maria
Makiling. Closer to everyday experience, we find it in the colorfi.rl jeepneys of the
city and in the fishing boats of the coastaltowns which share a common ornamen-
tal character.

At the same time, curved lines are eloquent in the expression of feeling
because they correspond to the rising and falling intonations of speech and song.
Like tendrils, they grow and reach out with sensitive curling antennae that relate to
others and at the same time refurn inward in spiralling convolutions. Because of
their affinity to music, particularly melody, curved lines often express romantic
yearning, sentimental pleading, and are emotional, spontaneous, and impulsive in
signification.

Jagged lines because of their association with sharp, pointed, and frag-
mented objects that cut and wound like slivers of broken glass,'fractured bones,
splintered wood, and shards of pottery siSnifu pain, difficulty, and discomfort. They
may also express danger, torture, physical, and psychological menace. Broken
lines suggest tentativeness, indefiniteness, and insecurity. They are also made to
represent imaginary lines betr,veen points or to bring or:t invisible connections.

The Quality of Line

It is not enough, however, to identify the different kinds of line and what
they express. In the semiotic approach, one should also be sensitive to the quality
of the line itself. The instnrment used in drawing lines on a surface has much to do
with its quality. Lines drawn by a technical Wn are sharp and precise. and this
instrument is used best for dmwing geomebic figures or architectuml elements that
requrre {ine draughtmanship ard mathematical a<actihde. In contmst, lines drawn
by a charcoal pencil are soft, porous, and tend to be diffuse. Because they spread
easily on a paper surface, charcoal lines are able to create tonal nuances in the
shading or modelling of forms. Many artists choose charcoal for drawing nudes
because it captures that soft quality of the skin and the subtle play of light and dark
on the figure that evokes a subdued eroticism.

In Chinese painting, line is a synonymous with the brushstroke in calligra-

phy and painting. The 17th century Mustard Seed Garden Mqnuql ot' Painting
lays down the first principle in drawing bamboo leaves: "Brushstrokes should be
powerful and distinct, setting down the living quality (shih) of the leaves yet at the
same time evoking'emptiness.' Each stroke should be extraondinarily expressive.
If there is the slightest hesitation, the leaves will look thick and will lack the essential
sharpness of form."

51
 Likewise, the artist's tempemment and inner state affect the quality of line.
Masters of drawing like Picasso execute figures with an even, continuous line with
no sign of faltering in the pursuit of their vision. But other artists, perhaps no less
masterly, draw figures with an uneven hand pressure so that the line is heavy and
broad in some passages but light and tapering off in others. This uneven presswe
is found when the artist makes line fulfill the dual firnction of delineating form and
at the same time suggesting mass and volume. In addition, this mariner of handling
line follows the subjective movements of feeling and impulse.

In drawing, lines are called outlines when they delineate a twodimensional

shape which stands out distinctly from the background. They are contour lines
when they define the borders or outer limits of a figure, modelled or shaded to give
the illusion of three-dimensionality, as viewed from a particular angle. Outlines and
contour lines are related to the pictorial representation of figures from the real
world. The 14th cenhry Siennese artist Simone Martini, the Florentine Sandro
Botticelli, the neo-classicalJacques Louis David Ingres, and the mysticalindividual-
ist William Blake have paintings which place primary value on mastery of line.

In abshact art, Iines do not have the fimction of representation and are
thus autonomous, as in the case of gestural lines. For instance, in Abstract Expres-
sionism associated with the New York School, including the worls of Jackon
Pollock and Franz Kline among others, gestural lines are drawn not with
small, limited movements of the hand and wrist but with the whole arm in
broad, swinging gestures as vehicles of the artist's kinetic drive and subconscious
impulses. Spontaneous ueative energy is expressed in lines along with the splat-
ters, smears, and blotches of pigment on the canvas, which becornes an arena
of action. Jose Joya's paintings of the 50s are marked by the influence of the
New York School.

In Chinese calligmphy, likewise, line has an autonomy apart from the func-
tion of representation. Line is a vehicle for spirifual energy, the ch'i, and calligra-
phy is hishly valued as the unique expression of an indiviJual's life energies. In
uniting and painting, line is executed h7 means of the supple brush which, unlike
the pen or pencil, requires a greater flexibility and control of the wrist so that "the
brush dances and the ink sings." Calligraphy stresses linear rhythm and move-
ment, but line as yang is always viewed in relation to space as yin, and a masterful
line vitalizes or changes the surrounding space with energy. In hrn-of-the-century
Art Nouveau which was a total style in painting, sculpture, architecfure, and the
decorative arts, line acquired an intense organic vitality. Its principal motifs were
graceful lilies, gnarled roots, woman's long curling tresses, reeds swaying in the
wind, undulating waves. Its characteristic linear motif was the whiplash, a line
which dynamically turns back on'itself. Art Nouveau was an assertion of nafure
and the independent artisl-craftsperson against industrial mass production. In con-
trast, Ad Deco works of the 30s were geometric in streamlined productions that
celebrated the technological advances of the period. Its basic motif was the zigzag
which symbolized the speed of light in the form of electricity, the dynamism of

52
industry and the age of the automobile. Following the spirit of the times, women
shed their Art Nouveau tresses for the boyish bob.

Hokusai's Greqt Waue and Vincent Van Gogh's Starry Nighf are works of
a powerful linear expressiveness. In India, the folk style of Warli painting is elo-
quently expressive of commural values.

Paul Klee described dmwing as "tahng a line for a walk." In this passge
from his Creative Credo (1920), he invites us on such an adventure using the
formal elements of graphic afi: dot, line, plane, and space:

...let us take q little trip into the land of deeper in-

sight, t'ollowing a topographic plan. The dad center being
the point, our t'irst dynamic act witl be the line. After a short
time, we shall stop to catch our breath (the broken line, or
the line articulqted by seueral stops,). I look back to see how
far we haue come (counter-mouement). Ponder the distance
thus t'ar traueled (shqf of lines). A rioer may obstruct our
process: we use a boat funuy line). Further on there might be
a bridge (series of curues). On the other bank we encounter
someone who, Iike us, urishes to deepen his insight. At first
we Jogt'ully traoel together (conuergence), but gradually dit'-
ferences arise (two lines drawn independently of ench other).
Each party shou.rs some excitement (expression, dynamism,
emotional quality ot' tlp line)... There is a flash of lightning
on the horizon (zigzag line), though ue can still see sfars otrer-
head (scattered dots). Soon ure reach our t'irst quarters. Be'
fore t'alling asleep, we recall a number of things, for euen so
Iittle a trip has let't many imprcssionsJines of the most rnr-
ied kinds, spofs, dobs, smooth planes, dotted planes, lined
planes, waoy lines, obstructed and articulated mouement,
countermouement, plaiting, wwuing, bncklike elements,
scalelike elements, simple and polyphonic motit's, lines that
fade and lines that gain strength (dynamism)...

Line in Sculpture

In sculpfure, line is seen in relation to volume and space. First of all, line in
sculpture has to do with contour lines that change with the point of view of the
moving viewer. However, in general, linearity in sculpture is manifested in clarity of
form in which the outline or silhouette is uncluttered and readily intelligible, corre-
sponding to the subject represented. This is particularly true of classical structure
which conveys the appearance of immobility, finality, and permanence following
the classical quest of the universal and absolute. Other kinds of sculpture, however,
have an autonomy of line that transcends the representational function as silhou-
ette or as boundary of a recognizable shape. For in these, the outline of the sculp-

53
 tural form is not intelligible in itselfr rather
than delineating or enclosing a figure, it has
its own abstract shape which interacts freely
with the surrounding space. An example
here is the Baroque sculpture by Gianlorenzo
Bernini of the Ecsto sy ot' Saint Theresa in
which the sculptural outline does not have a
one-to-one correspondence with the figure
represented but seems to follow an indepen-
dent motivation.

Secondly, line in sculpture is also found

in the general orientation or directional thrust
of the figure. This holds for both represen-
tational and abstract sculpture. Abueva's A/-
legorical Harpoon has a decisive horizontal
thrust suggesting a weapon. Constantin
Brancusi's Bird in Space has a purity of line
that suggests the essence of birdness, and
the gleaning polished bronze of its maierial
contributes to the feeling of swiftness of flight
in its single upward movement. Alberto
Arturo Luz, "Vienna Chair,"
Giacometti likewise created highly linear and
L958, enamel.
attenuated human figures. Standing or strid-
ing forward. they arc charged with a wiry tension and nervous energy as they relate
to one another with sensitive, spirifual feelers.

Thirrdly, line in sculpture can be for"rrd in the form of incised or raised

designs and patterns on the body of the sculpture. Folds of drapery create vertical
linear rhythms in Classical sculptr.re but in Baroque, the lines of drapery restlessly
twist. fold, and billow thus suggesting emotional turbulence. The solomonic col-
umns of Baroque art have a powerfr-rl spiralling movement as in the baldachino of
St. Peter's designed by Bernini. In central African masks, bold lines define the
features of the face in an expressionist way. In Constructivist sculpture, such as
Naum Gabo's Deuelopable surface (1938), lines enhance its spiralling form and in
I
Linear Construction No. constitute the sculpture itself.

Line in Architecture

In architechre, line can be found in different ways. First. it is in the gen-

eral orientation of a building or structure which manifests a predominant line. A
building such as a children's school or an apartment row may have a horizontal
orientation. This conveys a feeiing of casualness, familiarity, relaxation, and close
relationship or harmony with the natural and social environment. Skyscrapers, on
the other hand, or the Gothic cathedrals of Europe have a vertical orientation.
High-rise buildings are built on the principle of land maximization in places whose

54
real estate value is high. They are
the norm in the large metropolis of
highly industrialized capitalist countries
where older community values have
given way to the big-city ethic of effi-
ciency and impersonality. The height
of Gothic cathedrals, however, is not
based on practical considerations but
on symbolic meaning. Their vertical
orientation enhanced by iheir pointed
spires expresses the aspiration heav-
enward in the Ages of Faith. Yet, it
cannot be overlooked that the Gothic
cathedrals of the 11th to the 18th
centuries were also made possible by
structural innovations such as the
pointed arch and flying buttresses,
which permitted the opening of the
structure for splendid stained glass win- Son Sebosfion Church, Manila.
dows on all sides.

