MIXED ARTS: CHARACTERISTICS, TECHNIQUES, EXAMPLES - ART - 2025

The mixed arts can be any activity or product that is made with an aesthetic or communicative purpose, by which emotions, ideas and, usually, a vision of the world are expressed. These arts are carried out through the use and union of different resources, which can be sound, plastic, linguistic and corporal, among others.

These arts are a primary component of culture, as they can reflect the social and economic foundations of a given society. They also allow the transmission of values ​​and ideas that are inherent in any human culture throughout history.

Ballet is considered a mixed art. Source: pixabay.com

Many historians consider that the appearance of art arose with Homo sapiens. However, at the beginning the arts had a religious, ritual or magical function -paleolithic art-, which later changed in parallel with the evolution of man.

Then there was a more aesthetic inclination and a social, commercial, pedagogical or ornamental function. At present, the word "art" is used to designate any activity of man that has been carried out with dedication or care.

It is also used to name a set of regulations that are necessary to efficiently develop a job; for example: martial arts or the art of fishing, among others.

The arts are synonymous with skill, talent, ability and experience. Specifically, the mixed arts are understood as the different means of human expression that are characterized by their creative inclinations, and differ from the others by their heterogeneous approach, since they use various artistic techniques to carry out their works.

characteristics

Artistic manifestation

Mixed arts, like the other arts, have a set of artistic activities that can be classified in different ways and that have been modified throughout the history of humanity.

Previously, artistic manifestations were called Fine Arts, and there were included disciplines such as literature, music, dance, theater, painting, architecture and sculpture.

Media

One of the main characteristics of any type of art is that it acts as a form of expression. This expression works as a means of communication between societies.

Likewise, since its inception the arts have been used to transmit ideas, whether of a religious, social or moral nature, among others.

As for the mixed or heterogeneous arts, these also function as means of communication; however, they do it through different perspectives and not just from a specific technique.

For example, opera not only communicates an idea through music, but it also communicates through the costumes, scenery, and lyrics of the songs that make up the work.

Creativity, originality and innovation

Mixed arts are the product of a series of activities that require creativity. In addition, since modern times the arts have sought to innovate and build works that are original, since it is increasingly difficult to offer a novel artistic manifestation.

Subjectivity

Another of the most important characteristics of mixed arts is its subjective character. This is because any art can be interpreted from different perspectives and be influenced by cultural, educational or academic features.

Heterogeneity

Mixed arts maintain the same aspects of conventional arts, such as subjectivity and creativity. However, they differ from these by the fact that they do not use a single technique to carry out the work or object, but rather use different resources to elaborate their creation.

For example, painting itself is a conventional art, since it only uses the pictorial technique to create. On the other hand, there are photographic techniques that use pictorial elements during photo sessions or in post-production; this type of art can be considered as mixed.

Techniques

Union of visual and pictorial elements

Painting allows images to be created by applying colorful pigments to a surface, whether it be fabric, paper, wood or wall, among others. This technique has been used for centuries to document the surrounding world and reality, reflecting in his works the historical evolution of different societies.

On the other hand, photography is a much more recent artistic resource. Its appearance dates from the end of the 19th century, although it developed with greater success during the 20th century. From the beginning, photographers were interested in imitating painting, since it was a key point of reference within the artistic world.

Currently, the editing processes have allowed photographers to play with their own creations, modifying the color and contrast, among other elements. Today there is a photographic movement that is responsible for reinterpreting paintings; For this, the photographer imitates the colors and elements that appear in the most famous works of art.

Union of scenic and musical elements

The theater consists of a scenic art that aims to represent a literary creation through actors, who become characters.

Without a doubt, theater is a mixed art since it uses other arts to complement its representation, such as music, scenography, and costumes.

One of the most important artistic combinations within the art world resides in the union between music and theater, which has given rise to recognized manifestations such as opera and zarzuela.

Union of bodily and musical elements

Ballet can also be considered as a mixed art, since it consists of the union of a specialized and rigorous dance with orchestral music, currently known as classical music.

In addition, this type of dance also has a certain relationship with the literary arts, because they generally tell a story that passes linearly and is interpreted by the dancers without the need to speak, since they express themselves through their gestures and movements.

Examples

Man Ray and Salvador Dalí: united by surrealism

Man Ray and Salvador Dalí were two great artists whose creations were notably influenced by the Surrealist movement.

Salvador Dalí, although he was a multifaceted artist, excelled in the art of painting, while Man Ray devoted himself to photography. On many occasions, both artists merged their creations to give their works a different approach.

Man Ray's photography can be considered as a mixed art as he sometimes tried to reconstruct the surreal pictorial elements within his photographs.

This fusion of photography with painting can be seen in his works entitled Rayogramas, in which you can see a set of objects that have been placed in such a way that they do not look like photographs, but paintings. For this, Ray relied on the game with lighting and contrasts.

Ballet

This composition is an ideal example of mixed art, combining ballet dance together with a fairy tale - the story of Swan Lake - and a highly acclaimed orchestral composition created by the Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

In the original production the choreography was produced by Julius Reisinger, a Czech teacher and dancer, who designed the dance based on the composition of Tchaikovsky. Other artistic resources also participate in this ballet, such as scenography, lighting and costumes.

References

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