Topic 3: Classifying the Arts

Learning Outcomes
At the end of the session, you will be to:
a. Categorize the different forms of the arts and
b. Cite examples of each of the forms.

Presentation of Content

From the activity given, you have heard various art works. Art is
classified in different ways. Writers and philosophers have their own
classification of art. To clearly comprehend the relationship of these arts,
let’s us study the categorization made by the different experts
According to Webster (1987), the major arts involve man’s skills to
create works of art that are in form, content, and execution, aesthetically
pleasing and meaning as in music, painting, architecture, and sculpture.
They are called major arts because they appeal to the senses of sight,
hearing, and feeling. They are more notable and conspicuous in effect.
On the other hand, the aesthetic factor in the minor arts lies in the
“styling”. They are addressed primarily to the sense of sight and their
usefulness. The minor arts are inferior in degree, especially in the extent of
aesthetic quality.
According to Manaois, there are two (2) general dimensions of arts,
namely, (1) fine arts or independent arts made principally for aesthetic
enjoyment through the senses, especially visual and auditory such as
painting, sculpture, architecture, literature, theater, performing arts, and (2)
practical arts or utilitarian arts intended for practical use or the
development of raw materials for functional purposes such as industrial art,
civic art, commercial art, graphic art, agricultural and fishery art.
 Estolas (1995) also grouped arts into:
1. Visual Arts. These artworks are perceived by our eyes which may be
classified into graphic arts and plastic arts. Graphic arts have flat
two- dimensional surface such as painting industry. It covers the
commercial arts like the design of books, advertisements, signs,
posters and other displays for advertisements. Plastic arts are visual
arts which have three- dimensional forms. Under this grouping are:
architectural designs and construction of buildings and other
structures; landscape of gardens, parks, playgrounds, and golf
courses with plants ,trees, vines and ground cover;
2. Performing Arts. These include the theater, play, dance, and music.
They involve movement, speaking and gestures.
3. Literary Arts. These include the short stories, novels, poetry and dramas.
4. Popular Arts. These include the film, newspaper, magazine, radio
and television. This group is characterized as gay and lively.
5. Gustatory Art of the Cuisine. This involves skills in food preparation.
6. Decorative Arts. They are visual objects produced for beautifying
houses, offices, cars and other structures. They are also called
applied arts.

Sanchez, Abad, and Jao (2001) grouped arts into:

1. Visual arts. These include graphic arts (which include drawing,
painting, photography, etc. or in which portrayals of forms and
symbols are recorded on a two-dimensional surface) and plastic arts
(which comprise all fields of visual arts for which materials are
arranged in three-dimensional forms namely, structural architecture,
interior arranging, crafts, sculpture, industrial design, dress and
costume design and theatre design.
2. Literature. These include drama, essay, prose fiction, poetry, and
miscellaneous (history, biography, journals, diaries, and other works
not formally classed as literature).
3. Music. These include vocal music; instrumental music; music
combined with other music like opera, operatta and musical comedy,
oratorio and cantata; and other forms like ballet music and
background music for motion pictures.
4. Drama and Theater. These include tragedy, melodrama, comedy,
miscellaneous
5. Dance. These include ethnologic, social or ballroom dances, ballet,
modern, musical comedy.
 Barrios (2012) classified arts into two: according to purpose and
according to media and forms.
1. According to Purpose
A. Practical or useful arts are those human activities
directed to produce artifacts, tools and utensils used in
doing households and everyday chores.
Examples: basket weaving agriculture, etc.
B. Liberal Arts involve the development of man’
intellectual reasoning.
Examples: Mathematics, Astronomy, Grammar
C. Fine Arts are the products of the human creative
activity as they express beauty in different ways and
media for the satisfaction and relaxation of man’s mind
and spirit.
Examples: painting, sculpture, architecture
D. Major Arts are characterized by their actual and
potential expressiveness and by a purely disinterested
purpose.
Examples: music, poetry, sculpture
E. Minor Arts are works connected with practical uses and
purposes.
Examples: interior decoration, porcelain
2. According to Media and Forms
A. Plastic Arts are developed through space and perceived
by the sense of sight.
Examples: painting, sculpture, architecture
B. Phonetic Arts are based on sounds and words as media
of expression.
Examples: music, drama, literature
C. Kinetic Arts make use of the rhythmic movement as
the elements of expression.
Example: dance
D. Pure Arts utilize only one medium of expression.
Examples: sound in music, color in painting
E. Mixed Arts use two or more media.
Example: The opera(which is a combination of music,
poetry, and drama)