Secondly, line is also found in the external design of the building. The
Philippine bahay-na-bato has a rectangular facade, with a second floor resting on a
massive ground floor and a high pitched roof topping the structure. The facade is
enlivened by features combining design and function such as the checkerboard
pattern of capiz windows and the verlical rhythms of the uerandillas or finely
turned balusters beneath the windows. Spirals and scrolls generously ornament
the facade of many of our churches such as those of Betis in Pampanga and Daraga
in Albay.

Before the widespread use of airconditioning, many modern buildings in

Manila featured sr.urbreakers that lent a rhythmic pattern to their facades at the
same time that they serued to regulate the entry of sunlight into the building. Afi
Deco buildings in the Escolta or on Taft Avenue show the motif of the step pyramid
in place of the triangular classical pediment, and feafure modified pilasters or tall
flat columns with vertical grooves on the entire length of the building, as well as
mouldings of stylized floraldesigns, Later architecture made use of the concrete
shell for domes and curuilinear or wave.like features on the facade to break the
severe angular aspect of the post-andliniel system.

Thirdly, line in architecture is found in the ornamentaldesign of interiors.

In churches, this is seen in the rhythm of the columns or piers along the length of
the nave, as well as in linear designs on the domes, ceilings, and walls. An out-
sianding example of line in architectural design is in the interior of Son Agustin
Church in Intramuros. The striking trompe I'oeil or illusionistic design in grisaille
or monochrome gray originally executed by two visiting 19th century Italian artists

55
Alberoni and Divella fills the entire interior with simulated relief designs and build-
ings of liturgical symbols, medallions, rosettes, cartouches, and various other
decorative motifs, cleverly adapted to the structural features of the interior, all
serving to create a sumptuous visual effect. This achievement recalls the Renais-
sance vogue for grisaille painting used for the imitation of sculpture and for subsid-
iary decoration.

Line in architecture is also found in the ground plan of a building which

shows the management of volume and space following social, political, and aes-
thetic values. The ground plan indicates social relationships and priorities, and, in
the case of public and officialbuildings, may reflect the poiiticalsystem. The plan
drawn according to the mathematicai disciplines of architectural draughtsperson-
ship clearly shows the relatlonship of the whole and its parts and the observance or
creative application of organizational principles such as symmetry, balance. and
proportion to architecture.

Line in the Other Arts

Line is also found in the other arts such as dance ln Classical ballet. the
'use of toe shoes which enable the dancer to stand on points enhances linear grace
along with the fluid gestures of the arms. weaving arcs in the air. The leaps, jumps,
and arabesques convey the impression of transcendence in the same way as in
classical statuary which was set on a pedestal in its idealization of the human form

In contrast. the foot movements in Asian dance press firmly on the ground
and affirm the dancer's closeness to the earth which is the source of energy (chronic),
rising upwarcis into him or her from the depths. At the same time, the Indian

i?I
dance tradition which has influenced the dance cultures of Asia in varying degrees

*u,.{
ll.-,\
#r
Hernando Ocampo, "Ritual," 1.966, oil on canuas.

56
has a rich and complex repertoire of hand gestures or mudras derived from
religious iconography in sculpture and in which the varied movements of the hand
do not only convey grace but communicate narratives and other discourses as
language in themselves. Among the Tausug, silver curving fingernail extenders
are used to emphasize the hand gestures and to endow them with a magical and
ritualistic beauty.

col-oR
The colors we see in the objects around us have their source in light. For
light consists of vibrating waves of various lengths which enter our eyes and pro-
duce sensations of illumination and color. The differences in hues result from the
variations in the length and rapidity of vibrations o{ the light waves. When the
white light of the sun passes through a prism, the refracted rays spread out like a
fan displaying the colors of the spectrum.

Colors are around our environment, in nature and in our artifacts-and

they evoke in us a psychological response. As an element of the visual arts, color
best expresses emotions, feelings, and moods. While line is generally objective and
intellecfual because it defines form and is measurable, color is subjective and erno-
tional. It bears a correspondence with instincfual drives and subconrious impulses,
at the same time that it is strongly hedonistic and pleasure-related.

Colors possess a number of aspects; 7l hue,2| saturation, intensity or

chroma, and 3) brightness, tone or wlue.

1. Accor,Cing to the OxfonC Companion to Art, "hue is the dimension

of color which is referred to a scale rangrng through red, yellow, green, and blue.
Corresponding to the sensations experienced from stimulation by light of various
wavelengths and ranging over the visible section of the spechrrm . There are said to
be approximately 150 discernible differences of hue not distribrtrted evenly over the
range of visible wavelengths." Thus, the warm hues of longer wavelengths such as
red, orange, and yellow are easily discernible, while the cool hues of shorter
wavelengths, such as blue and violet, seem to merge into each other. Red, for
instance, is produced when the red element of the spectrum is reflected and allthe
others relatively absorbed. Colors can be ranged in a color wheel in which the
complementaries are on opposite sides of the circle. The primary colors are red,
blue, and yellow, combinations of which produce the secondary colors: red and
yellow make orange; red and blue make violet; blue and yellow make green.
The intermediate colors are those adjacent to each other in the color wheel. The
complementary colors opposite each other are rdl and green, yellow and violet,
orange and blue.

Juxtapositions of complementaries bring out the fullvividness of the hues.

In order to change the hue of a color, one mixes another color with it. If some
green is mixed with blue, the change from blue to greenish blue is a change in hue.

57
 A color scheme is monochromatic (in contrast to polychromatic, meaning
many colors) when only one color is used in its tonal vibrations, i.e., mixed with
white or gmy tones. It is achromatic (without color) when only black, white, and
gray are used. White reflects all colors, and black absorbs them all. A color scheme
is analogous when it makes use of adjacent intermediate hues; it is complementary
when complementaries are dominant; and triadic when it uses the sets of primary
colors or secondary colors in dominance. In painting, hues may be ju:ctaposed or
one hue can gradually modulate into another.

2. According to Harold Osborne, x.turation is the term used to describe

the "purity of a color in the sense of the amount of apparent color in contmst with
an achromatic area of equal brightness." William Sargeni inThe Enjoyment and
IJse ol Color states that safuration and chroma are the scientific terms for inten-
sity. According to him, "intensity refers to the color strength of a hue as compared
with a colorless gray. We indicate this comparison when we say a brllliant blue or
a dull blue. In onder to change the intensig of a color, we mix it with something
grayer than it is. By mixing with a color a neuLral gray that is neither lighter nor
darker than the given color, in other words, a gmy that is the same value as the
color, we change the intensity of the color without changing its value or hue." He
also introduces the term spectrum value which is the "levelbetween light and dark
where each color comes to its full intensity." When colors are of high safuration,
they convey a strong affirmative character
like major keys in music; when they are of
low safuration, they convey elusiveness and
indeterminacy, as wellas subthty and emo-
tional complexity.

3. Value, brighturess. or tone is "the di-

mension of color refendto a scale running
from dim to bright (sometimes termd the
blackgrey-white scale or the dark-light scale)-
The term 'lightness' is sometimes used in a
Sn\ilar way to 'brightness' when opaque ob-
jects are compared on a scale ranging from
black to white or when transparent objects
are compared on a scale mnglng from black
to clear. fihe former is more appropriate to
body pigments, the latter to dye colors.)
Sometimes 'brightness' is applied to differ-
ences resuhing from changes in the intensity
of the illumination and 'lightness' to differ-
ences arnong colors in uniform illuminailon.
Painters, horarer, ursually refer to this dimen-
sion as 'tone.' A hue is lightened by mixing
it with white and darkened by mixing it with
Pahigas rice kiping.
grays and black."

58
 Studies in the perception of color have shown its relation to temperature,
weight, and size. Western studio tradition has divided colors into "warm," those on
the red-orange-yellow side of the spec1rum, and "cool," those on the green-blue-
indigo, violet section. Warm colors give the impression of advancing towarrds the
viewer and cool colors seen to recede when warm and cool colors are situated on
the same plane equidistant from the viewer.

Likewise, dark colors have an appearance of weight and heaviness, while

light colors convey a sense of weightlessness. With respect to size, light-colored
objects look larger than objects of the same size. Wassily Kandinsliy who thought
of his paintings as "symphonies in color" averred that a yellow circle reveals "a
spreading movement outward from the center which almost markedly approaches
the spectator," whereas a blue circle "develops a concentric movement (like a snail
hiding in its shell)and moves away from the spectator." This phenomenon of color
perception explains the emotional power of Van Gogh's Sunflowers.

Cogruzant of the advancing and receding effects of colors, modern artists

have made use of this property in modelling their forms. Thus. in his famous still
life of apples, the French Post{mpressionist Paul Cezanne used warm reds and
cool greens in alla prima technique to create the illusion of volume.

In twodimensionaldesign, or in paintings with a strong feeling for design,

color is usually applied in a flat or solid manner without shading or modelling to
shapes bounded by distinct outlines. These colored shapes interact with one an-
other rhythmically in the overall design, as in the paintings and colored collages of
Henri Matisse. A similar approach is found in the paintings of PaulGauguin who
painted in planes of intense color bounded by strong outlines in black or blue. He
described this stylistic quality of his work as c/oisonnisme atter cloisonnO, a trdi-
tional decorative process in China and Europe used for enamel jewelry and objects
of art in which distinc't color areas are bounded by bonder lines or otrtlines. A
Philippine painter with a strong sense of design is Francisco who stressed rhythms
using clear colors with little modelling of forms. Hernando R. Ocampo did abstract
paintings with vividly colored shapes.

Linear and Painterly

Often, color is subordinate to line and clarity of form. This occurs when
color is used to enhance or embellish figures by filling up already defined shapes
usually derived from the realworld of animate and inanimate objects. A style which
gives prirnacy to line as ar €xpressive element defining, delineating, and articulat-
ing shapes is called linear or draughtspersonly, following the German art historian
Heinrich Wolfflin.

This is true for many paintings of the Early Renaissance, such as Boticelli's
Birth ot' Venus and Martini's Annunciation.

59
 In Impressionism, however, in which pigrnent straight from the tube is
applied alla prima onto the canvas, forms are built by means of masses of color
applied in free brushwork, creating a rich surface texture. Dabs, dots, trails, and
piles of pigment in impasto convey a sense of spontanei$, impulse, and emotional
release in a style described as painterly. 17th century Baroque paintings, such as
those of Peter Paul Rubens and Rembrandt with their sense of rippling surface
movement due to the particular handling of color and tone, are also described as
painterly.

