The role of art in human life: what the world of beauty has in store for us. Art in the life of a modern person

Gorbunova Yulia

Research work on the topic "The role of art in human life"

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1. Introduction
2. Main part

2.1.The concept of art.

2.2.Types of art

2.3.Functions of art

2.4.The role of art in human life

2.5.Life is short, art is eternal.

1. Conclusion
2. Literature

1. Introduction.

I chose to work on the topic “The Role of Art in Human Life” because I wanted to deepen and generalize my knowledge about art. I was interested in expanding my horizons and finding out what functions art performs, what the role of art is in a person’s life, in order to further talk about this from the point of view of a knowledgeable person.

I consider the chosen topic of work to be relevant, since certain aspects of the topic have not been fully studied and the research conducted is aimed at bridging this gap. She encourages me to demonstrate intellectual abilities, moral and communication qualities;

Before starting work, I conducted a survey among students at our school. By asking them a few questions in order to identify their attitude towards art. The following results were obtained.

Total people surveyed.

1. What role do you think art plays in modern human life?

Greater %

No %

Helps to live %

1. What does art teach us and does it teach us at all?

Beauty %

Understanding life %

Doing the right thing %

Broadens the mind %

Doesn't teach anything

1. What types of art do you know?

Theater %

Movie %

Music %

Painting %

Architecture %

Sculpture %

Other types of art %

1. What type of art do you practice or are passionate about?

Passionate %

Not passionate %

1. Have there been times when art has played a role in your life?

Yes %

No %

The survey showed that the work will help people understand the significance of art and, I think, will attract many, if not to engage in art, then to arouse interest in the problem.

My work also has practical significance, because the materials can be used to prepare for an essay on literature, for oral presentations in classes in fine art, art and art, and in the future to prepare for exams.

Target works: to prove the importance of various types of art in human life;show how art influences the formation of the spiritual culture of a person’s personality; arouse people's interest in the world of art.

Tasks - reveal the essence of art, consider the relationship between man and art in society, consider the main functions of art in society, their meaning and role for humans.

Problematic issues: How does art express human feelings and the world around us?

Why do they say “life is short, but art is eternal”?

What is art? When, how and why did art arise?

What role does art play in a person’s life and in my life?

Expected Result

After familiarizing yourself with my work, a higher level of development of an emotional and value-based attitude towards the world, the phenomena of life and art is expected; understanding the place and role of art in people's lives.

2. Main part

2.1.The concept of art

“Art gives wings and carries you far, far!” -
the writer saidChekhov A.P.

How nice it would be if someone created a device that would show the degree of influence of art on a person, society as a whole, and even on nature. How do painting, music, literature, theater, cinema affect human health and the quality of his life? Is it possible to measure and predict such an impact? Of course, culture as a whole, as a combination of science, art and education, is capable of beneficially influencing both the individual and society as a whole when choosing the right direction and priorities in life.

Art is a creative understanding of the world around us by a talented person. The fruits of this understanding belong not only to its creators, but to all humanity living on planet Earth.

The beautiful creations of ancient Greek sculptors and architects, Florentine mosaic masters, Raphael and Michelangelo... Dante, Petrarch, Mozart, Bach, Tchaikovsky are immortal. It takes your breath away when you try to grasp with your mind everything created by geniuses, preserved and continued by their descendants and followers.

In primitive societyprimitive creativityis born with a viewHomo sapiensas a way of human activity to solve practical problems. Originating in the eraMiddle Paleolithic, primitive artreached its peak about 40 thousand years ago, and was a social product of society, embodying a new stage in the development of reality. The oldest works of art, such as a shell necklace found in South Africa, date back to 75 millennium BC. e. and more. In the Stone Age, art was represented by primitive rituals, music, dances, all kinds of body decorations, geoglyphs - images on the ground, dendrographs - images on the bark of trees, images on animal skins, cave paintings, rock paintings,petroglyphs and sculpture.

The emergence of art is associated withgames, rituals And rituals, including those causedmythologically- magicalrepresentations.

Now the word “art” is often used in its original, very broad meaning. This is any skill in carrying out any tasks that requires some kind of perfection of its results. In a narrower sense of the word, this is creativity “according to the laws of beauty.” Works of artistic creativity, like works of applied art, are created according to the “laws of beauty.” A work of art, like all other types of social consciousness, is always a unity of the object cognized in it and the subject cognizing this object.

In primitive, pre-class society, art as a special variety of social consciousness did not yet exist independently. It was then in unity with mythology, magic, religion, with legends about a past life, with primitive geographical ideas, with moral requirements.

And then art stood out among them as a special, specific variety. It has become one of the forms of development of social consciousness of various peoples. That is how it should be viewed.

Thus, art is a type of consciousness of society; it is artistic content, not scientific. L. Tolstoy, for example, defined art as a means of exchanging feelings, contrasting it with science as a means of exchanging thoughts.

Art is often compared to a reflective mirror, reflecting reality through the thoughts and feelings of the creator. Through it, this mirror reflects those phenomena of life that attracted the artist’s attention and excited him.

Here one can rightfully discern one of the most important specific features of art as a type of human activity.

Any product of labor - be it a tool, a tool, a machine or a means of supporting life - is created for some special need. Even such products of spiritual production as scientific research may well remain accessible and important to a narrow group of specialists, without losing anything in their social significance.

But a work of art can be recognized as such only if its content is universal, “of general interest.” The artist is called upon to express something that is equally important for both the driver and the scientist, which is applicable to their life not only to the extent of the specificity of their profession, but also to the extent of their involvement in national life, the ability to be a person, to be a person.

2.2. Kinds of art

Depending on the material means with the help of which works of art are constructed, three groups of types of art objectively arise: 1) spatial, or plastic (painting, sculpture, graphics, art photography, architecture, arts and crafts and design), i.e. those that unfold their images in space; 2) temporary (verbal and musical), i.e. those where images are built in time, and not in real space; 3) spatio-temporal (dance; acting and everything based on it; synthetic - theater, cinema, television, variety and circus, etc.), i.e. those whose images have both extension and duration, physicality and dynamism. Each type of art is directly characterized by the method of material existence of its works and the type of figurative signs used. Within these limits, all its types have varieties, determined by the characteristics of a particular material and the resulting originality of the artistic language.

Thus, varieties of verbal art are oral creativity and written literature; types of music - vocal and different types of instrumental music; varieties of performing arts - drama, music, puppet theater, shadow theater, as well as pop and circus; varieties of dance - everyday dance, classical, acrobatic, gymnastic, ice dance, etc.

On the other hand, each type of art has generic and genre divisions. The criteria for these divisions are defined differently, but the very presence of such types of literature as epic, lyric poetry, drama, such types of fine art as easel, monumental-decorative, miniature, such genres of painting as portrait, landscape, still life is obvious...

Thus, art, taken as a whole, is a historically established system of various specific methods of artistic exploration of the world,

each of which has features that are common to all and individually unique.

2.3. Functions of art

Art has similarities and differences with other forms of social consciousness. Just like science, it objectively reflects reality and cognizes its important and essential aspects. But unlike science, which masters the world through abstract theoretical thinking, art understands the world through imaginative thinking. Reality appears in art holistically, in the richness of its sensory manifestations.

Unlike science, artistic consciousness does not set itself the goal of providing any special information about private branches of social practice and identifying their patterns, such as physical, economic, etc. The subject of art is everything that is interesting for a person in life.

Those goals that the author or creator intentionally and consciously sets for himself while working on a work have a direction. It could be some kind of political purpose, a commentary on social status, the creation of a certain mood or emotion, a psychological effect, an illustration of something, the promotion of a product (in the case of advertising) or simply the transmission of some kind of message.

1. Means of communication.In its simplest form, art is a means of communication. Like most other forms of communication, it carries with it the intention of conveying information to the audience. For example, scientific illustration is also an art form that exists to convey information. Another example of this kind is geographical maps. However, the content of the message is not necessarily scientific. Art allows you to convey not only objective information, but also emotions, mood, and feelings.
2. Art as entertainment. The purpose of art may be to create a mood or emotion that helps one relax or have fun. Very often, cartoons or video games are created for this very purpose.
3. Vanguard, art for political change.One of the defining goals of early 20th-century art was to create works that provoked political change. The directions that have emerged for this purpose are:Dadaism, surrealism, Russian constructivism, abstract expressionism- collectively referred to asavant-garde.
4. Art for psychotherapy.Psychologists and psychotherapists can use art for therapeutic purposes. A special technique based on the analysis of the patient’s drawings is used to diagnose the state of personality and emotional status. In this case, the ultimate goal is not diagnosis, but mental health.
5. Art for social protest, overthrow of the existing order and/or anarchy.As a form of protest, art may not have any specific political purpose, but may be limited to criticism of the existing regime or some aspect of it.

2.4. The role of art in human life

All types of arts serve the greatest of arts - the art of living on earth.
Bertolt Brecht

Now it is impossible to imagine that ourlifewould not be accompanied by art,creation. Where and whenever you liveHuman, even at the dawn of his development, he tried to comprehend the world around him, which means he strove to understand and figuratively, intelligibly pass on the acquired knowledge to future generations. This is how wall paintings appeared in caves - ancient human settlements. And this is born not only from the desire to protect one’s descendants from the mistakes already made by one’s ancestors, but from the transfer of the beauty and harmony of the world, admiration for the perfect creations of nature.

