Western Versus Non-western art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Western Versus Non-western art - Essay Example They can be used to pass information from one generation to another. Different traditions have different pieces of artworks that identify their uniqueness. Traditional western civilization had developed in terms of art uniquely as art had developed in traditional Africa. This paper will compare and contrast two artworks that origination from the tradition of western civilization and traditional African culture. Artworks from western civilization tradition are among the most analyzed pieces of art because of their quality, style and depiction. It is important to point out that artworks from western civilization tradition were developed realistically with faithful depictions of beings and matter. This was done in both paintings and sculptures. It is also essential to note that it was the culture that invented ways of depicting three-dimensional objects in two-dimensional formats. In fact, it has been noted to be the unique style in all human cultures (Neer 31). The traditional western civilization that includes Greeks and Romans were known to develop artworks that were progressive in nature. Unlike, Egyptians from African traditions whose artwork did not change considerably in many years, traditional western civilization art changed and transformed as time progressed. As Camille Paglia states in her book, Sexual Personae Egyptians created a clear and perfect piece of art that was known as Apollonian form (Paglia). It later formed the basis of western civilization art. Egyptian art especially sculptures was meant for the preservation of the body after death. Artists used their memory and followed strict rules. Greek artists studied and imitated Egyptian work but developed new pieces unlike Egyptians who followed the traditional school of art (Paglia 17). In comparison to traditional African sculptures such as fang’s reliquary, sculptures from traditional western civilizat