Ways of Using Color

There are different ways of using color:

1. In the representationoi use of color, the artist paints objects from the
real world in hues approximating the colors which they seem to have in orrdinary
illumination. that is, in a clear diffuse daylight, thereby implying "color constancy"
in the local color of objects. For instance, in portraits, the color of the skin may
range from pale white to black through pink, tan, and brown; and the artist remains
within this range, even if colors from the environment such as green, blue, or violet
significantly affect its hue.

2.The impressionist use of color rejected painting in localcolor. Instead.

the French Impressionisis who ushered in modernism with their first show in 1874
sought to render nature wiih a sensitive perception of the effects of changing con-
ditions of light on objects. They developed a painterly style in which the eye via*-
ing from a ceftain distance would blend the juxtaposed strokes and dabs of pure
pigment into vibrantly colored forms reflecting the ever-shifting light. Shadows.
too, were no longer gray or black but were the cool complementaries blue, green.
and violet. The pointillist Georges Seurat approached color scientifically by disfin-
guishing beh.^reen local color, color of light, and color of reflections, at the same
time that the ariist chooses colors according to the mood that he or she wishes to
convey. The Impressionists, followed by the pointillists, introduced a fresh palette
of pure colors as a reaction against the heavy modelling and the brown and dark
tonalities of classical academic painting.

3. The decoratioe or ornamental use of color is often found in relation to

pattern and design. The best examples of this can be seen in textiles. carpets. and
decorative paper in which color occurs as a design component to enhance rhythm
and sensuous appeal, This is also tme of the odalisque paintings of Matisse which
have an Oriental richness of color and design, showing the influence of Middle
Eastern carpets and North African polychrome pottery. This is also found in folk
artistic productions, such as mats, fans, taka or Paete paper mach6 horses among
many others.

4. In the personal use of color, artists use hues to express their subjective
feelings and emotions, as well as their spontaneous impulses and whims. An

60
Expressionist painter may paint a face red, because he or she bears strong
feelings such as passion or rage towards the subject or imputes these feelings to
him or her. In Fauvism (from the French t'auue, meaning "wild beast"), colors
are used to release feelings and the process endows figures with a strong
chromatic quality.

A passage from the letters of Van Gogh to his brother Theo gives us an
insight into the expressionist and personal approach to color:

I should like to paint the portrait of an artist friend, a

man who dreams great dreams, who works as the nightingale
sings, becouse if is in his nature. He'll be a t'air man. I want to
put into my picture my appreciation, the loue that I haue t'or
him. So I paint him os he is, os t'aitht'ully as I can. But the
picture is not t'inished yet. To finish it I am now going to be
the arbitrary colorist. I exaggerate the fairness of the hair;
I come euen to the orange tones, chromes, and pale lemon
yellow. Beyond the hqd, instead of painting the ordinary
wall of the mean room, I paint infinity, a plain background
ot' the richest, intensest blue that I can contriue, and by this
simple combination of the bright had against the rich blue
background I get a mystenous et'fect, like a star in the depths
of an azure sky.

5. In the scientificu*. of color, contemporary artists such as Victor Vasarely

and Josef Albers have investigated color perception, especially in the area of "the
discrepanry between physical fact and psychic effect," which was the main con-
cern of Op artists. Albers's seies Homage to the Square involved scientific preci-
sion in the saturation and intensity of the hues. Using the single consistent format
oi a colored square within a square of a different hue, Albers demonstmted the
relativity and instability of color and tone through their various intemctions.

6. In the symbolic use of color, the meaning of colors changes from one
cultural tradition to another and may also vary from one perid to another. In the
Philippines, we have different systems of color symbolism. There is traditional
color symbolism among the various cultural communities, such as the Corrdillera
groups of the North, and in the South the Maranaos, Tausugs, Maguindanaos,
T'bolis, Bagobos, and others. There is the color sTmbolism of the Christianizd
lowland folk, as well as that of the city dweller and urban artist strongly influenced
by the West.

Color symbolism may follow religious or liturgical color for mourning used
during Lent. Part of the iconography of religious figures in whatever religion has to
do with the colors conventionally associated with them. Color symbolism may also
follow heraldic convention as in the colors or combination of colors for the flag of
a country.

67
 In Western color symbolism, colors have a positive and a negative mean-
ing, though one of these predominates in a specific context. Thus, red has the
positive meanings of ardent love and courage, and the negative ones of rage and
danger. Green signifies hope as well as envy; yellow, warmth as well as cowardice;
blue, loyalty as well as melancholy; black, mysterious depth as well as loss and
deprivation.

Colors may also serve to indicate social stafus. For insiance, the Maranaos
of Southern Philippines regand yellow as the color of nobility and reserve the
yellow matong for members of the nrling class. For the T'boli, red is an important
color as they believe that valiant warriors or bogoni who are killed in battle
journey to a realm where the sun, sky, the mountains, and the grass are red,
according to Gabriel Casal.

C.olor and Society

In the sfudy of the color lexicons of different societies, it is necessary to

begin with the premise that the colors of the spectrum form a continuum: the
speckurn of different colors-bluer gr@@n1 yellow, oranger and red--gxisting inde-
pendently of each other. The spectrum is a continuum which our languagesdivide
in different and particular ways. It follows from this that there is nothing "natural"
and inevitable about the way a language divides the eolor spectrum and that there
are no absolute color categories which universally apply to all cultures. As lan-
guage structures reality in general. it also struchues the way of perceiving colors for
each social group.

The chromatic code refers to the system of hues. the range or scale of
color preferences and combinations which distinguishes the art of a community or
society. Thisis largely due to the kinds of dyes traditionally da,reloped and used, as
well as the available plant and mineral sources of pigmmts in a particular locale.
Thus, the hues and color combinations of the traditional Mamnao malong are
culturally distinctive and so are the Ifugao blanl€ts. Southeast Asian batik, Iikewise,
has a chromatic code which distinguishes it from ondinary industrial textiles. In
fact, it is even possible to distinguish regional variations in baiik coloration, the
Indonesian from the Malaysian, for instance. Sulu mats from Laminosa have differ-
ent hues from Samar mats, and in general. traditional arts such as the T'boli t'nalak
and the Bagobo dagmay. both handwoven textiles of abaca, have a different "color
feeling" from Western artistic products.

The sense of color is strongly determined by the material production of

pigments in a particular society. In the European Medieval Ages up to the Renais-
sance, the art of painting included producing paints and dyes, with continuous
experimentation formulating tempera and oil colors.

With the advent of industrial capitalism in the West and the decline of the
guild system, colors used in painting were standardized as art materials became an

62
 important industry. The prod-
uct of giant firms specializing in
paints, paper, canvas, and art
equipment established their
dominance in the visual art pro-
cesses not only in their countries
of origin but also in the Thind
World countries which import
them in large scale, leaving little
room for indigenous initiative in
the production of art materi-
als. The importation of stan-
dardized pigmmts has influenced
and conditioned our color sense,
and art-making has been gener-
ally adapted to these materials.

D-
Asian countries have
their own traditions in the pro-
I

duction of art materials. In

Chinese painting which has a
distincl coloristic charm, ink
blocks are traditionally used in a
softbrush watercolor technique Ben Cabrera, "Mag-ino," 1995, ocrylic on paper.
that brings out the velvet rich-
ness, suppleness, and subtlety of the hues. For paints, red was made from coral,
yellow from the sap of the rattan plant, and white from crushed oysters and clam
shells. Paint production later became highly refined alchemical processes.
In pottery. for instance, the greengray color of celadon was meant to approximate
precious jade.

r In our indigenous artistic traditions. our s€ns€ of color is organic and closely
linked with nahre. For a long time. an impodant aspect of art making was the
production o{ dyes for textiles, mats. and the different fiber arts including basketry
and the making of fans, hats, and food covers. In fact, dye making was a lore
handed down from one generation to another: it guided people as to which plants.
flowers, seeds. roots, and barks of trees produced specific dyes through procesrcs
such as grinding. soaking, smoking, and straining. The dye making traditions prac-
tised by some ethnic groups go back to pre-colonial times. For the T'boli t'nolok
woven from the mature fruit-bearing, wild abaca plant fiber, material to be dyed
black is boiled in water with leaves of the k'nalum tree, while the red areas of the
design are boiled with pieces of root from the lokotree, accorrding to Casal. Tagbantn
bird and animal sculptures are first darkened by repeated rubbing of the wood with
camote leaves, followed by smoking, afterwhich the form is incised with geometric
designs showing the natural color of the wood.

63
 Manuel Baldemor, "Paete 1," 1973, pen and ink on paper

The folk art of lowland Filipinos is generally characterized by bright colors

of high saturation and intensity and available commercial paints are in common
use. It is possible that the folk sense of color grew out of the colorfirl fiestas around
which many folk arts revolve. Thus. we have the polaspos of Palm Sunday, the
Moriones masks. the Angono paper mach6 giants. and the multicolored and trans-
lucent kiping, thin rice wafers shaped into leaves and petals and arranged into
giant chandeliers. florper compositions. ard wall designs for the mid-May fiesta of
San Isidro Labmdor in l-lcban and Sariaya. Qtrezon.

The folk sense of color is likewise manifesed in folk theater, such as the
sinakulo, moro-moro, and sarsutuelo which for a long time were the main attrac-
tions of the town fiesta. The bright colors of the costurnes, together with band
music. song, poetry, dance, and choreographed movement constifuted a popular
visual spectacle. In our everyday experience, jeepneys. ice cream carts, vintage
I
colesos and caretelas, and bancas reflect the spontaneous folk delight in bright
colors of a chromatic code distinct from the modulated hues, pastels, and color
harmonies of Western ad. Perhaps the ultimate a<ample of folk color in fiestas are
the huge lanterns, the Christmas parol of San Fernando. Pampanga - true prod-
ucts of folk ingenuity and community cooperation-which boast of an ever-chang-
ing giant kaleidoscope of colored lights in complex floml formations synchronizing
with musicalrhythms.

UALUE

Value refers to the gradations of tone from light to dark that can be ob-
serued in any object under the play of light. In the visual arts, value can be sh-died ')

64
in a black-and-white or achtomatic drawing or painting, or, in a painting in color, in
the distribution of light and dark tones as the various hues combine with a range of
tones from pure white through intermediate gray tones to pure black.

More than any element, value sets the mood of the work, and, along with
color, expresses subjective feeling and inner states of mind. Value is more than just
light and shadow; it is also mood, atmosphere, climate, temperature that is con-
tinually shifting, delicately elusive and transitory. It conveys the mysterious as well
as the dramatic as hght and dark become conflicting forces translated onto the
symbolic plane. But this is not to fall into a categorical and Manichaean distinction
and to assign to light a positive and to dark a negative meaning. If light is reason
and illunination, dark is the mystery and depth of the subconscious, St. John's
night of the soul.

