THE ROLE OF ART IN OUR LIFE

1) Art plays an important role in upbringing our emotions, tastes and feelings, it changes our
views, outlook and mood, enriches our inner world and cultivates love for people and nature.
Great works of art enable man to look at the world as if through a magnifying glass, bringing
into focus all that is most important and significant.
2) There are many kinds of art, among them fine arts, applied arts, visual arts, pop (folk) arts,
architecture, music, dance, literature, photography, industrial and interior design. As for fine
arts, they include painting, drawing, sculpture and graphic design. The applied arts imply
everything that can be useful, artistic and beautiful. The collections of applied art include
ceramics (pottery), printmaking, weaving, furniture, wax, mosaic, woodcarving, jewellery-
making and metalwork. Visual arts are cinema, theatre, sand animation, video and computer
art.
3) The language of art is universal. Everybody, in spite of age, nationality, occupation
understands what is said by the painter or composer. The names of the greatest artists and
sculptors, musicians and composers, poets and writers are written into the world’s art forever
because their art is distinguished by humanism, the vital truth and realism. Besides, each of
the great masters of the past was a link in the chain of mankind’s spiritual progress, and each
of them played a part in it, revealing new aspects of man’s spirit, finding new possibilities of
its artistic expression.
4) As for me, painting is the most understandable way of art, because it gives us the fullest and
the most vivid impression. Art gives people a possibility to express themselves and become
famous. But I don’t think that every painter becomes famous. Only talented, gifted people like
Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Botticelli, El Greco, Rembrandt, Rubens, Turner, Gainsborough,
Monet, Renoir, Levitsky, Repin, Shishkin, Vrubel, Aivazovsky, Kuindzhi, Shevchenko and
others could create great, eternal art, real masterpieces. Real art appeals to the heart and mind
of a man, to his feelings and it proclaims life.
5) Art is an all-embracing notion (music, painting, theatre, literature and so on). Art had the most
important role in the development of the mankind. Art helps us to understand people who
lived hundred years ago and learn the history of the mankind.
6) The language of art is universal. Painting is the most understandable way of art, because it
gives us the most full and vivid impression. The first pictures were found on walls of ancient
caves. So, we can guess that painting was the first way of art.
7) Art has great influence on our souls, feelings, forms our moral values. Art forms our outlook
and enriches our inner world. Art influences greatly the development and of evolution of
consciousness of a person and of the mankind. Art brings people up – makes them more
humane and kind. Art makes us think of the sense of life, how people must live, what ideal of
beauty is, what love is, — the eternal questions. Art creates our notion about beauty and
harmony.
8) Art helps people to understand outside world and each other.
9) Art develops our good qualities.
10) Art has a great educational significance.
11) Real art radiates mysterious energy, it is eternal and never-ending.
12) Art is the best way to escape from the stress, strain/fatique, depression and despair.
13) Every well-educated person should be an expert in the fine arts.
14) Art is an imaginative reflection of reality, the main goal of which is interrelation of people
with something wonderful, sensitive, interesting and beautiful, sometimes even inexplicable
and contradictory. I think that cinema, painting, architecture and other kinds of art should
arouse different emotions, feelings and thoughts in human soul and mind. Undoubtedly, the
same work of art can stir up absolutely opposite feelings in people`s souls. For example,
looking at the fresco "Last Judgement" by Michelangelo, the splendid and talented creator of
the Renaissance era, in the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, some people admire the beauty of
conveyed images, other people think about the idea of world division into saints and sinners,
 someone thinks about the correlation between good and evil and this consequence of
emotions and thoughts is never-ending.
15) In works of art we see the author`s point of view on some situations or generalized
knowledge of the creator, expressed with the help of artistic images. We can agree or
disagree with the author`s opinion because each person has his own vision of the world and
there is no right or wrong opinion – so many men, so many minds.
16) Art does not leave us indifferent.
17) Influence of art on people is great . It can make us smile or cry, love or hate, be glad or be
worried. It can inspire us when we are spiritually and morally broken.
18) Art is a means of propaganda and in the sense of tool it can motivate and energize.

A. What are the advantages of art?

B. What are the disadvantages of art?
C. What is art for you?
D. Why do people go to the museums and galleries?
E. Why do you go to the museums and galleries?
F. Which famous museums do you know?
G. Which of them have you visited?
H. Which of them would you like to visit?
I. What painters are your favourite ones?
J. What are your favourite paintings? Name them.