Humanity did not mark time, it progressively moved forward and higher, and art also developed, accompanying man at all stages of this long and painful path. If you look at the Renaissance, you admire the heights that artists and poets, musicians and architects reached. The immortal creations of Raphael and Leonardo da Vinci still fascinate with their perfection and deep awareness of the role of man in the world, where he is destined to walk his short but beautiful, sometimes tragic path.

Art is one of the most important stages in human evolution. Art helps a person look at the world from different points of view. With each era, with each century, it is improved more and more by man. At all times, art has helped people develop their abilities and improve abstract thinking. Over the centuries, man has tried more and more to change art, improve it, and deepen his knowledge. Art is the great mystery of the world, in which the secrets of the history of our lives are hidden. Art is our history. Sometimes you can find answers to questions that even the most ancient manuscripts cannot answer.
Today, a person can no longer imagine life without reading a novel, without a new movie, without a theater premiere, without a fashionable hit and favorite musical group, without art exhibitions... In art, a person finds new knowledge, answers to vital questions, and peace from the everyday hustle and bustle, and enjoyment. A real work of art is always in tune with the thoughts of readers, viewers, and listeners. A novel can tell about a distant historical era, about people who seem to have a completely different way and style of life, but the feelings with which people at all times were imbued are understandable to the current reader, consonant with him, if the novel was written by a real master. Let Romeo and Juliet live in Verona in ancient times. It is not the time or place of action that determines my perception of the great love and true friendship described by the brilliant Shakespeare.

Russia has not become a distant province of art. Even at the dawn of its emergence, it loudly and boldly declared its right to stand next to the greatest creators of Europe: “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign,” icons and paintings of Andrei Rublev and Theophan the Greek, the cathedrals of Vladimir, Kyiv and Moscow. We are not only proud of the amazing proportions of the Church of the Intercession on the Nerl and the Moscow Intercession Cathedral, better known as St. Basil's Cathedral, but also sacredly honor the names of the creators.

It is not only ancient creations that attract our attention. We constantly encounter works of art in everyday life. By visiting museums and exhibition halls, we want to join that wonderful world, which is accessible first only to geniuses, and then to others, we learn to understand, see, absorb the beauty that has already become part of our everyday life.

Pictures, music, theater, books, films give a person incomparable joy and satisfaction, make him sympathize. Eliminate all this from the life of a civilized person, and he will turn, if not into an animal, then into a robot or zombie. The riches of art are inexhaustible. It is impossible to visit all the museums in the world, you cannot listen to all the symphonies, sonatas, operas, you cannot review all the masterpieces of architecture, you cannot re-read all the novels, poems, poems. And there's no point. Know-it-alls actually turn out to be superficial people. From all the diversity, a person chooses for his soul what is closest to him, what gives the basis to his mind and feelings.

The possibilities of art are multifaceted. Art forms intellectual and moral qualities, stimulates creativity, and promotes successful socialization. In Ancient Greece, fine art was considered as an effective means of influencing a person. Sculptures that personified noble human qualities (“Mercy”, “Justice”, etc.) were exhibited in the galleries. It was believed that, contemplating beautiful sculptures, a person absorbs all the best that they reflect. The same applies to paintings by great masters.

A group of researchers led by Professor Marina de Tommaso from the University of Bari, Italy, has found that beautiful paintings can reduce pain, the Daily Telegraph writes today. Scientists hope that the new results will convince hospitals to take more care in decorating the rooms in which patients are kept.

In the study, a group of people, consisting of both men and women, were asked to look at 300 paintings by masters such as Leonardo da Vinci and Sandro Botticelli, and also select 20 paintings from them that they found the most beautiful and the ugliest. In the next stage, subjects were shown these pictures or nothing at all, leaving a large black wall free for pictures, and at the same time they hit the participants with a short laser pulse, comparable in strength to touching a hot frying pan. It was found that when people look at pictures that they like, pain is felt three times less intensely than when they are forced to look at ugly pictures or a black wall.

Not only children, but often adults too are unable to cope with their emotions. We live by the rules, forcing ourselves with constant “We need, we need, we need...”, forgetting about our desires. Because of this, internal discontent arises, which a person, being a social being, tries to keep to himself. As a result, the body suffers, because a negative emotional state often leads to various diseases. In this case, creativity helps to relieve emotional stress, harmonize the inner world and achieve mutual understanding with others. Of course, this can be not only drawing, but also appliqué, embroidery, photography, modeling from matches, prose, poetry and much more, one way or another related to art.

The question of how literature affects a person, his behavior and psyche, what mechanisms lead to unique experiences and, as a consequence, to changes in a person’s personal characteristics when reading a literary work, has occupied the minds of many scientists and researchers from ancient times to the present. Fiction, giving knowledge of reality, expands the mental horizons of readers of all ages, gives an emotional experience that goes beyond what a person could acquire in his life, forms artistic taste, delivers aesthetic pleasure, which occupies a large place in the life of modern man and is one of his needs. But most importantly, the main function of fiction is the formation in people of deep and lasting feelings that encourage them to think through, determine their worldview, and guide their behavior personality.

Literature is for people a school of feelings and knowledge of reality and forms an idea of ​​the ideal actions of people, of the beauty of the world and relationships. The Word is a great mystery. Its magical power lies in its ability to evoke vivid images and transport the reader to another world. Without literature, we would never have known that once upon a time a wonderful person and writer Victor Hugo or, for example, Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin lived in the world. We would know nothing about the time in which they lived. Thanks to literature, we become more educated and learn the history of our ancestors.

The influence of music on a person is great. A person hears sound not only with his ears; he hears the sound from every pore of his body. Sound permeates his entire being, and according to a certain influence slows down or speeds up the rhythm of blood circulation; either excites the nervous system or calms it; awakens stronger passions in a person or pacifies him, bringing him peace. According to the sound, a certain effect is produced. Therefore, knowledge of sound can give a person a magical tool to manage, tune, control and use life, as well as help other people to the greatest benefit.It's no secret that art can heal.

Isotherapy, dance therapy, music treatment - these are already common truths.

The creator of musical pharmacology, scientist Robert Shofler, prescribes listening to all the symphonies of Tchaikovsky, “The King of the Forest” by Schubert, and the ode “To Joy” by Beethoven for therapeutic purposes. He claims that these works promote accelerated recovery. And researchers at the University of California experimentally proved that after listening to Mozart’s music for 10 minutes, tests showed an increase in students’ IQ by 8-9 units.

But not all art heals.

For example: Rock music causes the release of stress hormones, which erase some information in the brain, causing aggression or depression. Russian psychologist D. Azarov notes that there is a special combination of notes, he called them killer music. After listening to such musical phrases several times, a person develops a gloomy mood and thoughts.

The ringing of bells kills quickly:

1. typhoid bacteria
2. viruses.

Classical music (Mozart, etc.) promotes:

1. general calm
2. increased milk secretion (by 20%) in nursing mothers.

 The rhythmic sounds of some performers, due to their direct effect on the brain, contribute to:

1. release of stress hormones
2. memory impairment
3. weakening (after 1-2 years) of the general condition (especially when listening to music on headphones).

Mantra, or meditative sounds “om”, “aum”, etc., have a vibrating nature.
Vibrations initially contribute to the activation of certain organs and brain structures. At the same time, many different hormones are released into the blood. (This probably helps to do monotonous work with less energy consumption).

Vibrating sounds cause

1. pleasure - for some people, for others - the same sounds cause
2. stress response with the release of hormones and a sharp increase in oxidative metabolism.

1. contributes to a sharp rise in blood pressure,
2. often leading to heart spasms.

In the literary sources of antiquity we find many examples of the purposeful influence of music on the mental state of people. Plutarch says that Alexander the Great’s fits of furious anger were usually pacified by playing the lyre. The mighty Achilles, according to Homer, tried, by playing the lyre, to cool his “famous” anger, with which the action in the Iliad begins.

There was an opinion that music saves people from imminent death from the bites of poisonous snakes and scorpions. Music was widely recommended as an antidote in these cases by one of the most famous doctors of Ancient Rome, Galen. Nirkus, a companion of Alexander the Great on his campaigns, having visited India, said that in this country, which abounds in poisonous snakes, singing is considered the only remedy for their bites. How can we explain the miraculous effect of music? Research of our time has shown that music in such cases acts not as an antidote, but as a means of eliminating mental trauma; it helps the victim to suppress the feeling of horror. This is just one example when a person’s health and even life largely depend on his state of mind. But this individual example allows us to judge how great the role of the nervous system is in the body. It must be taken into account when explaining the mechanism of the impact of art on people's health.

Even more striking is the effect of music on emotions. The influence of music on emotions has been known since ancient times. Music was used for medicinal purposes and in war. Music acts both as a means of distraction from thoughts that disturb a person, and as a means of calming and even healing. Music plays a great role as a means of combating overwork. Music can set a certain rhythm before starting work, or set the mood for deep rest during a break.