The expressive quality of value is especially perceived in black-and-white

photography, where the artist-photographer's sensitivity to tone brings out the
unique character and meaning of the image. An i.d. picture which serves the
purpose of minimal documentation is flat, and value counts for little. But an artistic
photograph can bring out the indruidual personality of the subject with the opti-
mum combination of angle and lighting.

Black-and-white cinema, and color fllm for that matter, can have
powerfr.rl and memorable imagesif the director takes value into account when
composing them.

Doubtless, value is of primary importance in blackand-white prints. Filde

la Cruz who practises the difficuh ait of mezzotint creates black-and-white land-
scapes which are evoca-
tions of forests; here day
modulates into evening in
soft, velvet layers of
darkness. In the same
mezzotint series, an el-
egiac theme emerges
from scenes of wanton
destruction of nature by
logging companies and
industries spewing indus-
trial wastes into the
environment, as well as
the alienation of the an-
cestral lands from the cul-
tural minorities through
landgrabbing and anti-
people projects in the Fil de lo Cruz, "C,oddess of the South," 7983, mezzotint.
name of "progress."

65
In these images, light and dark becom? symbolic: the bright lurninous egg is the
symbolic seed of survival and creativity, while the dark lizard and gaping skull sig-
nify greed and destruction.

Value in Painting

In painting, value is often synonymous with chiaroscuro (a composite word

made up of the Italian chiaro "clear," and oscuro "dark"). There are a number of
approaches to value in painting.
First, a painting may be evenly lighted, with an eminent clarity of form and
high saturation of hues. This is true for paintings of the Early Renaissance, such as
those of Pietro Perugino and Fra Angelico. Their even lighting sets the tone for
paintings of Christ, the Virgin, and the saints in a celestial realm of harmony and
order. [-ater. however, in the High Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci used value to
convey mystery and subjective depth. The enigmatic air of Mona Lisa arises from
ihe delicacy of tone in the s/umofo technique of gradually modelling the facial
contours so that they softly merge into the shadows of the background.

Likewise, a painting may show a wide range of values in a rich and highly
nuanced chiaroscuro. This approach is primarily exemplified by Baroque paintings
in 17th century ltaly, spain, and the Netherlands. Paintings of Rembrandt are
characterized by graduated densities o{
shadow so that, upon closer scrutiny, one
can make out forms emerging from the dark-
ness. In many of his religious paintings such
as The Supper at Emmaus, chiaroscuro
creates a solemn and sacred atmosphere
where a simple gesfure is a word that rever-
berates in the silence. This is also true for
Rembrandt's solitary landscapes in which the
rays of the sunset filtering through the for-
est trees lend a mystical air.

The same subtlety of tone is also found

Cetar Legaspi, "Frugal Meal,"
undated, oil on canuas.
in the paintings of Jan Vermeer, another
Drtch master of the same period. His work,
however has a distinctly secular character
as it evokes the material prosperity of the
17th century Dutch bourgeoisie. In his
paintings of quiet domestic interiors, light
streams from a partly visible side window
where a young woman stands reading a let-
ter, or a maid pours milk from a jug, or a
girl tries a melody on a clavichord. It is
Vermeer's mastery of tone which renders
the aimospheric space of an interior of a

66
home palpable arrd convincinglyreal. For Vermeer, the symbol of perfection
was the pearl, a milky white orb with soft gray shadows and iridescent
reflections-a symbol which appears in a number of his works showing young
women at their toilet.

A similar delicacy and range of tone is found in Diego Velasquez's Los

Meninas where the interior space of the hall has a palpable atmosphere and the
progression from the foreground where the children are curtseying to the shadowy
middle ground and then to the background where the King and Queen are dimly
espied in a mirror is managed smoothly and without a break. The orchestration of
tones from inconspicuous light sources, along with ihe counterpoint of reflections
and shadows, gives the painting its mood, evoking the ceremonial and circum-
scribed quality of courtly existence.

Then, too, a painting may show dramatic lighting or high contrast of light
and dark. In the Baroque paintings of Michaelangelo Caravaggio such as The
Conuersion ot' Saint Paul and The Calling ot' Satnt Mattheu), light picks out
particular elements or breai<s up form arbitrarily. The first painting which shows
Saint Paulthrown to the ground from his horsethe dramatic hghting bringing out
angular forms in violent disarray - conveys the feeling of the saint thunderstruck by
divine intervention.

Although the French artist Georges de la Tour also used dramatic lighting,
his handling of value was more gentle. In the painting of the Child Jesus with
Saint Joseph, the source of light is a candle held by the child. The light floods the
boy's face and illuminates the forehead and right arm of the saint holding his
carpenter's tools. De la Tour shows a rare delicacy of touch where the chlld's
fingers shielding the flame becomes translucent with the red blood visible within-
Light here becomes symbolic and, because the scene is a quiet intimate moment
and not a dramatic one as in Caravaggio, tonal values build a sacred atmosphere in
which light is the dMne presence itself.

Mannerist paintings also made use of dramatic lighting, but for sensational
efteds. a Dutch painting of high light and dark contmst, a woman bends to look
In
for a needle which had fallen to the floor. While in the Baroque examples dramatic
lighting was symbolic and signified a moment of divine revelation or grace, in a
Mannerist painting, this motivation was absent; lighting is used instead to sensa-
tionalize and unduly dramatize a trivial subjecl.

Light

It was the Impressionists in the last quartef of the 19th cenhry who brought
a scientific and analytical approach to light. Impressionism was a child of its time
because it reflected ihe scientific outlook. Abandoning the symbolic and what they
called the "anecdotal," the Impressionists investigated the effects of light on a sub-
ject at dillerent times of the day, different seasons of thc year, and in varying

67
conditions of weather. When Claude Monet painted the Rouen Cathedral in sev-
eral versions. it was not from any religious motivation but from the desire to show
the perceptible transformation of its facade from the bright, warm hues of morning
to the violet shades of evening, even as the solid stone seemed to dissolve in the
play of light and shadow. Monet used the same approach in his Waterlilies, a long
horizontal painting in which he renders the effects of light on waterlilies in a pond
through the hours of the day and the changing seasons. The Impressionists ob-
served all the nuances of light and shadow, as well as of colored reflections; shad-
ows were no longer plain gray or black but were violet or blue, the cool comple-
mentaries of the warm colors.

Water was a favorite subject of the Impressinnists because it captured

the ever-changing and capricious quality of the ligh... Out in the open, the
sunlight on sparkling and shimmering water brought out the freshness and
intensity of the different hues in the crowds of people, the colorful sailboats,
the shore with the leafy irees. Mist or fog which is produced by light and water
vapor is an imporiant feature in Monet's Gare St. Lazare in which the huge
rising cloud of steam from a train coming in seems to dematerialize the high
ceiling of the station. Atmospheric elfects such as fog veiling architecture and
shimmering light on water suggest moments of transformation according to
Bergsoqrian philosophy which saw reality as a flowing stream with continually
alternating moments of being and becoming.

The ever-changing quality of light creates a continual flickering

movement on the surface of things-a characteristic which makes Impressionism
a painterly style. This effect is brought out by the quick, spontaneous brushstrokes
of pure color from the paint-loaded brush. Forms are not delineated by outlines
but are built by masses of color and tone as figures blend or dissolve into their
surroundings. Likewise, colors do not have a solid effed.. In Auguste Renoir's
Dance at the Bougiwl artd Luncheon of the Boating Partly, a man's coat in
navy blue is not just plain navy blue but is dappled over with patches of
sunlight filtering through the leaves of the trees rustling in the wind and
reflections from the moving figures in the environment. A white dress or a ballet
dancer's gossamer white fufu, as in the pastels and oil paintings of Edgar Degas,
acquires a richness from the way the ruffles capture Iight in tonal rhythms
and transparencies.

Degas and Henri de Tolouse-Lautrec also observed the effects of artificial

light in dance halls, cabarets, theaters. Here the light often has a livid cast; violet
and acid-yellow tones on the faces of the night habitu6s are suggestive of sickness
and decay.

Chinese Tonal Painting

The tonal paintings of the sr-'rg Dynasry t960-1278) are among the most
refined in the art of brush and ink. In black and white tones, they convey a phtlo-

68
sophical introspection, highly nuanced and elliptical in their spareness of means,
yet achieving a fullness of meaning. The paintings of the southern sung combine
the Taoist philosophy which sought to capture the life essence and vital energy
pervading through nature with Ch'an Buddhism (Zen), which placed emphasis sud'-
den insight and intuition.

Mu-ch'i, who was a monk in a temple near Hangchow which was the seat
of the Southern Sung, did landscapes in which he suppressed linear definition in
favor of ink washes with subtle gradations of tone. He is particularly known for his
painting of Six Persimmons in which the handling of tone reaches a high degree
of sophistication. The six persimmons, in their tonal gradations, their placement
and subtle spacing on the paper, ueate a total unity with the surrounding space and
impart a sense of the mysterious life of natural objects. While the painting is
realistic, in it the explicit fades into the implicit, the precise merges with the elu-
sive. In this work, one is made aware of the role of intuition and insight as in the
Zen nddle "What is the sound of one hand clapping?"

Value in Sculpfure '

Value in sculpfure is first of all related to the material used. Marble has a
nafural sheen; bronze reflects the light; alabaster is kanslucent with an inner glow.
Some woods have a matt6 finish; others are nahrally shiny.

Values of light and dark, as well as the intermediate tonalities are also
brought out in the sculptural form itself. This is achieved in the treatment of the
surface which may be polished smooth or incised and marked for a rugged, irregu-
lar effed.

Likewise, the sculphrral form can have hollows and profub€rances, prqec-
tions and recesses, concave and convex sections which are in furn illuminated or in
shadow. An example is Henry Moore's Reclining figure (L929). It is well to,
observe that in sculpfure-in-the-round or fr-rlly threedimensional sculpfure, values
are not static but change and shift accorrCing to the time of the day, the available
light, and, of course, the viewer's angle of vision as he or she walks around the
figure.

