The Meaning of Art in Society

In this paper we will discuss the concept of art by presenting out perception, defining our preferred art forms and drawing a conclusion by applying the theory of aesthetics, semiology (semiotics) and hermeneutics. The main goal is to look at different art forms in order to evaluate the meaning and place of arts in our society.
Animation as an art form
Animation, as an art form can be presented as entertainment, education, information, inspiration showing us the world in such a different way we do not imagine it. In this case, we can look at animators as artists and entertainers as well. They are always striving to give us a new perception of the surrounding environment and always doing it in such a funny and simple way. The power of animators is that they can tell edifying story in way that live action could not. By taking us in a new reality, animation professionals show us animated characters presented as real human beings. We can find a lot of common with them because they are all like us with the entire behavior, attitude and feelings. Thus, we could consider the animation as a mirror, reflection of our own physical and mental evolution. In this way, we can conclude that the development of animation goes together with the development of our society. With all the changes in our lives, the massage and the way it is delivered change as well.

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All the art forms, including literature, painting, sculpture, and dance are about telling a story or making a statement. As a part of this group animation is educational tool and inspiration for all generations because everyone could find some new and useful ideas in such a simple story. Going out of imagination limits this form is accessible for everyone no matter the age, social and financial status.
Animation has a rich and long history. The first animation form came on the scene in the early 1900s. J. Steward Blackton produced the first stop-frame animated cartoon, titled Humorous Phases of a Funny Face, in 1906. Another early landmark was Winsor McCay’s Gertie the Dinosaur (1914), a popular animated feature consisting of 10,000 illustrations hand-drawn on rice paper by the McCay and an assistant.
The best known of these film animators was Walt Disney, who in 1928 produced Steamboat Willie starring Mickey Mouse, and who in 1937 brought to the American movie screen the first full-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Disney introduced numerous technical refinements and innovations intro his animated features in order to provide greater realism and to heighten the illusion of depth.
Since the early days, animators have used new technologies to their advantage. Some of the techniques used by animators nowadays include cel animation, clay animation, pixelation, rotoscoping, photo montage, puppetry, cut-paper animation, and computer animation, Although the artist remains a dominant figure in the animation process, the introduction of computers has brought about a major transformation in the animation industry. Not only is computer automation cutting production time and costs, it is also producing startling new effects and unprecedented results in the animation features and programs being shown on our television screens, computer monitors, and movie screens.
As technology continue to develop and gives us new tools and opportunities the animators will be challenged to use them in order to tell us new entertaining stories and show us the world in new and different way. The future of animation looks to be bright but the development depends on the professionals’ ability to use the new technologies and methods in the right way striving always to get beyond spectator’s imagination. The premises for success are not far to seek.
Hermeneutics of Animation: Hermeneutics is the study of interpretation theory, and can be either the art of interpretation, or the theory and practice of interpretation. Animation is interpreted as a picture of entertainment. People like to entertain themselves and animation is a good way to escape from the everyday pressure and relax. People always like to feel happy. Animation is inviting people to spend their free time by watching a good production and become a guilty pleasure for some of them. This art form is not about children, culture and social status. Wherever animation is played, class, race and nationality do no longer exist. People’s roles of judgment and imagination play both in our experiences of animation and its critical interpretation, and reevaluate our current understandings of animation’s transformative power.
Semiotics of Animation: Semiotics “deals with meanings and messages in all their
forms and in all their contexts”(R.E. Innis,1985); “the subject matter of semiotics is the exchange of any messages whatsoever – in a word communication” (T.A. Sebeok ,1994).
Animation can be used to exploit familiar processes, or objects that have properties similar to the context of the intended message Animators must also appreciate the need to use appropriate levels of abstraction. Animations should not contain objects or actions which are so detailed that they cause information overload. Equally, animations should not contain objects or actions that are so abstract that they cannot be associated with the real life experiences of the viewer.
Leaning Tower of Pisa
The Leaning Tower of Pisa or simply the Tower of Pisa the campanile, or freestanding bell tower, of the cathedral of the Italian city of Pisa. It is situated behind the Cathedral and is the third oldest structure in Pisa’s Cathedral Square after the Cathedral and the Baptistery.
Although intended to stand vertically, the tower began leaning to the southeast soon after the onset of construction in 1173 due to a poorly laid foundation and loose substrate that has allowed the foundation to shift direction. The tower presently leans to the southwest.
The Tower of Pisa is a work of art, performed in three stages over a period of about 177 years. Construction of the first floor of the white marble campanile began on August 9, 1173, a period of military success and prosperity. This first floor is a blind arcade articulated by engaged columns with classical Corinthian capitals.
