Painting, music, theater, and dance are all considered art forms. These different types of art are distinct from each other but have one element in common which is the fact that all these art forms are means of artistic expression.
Painting is a two-dimensional art form that is the product of applying colors to a variety of surfaces (The Free Dictionary, 2008, “Painting”). A painting is composed of several elements that when put together creates a piece of art. Some of the characteristics of painting are medium, color, lines, and space.Usually paintings are painted on canvasses but there are also other mediums such as tiles, textile and concrete walls.
The kind of medium used can make a lot of difference in a painting. Meanwhile, color, lines and space are elements incorporated within a painting. Various treatments of these elements can affect the meaning of a painting. More so, there are numerous styles of painting. The most common styles are impressionism, expressionism, abstract and modernism.
Art style is the result of the combination aesthetic values and artistic techniques of the painter.Artist scan manipulate the elements and technique of a painting according to their own perspective (Philips, 1994, “Painting Styles”). Music is the art of organizing sounds to make a consolidated, continuous and expressive composition. Through “harmony, timbre and rhythm, melody” music is produced (The Free Dictionary, 2008, “Music”). Harmony is the simultaneous sound of one or more pitch in music (Jones, 2007, “Harmony”) while timbre is the distinct sound or note that a particular instrument produces (Jones, 2007, “Timbre”).
On the other hand, rhythm is generally defined as the recurring sound pattern in music (Jones, 2007, “Rhythm”) and melody is a group of notes that is played note by note (Jones, 2007, “Melody”). The fusion of all these elements produces music which can very depending on the treatment of each element. More so, there are many types of music depending on the combination of the basic music elements. It can come in the form of classical, instrumental, a capella, rock, rhythm and blues, techno, jazz and others.
Music is expressed in various forms such as in singing, communicating, dancing and acting.All of these produce or use music to enhance each means of musical expression. Theater is an ancient tradition of entertaining. Performers act a particular story or plot on a platform or the stage.
Theater is greatly appreciated by many because of its elements that include sound, lights, properties and costumes (MSN Encarta, 2002, “Theater”). Sound is usually the background music used to highlight a particular scene while light brings emphasis on the actors on stage. Properties and costume are utilized to make the story more believable and realistic. These two will depend on the time and place setting of the story.The art of theater can be in the form of a play, musical and soliloquy wherein actors used their movements, their bodies, the music and communication to convey their message or story.
Meanwhile, dance is a set of movements accompanied by music. Dance can be done in solitary or in groups (Brainy Media, 2008, “Dance”). In order to dance well, basic elements in dancing must be considered such as rhythm, balance, posture and gesture. Rhythm is the beat in dance. A dancer must determine the beat for proper execution. To keep balance, all parts of the body must have a connecting relationship to be able to move as one.
On the other hand, posture is the right body alignment and in order to achieve “movement and balance” a dancer must have good posture. Gesture is defined as the use of the body as a means of expressing of concepts and emotions in sets of movements (Assaf, “The Elements of Dance/Fundamentals of Movements”). When all these dance elements are put together, different combinations will be produced that establishes the representation of the dance. Because of this, many types of dance are created like ballroom dancing, modern dance, salsa dancing, ballet, folk dancing and others.Painting, music, theater and dance are all art forms but these four have specific characteristics that make each discipline unique.
Among the four art forms, painting is the only two-dimensional representation of the artist’s concept of art. Music, on the other hand is more of an auditory experience rather than visual. Meanwhile, dance can’t exist without music or sound but compared to the three it is more interactive using almost all parts of the body to convey a certain message. However, of all the four art forms, theater can combine painting, music and dance making it more complex and provocative.