It was in Constructivist sculpture that value came to the fore as it brought

the new materials of chrome and pledglass into the domain of the sculptural me-
dium. Laszlo Moholy-Nagy's Plexigloss and Chromium-rod Mobile done in 1943
exemplifies the Constructivists's preference for shiny, reflecting, and transparent
sculptural materials. In this work, the bent chromium rods create bright linear
rhythms in space in which reflections and cast shadows on the surrounding envi-
ronment are themselves part of the sculptural concept. A sculptor from the Philip
pines who uses chrome and plexiglass is Castrillo. His abstmct sculpfure charac-
tenzed by angularity and modular structure sometimes takes the form of mobiles
that interact with the environment.

69
 Luminal sculpture makes use of electric bulbs and fubes to create a three-
dimensionalplay of lights, shadows, and reflecflons.

Value in Architecture

In architecture, value can be found in the kind of materials used and their
combinations. Some materials such as wood have a range of tonal values from
light to dark. Different materials can be used together for contrast, reflecting with
non-reflecting, organic with synthetic, rugged with smooth. The facade of a build-
ing, as well as its interior, can bring together such diverse media as stone, wood,
glass, glazed tile, and brick-all of which vary in their tonal qualities.

Value can also be found in

the architectural design itself .

The Greeks of the Sth century B.C.

or Hellenic Period were aware of this
when they bullt their masterpieces
such as the Parthenon. The peri-
style or row of columns on the
\ facade and sides of the Parthenon
creates a play of light and dark as its
components cast shadows which
lengthen and shlft position in the
course of the day. Even more, each
column has flutings, long vertical
grooves that enhance tonal interest.

The Renaissance palazzos of

lr Italy have a flat facade with clearly
{ -. defined storeys or levels and
*.{a windows at regular interuals. In con-
trast, Baroque architecture, such as
Francesco Borromini's Son Corlo
alle Quattro Fontane (1638),
feah-res curvilinear motifs and an un-
dulating surface movement due to
Folk costume, Botangos.
the aiternating of convex (columns,
mouldings) and concave (alcoves,
niches) elements. Adding to the visual richness arethe relief mouldings in the form
of brackets and cartouches which together with ihe balustrades call into play lighl
anddark effects on the structure,

In the Philippines, recognizably Baroque is the facade of the church of San

Jeronimo in Morong, Rizal. Also strongly Baroque arethe Daraga Church in Aibay,
the Betis Church in Pampanga, the Miag-ao Church in Iloilo, and the San Vicente
Church in llocos Sur, among others.

70
 Transparency

Related to value, transparency and translucency are valorized in Philippine

and Asian art in general. These creale a light and airy effect and suggest space or
spatial levels as perceived through the fine substance. One finds it in our native
costumes, as in the fine jusi and sinomoy blouses. It is also common in the folk
arts, as in the Christmas lanterns or parol in which the transparency of lhe papel
de japon is enhanced by lighting from within. In architecture, it is found in the
windows of translucent capiz shell which modulate the glare of the tropical sunlight.
Often, transparency is combined with cut-out techniques in paper, as in the pastillas
wrappers of San Miguel, Bulacan, and in the parol of San Fernando, Pampanga. If
the material itself is not transparent, as in okir woodcarving, cut-out techniques
bring out the play between figure and space.

TEXTURE

Texture refers to the perception of touch which distinguishes a wide vari-

ety of surface qualities. According to the tactile stimuli of objects, texhrres may be
described as smooth, fine, silky, satiny, velvety, sandy, furry, feathery, slimy, gritty,
rough, rugged, course, porous, irregular, jagged, and so on. Artists have always
tried to imitate the textures of things on a twodimensionalsurface. The tradition
of rendering simulated texhrres goes back to classical antiquity in the paintings of
the Hellenistic Period.

Textures are acfual when the tactile sensations are conveyed by the origi-
nal materials. They are simulated when they render on a twodimensional surface
the textural quality of the objects represented.

In two-dimensional expressions, actual textures are found in collages

which may glue on a surface real objects such as newspaper clippings, tickets,
cloth, cord, bottlecaps, and coins as elements of the composition. Collage was
introduced and popularizedby Picasso and Braque. Aside from their textural inter-
est, some collage materials such as newspaper clippings and corporate logos
introduce texts and graphic elements that contribute to the meaning of the work.
In general, these materials, taken from particular social contexts, bring in
allusions and references.

Actual texture can also come from the artist's handling of paint and brush.
For instance, Impressionist paintings have a livaly surface interest owing to the free
and spontaneous application of pigment by the paint{oaded brush. Color is not
separate from the brushwork which is its imrnediate physical manifestation. The
thick sffokes of pigment give color a body. Likewise, in the Expressionist works of
Van Gogh pigment was applied literally, forming ridges and clots called impasto
and expressing turbulence of feeling. Because of their actual surface texture and
painterly quality, Impressionist and Expressionist paintings possess an immediate
physical presence that invites touch.

77
 Another example of actual texture comes from the medium itself, as in
tapestries, textiles, mats, embroidery, and fiber arts. In this, we can compare dif-
ferent traditional weaves such as those of the Yakan, T'boli, and Tinggian which
show characteristic surface textures due to the quality of the material and the
weaving techniques.

On the other hand. simulated texture is found in paintings which

imitate the texture of real objects. Baroque paintings of the 16th-17th century
in Italy, Netherlands, and Spain show a mastery of simulated texture. Sensuous
appeal is at the very heart of Baroque. for it arose out of the religious campaign
of the Counter-Reformation to keep the Church's flock from straying from the
fold through the aid of religious images that appealed to all the senses, especially
sight and touch, while they also evoked musical sounds, rich perfumes, and
exquisite flavors.

The sensuous quality of Baroque readily found expression in secular form

such as still lifes that enjoyed popularity in Holland and Spain of the 17th century.
In their simulated renderings of textures, the painting surfaces were smooth
and traces of the brush effaced. Executed with consummate skill. the Dutch still
lifes were occasions to display and revel in the products of their industries: crystal
glassware. exquisite metalware. Delft blue-and-white porcelain-all the
refinements of a dynamic mercantile society which extracted wealth, particularly
spices. from the Dutch East Indies to power its burgeoning industries. Among the
various objets d'art on a table. the artist would often introduce an organic and
natural element such as a lemon, cross-sectioned and half-peeled, its cut rind
spiralling down the edge of the table and evoking the sour, tangy odor of the fruit.
The Flemish still lifes were more opulent in spirit as they celebrated the horn
of plenty in tables laden with all forms of gustatory delight. fruits, hams,
cheeses, lobsters, bread, and wine arrayed on fine damask cloth, with colors and
textures to satiation.

Texture in Sculpture

in sculpture, actual texture can be found in the natural quality of the medium.
Marble is smooth and cool to the touch: adobe is rugged and gritty; wood has a
warm. organic feel; metal is hard, cold, spiky, and unyielding to the touch.
The sculptor may also choose to enhance or to modify the original qualities of
the material.

Praxiteles. for instance, enhanced the marble medium in the marble sculp-
ture Hermes and the lnt'ant Dionysus which he polished to a high sheen, giving
the marble a sensuous glow to simulate the texture of skin, "the seamless garment
of nature " The fine texture has the ef{ect oI enhancing the dreamy, languid ex-
pression of the half-smiling Hermes and heightening the sensuousness of the
pronounced S-curve of his standing figure.

72
 Texture becombs sumptuous in Baroque sculpture as in Bernini's
Ecstasy of fuint Teresa which combines precious materials: white marble for
the angel and saint, gold rays for the background, and colored marble for the
enclosing niche. With these materials is the handling of the sculptural form itself
which suggests supple, continually shifting folds of drapery billowing in the wind
of divine passion.

Michelangelo provides an interesting o<ample of a sculptor's changing per-

sonal approach to texfure. His earlier works were polished to a high sheen as can
be seen in his Piefo, which has a noble luminosity of form. The smoothness of the
marble all the more brings out the delicate lines of the veins in the limbs and hands
of the Christ figure so that the medium becomes sensitized as it were and rendered
mortally vulnerable.

In his last sculptures, hovever, Mchelangelo left parts of the marble mate-
rial rough and unfinished, as in a later version of the Refa. This effected a striking
contmst befiiteen the polished surface and the raw material, thus bringing out con-
trary qualities in the same form and initiating a lively visual dialogue between them.
At the same time, this approach to the medium eloquently conveyed the sense of
the process of artistic creation, which involves the struggle between Mistic concept
and raw material, with the artist's vision striving to emerge triumphant from the
heary; physical inertia of the ma6le block.

The French sculptor Auguste Rodin tumed away from classical "{inish"
and, like the Impressionists, cuhivated a rough and lively surface to effect the
interplay of light on the sculptural form. He often left part of the work unfinished
for the viewer to complete in his or her imagination, thus eliciting not only the
appreciation of a finished work but also the mental participation of the viewer r,vho
completes it in his or her mind. As in Michelangelo's work, the unlinished areas of
mw marble also conveys the impression of process with the standing human figure
taking shape from the stone medium.

The artistic practice of contrasting finished with unfinished textures is

also used in other threedimensional forms such as pottery. The T'ang (618-906)
potters, for instance, often left the lower section of their jars unglazed to bring out
the contrast between the glazed area of lively polychromatic design and the even,
neutml biscuit of the body, as well as to convey the fresh spontaneity of the adistic
process involved. It was also in the same period that the potters invented a
crackled celadon glaze and producd designs simulating the texture of agate and
veined marble.

A good sculptor working in wood knows how to bring out the

natural beauty of his material by respecting its properties and using them to
advantage. Wood has natural marks such as veins and knots that reveai the
patterns of organic growth. Rather than concealing them or leaving them out,
the artist incorporates these into a design, along with the random and accidental

73
tracks of time and weather in order tb preserve the integrity of the material.
Japanese artists working in wood, bamboo, or rattan handle their material
with great respect so as not to offend the nature spirits which they believe
reside therein.

Opposing Traditions in Texture

From the study of texfures in art, two kaditions can be distinguished. One
tradition, which has been dominant for a long time, places value on smooth, lus-
trous texfures that are associated with costly materials accessible to the elite, such
as the different kinds of marble, gold and gold leaf, precious silks. The European
beaux arts academies strengthened this tradition by formulating a hierarchy
of materials in ari. Thus, for sculpture, marble was the most favored material and
for painting, it was oilon canvas. only works in these media could be considered
for salon competitions, and those in other materials were not deemed to merit
serious consideration. This was a canon which perpetuated the elitlst and undemo-
cratic distinction between "High Art" which was art suitable for the court of kings,
members of the royalty, and the aristocracy; and "Low Art" which was art for the
geneml population.