Art makes the world of people more beautiful, alive and vibrant. For example, painting: how many ancient paintings have survived to our time, from which we can determine how people lived two, three, four or more centuries ago. Now there are many paintings painted by our contemporaries, and whatever it is: abstraction, realism, still life or landscape - painting is a wonderful art, with the help of which a person has learned to see the world as bright and colorful.
Architecture is another of the most important forms of art. There are a huge number of beautiful monuments scattered around the world, and they are not just called “monuments” - they contain the greatest secrets of history and the memory of them. Sometimes these mysteries cannot be solved by scientists around the world.
Of course, in order to perceive the beauty of the art of opera, for example, it is necessary to know its features, to understand the language of music and vocals, with the help of which the composer and singers convey all shades of life and feelings and influence the thoughts and emotions of listeners. The perception of poetry and fine art also requires certain preparation and appropriate understanding. Even an interesting story will not captivate the reader if he has not developed the technique of expressive reading, if he spends all his energy on composing words from spoken sounds and does not experience their artistic and aesthetic influence.

The effect of art on a person can be long-term or long-term. This emphasizes the great opportunities for using art to obtain a lasting and long-lasting effect, using it for educational purposes, as well as for general health improvement and prevention. Art acts not on any one human ability and strength, be it emotion or intellect, but on the person as a whole. It forms, sometimes unconsciously, the very system of human attitudes.

The artistic genius of D. Moore's famous poster “Have you signed up as a volunteer?”, which was so widely promoted during the Second World War, lies in the fact that it appeals to the human conscience through all the spiritual abilities of man. Those. The power of art lies in appealing to human conscience and awakening its spiritual abilities. And on this occasion we can cite the famous words of Pushkin:

Burn the hearts of people with the verb.

I think this is the true purpose of art.

2.5.Life is short, art is eternal.

Art is eternal and beautiful because it brings beauty and goodness to the world.

A person has very strict requirements and art must reflect these requirements. Artists of classicism looked up to classical examples. They believed that the eternal is unchangeable - therefore it is necessary to learn from Greek and Roman authors. Knights, kings, and dukes very often become heroes. They were convinced that beauty in art is created by truth - therefore a writer should imitate nature and depict life believably. Rigid canons of the theory of classicism appear. Art expert Boileau writes: “The incredible cannot move you, let the truth always look believable.” The writers of classicism approached life from the position of reason; they did not trust feelings, considering them changeable and deceitful. Accurate, reasonable, truthful and beautiful. “You need to think about a thought and only then write.”

Art never gets old. In the book of academician philosopher I.T. Frolov wrote: “The reason for this is the unique originality of works of art, their deeply individualized character, ultimately determined by their constant appeal to man. The unique unity of man and the world in a work of art, “human reality.” The famous Danish physicist Niels Bohr wrote: “The reason why art can enrich us is its ability to remind us of harmonies beyond the reach of systematic analysis.” Art often highlights universal, “eternal” problems: what is good and evil, freedom, human dignity. The changing conditions of each era force us to solve these issues anew.

Art has many faces, is eternal, but, unfortunately, it cannot influence people without their will, mental effort, and a certain work of thought. A person must want to learn to see and understand beauty, then art will have a beneficial effect on him and society as a whole. This will probably happen in the future. In the meantime, talented creators should not forget that their works have the power to influence millions, and this can be beneficial or detrimental.

Let me give you a simple example. For example, an artist painted a picture. The picture depicts negative scenes of murder, there is blood and dirt everywhere, the most chaotic, harsh tones are used, in short, the whole picture has a depressing effect on the viewer, causing negative emotions in a person. The energy emanating from the picture is extremely depressing. So much for the complete relationship between the artist’s thinking and the physical creation of the painting and, accordingly, the viewer or viewers looking at it... Imagine thousands, tens of thousands of such depressing paintings. The same can be said about our cinema. What cartoons do our children watch, not to mention films for adults? And in general, now there is not even such a ban “Under 16” as in the 70s. Complete “negativism”... Imagine how much negative energy there is in the country, in the world, on the whole Earth!.. The same can be said about all types of our art!
“Thoughts combined with actions lead to change. If they are noble, then they liberate, save, promote flourishing. enrich. If they are base, then they enslave, impoverish, weaken, and destroy. If the propaganda of violence, the cult of power, and evil steps onto our screens, we will die after the hapless heroes of these one-day action films.

True art must be beautiful, have a good, humane beginning with centuries-old traditions.

3. Conclusion.

Art plays a vital role in our lives, helping future generations to grow morally. Each generation makes its contribution to the development of humanity, culturally enriching it. Without art, we would hardly be able to look at the world from different points of view, differently, look beyond the ordinary, feel a little more keenly. Art, like a person, has many small veins, blood vessels, and organs.

Passions, aspirations, dreams, images, fears - everything that every person lives with - acquires increativityspecial color and strength.

It is impossible for everyone to be creators, but it is within our power to try to penetrate into the essence of the creation of a genius, to come closer to understanding the beautiful. And the more often we become contemplators of paintings, architectural masterpieces, listeners of beautiful music, the better for us and those around us.

Art helps us master science and gradually deepen our knowledge. And as mentioned above, it is a critical part of human development:

Forms a person’s ability to perceive, feel, correctly understand and appreciate the beauty in the surrounding reality and art,

Forms skills in using the means of art to understand people’s lives and nature itself;

Develops a deep understanding of the beauty of nature and the surrounding world. the ability to take care of this beauty;

Arms people with knowledge, and also instills skills in the field of accessible arts - music, painting, theater, literary expression, architecture;

Develops creativity, skills and abilities to feel and create beauty in the surrounding life, at home, in everyday life;

Develops an understanding of beauty in human relationships, the desire and ability to bring beauty into everyday life.

So, art influences our life from all sides, makes it diverse and bright, lively and interesting, rich, helping a person understand his purpose in this world better and better.Our earthly world is woven from perfection and imperfection. And it depends only on the person himself how he will make his future, what he will read, what he will listen to, how to speak.

“The best means for cultivating feelings in general, for awakening feelings of beauty, for developing creative imagination, is art itself,” pointed out psychologist N.E. Rumyantseva.

4. Literature

1. Nazarenko-Krivosheina E.P. Are you beautiful, man? - M.: Like. Guard, 1987.

2. Nezhnov G.G. Art in our lives. - M., “Knowledge”, 1975

3. Pospelov G.N. Art and aesthetics. - M.: Art, 1984.

8. Solntsev N.V. Heritage and time. M., 1996.

9. To prepare this work, materials from Internet sites were used.

Art is the activity of an individual. With the help of it, he explores the world, relaxes and creates something new. The role and importance of art in human life cannot be underestimated. Without him it would be almost impossible. This is a kind of foundation for further discoveries.

What is art

This is a creative activity that allows a person to realize his inner world. You can create using sounds, dances, drawings, words, colors, various natural materials and so on. Art is one of the many forms of consciousness of intelligent beings. It arises thanks to the creativity of specific individuals who touch on topics that are interesting not only to the author, but also to other people. Many people ask: “Do people need art?” The answer is definitely yes, because it is a way of understanding the world. Science is also one of the types of acquiring knowledge from the surrounding reality. Art can be:

• Craft. Any type of human activity is considered a creative process. Mastery in some field: sewing, beadwork, furniture making, etc. is considered an art. After all, a person tries to convey his vision of the world into reality.
• Cultural activities. People have always strived for something beautiful. By creating something good, a person emphasizes his love and peacefulness.
• Any expressive forms. With the development of society and aesthetic knowledge, absolutely any activity that expresses some meaning with the help of special means can be called art.

This term is quite broad. If it is interpreted on the scale of the entire human society, then this is a special means for cognition or reflection of the surrounding world, spirituality and consciousness of the individual. There is practically no person who could not give an explanation for it. Listen to your inner world and determine what art is for you. After all, it is valuable both for a specific author and for all people in general. During the existence of mankind, many works of art have already been created that you can admire and which can inspire you to your own creative ideas.

The history of art

According to one theory, man first began to engage in creativity during primitive society. Rock inscriptions are witnesses to this. These were the first mass forms of art. They were applied mainly for practical use. About 40 thousand years ago, art became an independent way to understand the world. It was represented by various rituals, musical compositions, choreography, body jewelry, images on rocks, trees and the skins of killed animals.

In the primitive world, art served the function of transmitting information. People could not communicate using language, so they transmitted information through creativity. Therefore, art for the people of those times was an integral part of existence. To apply images, objects from the surrounding world and various colors from them were used.

Art in the ancient world

It was in ancient civilizations, such as Egypt, India, Rome and so on, that the foundations of the creative process were laid. Even then, people began to think about whether people need art. Each developed center of civilization had its own unique style, which survived many centuries and did not change. At this time, the first works of artists began to be created. The ancient Greeks depicted the human body better than anyone else. They could correctly depict muscles, posture and respect the proportions of the body.