According to me as any building construction which is manmade I think that the leaning tower of Pisa is a piece of art because of many reasons. It is considered to be a unique piece of art because of its structure and because of its existing. As you know this tower leans to southwest from its beginning and this made it a really nice art element which is known in the entire word. The fact that everybody knows this monument makes it an art form visited every year by tourists from all over the world. What I like in this monument and make it e real piece of art is that when they started to build, the tower collapsed because of the soft soil under it. People who were involved in this construction did not give up. By this time the Pisan’s (people from Pisa) were in civil war with Genoa, Lucca and Florence so they leave the tower for almost a century and after that they started to build again, because this was the symbol of their city and this shows their love and passion to the city and why this monument is so special for them. In my opinion this is more than art this is something which is emblematic for the construction by this period. Another thing which makes this a unique piece of art is that after finishing the tower many of the famous painters started to visit Pisa and settle their camp near by the tower and paint many pictures from each side of the monument so they painted in different angle. Therefore today you can see many different pictures of leaning tower of Pisa sometimes is leaning left side, in other cases backwards. This is unique because each painter interpret this tower by himself and shows to the world his own view and own understanding of this piece of art which is imbibed for many people which are involved in art. One more thing proving the uniqueness of this monument is that even today the great mass continues to sink very slowly. It is a question of about 1 mm. every year. Since nobody can state with mathematical security that this sinking will continue in the future at the present yearly rate, without its ceasing, remedies by means of adequate measures, based on scientific studies and projects, are under consideration. In the meantime supervision with instruments of very high precision is continuously being carried out.
In my opinion, the leaning tower of Pisa can be connceted to the semiology by this way. As we know semiology is a study of a sign and it can be applied to many things and one of them is architectural monuments as is this tower. So the tower in Pisa is absolute sign for the city and it is their symbol which represents them in front of the entire world. Therefore the Pisan’s (locals) finished it when she collapsed, because they really want this monument to be in their city to show that the Italians did not give up. Nowadays when you hear Pisa the first association is the leaning tower therefore this is a sign which makes this city so famous and visited by many tourists every year.
In conclusion I would like to say that it does not matter that this thing which you look at is something really unique or is something very simple like a small stone standing in the corner of an art gallery everything can be art it depends on how you see the things and how they touch your sense. We can find art all over the place; it depends on the ways of seeing.
The Eiffel Tower
This is a 19th century iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris that has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world. The Eiffel Tower, which is the tallest building in Paris, is the single most visited paid monument in the world; millions of people ascend it every year. Named after its designer, engineer Gustave Eiffel, the tower was built as the entrance arch for the 1889 World’s Fair. The tower stands at 324 m tall, It was the tallest structure in the world from its completion until 1930, when it was eclipsed by the Chrysler Building in New York City. The tower has three levels for visitors. The walk to the first level is over 300 steps, as is the walk from the first to the second level. The third and highest level is accessible only by lift. The tower has become the most prominent symbol of both Paris and France. Its iconic status is so established that it even serves as a symbol for the entire nation of France, such as when it was used as the logo for the French bid to host the 1992 Summer Olympics. When it was built after its completion it was considered to be one of the ugliest buildings in the world, but for me this is incredible piece of art and now it is one of the most impressive buildings in the world. I have been under the Eiffel Tower and thing which impress me a lot is the design. If we have to say something about how it is connected to tourism we just must notice how popular is: more than 200,000,000 people have visited the tower since its construction in 1889, including 6,719,200 in 2006, making it the most visited paid monument in the world. Another interesting thing which is good to be mentioned is that The Eiffel Tower is also very reproductive: As one of the most iconic images in the world, the Eiffel Tower has been the inspiration for dozens of duplicate and similar towers around the world.
Aesthetics: is concerned with the theory of beauty, but today it tends to be just concerned with the question of how we decide whether a work of art is good or not. Most judgments of this sort are based on either issues of form or content. For me the Eiffel Tower is great piece of work. From aesthetics point of view in order to maintain a uniform appearance to an observer on the ground, three separate colors of paint are used on the tower, with the darkest on the bottom and the lightest at the top. On occasion the colour of the paint is changed; the tower is currently painted a shade of brownish-grey. On the first floor there are interactive consoles hosting a poll for the colour to use for a future session of painting the only non-structural elements are the four decorative grillwork arches, added in Stephen Sauvestre’s sketches, which served to reassure visitors that the structure was safe, and to frame views of other nearby architecture.
Hermeneutics: This is essentially the philosophy of interpretation and meaning. It began as the study Biblical texts, but in the last 450 years has expanded to cover all forms of culture. There are a number of different approaches to hermeneutics but they all deal with very similar questions and issues. How is our interpretation influenced and determined by our level of knowledge and our position in history, society and culture? How can we try to ensure that our interpretation of signifiers, words, language, arts, culture is a good one?
I think that Eiffel Tower is piece of art because it is so great and tall, built so many years ago the tallest building in Europe. In the beginning the Paris citizens did not like it but now it is one of the most popular buildings in the world. The Eiffel Tower becomes very popular tourist attraction. So many people are going to see this attraction every year, to climb to top where they can see half of Paris. For me it is very beautiful land art. It inspires me when I am on top the feeling is great, built from so many fragments and so many people are working to keep it in perfect condition for the tourist. For conclusion I want to say that for me The Eiffel Tower is something very nice and everyone has to climb to the top to feel the wind.