This tmdition has hd a long hold on artists as seen from the continuing
preference for costly materials such as oils and fine paper-a preference which is
sustained by the continued patronage of imporld materials for easel painting and
likewise encouraged by the art market which caters to the elite and seeks to main-
tain a high levelof pricing.

This is also seen in the way that many artistic productions are made to
approximate the materials and textural qualities of "High Art.' Thus, for a long
time, sculptors working in wood polished their surface to a high sheen anJ
woodcarvers applied several coats of varnish to their finely execgted forms. The
idealwas the "finished" surface through a long process of sandpapering, polishing,
and varnishing, less than which would be considered unpresentible anduncouth.
Even restorers of old paintings give their tired surfaces a thick layer of varnish so as
to lend an "old master" and museum eflec..

An opposing hadition is fourd trtZen aesthetics, which is one current of

Asian art. TheZen aestheilc concept of sobi, as Daisetz Suarh explains, consists in
the rralues of "rustic unpretentiousness of archaic imperfection, afparent simplicity
or effortlessness in execution." Litemlly, sabi means "loneliness" or .,solitude,,, *to
be left alone with no streamers flyingo no firervorks cmckling." Thus, a receptacle
of
cracked bamboo or a teacup with a brokm handle, especially if it has a long history
of use and emotional association, may be hishly prized for its unobtrusive quality In
tea.ttmsils, according to Yanagi, it is the "simplicity of shape, tranquility oi ,*iu.",
mello,r, somberness of colorhg, chaste body of figure" thai are of value rather than
bright glazes and ornamental designs. lnZenaesthetics, irregularities of form, imper-
fecfions of glaze, slight damages and scars, and a certain air-of incompleteness
show

74
that "beau$ is not captive"to perfection." Thus, in geneml, the tea masters prefer
monochrome vessels to the brightly glazcl, and stoneware of earthenware to porce-
lain. In the spirit of this aesthetics is the story of the samuroi lord who would accept
as gift from his warriors who came back from a visit to their home provinces only a
simple stone or rock which he would place in his garrden.

This aesthetics of reticence and austerity in Japanese art was neither the
sole nor the dominant one. ft conkasted with that of the decorators of the 17th
cenfury imperial court who designed screen or byobu liberally encrusted with gold
and silver leaf and splashed with the sumpfuous colors of flowers and magnificent
brocade.

Contemporary Approaches to Texture

In the West, modernist artists such as the Impressionists, Cubists, and Fu-
hrrists who reacted to the strucfures of the academy, releasd art from the obliga-
tory conventions of medium and opened endless artistic possibilities in terms of
new materials and textures, as well as techniqtres producing textures. In the midst
of this ferment, Picasso remarked: "The artist is a receptacle for motions that come
from all over the place: from the slry, from the earth, from a scrap of paper, from
a passing shape, from a spider's web. That is why we must not discriminate
&fiieen things. Where things are con-
cemed, there areno class distinctions. We
must pick out what is good for us where
we can find it." The Surrealisis in turn
developed various techniques including de-
calcomania in which pigment is applied
on two sheets of paper which are then
pressed together and separated for a kind
of rorschach image to be enhanced by the
arh$.; frottage in which a piece of paper
is placed over a textured surface, rubbed
with pencil or charcoal strokes; and
fumage in which the paper isdarkened or
smoked with soot {rom a flame. Jean
Dubuffet carried this exploration further
into what he called art brut ('raw art') us-
ing graffiti and creating compositions with
sand, glass, rope while scarring and
scratching the surface in a complete rqec-
tion of academic norms.

From this, it becomes clear that

one can create art from all kinds of mate-
rials and textures, that the artist does well
Jon Petty John, "Reduction-
to respect and appreciate the natural Fired Stoneware," 7995.

75
beauty of materials derived from the living environment, and ihat it is best to work
with locally available materials to convey the character of the natural and social
setting. Medium has become an open field for arlistic choice, so that the new
materials and texfures, freed from hierarchizing and obhgatory convention, be-
come themselves conveyors of meaning and enter into the structure of meanings of
the work of art.

A number of Philippine painters and sculptors have made significant

art. By
advances in exploring and using indigenous and non-academic materials in
showing that painting does not depend on costly and imported materials, the artist
contributes towards freer, more democratic art-making. Moreover, the use of indig-
enous materials situates art in our familiar natwal and social environment,with
textures that give afi an immediate tactile appeal, which goes towards overcoming
psychological alienation vis-a-vis the work, especially in those with limited expo-
sure to painting an<i sculpture. An artist who has used indigenous materials suc-
cessfully in twodimensional expressions is Cajipe-Endaya who integrates sou.roli
panes, crocheted lace, fabrics and rope to give her social and political themes, such
as feminism. export labor, and anti-imperialism, an immediacy and concreteness in
their Philippine context. Indigenous organic materials have been used in outdoor
ihstallations by Junyee, Santiago Bose, and Roberto Villanueva. These works have
developed a keen sensitivity to the semiotic potential of indigenous materials.

SHAPES
"lt is not to be despised, in my opinion, lf after gazing fixedly at the spot
,
on the wall. the coals in the grate. the clouds, the flowing stream, if one remembers
some of their aspects; and if you look at them carefully you willdiscover some quite
admirable inventions. Of these the
genius of the painter may take full ad-
vantage to compose battles of animals
and of men. of landscapes or mon-
sters, of devils and other fantastic
things which bring you honor. In these
confused things genius becomes
aware of new inventions, but it is nec-
essaryto know well (how to draw) all
the parts that one ignores, such as
parts of animals and the aspects of
landscapes, rocks, and vegetation. "

In this quotation, da Vinci

Ramon Orlino, gloss sculpture.
describes the genesis of forms in
the visual arts: the artist's imagina-
tion set to work by a random spot on
the wall gives birth to a swarming
universe of beings. At other times,

76
Froncisco Pellicer Viri, "The Mechanical Ghost ond the Technical Spirit,' 1993.

aftists observe and comment on the everyday life around them, or they may convey
meanings through the symbolic potentialof geometric and biomorphic shapes.

In general, shapes are. twodimensional or three{imensional. Twodimen-

sional shapes exist as planes having length and width. Three-dimensional shapes
possess length, width, and volume.

Shapes are classified into geometric (rectlinear or curuilinear), biomorphic.

or tree inventions. As signifiers, their meanings are often derived from cultural
codes and symbolic systems.

Geometric Shapes

l. Rectilineor. Because they have equal sides drawn with mathematical

exactihrde, the square and cube convey the qualities of rational order, intellecfual
precision and exactifude, unyielding impersonality, the mle of law, scientific and
technological values. The square-together with the hexagon and the octagon
based on even numbers--gives the appearance of firmness, stability, and defini-
tion. This is because the four elements (earth, water, fire, air), the four seasons, the
four stages of a person's life, and the four points of the compass are the bases of
the physical order and stability of the universe. In symbolism, the cube stands for
the earth or the material world of the four elements. It also symbolizes unyielding
structures, whether of reason or law.

The triangle signifies stability when it rests on its base with the apex pointed
upwards. It symbolizes fire and the aspiration of all things towards a higher unity.

77
The broader its base the more stable it is, but if it has a small base with long sides it
conveys a sense of precariousness and danget since it becomes mentally associ-
ated with sharp points, spikes, and slivers of glass. When inverted, it conveys a
sense of equilibrium and equipoise as it balances on its point.

Its threedimensional forms are the tetrahedron, which has three sides with
a triangualar base, and the pyramid, which has four sides with a square base. The
pyramid can be solid or it can be hollow as in the Egyptian pyramids which contain
chambers for the royal dead. The pyramid is also an ancient occult symbol.

2. Curuilinear. The circle as a self-contained form without angles or

corners signifies perfection, eternity, a closed universe or the state of oneness. It is
often synonymous wiih the circumference which, because it has no beginning nor
end. repre*nts circular movement. Radial lines from the center to any point on
the circumference are equidistant, thus mantaining a perfect equilibruim of all forces.
A diameter which intersects the circle through its center divides it into equal halves
or semi-circles. The threedimensional equivalent of the circle is the globe or the
orb divided in two equalhemispheres. Other curvilinear shapes are the oval, the
cylinder. and the cone.

Geometric Shapes in Different Cultures

The circle or disc as the emblem of the sun, the primal source of light and
energy. is found as a motif or symbol in all cultures. It is often embelhshed with
rays. Our cultural communities have different ways of representing the sun and
moon in their variqus artistic productions such as weaving and embroidery.

In Chinese culture. the well-known symbol ol the Yin-Yang signifying the

interactive dualism or dialectics. is a circle divlded into two equal sections by a
sigmoid line across the diameter. The white section Yong has a black spoi within it,
and the black section Yin a white spot. thus conveying the idea that everything
contalns the seed of its opposite. or that everything bears a contradiction that
generates dynamic movement implied by the sigmoid line. In this symbol, the hvo
forces. positive and negative, are in equilibrium. but sooner or later, the Yong or
the Yin grows and becomes dominant as both alternate in a continual process of
increasing and decreasing, waxing and waning.

In Indian art and philosophy. the mandala is a geometric shape used as an

aid to mental concentration and meciitation leading to "mystic exaltation." It repre-
sents not only the earth but "macrocosm and microcosm, the Iargest structural
process as well as the smallest. It is the gatepost between the trvo." In whatever
variation, a mandala has three basic principles: a center, symmetry, and cardinal
points. Although in Sanskrit mandala literally means circle and center, its tradi-
tional design uses both the circle, symbol of the cosmos, and the square, symbol of
the ear1h.

78
 It is in Tibet that the mandala was carried to its fullest development as an
artistic form and as an aid in meditation. ln the Mandala ot' Kalachakara, the
center is the holy of holies where the deity is contained within the square, the
"palace of inner being."

The mandala form is found not only in Asian culhres but in other culfures as
well. The sandpaintings of the Navaho Indians are mandalas. Stonehenge in En-
gland, the Aztec calendar, and the rose windows of Gothic cathedrals are likewise
circular mandala forms. Even the Tausug pis sigabit, the magnificent handwoven
hedgear of Southern Philippines, is a symmetrical mandala based on the square.

Creometric Shapes in Contemporary Art

Cezartne, the Post-lmpressionist artist who anticipated Cubism, advanced

the theory that the entire universe can be reduced to three shapes: the cube, cone,
and the cylinder. In reaction to the fluidity of Impressionist shapes, Cezanne sought
a return to structure by geometricizing his subjects, as in his still life of apples, his
portraits, and his landscapes o{ Mont Sainte Victoire.