Art in the Middle Ages

The people of these times focused their attention on biblical stories and spiritual truths. In the Middle Ages, they no longer asked themselves whether people needed art, because the answer was obvious. The painting or mosaic used a golden background and depicted people with ideal proportions and body shapes. Art of various kinds penetrated into the sphere of architecture, beautiful statues were built. People were not interested in what real art was, they simply created their own beautiful works. Some Islamic countries attributed divine power to such creations. People from India used the art for religious dances and sculpture. The Chinese preferred bronze sculptures, wood carvings, poetry, calligraphy, music and paintings. The style of this people changed every era and bore the names of the ruling dynasties. In the 17th century, it spread in Japan. By this time, people already knew what real art was. After all, it has already seriously influenced the education of a useful personality for society. It also served as good rest and relaxation.

Renaissance and modern world

Humanity has returned to humanism and material values. This influenced the development of art. Human figures have lost their idealized forms. During these eras, artists tried to show the Universe and various ideas of that time. There have already been a lot of interpretations of “what art is”. Creative people perceived it as a way to convey human individuality. Already by the 19th century, many styles had formed, such as symbolism or fauvism. However, already in the 20th century there were many scientific discoveries and developing technologies. During this period, creative individuals were looking for new ways to display their inner world and reflect modern beauty.

In the second half of the twentieth century, the modernism movement joined art. People tried to find the truth and followed strict standards. During this period, many critics of painting appeared who assumed that it had come to an end.

What is art like?

In the modern world, the creative process has reached unprecedented development. With the help of the World Wide Web, various types of skills are spreading at high speed. Art is as follows:

• Spectacular art. This includes theaters, operas, circuses, cinema, and so on. Using visual perception, the authors convey their vision of the world and various events. Directors create films that reflect the existing problems of the world. Many branches of art serve as entertainment for people, for example the circus.
• Art. This field includes photography, painting, comics, sculpture and silent films. The authors, using static pictures, convey nature, the life of a people, and the problems of humanity. Silent cinema is a dynamic art form. In the modern world, this phenomenon has already lost its popularity.
• Expressive art. People reflect their views in literature and create beautiful buildings. They also express their inner world in music and choreography. Most works raise global problems and vices of humanity. Thanks to this, people improve and move away from evil and self-flagellation.

Man has invented a lot of materials for creative self-expression. Artists use paint, canvases, ink, and so on. Architects - clay, iron, plaster and so on. Thanks to modern methods of storing information, a person can transfer his creations to an electronic version. There are already many musicians, artists, directors and writers who use the computer to create works of art.

Modern world and art

The creative sphere of life teaches an individual true beauty, makes him more merciful and kinder. Art also teaches you to look at simple things from a different perspective, most often positive. All creations do not have one specific meaning; each person is looking for something different in them. Also, everyone individually chooses the type of activity for themselves. This could be painting, ballet, or even classical literature. People, through creativity, learn compassion, sensitivity and emotionality. Everyday life can depress a person, but art reminds us how beautiful the world around us can be. Many people simply feed on positive energy from various works of authorship.

From an early age, an individual is instilled with a love of creativity. Introducing children to art allows them to learn to understand literature, painting, architecture, music and much more. It cultivates personality. However, there are times when a person does not understand why art is needed. This behavior is one of the stages of personality development, after which people have an involuntary craving for something new and unknown. This allows you to expand your horizons, improve yourself and form individual moral values. The most important thing is that creativity makes a person better.

How art influences personality development

A person is a being that is formed with the help of the events around him and other opinions. Art occupies a special place in this process; it influences both a specific individual and society as a whole. Thanks to it, a person develops pleasant feelings, interesting thoughts, and moral principles, and the development of modern art helps him in this. Life without this industry is almost impossible. It would be dry, and for individuals with a rich inner world it would appear only in black and white. Fiction as art occupies a special place in existence. She is able to fill a person, like a jug with water, with life principles and views. Leo Tolstoy believed that spiritual beauty can save humanity. By studying the works of various authors, people become internally attractive.

In fine art, a person tries to convey his point of view on the world around him, sometimes from his imagination. After all, he cannot recreate something that does not exist. Each image conveys a specific thought or feeling of the creator. Man feeds on these works of art. If the message was good, then the person will radiate positive emotions. Aggressive creativity gives rise to negative feelings in a person. In life, people must have positive thoughts and deeds, otherwise humanity faces extinction. After all, if everyone wishes harm to those around them, then mass acts of violence and murder may begin.

Introducing children to art

Parents begin to engage in the cultural education of their child almost from birth. Introducing children to art is an important part of raising a positive personality. School age is considered the most favorable for the development of a cultured person. At this stage, schools develop a child’s sympathy for classical works. In the lessons they look at great artists, writers, musicians and their significant contribution to the culture of mankind. In the future, they will better perceive the work of various authors and not ask why art is needed. However, when children enter middle school, teachers do not pay due attention to creativity. In this case, many parents send them to special art schools. Children develop the ability to learn something new, an interest in art, the ability to create and be a kind person. After all, artistic creations play a significant role in the development of a mature personality.

Arts and literature

The word is an integral part of creativity. Thanks to it, you can very accurately convey information, events, feelings, and so on. is able to convey to a person a wide range of emotions and outlook on life. Imagination also helps to convey pictures of indescribable beauty. Thanks to the word, people can experience joy, anxiety, condolences, sadness, and so on. The text in the book is somewhat reminiscent of an alternative reality.

Writers also talk about their assumptions that relate to the future of humanity. There are many popular dystopias that reflect a far from bright future, for example: “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley, “1984” by George Orwell. They serve as a warning to a person so that he does not forget to love and try to appreciate everything he has. This fact shows why the art of negative literature is needed. After all, such books ridicule people’s problems: insane consumption, love of money, power, and so on. After all, these things do not bring happiness at all, and one should only engage in noble deeds and have honor.

What is the art of photographs and paintings for?

Almost every person loves to decorate the walls of their home with the work of artists or photographers. However, not everyone thought about why they were hanging there and how they affected their mood. Psychologists believe that images on walls can affect a person. The picture primarily affects the subconscious, and it is very important what color it is. Impact of image coloring:

• Orange color. It is capable of creating a warm feeling in a person. However, some works can, on the contrary, irritate.
• Red paintings. This is one of the most influential colors on people. He can feed healthy people with passion and warmth. Patients with psychological disorders may develop aggression.
• Green. This is the color of the entire plant world, which creates a feeling of security and freshness in a person.
• Blue images. They are able to give people peace and some coolness. All light colors have a positive effect on a person’s emotional state.

Experts have long found out that different colors of paintings and photographs can improve mood, put emotions in order and, in some cases, heal. However, some people may still have questions about why imagery is needed. They can be observed in schools, kindergartens, educational institutions and some workplaces. They are often peaceful landscapes, forests and portraits of some beautiful people.

Introduction 3
1. The essence of art and its place in human life and society 4
2. The emergence of art and its necessity for humans 8
3. The role of art in the development of society and human life 13
Conclusion 24
References 25

Introduction

People come into contact with art every day. And, as a rule, not in museums. From birth and throughout life, people are immersed in art.
The building of a hotel, train station, store, apartment interior, clothing and jewelry can be works of art. But they may not be. Not every painting, statue, song or china set is considered a masterpiece. There is no recipe that would spell out exactly what needs to be combined and in what proportions to make a work of art. However, you can develop your ability to feel and appreciate beauty, which we often call taste.
What is art? Why does it have such magical power over a person? Why do people travel thousands of kilometers to see with their own eyes the great works of world art: palaces, mosaics, paintings? Why do artists create their creations, even if it seems that no one needs them? Why are they willing to risk their well-being to realize their vision?
Art is often called a source of pleasure. From century to century, millions of people enjoy images of beautiful human bodies in Raphael's paintings. But the image of Christ, crucified and suffering, is not intended for pleasure, and yet this subject is common to thousands of painters over many centuries...
It is often said that art reflects life. Of course, this is largely true: often the accuracy and recognition of what the artist depicts is amazing. But it is unlikely that a simple reflection of life, its copying, would arouse such strong interest in art and admiration for it.
In this essay we will consider the place and role of art in human life.

