What Is a Formalist Approach in Art History?
Formalism, or formal analysis, is an approach to art history and criticism that takes the form or shape of a work as its starting point. This approach to understanding art has been used since the early twentieth century and is still widely used today. This method of analysis attempts to describe and explain the effects created by the elements of a work of art such as line, color, shape, texture, and other formal aspects.
The formalist approach examines how these elements interact with each other to create meaning in the artwork. It focuses on the idea that form can be used to convey meaning and emotion in an artwork.
For example, an artist could use certain shapes to evoke feelings of sadness or joy in a viewer. Formalists also look at how an artwork’s composition affects its overall meaning and impact. An artist may choose to place certain elements together in a way that creates an overall feeling or message within the artwork.
Formalism is often contrasted with other approaches to understanding art such as iconography (the study of symbols), semiotics (the study of signs), psychoanalytical approaches (analysis through psychoanalysis), Marxist approaches (analysis through economic theory), and phenomenology (analysis through lived experience). While formalism may not be able to provide full explanations for why a work was created or what it means, it can provide insights into how it works as an aesthetic object.
Formalism is not limited only to visual art but can be applied to any type of artistic expression including literature, music, theater, and dance. By looking at how these forms interact with each other within a specific culture or time period, we can gain insights into how humans have historically expressed themselves artistically.
Conclusion
In conclusion, formalism is an important approach for understanding art history which focuses on analyzing how different elements interact within a work of art in order to convey meaning and emotion. It has been used for centuries by critics and historians alike in order to gain insight into works from various cultures and time periods. Formalism may not provide full explanations for why works were created or what they mean but it does offer valuable insight into how they function as aesthetic objects within their respective contexts.