The ManicaPost
Friday Lessons with Sir Shelton Mwanyisa
Greetings parents, guardians and learners.
Welcome to the Visual and Performing Arts weekly lessons.
Visual and Performing Arts is a learning area that includes History and culture, the creative process and performance, aesthetic values and appreciation, arts technology and enterprise skills.
Our topic for today is Importance of Visual and Performing Arts.
Learners are expected to:
i, list at least four examples of visual arts.
ii, differentiate between visual and performing arts.
Iii, justify the significance of visual and performing arts in society
Art is viewed as a way of expression.
Visual arts are forms of expression that include displayed artworks.
Visual arts can be 2 Dimensional or 3Dimensional.
2D means that the artworks are flat.
Examples of 2D artworks are photographs, drawings, paintings, pictures, shapes, printing among others.
3D artworks occupy space and are called sculptures.
Sculptures can be made of different materials, including wood, cement, sand, plastic, wire and stone.
The most common stone used for sculptures in Zimbabwe is the soap stone.
It is the stone that was used to make the Zimbabwe bird.
The granite rock was also used to construct the Great Zimbabwe Monuments.
Wooden sculptures are common in homes as wooden plates and cooking sticks.
Performing arts are forms of expression in which the body is used to communicate a message.
In most cases performing arts are done on a stage.
Examples of performing arts include poetry, comedy, public speaking, and theatre.
Some performing artists in Zimbabwe include Aleck Macheso who is a musician; Albert Nyati, a poet; and Kapfupi, a comedian.
As you might have noticed, performing arts are different from visual arts in that performances are done by the body for a purpose that is short lived.
On the other hand, visual arts can be displayed on walls, ground and on furniture.
Importance of visual arts.
1. Visual arts are important for self expression.
2. Artworks are our heritage. Arts form part of our cultural properties.
3. Arts are a source of entertainment
4. It is a source of entrepreneurship opportunity. One can earn a living through arts.
5. Creates employment for those who work with artists.
Examples are reporters, teachers and historians.
6. Arts educate the society, especially music and theatre.
7. Earns the country foreign currency through exporting artworks.
8. Visual and performing arts are used for decorative purposes.
Items such as sculptures and paintings are used to beautify homes.
9. Some artworks are used for ceremonial purposes.
For example the knobkerrie, baskets and clay pots are used for traditional ceremonies.
10. Household utensils are also important visual arts.
Your exercise for the day:
1. What are visual arts?
2. What are performing arts?
3. Which stone was used to make the Zimbabwe bird?
4. What material was used to construct the Great Zimbabwe monuments?
5. List five importance of visual and performing arts.
6. State any three examples of 2D shapes.
7. State three examples of 3D shapes.
Now that we know what visual and performing arts are, next week we focus on indigenous and foreign music instruments.