1. The essence of art and its place in human life and society

The word “art” in Russian and many other languages ​​is used in two senses - in the narrow sense (a specific form of practical-spiritual exploration of the world), and in the broad sense - as the highest level of skill, skill, regardless of what sphere of social life they are manifested in (the art of generalship, the skill of a surgeon, a shoemaker, etc.) (2, p. 9).
In this essay, we are interested in the analysis of art precisely in the first, narrow sense of the word, although both senses are historically connected.
Art, as an independent form of social consciousness and as a branch of spiritual production, grew out of material production and was initially woven into it as an aesthetic, purely utilitarian moment. Man, A.M. Gorky emphasized, is an artist by nature, and he strives to bring beauty everywhere in one way or another (1, p. 92). A person’s aesthetic activity is constantly manifested in his work, in everyday life, in public life, and not just in art. There is an aesthetic assimilation of the world by social man.
Art realizes a number of social functions.
Firstly, this is its cognitive function. Works of art are a valuable source of information about complex social processes, sometimes about those, the essence and dynamics of which science grasps much more difficultly and belatedly (for example, turns and turning points in public consciousness).
Of course, not everything in the world around us is interested in art, and if it is, then to varying degrees, and the very approach of art to the object of its knowledge, the perspective of its vision is very specific in comparison with other forms of social consciousness. The general object of knowledge in art has always been and remains a person. That is why art in general and, in particular, fiction are called human studies, a textbook of life, etc. This emphasizes another important function of art - educational, that is, its ability to have an indelible impact on the ideological and moral development of a person, his self-improvement, or, on the contrary, his fall.
And yet, the cognitive and educational functions are not specific to art: these functions are also performed by all other forms of social consciousness. The specific function of art, which makes it art in the true sense of the word, is its aesthetic function. Perceiving and comprehending a work of art, we not only assimilate its content (like the content of physics, biology, mathematics), we pass this content through our hearts, our emotions, we give sensually specific images created by the artist an aesthetic assessment as beautiful or ugly, sublime or base, tragic or comic. Art shapes in us the very ability to give such aesthetic assessments, to distinguish the truly beautiful and sublime from all kinds of ersatz.
Cognitive, educational and aesthetic in art are fused together. Thanks to the aesthetic moment, we enjoy the content of a work of art, and it is in the process of enjoyment that we are enlightened and educated. In this regard, they sometimes talk about the hedonistic function of art (from the Greek “hedone” - pleasure).
For many centuries, the debate about the relationship between beauty in art and reality has continued in socio-philosophical and aesthetic literature. In this case, two main positions are revealed. According to one of them (in Russia, N.G. Chernyshevsky proceeded from it in his dissertation “On the aesthetic relations of art to reality”) the beautiful in life is always and in all respects higher than the beautiful in art (1, p. 94). In this case, art appears as a copy of typical characters and objects of reality itself and a surrogate for reality. Obviously, an alternative concept is preferable (Hegel, A.I. Herzen, etc.): the beautiful in art is higher than the beautiful in life, because the artist sees more sharply, further, deeper, feels more powerfully and more colorfully than his future viewers, readers, listeners, and that is why can ignite them, inspire them, straighten them with his art. Otherwise - in the function of a surrogate or even a duplicate - art would not be needed by society (4, p. 156).
Each form of social consciousness reflects objective reality in a specific, inherent way.
A specific result of a theoretical reflection of the world is a scientific concept. It represents an abstraction: in the name of understanding the deep essence of an object, we abstract not only from its directly sensory perceived, but also from many logically deducible features, if they are not of paramount importance. Another thing is the result of an aesthetic reflection of reality. This is an artistic, concrete sensory image, in which a certain degree of abstraction (typification) is combined with the preservation of concrete sensory, individual, often unique features of the reflected object.
Hegel wrote that “sensory images and signs appear in art not only for their own sake and their immediate manifestation, but in order to satisfy in this form the highest spiritual interests, since they have the ability to awaken and touch all the depths of consciousness and cause their response in spirit" (4, p. 157). Revealing the specificity of artistic thinking in comparison with other forms of social consciousness, this definition, in full accordance with the main paradigm of the Hegelian philosophical system, leads to the conclusion about the artistic image as an expression of an abstract idea in a concrete sensory form. In reality, the artistic image captures not the abstract idea itself, but its concrete carrier, endowed with such individual features that make the image alive and impressive, not reducible to the same-order images already known to us. Let us recall, for example, the Artamonovs in M. Gorky and the Forsytes in D. Galsworthy (5).
Thus, in contrast to the scientific concept, an artistic image reveals the general in the individual. By showing the individual, the artist reveals what is typical in it, that is, what is most characteristic of the entire type of social or natural phenomena depicted.
The individual in an artistic image is not just interspersed with the general, but “revitalizes” it. It is the individual in a genuine work of art that grows into the concept of type, image. And the brighter and more accurately the small, individual, specific details are noticed, the broader the image, the broader generalization it contains. The image of Pushkin's Miserly Knight is not only a specific image of a greedy old man, but also an exposure of greed and cruelty itself. In Rodin's sculpture "The Thinker" the viewer sees something more than a specific image recreated by the author.
In connection with the fusion of the rational and concrete-sensual in the image and the emotional impact of art derived from this, the artistic form acquires special significance. In art, as in all spheres of the world around us, form depends on content, is subordinate to it, and serves it. This well-known position nevertheless must be emphasized, bearing in mind the thesis of representatives of formalist aesthetics and formalist art about a work of art as a “pure form”, a self-sufficient “play of form”, etc. At the same time, the scientific understanding of art has always been alien to a nihilistic attitude towards form, and even any belittling of its active role in the system of the artistic image and the work of art as a whole. It is impossible to imagine a work of art in which the content would not be expressed in artistic form.
In different types of art, the artist has different means of expressing content. In painting, sculpture, graphics - this is color, line, chiaroscuro; in - music - rhythm, harmony; in literature - the word, etc. All these means of representation constitute elements of the artistic form, with the help of which the artist embodies his ideological and artistic concept. An art form is a very complex formation, all elements of which are naturally interconnected. In a painting by Raphael, a drama by Shakespeare, a symphony by Tchaikovsky, a novel by Hemingway, one cannot arbitrarily change the structure of the plot, character, dialogue, composition; one cannot find another solution to harmony, color, rhythm, so as not to violate the integrity of the entire work.

