6 an informed and appropriate interpretation of the function and purpose of the selected artworks, objects, and artifacts within the cultural context in which they were created. At the highest level of achievement, the work demonstrates a consistently informed by reliable sources and appropriate interpretation of the function and purpose of the selected pieces within the cultural context in which they were created.
For self-expression: for the personal expression of the artist. Although this is considered the artist's main motivation by a modern audience, there are in fact few artists who create art purely for themselves. Even if they are financially independent, which is rare, they will always be working for an audience. However, artists such as Van Gogh and Edvard Munch by examining their personal psychological trauma through their art help us to better understand the human condition - what it is to live, suffer and die.
For contemplation: to enjoy art for its aesthetic beauty; sometimes this is called "art for art's sake". In western culture the principal function of art was to be aesthetically pleasing. The Romantic movement in the 18th century changed this, considering emotions such as terror to be more powerful than beauty. Some modern art has also challenged ideas of the beautiful. Aesthetics depends on cultural context as there are different ideas of what is beautiful. Consider the classical aesthetic, that is, from ancient Greece and Rome; the machine aesthetic (this is what the Futurists aspired to the sensual curve and gleam of a car bonnet, for example); the modern aesthetic (the pure forms and white surfaces of early modernism) or the postmodern aesthetic (the late 20th century fashion of combining completely opposing styles).
For decoration: pattern, colour, texture all serve to give variety and life to our surroundings. Decoration is the primary function of many of the artifacts in our daily lives, from the patterns on ceramics to the stripes on your trainers, and the same is true of the original purpose of many objects that are now in museums.
For catharsis: as a release from powerful emotions. This is an ancient Greek idea that to see images of violence helps us to control or release our feelings of aggression through art rather than in action. Shocking the spectator is a method of achieving this. Think also of gothic film and images of death and destruction.
Who paid for this artwork? Consider who is paying for the materials and the artist's labour. The piece may have been made to a specific order, that is, commissioned. There may have been a contract drawn up by the patron (the person who pays for an artwork). The patron may have been a religious individual or group, the state, or a wealthy private individual. Art dealers arrange contracts with their artists. Contemporary gallerists provide studios and a wage for their artists in exchange for a set number of artworks.
Where was it created for? Art is often made for a specific place. Consider whether this was a public or private space. Was the work made for the private contemplation of a few privileged people or for many to admire? Perhaps for a religious or a secular building. Was it designed for a specific architectural setting?
Who is looking? Consider the audience, the viewer, the spectator. The next section considers how you might present answers to these questions, but first consider them in relation to function. Who are we when looking at this artwork? What are the ways in which we regard the figures?
To question: in the past art was used within the constraints of strict convention, but in modern societies the role of art is often to subvert accepted ways of doing things, or to make us see with fresh eyes. Irony is often used to subvert convention: by choosing a disjuncture of scale; by juxtaposing imagery that would not normally be seen in the same context; by using an unexpected or inappropriate media; by using an inappropriate style, such as being soft and gentle for a gruesome act, and, of course, by using humour. For example, Margaret Wertheim's group project to crochet a coral reef, "transforming the hard and wet into the fluffy and dry", this is ironic and its purpose is to disrupt conventional ways of seeing the world. Appropriation is another way in which artists question the values of contemporary culture by recycling imagery. Most collage relies on the juxtaposition of images to suggest new meanings, or to disrupt the established order of the world.