The Op art of Vasarely and Bridget Riley consists of geometric shapes

executed with mathematical precision in order to achieve the illusionistic eftect of
oscillating {orms.

Geometric shapes for.uid in nature are a source of constant wonder be-

cause of their beauty and per{ection. complexity and infinite variety: crystals, min-
erals. snowflakes, honeycombs. andso on. They are often used as symbols of order
and perfection and have inspired many contemporary artists.

Biomorphic Shapes

Biomorphic shapes are derived from living organisms. Some are micro-
scopic and unicellular, such as the simple amoeba. The egg is a basic biomorphic
shape. and so are the internal organs, such as the heart, the hdney, and the vis-
cera.

Leaves, flowers, and fruits are biomorphic shapes of an infinite variety.

Trees are distinguished, not only by their leaves. but by their crown {ormations
which show the pattern of growth.of the trunk, branches, and leaves. Birds fly in
the air and settie on trees where they build nests. Fish, crustaceans, and shellfish
live in the water. Rather than thinking or drawing leaves, trees, birds, and fish "in
general," one must learn to observe them and draw them in particular, according
to their species and in the context'of their setting.

Much of the beauty of nature lies in the biomorphic shapes of growing,

lMng thiirgs with their colors, textures, and odors. In order to appreciate nature
and develop the artistic sense of design and structure, it is necessary to study the

79
natural forms around us. They are not only of an inexhaustible variety, but they are
constantly changing, for they interact with the environment and enter into the cycle
of nature. Floweri first appear as buds, open into blossoms, mahtre into fullblooms,
then finally wither, their petals falling from their calyx. The shapes of leaves and
petals can be rounded or circular, tapering, pronged, or dentate. The forms of
living things continually change according to their pattern of growth and are sub-
ject to the conditions of the weather and environmmt.

While "shape" implies a defining outline, "form" implies structure as well.

Apart from their general shapes, living things can have secondary shapes or shapes
within shapes. Lines, dots, speckles, and r"ings are part of the general design.
Moreover. somes shapes are invisible or are not readily visible. Tiny gnawing
insects can expose the exceedingly fine and intricate system of midrib and veins all
overthe surface ofthe leaf. The roots oftrees can have an extensive underground
network which is only partially visible. Fruits have seeds, pits or stones concealed
in them. Fish. as well as all animals, have bones forming a bone structure enclosing
internal organs.

Nature in Art

Living shapes have served as inspiration to artists of all times and places.
The capitals of the massive Egyptian columns had papyrus leaves for motif. The
Greek Corinthian order is distinguished fu its capital of acanthus leaves. Baroque
and Rococo decorative designs are charactenzdby floral and plant motifs forming
garlands and wreaths.

It was the Philippine sculptor and designer Isabelo Tampinco who initiated
the use of native elements in decorative arttowards the end of developing a na-
tional style. In the 1895 Fxposicion Regional de Filipinas, he exhibited a set of
designs which later became known as the esfi/o Tampinco: bunga trunks for col-
umns. onohou ond banana leaves for motifs, and so/o for arches and facades. This
started a fashion in the decorative arts, for since then picture frames, balustrades,
valances. transoms, and windowfrarneswere ornamented with banana andanahaw
leaves, gobi vines, sampaguiia blossoms and gumamelas. Although his extensive
woodcarving for the San Ignacio Church in Intuamuros was dedtroyed by the war,
the cement facade of the Manila cathedral done from a molave mold which he
carved has survived.

In Southern Philippines, the Maranao okir woodcarving with its principal

designsol the sri-manok, naga, ar:d pako rabong consists of plant motifs, such as
the dapal or raon fleaf). poko (fern spiral), todi (katuray flower), and pofiok (bud).

Chinese painting is based on a keen sensitivity to nature and the desire

to capture the inner spirit of things. The 17th century Mustard Seed Ctarden
Manual combines observation with insight, as in the passages on grasping the
structure of trees:

80
 Mqrk well the way the branches dispose themselues, the
yin and Wng ol them: those in front and those in the back,
those on the lelt and those on the right; mark well the fensions
cruted by some branches pushing forward while others seem
to withdraw. In the places where, in nature, there are many
branches, add more and elaborate; where few, simplify. That
is hou.r the ancients pinted their landsapes of a fhousand crogs
and ten thousand gullies...

Pine trees qre like people of high principles whose

manner reuals an inner power. They resemble young dragons
coiled in deep gorges; lhey haue an attractiue and graceful ai4
yet one trembles to approach them, awed by the hidden pouer
rwdy to spring t'orth. Ihose who paint pines should keep this
maning in mind.

When trees grow on mountains with thick undergrowth,

their roots are usually hldden. When they grow among
rocks, are washed by springs, or are clinging to steep clit't's,
the roots ot' old trees are exposed. They are like hermits,
the lmmortals ol legends, whose purity shours in their
appearance, lean and gnarled with age, bones and tendons
protruding.

In Western art, Paul Klee in his diaries also expressed the sense of
strtrcture of livinq things:

An apple tree in bloom, ifs roots and rising saps, ifs trunk,
the cross section with the annual rings, the blassom, its sfruc-
ture, its sexual functions, the fruit, the core with its seeds.
An organization of statue of growth.

Free Shapes

Free shapes are found in painting and sculpture or the visual arts in
general as inventions of the artist. ThaS are neither geometric following math-
ematical definition nor biomorphic following patterns of organic growth and
the shapes of living things. Free shapes are often found in abstract art where they
may suggest fantasy and whim. They may also be related to the doodling and
automatic writing of Surrealist art which draws images from the subconscious
level of the mind. The figures in the paintings of Joan Miro and Kandinslry are
free shapes.

81
 Properties of Shapes

1. Closure (or non-closure). Shapes are said to be closed when they are
self-coniained and highly integralwith forces in equilibrium.

Shapes are open when they interact dynamically with the environment
and surrounding space. They feature projections, extensions, or prongs that
dynamically reach out, cut across space, intrude, grow into, or occupy the
surrounding area.

Castriilo's Spirit ot' Pinaglabanan boldly projects upwards in space, while

Abueva's Mother and Child is compact and self-contained.

2. Dimension. Shapes, whether geometric, biomorphic, or lree inven-

tions of the artist Ne eTther twodimensional or threedimensional.

Flat or twodimensional forms are found in decorative pattems. They are

also found in paintings, drawings, or prints that reestablish or emphasize the basic
twodimensionality of the paper or canvas surface. In Japanese ukiyo-ewoodcuts
showing "images of the floating world," the figures are lhear and twodimensional,
bringing to the fore the rich and vibrant designs of the costumes and the sensitivity
of the facial expressions.

Many paintings in the Cubist style, especiatly those of its later synthetic
phase, have flat shapes compared to "playing cards on a tray' which assert
the twodimensionali! of the surface and reject perspectival depth. This is
also true of the spare. geometric paintings of Mondrian. who meant them to sym-
bolize the underlying onder and harmony of the universe. Arturo Ltz's Cityscape
done in the linear style of the 50s also exemplifies twodimensionality in
painting with forms rising along the basic triangular shape from the base to the
apex. Paintings, often abstract, which stress the sharp precision of forms, may be
described as "hard-edge. "

Figurative painting, however, is often concerned with giving the appear-

ance of volume or three{imensionality. This is done by the shading and modelling
of forms, that is, darkening or lightening the contours of figures and objects in
relation to an indicated or implied light source, so that the figure or object seems to
be shaped by light and shadow as it occupies space.

Thus, threedimensionality or monumental forms in painting convey

the illusion of volume and solid mass. In executing them, the painter does not
think in terms of outlines but of threedimensional bodies that are perceived
in varying shades of light and dark. This is seen in the paintings of da vinci and
in Michelangelo, and in many Baroque paintings where the forms seem to
mateia\ze softly, never quite separating themselves from the penumbm of the
background.

82
 While the paintings of Botticelli and the Siennese artist Martini belonged
to the linear tradition, the sense of voldme was developed by Giotto di Bondone in
the 13th century with his figures that combine spirituality and physical concrete-
ness. This concern was pursued by Tommaso Guidi Masaccio, particularly in his
fresco of the Holy Trinity done in 7425 in which the figures seem to inhabit real
space within the high vault of the altar. In fact, the concern for volume in the
Renaissance had to do with the new assertion o{ "man's" physicality. For in con-
trast to the otherworldy Middle Ages, it was in the Renaissance that people con-
sciously came to terms with physical being at the same time that they claimed
central space in the landscape in the quest for mastery over the forces of nature.

When the volume or threedimensionality of objects is so convincing that

they seem to be real and actually occupy space, this illusion in painting is called
trompe I'oeil (Fr. "fool the eye"), naturalism or illusionism. This is seen for in-
stance in 17th century Dutch and Spanish still lifes in which a device often used to
heighten the illusion of volume and depth is to have a fruit, such as a peeled lemon
or a cucumber, project from the edge of the table towards the viewer, so that it
seems to extend into the viewer's space with the elfect of annulling the difference
between the pictorial space and the real space of the viewer.

A still life in this tradition is Juan Sanchez Cotan's Still Lile with Quince,
Cabbage, Melon, and Cucumber in which the humble everyday obiects are seen in
a new light. Light and shadow shape the objects, and the'eye rests on each of
them, visual moments of a sweeping hyperbola set in a rigid square frame. The
sharp angle of shadow at the corner of the window is a dramatic element and the
projecting form of the cucumber enters into the viewer's space.

Francisco Zurbaran continues in the same vein in a still life with three
vases. Since all three are variations of one. the viewer at once proceeds to the
process of differentiation: what marks each one as distinct from the others be-
comes the primary concern. A cool light molds the forms with precision, impart-
ing an almost fragile aspect. and though the subject may appear simple at first
glance, the many variations of form and design are revealed upon closer look. The
first and third vases have a glowing enamel-like surface; the duller texture of the
second is compensated for by its mellow orange tones. These vases, set apart and
clearly articulated from one another against the dark background, are joined only
by a horizontal base. Balance in the composition is achieved by subtle effects of
spacing and considerations of height and size. The spaces between the forms are
themselves elements of the visualsyrntax This still li{e invites the viewer to dwell on
the formal perfection of objects, to appreciate their qualities of form, color, and
texture. But the masterful realism denies a purely formal comprehension of the
work for it endows the vases each with a separate and inviolable integrity as though
they were three revealed truths.