2. The emergence of art and its necessity for humans

Art as a special area of ​​human activity, with its own independent tasks, special qualities, served by professional artists, became possible only on the basis of the division of labor. The creation of arts and sciences - all this was possible only with the help of an increased division of labor, which was based on a large division of labor between the masses engaged in simple physical labor and the privileged few who manage the work, are engaged in trade, government affairs, and later also science and art . The simplest, completely spontaneously formed form of this division of labor was slavery” (2, p. 13).
But since artistic activity is a unique form of knowledge and creative work, its origins are much more ancient, since people worked and in the process of this work learned about the world around them long before the division of society into classes. Archaeological discoveries over the past hundred years have revealed numerous works of visual creativity of primitive man, the age of which is estimated at tens of thousands of years. These are rock paintings; figurines made of stone and bone; images and ornamental patterns carved on pieces of deer antlers or on stone slabs. They have been found in Europe, Asia, and Africa; these are works that appeared long before a conscious idea of ​​artistic creativity could arise. Many of them, reproducing mainly figures of animals - deer, bison, wild horses, mammoths - are so vital, so expressive and true to nature that they are not only precious historical monuments, but also retain their artistic power to this day (2, p. 14).
The material, objective nature of works of fine art determines especially favorable conditions for researchers of the origins of fine art in comparison with historians studying the origins of other types of arts. If the initial stages of epic, music, and dance must be judged mainly by indirect data and by analogy with the creativity of modern tribes in the early stages of social development (the analogy is very relative, which can only be relied upon with great caution), then the childhood of painting and sculpture and graphics confront us with our own eyes.
It does not coincide with the childhood of human society, that is, the most ancient eras of its formation. According to modern science, the process of humanization of the ape-like ancestors of man began even before the first glaciation of the Quaternary era and, therefore, the “age” of humanity is approximately a million years. The first traces of primitive art date back to the Upper Paleolithic era, which began approximately several tens of millennia BC. e. This was a time of comparative maturity of the primitive communal system: the man of this era was no different in his physical constitution from modern man, he already spoke and was able to make quite complex tools from stone, bone and horn. He led a collective hunt for large animals using a spear and darts. Clans united into tribes, and matriarchy arose.
More than 900 thousand years had to pass, separating the most ancient people from modern man, before the hand and brain were ripe for artistic creativity.
Meanwhile, the manufacture of primitive stone tools dates back to much more ancient times of the Lower and Middle Paleolithic. Already Sinanthropus (the remains of which were found near Beijing) had reached a fairly high level in the manufacture of stone tools and knew how to use fire. People of the later, Neanderthal type processed tools more carefully, adapting them to special purposes. Only thanks to such a “school”, which lasted many millennia, did they develop the necessary flexibility of the hand, fidelity of the eye and the ability to generalize what is visible, highlighting the most significant and characteristic features in it - that is, all those qualities that appeared in the wonderful drawings of the Altamira cave. If a person had not exercised and refined his hand, processing for the sake of obtaining food such a difficult-to-process material as stone, he would not have been able to learn to draw: without mastering the creation of utilitarian forms, he would not have been able to create an artistic form. If many, many generations had not concentrated their thinking ability on capturing the beast - the main source of life for primitive man - it would not have occurred to them to depict this beast.
So, firstly, “labor is older than art” and, secondly, art owes its emergence to labor. But what caused the transition from the production of exclusively useful, practically necessary tools to the production, along with them, of “useless” images? It was this question that was most debated and most confused by bourgeois scientists who sought at all costs to apply Immanuel Kant’s thesis about the “purposelessness,” “disinterest,” and “inherent value” of the aesthetic attitude to the world to primitive art.
Those who wrote about primitive art, K. Bucher, K. Gross, E. Grosse, Luke, Breuil, V. Gausenstein and others, argued that primitive people were engaged in “art for art’s sake”, that the first and determining stimulus for artistic creativity was the innate human desire to play (2, p. 15).
Theories of “play” in their various varieties were based on the aesthetics of Kant and Schiller, according to which the main feature of aesthetic, artistic experience is precisely the desire for “free play with appearances” - free from any practical goal, from logical and moral evaluation.
“The aesthetic creative impulse,” wrote Schiller, “imperceptibly builds, in the midst of the terrible kingdom of forces and in the midst of the sacred kingdom of laws, a third, cheerful kingdom of play and appearance, in which it removes from man the shackles of all relationships and frees him from everything that is called coercion as in the physical , and in the moral sense” (2, p. 16).
Schiller applied this basic tenet of his aesthetics to the question of the emergence of art (long before the discoveries of genuine monuments of Paleolithic creativity), believing that the “merry kingdom of play” was being erected already at the dawn of human society: “...now the ancient German is looking for more shiny animal skins , more magnificent horns, more graceful vessels, and the Caledonian seeks out the most beautiful shells for his festivities. But, content with the fact that a surplus of aesthetics has been introduced into what is necessary, the free impulse to play finally completely breaks with the shackles of need, and beauty itself becomes the object of human aspirations. He adorns himself. Free pleasure is counted among his needs, and the useless soon becomes the best portion of his joy.” However, this point of view is refuted by facts.
It cannot be denied that colors, lines, as well as sounds and smells, affect the human body - some in an irritating, repulsive way, others, on the contrary, strengthening and promoting its correct and active functioning. This is one way or another taken into account by a person in his artistic activity, but in no way lies at its basis. The motives that forced Paleolithic man to draw and carve figures of animals on the walls of caves, of course, have nothing to do with instinctive impulses: this is a conscious and purposeful creative act of a creature that has long ago broken the chains of blind instinct and has embarked on the path of mastering the forces of nature - and, consequently, and understanding these forces.
A man draws an animal: thereby he synthesizes his observations of it; he more and more confidently reproduces his figure, habits, movements, and his various states. He formulates his knowledge in this drawing and consolidates it. At the same time, he learns to generalize: one image of a deer conveys features observed in a number of deer. This in itself gives a huge impetus to the development of thinking. It is difficult to overestimate the progressive role of artistic creativity in changing human consciousness and his relationship to nature. The latter is now not so dark for him, not so encrypted - little by little, still by touch, he studies it.
Thus, primitive fine art is at the same time the embryos of science, or more precisely, primitive knowledge. It is clear that at that infant, primitive stage of social development, these forms of knowledge could not yet be dismembered, as they were dismembered in later times; at first they appeared together. It was not yet art in the full scope of this concept and it was not knowledge in the proper sense of the word, but something in which the primary elements of both were inseparably combined (3, p. 72).
In this regard, it becomes understandable why early art paid so much attention to the beast and relatively little to man. It is aimed primarily at understanding external nature. At the very time when animals have already learned to depict remarkably realistically and vividly, human figures are almost always depicted very primitively, simply ineptly, with the exception of some rare exceptions, such as the reliefs from Lossel. In Paleolithic art there is not yet that primary interest in the world of human relationships, which distinguishes art, which delimited its sphere from the sphere of science. From the monuments of primitive art (at least fine art) it is difficult to learn anything about the life of a tribal community other than its hunting and related magical rituals; The most important place is occupied by the object of the hunt - the beast. It was its study that was of main practical interest, since it was the main source of existence, and the utilitarian-cognitive approach to painting and sculpture was reflected in the fact that they depicted mainly animals, and such species, the extraction of which was especially important and at the same time difficult and dangerous, and therefore required particularly careful study. Birds and plants were rarely depicted.
By drawing the figure of an animal, a person, in a certain sense, really “mastered” the animal, since he knew it, and knowledge is the source of mastery over nature. The vital necessity of figurative knowledge was the reason for the emergence of art. But our ancestor understood this “mastery” in a literal sense and performed magical rituals around the drawing he made to ensure the success of the hunt. He fantastically rethought the true, rational motives of his actions. True, it is very likely that visual creativity did not always have a ritual purpose; here, obviously, other motives were also involved, which were already mentioned above: the need for the exchange of information, etc. But, in any case, it can hardly be denied that the majority of paintings and sculptures also served magical purposes.
People began to engage in art much earlier than they had a concept of art, and much earlier than they could understand its real meaning, its real benefits.
While mastering the ability to depict the visible world, people also did not realize the true social significance of this skill. Something similar to the later development of sciences happened, which were also gradually liberated from the captivity of naive fantastic ideas: medieval alchemists sought to find the “philosopher’s stone” and spent years of intense work on this. They never found the philosopher's stone, but they gained valuable experience in studying the properties of metals, acids, salts, etc., which prepared the way for the subsequent development of chemistry.
Saying that primitive art was one of the original forms of knowledge, the study of the surrounding world, we should not assume that, therefore, there was nothing aesthetic in it in the proper sense of the word. The aesthetic is not something completely opposite to the useful.
The content of early art is poor, its horizons are closed, its very integrity rests on the underdevelopment of social consciousness. Further progress of art could only be achieved at the cost of losing this initial integrity, which we see already in the later stages of primitive communal formation. Compared with the art of the Upper Paleolithic, they mark a certain decline in artistic activity, but this decline is only relative. By schematizing an image, the primitive artist learns to generalize and abstract the concepts of a straight or curved line, circle, etc., and acquires the skills of conscious construction and rational distribution of drawing elements on a plane. Without these latently accumulated skills, the transition to those new artistic values ​​that are created in the art of ancient slave societies would be impossible. We can say that during the period of primitive art the concepts of rhythm and composition were finally formed. Thus, the artistic creativity of the tribal system clearly shows the need for art in human life.

3. The role of art in the development of society and human life

There has been and is a lot of debate about the role of art in the development of society and in the life of an individual; art historians put forward a variety of concepts, but the level of mass artistic culture in the Russian Federation has fallen as low as, perhaps, in any civilized country.
We are probably the only state where art and music have actually been eliminated from general education. Even the advancing humanitarization provides for the “residual” role of the arts without change. Unfortunately, the scientific principle has long and undividedly dominated in education. Everywhere, in all pedagogical documents, it is said only about mastering the scientific method of cognition, mastering scientific knowledge and skills, and forming a scientific worldview. And so it is in all documents - from the most traditional to the most innovative. Moreover, even in the analysis of art, not only in secondary school, but also in higher education, a purely scientific approach was established (6, p. 12).
The wrong has taken root; a distorted idea of ​​the absence of a serious connection between artistic development, firstly, with the morality of man and society, and secondly, with the very development of human thinking.
However, human thinking is initially two-sided: it is composed of the rational-logical and emotional-imaginative side as equal parts. The basis of scientific and the basis of human artistic activity are different forms of thinking that caused their development, completely non-identical objects of knowledge and the resulting requirement for fundamentally different forms of transfer of experience. These positions, which naturally follow from the formula “art is not science,” may cause doubts and rejection. And they will be based on a completely not scientific, but a trivial everyday attitude towards the arts; understanding their role only as a sphere of recreation, creative entertainment, aesthetic pleasure, and not a special, equal scientific, sphere of knowledge that cannot be replaced by anything else.
There is a widespread idea that emotional-figurative thinking, which historically actually flourished earlier, is more primitive than rational, something not entirely human, half-animal. Today, the rejection of this path of knowledge as insufficiently developed and “insufficiently scientific” is based on such a misconception, and it is forgotten that it has been developing and improving since the emergence of humanity (6, p. 13).
There is no human thinking consisting only of rational-logical, theoretical consciousness. This kind of thinking is made up. A whole person takes part in thinking - with all his “non-rational” feelings, sensations, etc. And, developing thinking, you need to form it holistically. In fact, in the development of mankind, two most important systems of knowledge of the world have emerged. We think in their constant interaction, whether we want it or not. This is how it happened historically.
If we compare these two sides of thinking in a diagram, we get the following:

Forms of thinking Scope of activity and result of work Subject of knowledge (what is learned) Ways of mastering experience (how is it learned) Results of mastering experience
Rational-logical Scientific activity. Result - concept Real object (subject) Study of the content of Knowledge. Understanding the patterns of natural and social processes
Emotional-imaginative artistic activity. The result is an artistic image Attitude to an object (subject) Experience of content (living) Emotional and value criteria of life activity, expressed in incentives for actions, desires and aspirations

