Subject in Art

What Does Subject Matter Mean in Art?

Subject matter in art refers to the topic or focal point that an art piece is built around. This may be
a person, still life, landscape, building, or other foundational element. It’s important to understand
the subject matter of a piece of art to understand the meaning of the piece of art overall. No matter
what media is used to create a piece of art, it should have an identifiable subject matter.

Example of Subject Matter

The subject matter of a piece of art can be anything and everything a piece of art is about. This
may be a person, animal, object, building, landscape, or more. Identifying the main subject of a
piece of art is helpful for finding meaning in the art piece.

Sometimes, the subject of an art piece is clear because there’s only one thing on the canvas. For
example, the subject of this piece of art is a dog.

Other times, the subject of an art piece may be harder to discern because there are many things
going on in the piece, or it’s abstract. With abstract art, your subject matter is what you see. This
includes the shapes, colors, lines, and other elements.

This probably sounds obvious, but abstract art can be tricky. It’s not as simple as looking at the
drawing of the dog above and saying that the subject is a dog.

Abstract art is meant to be subjective, which leaves the subject matter up for interpretation
(source). You may believe that all art is subjective, which is a debate for another time, but the
moral of the story is that you have to do more of your own soul searching to determine the subject
matter of abstract art than you might with something more clear cut, like a portrait.

Other examples of subject matter can include portraits:

Nature Landscapes Still life

And so many more! Again, the subject matter of a piece of art may be crystal clear, or it may be
more mysterious. At the end of the day, it’s up to your own interpretation.
Does the Artist or the Viewer Determine the Subject Matter of a Work of Art?
An artist may have a certain vision or purpose for their artwork. That said, the artist can’t control
your interpretation of their art. The way that you, the viewer, perceive a piece of art is ultimately
the deciding factor when determining the subject matter of a piece of art. All artists have dreams
of how their art will be viewed. Maybe they even have a specific message they’re hoping to
communicate through their subject matter. Depending on the piece of art, the artist’s purpose may
be extremely clear and obvious, or it may be harder to discern. This may be particularly true for
abstract art that depicts a theoretical theme or issue.

As the viewer of a piece of art, it’s your job to analyze and consider it carefully to make your own
case for what the subject matter is. Determining the subject of an art piece isn’t like solving a math
equation. There isn’t one solid answer that everyone should arrive at. For every piece of art you
encounter, ask yourself what you believe the artist was trying to convey through their work. Can
you make a case to justify your reasoning?

With abstract art, or art that doesn’t have a clear subject matter, you may find that different people
pose different cases for what the subject matter of the art actually is. Despite these different cases,
all of their justifications are sound. That said, the case and justification you make in regards to an
artwork’s subject matter needs to be thoughtful, reasonable, and make sense within the context
of the art.

For example, I can’t make a logical case saying that the subject matter of the drawing below is a
flamingo. Short of claiming that the artist is depicting some magical world where flamingos
camouflage themselves as lions, I don’t have a great case here to say anything but that the subject
matter of the drawing below is a lion.

It’s important to understand that the viewer is responsible for analyzing a piece of art and justifying
their reasoning for determining the artwork’s subject matter. This is one of the beautiful,
meaningful, and interesting aspects of art. The way that we can all look at the same piece of art
and come away with different interpretations of it is amazing. Imagine how boring life would be if
we all had the same exact opinions of art?

That said, there are times when the subject matter is clear. Sure, you could make an argument
that the subject matter of the lion drawing is not a lion, but it’s unlikely that you’d get many people
jumping on board with you with that argument. Whenever you’re deciding upon the subject matter
of a piece of art, make sure to analyze it carefully and deeply. You want to have solid justification
for any decisions you make regarding an artwork’s subject matter and overall meaning. What’s
your evidence for your decision? What aspects of the artwork lead you to your conclusions about
the subject matter?

Determining the subject matter of a piece of art isn’t always clear cut and easy. That’s ok! That’s
what makes art interesting, dynamic, and fun to talk about. Practice analyzing art to determine its
subject matter, and have a strong justification for it. Not only will this help you enjoy the art more,
it will also give you a leg up the next time you visit the art museum.
Subject – is the visual focus or the image that may be extracted from examining the artwork or it
is the “What?”.

Types of Subject
• Representational Art
- These types of subjects refer to objects or events occurring in the real world. This
is also termed as Figurative Art because the figures depicted are easy to make
out or decipher. (Example: Painting of Mona Lisa)
• Non-Representational Art
- These are art forms that do not make a reference to the real world, whether it is a
person, place, thing, or even a particular event. It is stripped down to visual
elements, such as shapes, lines, and colors that are employed to translate a
particular feeling, emotion, and even concept. (Example: Abstract painting)

Kinds of Subject
• History
• Still life
• Animals
• Figures
• Nature
• Myth
• Landscape, Seascape, Cityscape
• Mythology
• Dreams
• Fantasy
• Non-objective (abstractions)
• Portraitures

Sources of Subject
• Memory
• Observation
• Imagination

Philosophical Importance of Art

Artworks are mostly distinct because artist have different beliefs or philosophy. The philosophy
needed by human being is the one which is correct. In other words, human beings need the
philosophy which conforms to reality. As philosophy is a basic factor in human life, it can shape
its mind and character and it is the main force shaping the destiny of nations. Philosophy shapes
them in a good and bad direction depending on the philosophy type accepted by human beings.
Philosophy studies the main qualities of the existence of human beings and the relation of human
beings and existence. Contrary to other sciences focusing on specific matters, it deals with
everything in the universe. Philosophy is not an activity that can be limited to a definition rather it
is a continuous search of knowing and defining.

