Color, Facture, Art and Design: Artistic Technique and the Precisions of Human Perception

by Iona Singh

Color, Facture, Art and Design seeks to understand art and design from the aspect of materials, construction and the senses. It contends that this element is omitted from art and design theory as a product of the division of labour and alienation as it operates within the realms of theory and art history. It investigates the "beauty" of art based on the somatic "magic" of the physical body and its relationship to nature, arguing that the sensual affect of expert artistic combinations of art materials in some paintings exploits a bridge between the intricacies of human sentience and the external world. Art is thus more accurately located next to the sciences of language, mathematics, physiology and psychoanalysis. As the "pure mathematics" of the discipline, this materialist definition of fine-art develops guidelines for architecture, design, cultural-studies and ultimately social change.

Genres: Art, Philosophy

191 pages, ebook

First published October 1, 2012

Reviews

[Gary Tedman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know Iona well, and I've been involved in some of her thought processes in the making of this book, I am pleeased to say, but reading it was still a bit of a revelation for me. As usual her writing has a distinct quality all her own, with a nice turn of phrase. But to get to the point, I think when she analyses art practices she provides us with a deep materialist insight into art that I find lacking in most art history and criticism, an approach which gives a very inclusive feel that takes account of every social level, including the aesthetic level, and is able to untangle their interaction in history. Importantly, this does not see the artist as a passive responder to social context, but also as an agency within the process of the production of art with its own specific social role and, so, political effectivity. This approach also enables her to unpack some of the deleterious aesthetic effects of dominant industries, such as color in relation to oil and plastics in the aesthetic environment, a subject of obvious and immediate relevance today. It is the way she ties up aesthetic sensual form with history and politics that is so fresh and different. She is not an academic, so her work does not receive the standard amount of attention that it would have deserved from that quarter, unfortunately, but I think it will gradually gain its rightful place.

[Ernie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read some good reviews on the internet about this book that intruiged me. I must say I'm glad I bought it, it is quite an original perspective for judging art in a more solid and I think probably 'scientific' way. It is certainly not the same as any of the art history or criticism I've come across. The way the materials of Vermeer's work are examined, for example, the pigments and oils and all that is understood as being part of the "affect" of the painting and of stimulating various sensory connections in the mind and body of the viewer.
This is all linked to materialism, dialectical, in the Marxist sense that indicates relationships between these things that I never thought of.
The author then relates these findings to design and architecture in the 'designed and built environment' which is also conducive to feelings.
I think it is written in a slightly academic way but worth staying with to gain some profound incites and ideas that takes art and art criticism out of its own butt, away from the flowery elite language of lots of art criticism, and into other disciplines that are scientific, so the status of art is also made scientific.

[aclementine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Throughout studying for my degree and my Masters, I have found that many questions and dilemmas brought up in classes and my own personnal research can be traced back and answered in this book - it covers a wide range of topics in art and can also be used in a whole other of range of topics if wished. Of course it is a book about art, but it also analyses and it can be used to understand and to study Man's place in the world and in today's society. It is a book that allows for thought and reflection, all the while teaching us specific and rational elements about materials and technique. It is practical in many ways, but also offers a very rich theoretical view on art and human perception, connecting them to other realms and interests that could be applied to almost every domaine. I have used this books to develop my practical work as a painter, but also in my essays. It has allowed for a rational and rich base from which I have been able to grow my own personnal research. Despite coming back to this book time and time again, I would be happy to do so once again in order to use it in other subjects (fashion being an example).

[Mathieu Jacobé · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very surprised with this book, I was very pleased to see how accessible and complete this book is. I initially bought it as a birthday present for my girlfriend studying art and tried to read it myself and have no regrets doing so ! Brilliant read for art academics as well as newcomers.