The table shows that everything in these two rows is different - both the subject of knowledge, and the ways and results of its development. Of course, the areas of activity indicated here are those where these forms are manifested only most clearly. In all areas of work they “work” together, including scientific, industrial and artistic.
Scientific activity (and knowledge) develops the sphere of theoretical thinking more actively than any other.
But artistic activity also prioritizes the development of its own sphere of thinking. The scientific one is more likely to be able to exploit it and use it to help itself (6, p. 14).
When studying any plant: its flowers, fruits or leaves, a Russian or Mexican scientist is interested in completely objective data: its genus and species, shape, weight, chemical composition, development system - that which does not depend on the observer. The more accurate and independent of the student the observational data and conclusions are, the more valuable they are, the more scientific they are. But artistic observation and its results are fundamentally different. They cannot and should not be objective at all. They are definitely personal, mine. The result is my personal attitude towards this plant, flower, leaf - do they cause me pleasure, tenderness, sadness, bitterness, surprise. Of course, all of humanity looks at this object through me, but also my people, my history. They build the paths of my perception. I will perceive a birch twig differently than a Mexican. Outside of me there is no artistic perception; it cannot take place. Emotions cannot be extrapersonal.
That is why it is impossible to pass on the experience of emotional-imaginative thinking to new generations through theoretical knowledge (as we have persistently tried so far). It is useless to just study this experience. With such a “study,” for example, moral feelings, such as feelings of tenderness, hatred, love, are transformed into moral rules, into social laws that have nothing to do with feelings. Let us be sincere: all moral laws of society, if they are not experienced by the individual, are not contained in feelings, but only in knowledge; they are not only not durable, but are often the object of anti-moral manipulation.
L.N. Tolstoy correctly said that art does not convince anyone, it simply infects with ideas. And the “infected” can no longer live differently. Awareness of involvement, likeness, empathy is the power of human thinking. Global technocratization is disastrous. Psychologist Zinchenko wrote about this very correctly: “For technocratic thinking there are no categories of morality, conscience, human experience and dignity.” Harshly said, but accurate.
B.M. Nemensky clarifies why: technocratic thinking is always the primacy of means over meaning (6, p. 16). For the meaning of human life is precisely the human improvement of human relationships with the world, the harmonization of these relationships. Given the integrity of the two ways of knowledge, the scientific provides the means for harmonization, while the artistic includes the introduction of these means into the system of actions and determines the formation of human desires as incentives for action. When emotional and value criteria are distorted, knowledge is directed towards anti-human purposes.
With oppression and underdevelopment of the emotional-imaginative sphere, today's imbalance occurs in our society - the primacy of means, confusion of goals. And this is dangerous, because whether we want it or not, whether we understand it or not, it is our feelings that determine the “first movements of the soul,” that determine desires. And desires, even contrary to beliefs, shape actions.
Two ways of knowledge arose precisely because there are two objects, or subjects, of knowledge. And the object (subject) of cognition for the emotional-imaginative sphere of thinking is not the reality of life itself, but our human emotional and personal attitude towards it. In this case (scientific form) the object is cognized, in another (artistic) the thread of the emotional-value connection between the object and the subject is cognized - the relationship of the subject to the object (subject). And here is the root of the whole problem.
And then the thread of understanding the activity of the emotional-imaginative sphere of thinking stretches to those types of work where this form is most manifested, to art. Art is multifunctional, but its main role in the life of society is precisely this - analysis, formulation, consolidation in a figurative form and transfer to next generations of the experience of emotional and value relations to certain phenomena of connections between people and with nature. Naturally, as in the scientific form, there is a struggle of ideas and tendencies in relation to the phenomena of life. Not only useful, but also ideas harmful to society live and fight. And society intuitively selects and consolidates from them what it needs today for prosperity or decline.
Isn’t it time to look for ways of harmonious development, but not among older generations, which is too late, but among the generation entering life? You just need to realize that we are not offering one development flux instead of another. It is necessary to achieve harmony in the development of thinking. But for this we need to accept as an objective given the two-sidedness of our thinking: the presence of rational-logical and emotional-imaginative thinking, the presence of different circles of knowledge corresponding to them - the real object and the relationship of the subject to the object. And if you accept these two sides, then it is easy to accept two ways of mastering experience - studying the content of experience and living, experiencing the content. Here, precisely here, the foundation of artistic didactics is laid - nothing else is given (6, p. 17).
However, with careful analysis, one can discern the different roles of the three forms of plastic-artistic thinking in the behavior and communication of people.
Decoration. Only free-born Roman citizens had the right to wear attire. Special decrees on costume in Europe were issued already in the 13th century. Most of them defined strict rules regarding which class could wear which costumes. For example, in Cologne in the 15th century. judges and doctors had to wear red, lawyers - purple, other pundits - black. For a long time in Europe, only a free person could wear a hat. In Russia under Elizabeth, people without rank did not have the right to wear silk or velvet. In medieval Germany, serfs were forbidden to wear boots under pain of death: this was the exclusive privilege of the nobles. And in Sudan there is a custom of threading a brass wire through the lower lip. This means that the person is married. Her hairstyle also speaks about this. And today, when choosing this or that type of clothing or its cut, a person who considers himself to be a member of a certain social group uses them as social symbols that serve as a regulator of relations between people. The business of decorating oneself, weapons, clothes, and home has not been an entertainment activity since the formation of human society. Through decoration, a person distinguished himself from the environment of people, indicating his place in it (hero, leader, aristocrat, bride, etc.) and introducing himself to a certain community of people (warrior, tribal member, caste member or businessman, hippie, etc.). d.). Despite the more multifaceted use of decor, its root role remains the same today - a sign of inclusion and isolation; a sign of a message that affirms the place of a given person, a given group of people in the environment of human relations - this is where the basis for the existence of decoration as an aesthetic phenomenon (6, p. 18).
The fact that the masses of Russians are illiterate in this area leads to many social confusions and personal moral breakdowns. Experts correctly note that society has not yet developed a systematic system for teaching the language of decorative art. Everyone goes through the school of the language of such communication completely independently and spontaneously.
The constructive line of artistic and plastic thinking performs a different social function and responds to a different need. One can trace the role of this line of thinking in the art where it is revealed more clearly and acts openly as a leader. The construction of any objects is directly related to human communication, but different from decor. Architecture (like design) most fully expresses this line of artistic thinking. She builds houses, villages and cities with their streets, parks, factories, theaters, clubs - and not only for the convenience of everyday life. The Egyptian temple, by its design, expressed certain human relationships. The Gothic temple, and the medieval city itself, its design, the character of the houses are completely different. A fortress, a feudal lord's castle and a noble estate of the 13th century. were a response to different social and economic relations, and shaped people’s communication environment in different ways. It is not for nothing that architecture is called the stone chronicle of humanity; from it we can study the changing nature of human relationships.
The influence of architectural forms on our lives is not difficult to feel today. For example, how much the destruction of Moscow courtyards changed in the development of children's games. Until now, organic forms of self-organization of the children's environment have not been found in these huge, undivided buildings. And relationships between adults and neighbors are built differently, or rather, they are almost not built at all. By the way, there is something to think about here. To what extent does our everyday architecture truly express the type of human relationships we desire? We need an environment for communication, to create strong human connections. Now neighbors, even on the same floor, may not know each other at all and may not have any relationship. And architecture contributes to this in every possible way; there is no environment for communication. Even at the humanities faculties of Moscow State University there is no place for people to sit and talk. There are only lecture halls and halls for public meetings. There is no planned environment where an individual can communicate with an individual, argue, talk, think. Although, perhaps, in previous periods of the history of our society this was not necessary. And outside of architecture and in spite of it, it is extremely difficult to create conditions for communication. Thus, in addition to the narrow utilitarian function (protection from cold, rain and providing conditions for work), architecture plays a significant social, “spiritual-utilitarian” role in the formation of human relationships. It performs the function of a constructive element of artistic thinking: it forms a real environment that determines character, lifestyle and relationships in society. By doing this, she, as it were, sets parameters and sets milestones for a certain aesthetic and moral ideal, creating an environment for development for it. The formation of an aesthetic ideal begins with the construction of its foundations and fundamental properties. The constructive sphere fulfills its purpose through all the arts.
The visual basis of plastic-artistic thinking is manifested in all arts, but it becomes the leading line in the fine arts proper and even most acutely in the easel arts - in painting, graphics, sculpture. For what needs of society did these forms of thinking develop? The capabilities of these forms, in our opinion, are the most subtle and complex. They are largely research-based and in some ways similar to scientific activities. Here we analyze all aspects of real life. But the analysis is emotional and figurative, and not of the objective laws of nature and society, but of the nature of the personal, emotional relationships of a person with his entire environment - nature and society. It is through the personality of each of us that our humanity - our commonality - can only manifest itself. A society without individuals is a herd. So, if in science the conclusion is: “I know, I understand,” then here: “I love, I hate,” “I enjoy this, it disgusts me.” These are the emotional and value criteria of a person.
The pictorial form of thinking expands the capabilities of figurative systems, filling them with the living blood of reality. Here thinking occurs in real visible images (and not just an image of reality). It is thinking in real images that makes it possible to analyze all the most complex, subtle aspects of reality, realize them, build an attitude towards them, variably and sensually (often intuitively) compare your moral and aesthetic ideals with it and consolidate this attitude in artistic images. Pin it and pass it on to other people.
It is for this reason that fine art is a powerful and subtle school of emotional culture and its chronicle. It is this side of artistic thinking that makes it possible for fine art to raise and solve the most complex spiritual problems of society.
The elements of artistic thinking, like three hearts, three engines of the artistic process, participate in shaping the character of human society and in their own way influence its forms, methods, and development.
The changing tasks of art at different stages of the formation of the moral and aesthetic ideal of each time are manifested in the pulsation of these three trends. The rise and fall of each of them is a response to changes in society’s demands for art as a tool that helps it not only form the moral and aesthetic ideal of the time, but also establish it in everyday life. From practice through its spiritual, emotional, moral and aesthetic development again to the everyday practice of life - this is the way to realize these foundations. And each basis (sphere) has its own, unique and irreplaceable function, generated by the specificity, the nature of its capabilities.
Art appears in its true meaning as one of the most important forms of self-awareness and self-organization of the human collective, as a manifestation of an irreplaceable form of thinking developed over millions of years of human existence, without which human society could not exist at all.

