Humanity’s Fascination With Art | Doug DeLuca, Virginia | Gardening & Art

As far back as cave drawings, art has been the record of man’s efforts to communicate and depict human experience. Archeologists have discovered the art and artifacts of many epochs and how they have reflected eras in human history and have documented the existence of the various peoples, their societal meanings, manner of dress and social ranks and beliefs. These works of art also reveal how the people of a particular period wanted to be perceived. Drawings and paintings were the first means of non-verbal communication, the communication of values, perceptions, feelings, attitudes, experiences and ways of life.

Ancient art, such as that of the Egyptian, Greek and Roman eras, was primarily produced in the medium of sculpture. While the human sculptures are quite life-like, there are often subtle alterations to their human forms. For instance, Michaelangelo’s has one hand much larger than the other. When this artist created the sculpture, most of the depictions of David included a manu fortis, or strong hand as being sculpted deliberately. For one thing, the statue was intended for placement on the roof of a cathedral. Thus, when seen from the ground, the hand would appear to be proportionate to spectators below. But, because people viewed the statue as magnificent, David was placed in the hall where viewers could observe his posture, muscularity and the symbolism of his right hand. With this placement, Michaelangelo’s work of art became an interpretation of the life that was represented, as well as a reflection of cultural attitudes of the times.

The sculptor Anish Kapoor said, “Art and art history are the study of what inspires and guides the poetic in us.” Art can be instrumental in developing mental skills. When a scientific study tracked an art historian’s eye movements as he studied a painting, it was revealed that his eyes scanned, fixated and lingered upon certain parts of the canvas in ways much different from someone with an untrained eye. Such a specialist skill has proven to make changes in a person’s brain activity, changes that improve other areas of knowledge and thought, thus increasing one’s knowledge and aesthetic enjoyment.

Originally published at https://dougdelucavirginia.net on January 28, 2022.