Contemporary Art Forms from the Regions
PHILIPPINE CONTEMPORARY ARTS
• Philippine Contemporary Art can be classified into seven major art forms. These are painting,
sculpture, architecture, film, literature, music and theater, and dance.
• Philippine contemporary arts can be described into visual arts, literary arts and performing arts. Visual
art is an expression of artistic ideas through images, structures, and tactile work. Some visual artworks
are integrated which means it combines several mediums to create new and unique artwork. Painting,
sculpture, architecture, and film are examples of visual arts.
SEVEN (7) MAJOR ART FORMS
• Painting - the expression of ideas and emotions, with the creation of certain aesthetic qualities, in a
two-dimensional visual language. The elements of this language – its shapes, lines, colors, tones, and
textures – are used in various ways to produce sensations of volume, space, movement, and light on a
flat surface. The first paintings here in the Philippines are commissioned works during Spanish
colonization.
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The Sketch by Victorio Edades Magellan’s Cross by Raul Agas Salaam (Peace) by Rameer Tawasil
• Sculpture - is an art form in which hard or plastic materials are worked into three-dimensional art
objects. Filipino sculptors came to be known in the middle of the 19th century.
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The Bonifacio Monument by Sandugo (Blood Compact) by Six Ladies in Durian by
Guillermo Tolentino Napoleon Abueva Kublai Millan
• Architecture - is the art and practice of designing and constructing buildings (Cambridge Advanced
Learner’s Dictionary & Thesaurus). In relation to that, Philippine architecture was characterized as
simple, rational, and functional. In the 20th century, the young Filipino who studied in American colleges
and institutes introduced the neoclassic style in building structures. However, after World War II, real
estate development started to take place (Sandagan & Sayseng, 2016).
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Cultural Center of the Philippines by Basilica Minore del Santo Niño Church Pearl Farm Beach Resort by
Leandro Locsin by Fray Juan de Albarran, O.S.A. Francisco Manosa
• Film - is a form of visual art use to imitate experiences that communicate ideas, stories, or feelings
with the use of moving images. It is also called a movie or motion picture. Moreover, the art form that is
the result of the film is called cinema (Faber & Walters, 2003). The film industry in the Philippines
started in 1897. In the contemporary period, martyr wife, superhero, action, melodramas, and comedies
are some of the usual subjects and themes in the Philippine films.
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Literary Arts - are an expression of ideas through writing. Literary arts can be categorized as poetry,
prose, and drama.
• Literature - is a term used to describe written and sometimes spoken material. Derived from the Latin
word literature meaning "writing formed with letters," literature most commonly refers to works of the
creative imagination, including poetry, drama, fiction, nonfiction, and in some instances, journalism, and
song.
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• A Blade of Fern by Edith • Panhayhayhin • Dead Stars by H.O. Santos
Ocampo Bungtohanon by Francisco • Indarapatra at Sulayman by
• I Saw the Fall of the Alvarado Bartolome Del Valle
Philippines by Carlos • Ang Higugma by
P. Romulo Iluminado Lucente
Performing Arts - A person doing certain actions and movements in front of an audience that go along
with sound in a space and time.
• Music and Theater
Music - is a collection of coordinated sound or sounds. According to Ramon P. Santos in his article
entitles Contemporary Music, Contemporary music in the Philippines usually refers to compositions that
have adopted ideas and elements from twentieth-century art music in the West, as well as the latest
trends and musical styles in the entertainment industry. Filipino Music had already a rich and unique
musical tradition long before westerners set foot on our native land. Music was present in every stage of
our ancestors’ lives — from birth to death, in blissful or tragic times.
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• Pastores • Pinalangga • Buyayang
Theatre - is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real
or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this
experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music, or dance.
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• Dance - the movement of the body in a rhythmic way, usually to music and within a given space, for
the purpose of expressing an idea or emotion, releasing energy, or simply taking delight in the
movement itself.
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