Conclusion

In this work, we examined the role of art in the life of society and every person, and focused on the specifics of one of the forms of manifestation of emotional-imaginative thinking - the plastic-artistic sphere of activity.
This is not just a theoretical problem. The existing reluctance to see the reality of these forms of thinking results in the formation of one-sided intelligence. There has been a worldwide fetishization of the rational-logical path of knowledge.
MIT professor J. Weizenbaum writes about this danger: “From the point of view of common sense, science has become the only legitimate form of knowledge... the attribution by common sense of certainty to scientific knowledge, an attribution that has now become a dogma of sanity due to its almost universal practice, has actually deprived it of legitimacy powers all other forms of knowledge." Such thoughts were also expressed by our scientists. Suffice it to recall the philosopher E. Ilyenkov. But society does not listen to them at all.
Traditions of emotional and value culture are lost, not developed and not passed down from ancestors. And it is they who make up the culture of attitude towards the world, which lies at the basis of all human life, the basis of human action.

Bibliography

1. Apresyan R. Aesthetics. – M.: Gardariki, 2003.
2. General history of art. In 9 volumes. T.1. Primitive art. – M., 1967.
3. Loktev A. Theory of art. – M.: Vlados, 2003.
4. Ilyenkov E. Works. – M.: Logos, 2000.
5. Art. – M.: Avanta+, 2003.
6. Nemensky B.M. Emotional-imaginative cognition in human development / In the book. Contemporary art: development or crisis. – M.: Knowledge, 1991. P. 12-22.

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Art has existed since ancient times. It accompanied man throughout his entire existence. The first manifestations of art were very primitive drawings on the walls of caves made by primitive people. Even then, when every day it was necessary to fight for one’s life, people were drawn to art, and even then a love for beauty was manifested.

Nowadays there are many different types of art. These are literature, musical and visual arts, etc. Nowadays, a person’s natural talent is combined with the latest technologies, creating fundamentally new directions in art. Of course, before there were no such opportunities as in our time, but every artist tried to come up with something special, to contribute to the development of this type of art.

And yet, why do we attach so much importance to art? What role does it play in a person’s life? The imaginative recreation of reality creates our personality. Cultural and spiritual development has a great influence on our lives. Indeed, in most cases, people are judged not by their appearance, but by what they have inside. A person with a very unattractive appearance can turn out to be beautiful, you just have to get to know him better. Comprehensively developed, spiritually rich people have always aroused interest among others; it is interesting and pleasant to communicate with them. We all need to develop, improve ourselves, and art helps us in this difficult task. It helps to better understand the world around us and ourselves.

Self-knowledge is one of the most important stages in the development of a human personality. Often art is a way to assert oneself, to say something to the whole world. This is like a message to the future, a kind of appeal to the people. Each work of art has its own purpose: to acquaint, teach, provoke thought. Art requires understanding. Mindlessly contemplating paintings or reading books by great masters has no meaning. You need to understand what exactly the artist wanted to say, for what purpose this or that creation appeared. Only under this condition will art fulfill its task and teach us something.

It is often said that nowadays people have almost ceased to be interested in art. I believe this is not the case. Times change, generations change. Views and tastes do not remain unchanged. But there are topics that will be relevant at all times. Of course, our society attaches more importance to material enrichment than to spiritual enrichment. But this does not mean that people do not pay attention to cultural life and do not appreciate art. We should not forget about art, because it plays an important role in our lives.

Art is one of the main forms of spiritual culture of humanity, which arose in ancient times. Thus, already in the Upper Paleolithic era, 40 thousand years ago, there was “cave art” - wonderful rock engravings and paintings in which our distant ancestors depicted animals and hunting scenes.

Later sculpture, music, architecture, theater, and fiction arose. These are classic art forms that date back thousands of years. The development of forms and types of art continues in our time. In the modern world, thanks to the development of technology, some new types of art have appeared, for example, the art of cinema, artistic photography, and now the art of computer graphics is emerging.

All this suggests that human life is impossible without art, that it meets some of his deepest needs. To explain her character, we need to remember that man is an active being. Through their activities, people master the world around them and transform it.

There are three main forms of human exploration of the world:

practically active- it is governed by such general needs and goals as benefit and benefit;

cognitive - its purpose is true;

artistic- its value is beauty.

Therefore it is possible to determine art as a way mastering and transforming the world according to the laws of beauty.

Specifics of art consists in reflecting reality through artistic images, that is, in a specific sensual form, and not with the help of concepts and theories as in scientific knowledge. This is obvious in painting or sculpture. But even literature, although its figurative side is not striking, differs significantly from knowledge. For example, historians or sociologists, studying noble society in 19th Russia, describe and explain it using concepts such as “class”, “serfdom”, “autocracy”, etc. In contrast, Pushkin and Gogol brilliantly depicted the essence of this society in images Onegin and Tatyana, Chichikov and a series of landowners from Dead Souls. These are two different but complementary ways of knowing. And display of reality. The first is aimed at detecting general, natural in the reality being studied, the second - to express reality through individual images, through the consciousness and experiences of individual characters.

The role of art in human lifeAnd society is determined by the fact that it is addressed to the consciousness of man in his integrity. Artistic creativity and perception of works of art gives a person a deeper understanding and knowledge of life. But at the same time art influences him feelings, experiences, develops it emotional sphere. The great role of art in the formation of moral ideas person. And, of course, the perception of works of art gives people aesthetic enjoyment, experience beautiful, and also makes them involved creativity artist.

In all these respects, art has great power; it is not for nothing that Dostoevsky said: “Beauty will save the world.”

Ideas about the role of art have changed throughout history. The important role of art was already recognized in ancient society. For example, Plato and Aristotle believed that art should cleanse the soul of base passions and elevate it. They assigned a special role to music and tragedy in this.

In the Middle Ages, the main role of art was seen as subordinate to the tasks of worship. Art played, for example, a very significant role in the design of churches and in the religious rites of Orthodoxy.

During the Renaissance, art, especially painting, took a central place in spiritual culture. Leonardo da Vinci viewed art as a “mirror” of the world and even put painting above science. Many thinkers of this era saw art as the most free and creative human activity.

During the Enlightenment, the moral and educational function of art was emphasized above all.

In the 20th century many thinkers began to talk about the crisis of art, that contemporary art was losing its functions in society. For example, the German cultural philosopher of the early 20th century. O. Spengler believed that modern Western culture was entering a period of decline. High classical art is giving way to technical arts, mass entertainment, and sports. Contemporary art is losing harmony and imagery; abstract painting appears, in which the holistic image of a person disappears.

Kinds of art. A special philosophical science deals with the study of art and the classification of its various types - aesthetics. Types of art can be distinguished by the material in which artistic images are embodied. This is sound in music, lines and colors in graphics and painting, stone and form in sculpture and architecture, movement in dance, etc. Each material requires its own unique means, its own “language”. This is evidenced by the fact that the content of works of one type of art cannot be adequately conveyed in the language of another type.

The famous German philosopher and esthetician F. Schelling at the beginning of the 19th century. proposed a classification of the main types of art, which remains important today. Schelling considered art to be the highest, most creative human activity. He argued that in all species

arts have a single foundation - mythology, and that all arts are interconnected and express a single idea of ​​beauty.

Schelling divided the arts into real And perfect. Real - music, painting, plastic arts (architecture and sculpture). Ideal - literature and poetry. Music is an expression of the rhythm and harmony of the world. Painting is the first art form that reproduces images. Schelling sees art that synthesizes music and painting in plastic art. He poetically called architecture “frozen music.”

Literature and poetry use the word - the freest and richest means of expression. Therefore, they are superior to the arts, which use sound, stone or color to express artistic ideas. Schelling considered poetry to be the highest form of artistic creativity, expressing the essence of art in general.

Elite, folk and mass art. Art, and in a certain respect spiritual culture in general, can also be divided according to a different, sociological principle. From this point of view, art is divided into high (elite), folk and mass.

For centuries, high art was mainly produced and consumed by a rather narrow elite of society - its privileged classes.

Folk art - folk songs, dances, carnivals, folklore, popular prints, household decorative crafts, etc. - developed within the framework of customs and rituals and existed in an unwritten form. This type of art expresses the deep aesthetic needs of the people, and genuine masterpieces often emerge within the framework of folk art. Folk art is characteristic primarily of traditional society; in modern society there is not much room for it.

The emergence of mass culture and corresponding art is associated with the establishment of industrial civilization, the growth of cities, and technical progress, which led to the emergence of photography, radio, cinema, and television. This has led to new ways of producing and consuming art. The main genres of mass art are melodrama, detective, science fiction, variety, circus, musical, rock music, etc. The main purpose of this art is to provide entertainment and evoke thrills.

The quality of mass art is usually low. Unlike folk art, mass art is created not by the people, but for the people. It is created by professionals who often act not so much as artists, but as businessmen. Their product is often "kitsch", tasteless mass production such as endless "soap operas". There is now an entire mass culture industry for the production of such art. At the same time, some art theorists note that in modern society with its “postmodern culture” the line between high and mass art is beginning to blur.