Unit 1: Influences on Art

Many factors play a role in how art is defined and how it is interpreted. An individual’s culture is extremely important in how they acknowledge art. Every culture is different and takes pride in different things. For example, in the African American culture, we enjoy viewing art pieces that strongly represents family and our elders.  African American abstract paintings have many bright colors incorporated into them. Also, African American portraits may have a musical aspect to them such as a gentleman playing the saxophone. The African American paintings focus on emphasizing factors that we believe are in important in our culture, which are things such as family, independence, harmony, faith, religion and happiness. An individual’s childhood experiences also influences how they view art. Items that they find familiar to them may be what they choose to incorporate into their art. For example, if a person visited the beach frequently as a child, they may incorporate the beach into many of their art pieces. Another major influence on art is religion. A person’s religion can determine how they view art and what they believe art should be about. There are a plethora of influences on art, each contributing to how a person views and determines art.