Sculpture, of course, is always three-dimensional. Relief sculpture, whether

low-relief (bas relief) or high relief , claims three-dimensionality in the sense that the

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figures, prcjecting from the solid background surface, possess volume, and cast
shadows. In high relief, the figures project more strongly than in low relief. The
figures enclosed within the triangular pediment of the old Congress building are in
. Examples of low relief are found in the stone gateways done by Abueva
high relief
along University Avenue at the University of the Philippines and in Caedo's Tandang
Soro and Katipunan figures for Himlayang Pilipino.

Three-dimensional sculpture is also described as "free-standing" or "sculp-

ture-in-the-round." But a distinction between the two terms is called for. "Free-
standing" can be said of any sculpture which is a solid form entirely surrounded by
space. The Egyptian sculptures of pharaohs and the kouros and kore, male and
female nudes of the Greek Archaic Period are free-standing, and so are most of our
sontos. It is to be observed that the Egyptian sculptures and the kouros are block-
like in execution. that is, they repeat the four sides of the original stone block, at the
same time that they favor the frontal view. Our wooden sontos are often hollow or
cursory at the back because they were meant to be placed on an altar or in a niche
for devotional purposes. Sculptural form which corresponds to the original planes
of the stone or wood block can be described as planimetric.

The term "sculpture-in-the round," on the other hand, is best applied to

sculptural form which has truly succeeded in freeing itself from the tyranny of the
block. This approach began in the Hellenic Period when a new insight into the
structure and coordination of the human figure expressed itself in dynamic form.
The idea emerged from the body revolving around its axis upon which the various
forces counterbalance one another through the contraction and expansion of the
muscular system. thereby implying potential movement

In the sculptures of Polycleitos. such as rhe Lcnce-bearer or Doryphoros

and the Diadomenos showing a youth placing a garland on his head, there is a
sense of fluid movement, of forces continually adjusting and compensating on all
sides of the figure. The typical classical stance in u'hich fie heel of one foot was
raised with the knee flexed as though to take a forward step required a correspond-
ing movement in the raising of the opposite hip with the shifting of the body's
weight. at the same time that the torso turned slightly to the side with the head in
the opposite direction. The Renaissance continued this pursuit of dynamic form in
Michelangelo's Dauid and in Moses which is marked by a strong contrapposto, a
twisting movement of the figure around its axis, to express passion and energy.

Expressionism of Shape

Shapes drawn from life by the artist cease to be simply illustrative or docu-
mentary when they become expressive of concepts, values, and emotions. This is
true, for example, of Picasso's paintings of the Blue Period, such as Blind Man
with a Guitar and a Woman lroning. In the first example, the intensity and con-
centration of the blind man's playing is conveyed by the elongation and attenuation
of his form, his emaciated arms and legs, an intensit5r that is made poignant by his

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obvious poverty and lack of worldly possessions except for his guitar. ln Woman
Ironing, the sensitive red line tracing the high and bony shoulder and going down
the length of the thin arm pressing the flat iron conveys the painfui stmin and
fatigue, the oppression of woman . ln Man and wit'e, the long bony hands of the
couple are intensely expressive. For the treatment of hands and fingers, compare
the hands of the Mona Lisa, of Albrecht Durer in his self-portrait, and of the
characters of Picasso's Blue Period.

Ang Kiu Kok's Junkgnrd, Dogfighf, and Scru.m are examples of the
expressive use of shapes, at the same time that their meanings are sifuated in the
social context of struggle.

Expressionist artists make the forms of nafure reflect their subjective states.
The aesthetician Rudolph Arnheim points out that the priority of expression over
descriptive recording is striking in the art of children and adults. "The face of a
person is more readily perceived and remembered as being alert, tense, concen-
trated, rather than as being triangularly shaped, having slanted eyebrows, straight
lips, and so on. .. The profile of a mountain is soft or threateningly harsh; a blanket
thrown over a chair is twisted, sad, tired."

Likewise, the expressive quality of a work is not confined to the figures

alone but to the relationship of {igure and ground, as well as to the relationship of
positive and negative shapes. Negative shapes which are the intervals between the
figures .re no longer arbitrary nor accidental but are themselves configurations.
This approach is seen in the prints of M.c. Escher which play on positive and
negative shapes with the effects of ahernation and metamorphosis in a trompe
l'oeil style.

Shapes in Folk Art

Philippine baskets with their large variety of shapes are an important form
of folk artistic expression. Products of a cenfuries-old tradition, they are widely and
dexterously fashioned by the hands of peasants in the long and rainy months be-
tween planting and harvesting. More than any other artifacts, these baskets reflect
their social matrix, the tropical environment, and the daily occupations of the folk
where one's hving is defined by the resource of land. river, and sea. They speak of
communities of peasants, fisherfolk, and hunters, their traditions barely touched fu
the influence of the machine and the assembly line.

As art, basketry exemplifies the creative use of materials from the nafural
environment, from field, forest, and paddies. The most common material is bam-
boo gathered from dense groves, then cut and split into the strips for coiling and
weaving, the outer skin acquiring a yellow sheen with age and use. Because of the
bamboo's rapid growth into tall and slender boles, with vigorous spiky leaves
springing from the nodes, the bamboo as a material has a fineness and pudty,
combined with resilience and strength, that it retains in the products made from it.

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Of the many other materials, coconut mid'ribs make for strong strucfure. There are
also large leaves, dried and flattened, from the crown of the buri palm and the
anaha,a with its iight broad fronds that suggest a natural fan or instant sunshade.
Vines also come into use, such as the dark nifo or the reddish sigid valued for
strength and decorative potential. Folk ingenuity has made use of possibly all
materials from bark, leaf, and vine, from bamboo and rattan, from ferns and pine
needles as well.

Doubtless, the use of such a wide range of materials also entails an inti-
mate lore of their natural properties so that these can be enhanced and brought to
fulluse. For like many arts, basketry does not only involve design but also integrity
of skucture, especialhT since baskets are essentialfu functional. According to Roberto
de los Reyes, baskets may be classified into five kinds: carrying baskets, fish bas-
kets, storage baskets, hand baskets, and trays. Within each group in fum is a wide
range of functions and sub-functions. Thus, there are not only fish baskets in
geneml, but creels and traps for eels, for shrimps, for snails in the paddies, and a
particular one with an interior cone lined with a row of holes for catching small
river fish*each of these baskets having a form suitable to its particular function, an
example in the specialization of shapes.

AII regions from the North to the South have their basketry traditions. The
Cordillera folk have one of the most sophisticated basketry tmditions in the country
with a high degree of technical excellence coupled with an imaginative use of ma-
terials. They make tapered standing baskets with supports for carrying rice and
vegetables on the trails of the rice termces. as well as beautiftrlly structxed storage
baskets with flat, close-fitting covers. Flaring or tapering sides are not merely for
decorative effect but also to accommodate areas of greater stress. For instance, the
backpack with its taperingshape, according to Robert Lane, is so constructed that
the weight will not be concentrated at the base but distributed along the sides sup-
ported by the hunter's back.

Pangasinan folk make fish creels with high shoulder points and worn tied to
the waist by fisherfolk. From Bulacan are egg baskets in split bamboo in which a
conical inner basket secures the eggs firmly in place. The Luzon Negritos make
strong doublewalled baskets combining nito and fumban, with rattan for finishing.

The Tirumys, Bagobos, T'bolis, and Mangyans fashion finely crafted bags for
personal use. Compared to the Christian lowlanders, the animist national minorities
show a freer and uninhibited approach to material, as they happrb ornament their
baskets with tufts of hair (a residue from the old practice of headhunting) along with
wide and colorful bead panels further embellished with brass bells. The Mamnaos,
Maguindanaos, and Thusugs have also brought the art of basketry to perfection with
an artra note of bright color. Typical are the domed food covers and the rice contain-
ers in bM shapes, single or tiered, made of flattend ladden leaves dyed in vivki colors
and woven in geometric designs, as well as the Maguindanao baskets made of soft
seagrass dyed in magenta, violet, green, and yellow.

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 The very shapes themselves, because of iheir integrity and justness, are
aesthetically pleasing, but they grow out of function as well. In the interplay of
{r.mction and design, one beeornes keenly aware of basketry not only as an artifaci
but also as process and performance by the native artist, Most of the ornamenta-
tion has to do with light/dark contrasts whether in employing the same material or
by alternating inner and outer skin or in using differeniiy toned materials to create
various designs. Color plays only a secondary role, which may be indeed for the
better, because dyed materials would not stand well to the wear and tear of daily
use, and more especially because it is the natural color that brings out the organic
vitali! of the materials and the precious sense of the baskets having been produced
from within the bosom of nature.

Originally, too, basket weaving and its related forms such as mats, hats,
and woven body ornaments with geometric motifs had a communal meaning
and function. This firnction was to mediate between people and nature in an
animistic worldview where people, the hunter, the peasant, and the fisherfolk con-
tinually communed with the spirits of field, river, sky, and sea for survival and daily
sustenance. On another level, these motifs, stylized natural forms, locate people
as part of nature in which they share the common vitality of al living forms.

CONTPOSITION IN SPACE

The area covered by the entire image of a picfure bordered by the frame
field. Composition in space involves not only the relationship of
is its pictorial
the figures to one another but their relationship to the pictorial space defined
by the format of the work. AII the elements of the visual arts: line, value,
color, texture, shape enter into relationships in the work, following principles
of organization. These principles are likewise interrelated; among them are
balance, proportion, rhythm, unity in variet5r, dominance and subordination,
contrast.

Balance is an organizing principle in the visual arts which presupposes

units possessing relative weights sifuated in relation to each or one another to
aclieve a feeling of equilibrium or resolution. There are several kinds of balance,

1. Formal bslsnce-This is also called syimmeky or the balance of equal

measures. In this kind, both halves of the picture correspond to each other
with minor variations. Two figures of equal weight may be placed on both sides of
the axis, as in Jan van Eyck's painting of Giownni Arnolfini and His Wit'e.
Often, the figure of greatest importance is placed at the center with equal figures
on either side. This is often found in religious painiings such as the socra
conuersazione lype of religious painting in the Early Renaissance showing
the Madonna and Child flanked on both sides by saints in conversational
attitudes. Raphael's School of Athens and da Vinci's Last Supper are excellent
examples of this hnd of balance with equally weighted sides. These types of com-
positions usually have a strong central focus.

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