Philosophical Concepts in Art

• Integrity – it is being an artist that appreciate, value and respect its own art, audience and
oneself. It is being an artist passionately.
• Proportion/Consonance – it is giving a meaning to an artwork so that the audience
perceive or understand the scene or the situation given on your painting, like it is about
the relationship of one thing to another thing that will makes sense.
• Radiance/Clarity – it is all the things around us or everything that we see as beautiful in
the eyes which makes it into an art.

Medium & Technique

What is Medium?
The word medium, which comes from the Latin word medium, denotes the means by which an
artist communicates his idea. It is the stuff out of which he creates a work of art. These are the
materials which the artist uses to translate his feelings or thought into a beautiful reality. This may
be pigment in painting, stone, wood brick, concrete and various building materials in architecture,
steel, marble, bronze, and wood in sculpture, sound in music and words in literature.
What is Technique?
Technique is the manner in which the artist controls his medium to achieve the desired effect. It
is the ability with which he fulfills the technical requirement s of his particular work of art. It has to
do with the way he manipulates the work of art. It has to do with the way he manipulates his
medium to express his ideas.

What is the difference between Medium and Technique?

Medium refers to the materials that are used to create a work of art while technique is a process
or method using a medium in creating a work of art.

Curation
Curation is a field of endeavor involved with assembling, managing and presenting some type of
collection. Curators of art galleries and museums, for example, research, select and acquire
pieces for their institutions’ collections and oversee interpretation, displays and exhibits.

In an IT (information technology) context, there are several different but often overlapping types
of curation. These include:
• Data curation
• Digital curation
• Content curation
• Social curation.

In art there are terminologies associated with curation. These are as follows:
• Managers
• Curations
• Buyers collectors
• Art dealers

Elements of Art
Elements of art are the building blocks of art. There are 7 elements of art including line, value,
color, space, shape, form, and texture.

• Line – is a mark with length and direction.

Line Variation: using a variety of thin and thick lines, or varying the weight of a single line, to
create interest.
Contour Lines: lines that follow the outer edges of an object, like an outline.
Blind Contour: drawing contour lines without looking at the paper. Doing so forces you to really
look at what you are drawing.

• Value – is the relative lightness or darkness of something.

• Color – is seen by light reflecting off an object.

Hue: the name of a color (blue, red, green, etc.)
Intensity: the brightness or dullness of a color. (also known as Saturation)

• Space – is the area around, above, or inside an object.

Shallow space: there is not much depth in the artwork. Objects are close together without much
room to move around.
Deep space: there is a lot of depth in the artwork. Objects tend to disappear far in the distance.
Positive space: the areas of focus – the important parts of an artwork.
Negative space: the space around areas of focus – usually the background of an artwork.

• Shapes – are two dimensional.

• Forms – are three dimensional.

• Texture – is how something feels or appears to feel.

Actual Texture: texture you can actually feel.
Visual Texture: texture you can see, but you cannot feel. (also known as Implied texture)
Philosophical History of Art
What are the underlying history, philosophy of the era or movements?
• Classical Philosophy
• Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy
• Early Modern, Enlightenment, and Nineteenth Century Philosophy
• Existentialism
• Analytic Philosophy

Pre-historic art: Paleolithic Art & Neolithic Art

What is the difference between Paleolithic art and Neolithic art?

- Paleolithic art humans made cave paintings, while Neolithic art humans made
complex carvings, pottery, tombs, etc.

Art History

• Egyptian Art History

- Egyptian art reflects the ideal world of the gods who provided all good gifts for
humanity, so artwork was imagined and created to provide a use. No matter how
beautifully a statue may have been crafted, its purpose was to serve as a home
for a spirit or a god.

• Medieval Art History

- The history of medieval art is expansive and covers a wide range of centuries and
genres. Medieval art was prominent in European regions, the Middle East and
North Africa, and some of the most precious examples of art from the Middle Ages
can be found in churches, cathedrals, and other religious doctrines. Also prominent
was the use of valuable materials such as gold for objects in churches, personal
jewelry, backgrounds for mosaics, and applied as gold leaf in manuscripts.

• Ukiyo-e
- It is a genre of Japanese art which flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries.
Its artists produced woodblock prints and paintings of such subjects as female
beauties; kabuki actors and sumo wrestlers; scenes from history and folk tales;
travel scenes and landscapes; flora and fauna; and erotica.

• Chinese Art
- Chinese art is visual art that, whether ancient or modern, originated in or is
practiced in Greater China, be it the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the
Republic of China (ROC), or by Chinese artists. The Chinese art of overseas
Chinese can also be considered part of Chinese art where it is based in or draws
on Chinese culture, heritage and history. Early "Stone Age art" dates back to
10,000 BC, mostly consisting of simple pottery and sculptures. After this early
period Chinese art, like Chinese history, is typically classified by the succession of
ruling dynasties of Chinese emperors, most of which lasted several hundred years.