Philippine E-Journals

Art Appreciation and Aesthetics

Discipline: Art Studies

 

Abstract:

One of the major problems we face as teachers of introductory human ties courses on the college level is the problem of examples. How do we teach a student how to appreciate an opera when he has never seen (and will probably never see) an opera in his life? Often, we find ourselves discoursing excitedly about the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, only to realize in the middle of our lecture that none of our students have ever been (or will ever be) in Rome. How do we discuss The Thinker with a student whose idea of sculpture is the Santo Nino in his parents' bedroom?

Clearly, the solution is to use local examples. Art is art, whether the artwork is the Pieta or the Oblation, whether the example is Beethoven or Kasilag, whether the proof is Hamlet or Bayan-Bayanan. To illustrate momentum in physics, we use locally-produced billiard balls just as effectively as imported ones, To teach our students zoology, we use species found in the Philippines, To teach students how to play the guitar, a guitar from Cebu serves as well as one from Japan.