Art Philosophy: Formalism, Expression and Hedonism

ART PHILOSOPHY: FORMALISM, EXPRESSION AND
HEDONISM
The formalistic approach directs that art be analyzed byre

viewing form and style. Elements like color, shapes, textures, and
line are emphasized, while the context of the work is de-
emphasized, and made a secondary characteristic-at times taken
completely out of consequence. The assessment of a piece of
artwork is based purely on the artist's skill and not on the choice
of subject matter, with the value based primarily on the use of
elements with little regard for the viewer's perception of the
context.
Clive Bell, the originator of the formalist theory of art, said

that it is incredibly difficult to categorize good art from bad art. In
the formalist theory, anything is art if a person created it to illicit
emotions through its significant form. Therefore, some formalist
theories have claimed that art is good if it is beautiful, or made for
the purpose of beauty. Bad art, therefore, is art that is created
more for its purposed message, or meaning, than the form allows.
In his (Clive Bell) 1914 book Art, Bell formulated the motion of
significant form - that form itself can convey feeling. All this led
quickly to abstract art, an art of pure form. Formalism dominated
the development of modern art until the 1960s when it reached its
peak in the so-called new criticism of the American Critic Clement
Greenberg and others, particularly in their writings on color field
painting and post painterly abstraction.
ART PHILOSOPHY: FORMALISM, EXPRESSION AND
HEDONISM
Expressionism, artistic style in which the artist seeks to

depict not objective reality but rather the subjective emotions and
responses that objects and events arouse within a person. The
artist accomplishes this aim through distortion, exaggeration,
primitivism, and fantasy and through the vivid, jarring, violent, or
dynamic application of formal elements. In a broader sense
Expressionism is one of the main currents of art in the later 19th
and the 20th centuries, and its qualities of highly subjective,
personal, spontaneous self-expression are typical of wide range
of modern artists and art movements. Expressionism can also be
seen as a permanent tendency in Germanic and Nordic art from
at least the European Middle Ages, particularly in times of social
change or spiritual crisis, and in this sense it forms the converse
of the rationalist and classicizing tendencies of Italy and later of
France.
Aesthetic Hedonism is a theory which states that a thing is

beautiful if it gives pleasure to the person experiencing it,
otherwise it's ugly if it gives you pain. Aesthetic pleasure is the
facilitating pleasure of mentally engaging with an object. The form
of mental engagement can be purely perceptual (looking at a
sunset), completely intellectual (reading a book), or partly each. In
each case, the pleasure of mentally engaging with the object in
question releases a mental routine that eases, facilitates and
motivates the mental engagement and thus reinforces it.
QUIZ-ART PHILOSOPHY: FORMALISM, EXPRESSION AND
HEDONISM
Test I-Multiple Choice

1. What characteristic was typical of Expressionist art?
a. Art that conveyed emotion rather than reality
b. Distorted and exaggerated subjects
c. Vivid and shocking colors
d. All of the above
2. In what country did the Expressionist art movement begin?
a. Germany
b. France
c. Russia
d. Netherlands
3. When did the Expressionism art movement take place?
a. 1200s
b. Late 1400s to early 1500s
c. Mid 1600s
d. Early 1900s
4. Which country is most associated with the theory of
Formalism?
a. France
b. Britain
C. Russia
d. America
5. Which of these features of a text would a Formalist be most
interested in?
a. Meaning of words
b. Context
c. Structure
d. Author's biographical information
6. Formalism is the study of form. True or false?
a. True
b. False
7. A theory which states that a thing is beautiful if it gives
pleasure to the person experiencing it, otherwise it's ugly if it
gives you pain.
a. Expressionism
b. Formalism
C. Aesthetic Hedonism
8. Expressionism is one of the main currents of art in the later
a. 19th and the 20th centuries
b. 18th century
c. Late 1400s to early 1500s
9. Formalism theory in art focuses on what?
a. Emotions
b. Artist's skill
c. Colors
10.Originator of the formalist theory of art
a. Aristotle
b. David Hume
c. Clive Bell
Answers:
1. A
2. A
3. D
4. C
5. C
6. A
7. C
8. A
9. B
10.C.
QUIZ-ART PHILOSOPHY: FORMALISM, EXPRESSION AND
HEDONISM
test Il- Identification
1, Who is the originator of the formalist theory of art?
2. It is an artistic style in which the artist seeks to depict no

objective reality but rather the subjective emotions and
responses that objects and events arouse within a person.
3.is the facilitating pleasure of mentally engaging with an object.
4. The directs that art be analyzed by reviewing form and style.
5. came along (roughly 1945-1970) and showed how action and

abstract relationships could be expressed
6. Some formalist theories have claimed that art is good if it is
7. Formalism dominated the development of until the 1960s.
8. In formalistic approach, elements like colors, shapes,

and line are emphasized, while the context of the work is de-
emphasized.
9. Abstract form of expressionism that developed in America
10.In his (Clive Bell) 1914 book Art, Bell formulated the
notion of significant form – that convey feeling itself can
Answers:
8. Texture
1. Clive Bell
9. Abstract Expressionism
2. Expressionism
3. Aesthetic pleasure
4. Formalistic approach
o. Abstract expressionism
6. Beautiful
7. Modern art
10. Form

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ART PHILOSOPHY: FORMALISM, EXPRESSION AND

The formalistic approach directs that art be analyzed byre

Clive Bell, the originator of the formalist theory of art, said

Expressionism, artistic style in which the artist seeks to

Aesthetic Hedonism is a theory which states that a thing is

Test I-Multiple Choice

2. It is an artistic style in which the artist seeks to depict no

3.is the facilitating pleasure of mentally engaging with an object.

4. The directs that art be analyzed by reviewing form and style.

5. came along (roughly 1945-1970) and showed how action and

6. Some formalist theories have claimed that art is good if it is

7. Formalism dominated the development of until the 1960s.

8. In formalistic approach, elements like colors, shapes,

9. Abstract form of expressionism that developed in America

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