Basic Art Terms
Basic Art Terms
Basic Art Terms
Light
(illusion or actual use of) luminosity. Used literally by
sculptors, photographers and architects; sometimes used for
dramatic effect with dark shadows.
Texture
the surface quality of an object, either real or made to appear
real, which appeals to the tactile imagination or feeling Hand-Out Prepared by: Ms. Joanna Parungao
(related term: tactile value)
Art: Multiplicity of Forms, Types and Genres
Line
Before trying to define art, the first thing to be aware of, is its Conclusion
huge scope.
The world of art is a highly complex entity, not only in terms of
Art is a global activity which encompasses a host of its multiplicity of forms and types, but also in terms of its
disciplines, as evidenced by the range of words and phrases historical and cultural roots. Therefore a simple definition, or
which have been invented to describe its various forms. even a broad consensus as to what can be labelled art, is
Examples of such phraseology include: "Fine Arts", "Liberal likely to prove highly elusive.
Arts", "Visual Arts", "Decorative Arts", "Applied Arts",
"Design", "Crafts", "Performing Arts", and so on.
The decorative and applied arts underwent a similar How is Art Classified?
transformation due to the availability of a vastly increased
range of commercial products. However, the resultant Traditional and contemporary art encompasses activities as
increase in the number of associated design and crafts diverse as:
disciplines did not have any significant impact on the
definition and meaning of art as a whole. Architecture, music, opera, theatre, dance, painting,
sculpture, illustration, drawing, cartoons, printmaking,
Meaning of Art Post-World War II ceramics, stained glass, photography, installation, video, film
and cinematography, to name but a few.
The cataclysm of WWII led to the demise of Paris as the
capital of world art, and its replacement by New York. This All these activities are commonly referred to as "the Arts" and
new American orientation encouraged art to become more of are commonly. classified into several overlapping categories,
a commercial product, and loosen its connection with existing such as: fine, visual, plastic, decorative, applied, and
traditions of aestheticism - a trend furthered by the performing.
emergence of Abstract Expressionism, Pop-Art, and the
activities of the new breed of celebrity artists like Andy Disagreement persists as to the precise composition of these
Warhol. All of a sudden, even the most mundane items and categories, but here is a generally accepted classification.
concepts became elevated to the status of "art". Under the
influence of this populist approach, conceptualists introduced 1. Fine Arts
new artforms, like assemblage, installation, video and
performance. In due course, graffiti added its own mark, as This category includes those artworks that are created
did numerous styles of reinterpretation, like Neo-Dada, Neo- primarily for aesthetic reasons ('art for art's sake') rather than
Expressionism, and Neo-Pop, to name but three. Schools and for commercial or functional use. Designed for its uplifting,
colleges of art throughout the world dutifully preached the life-enhancing qualities, fine art typically denotes the
new polytheism, adding further fuel to the bonfire of traditional, Western European 'high arts', such as:
Renaissance art traditions.
• Drawing
Using charcoal, chalk, crayon, pastel or with pencil or pen and
Postmodernism and the Meaning of Art ink.
The redefinition of art during the last three decades of the • Painting
20th century has been lent added intellectual weight by Using oils, watercolour, gouache, acrylics, ink and wash, or
theorists of the postmodernist movement. According to the the more old-fashioned tempera or encaustic paints. For an
postmoderns, the focus has shifted from artistic skill to the explanation of colourants, see: Colour in Painting and Colour
"meaning" of the work produced. In addition, "how" a work is Pigments, Types, History.
"experienced" by spectators has become a critical component
in its aesthetic value. The phenomenal success of • Printmaking
contemporary artists like Damien Hirst, as well as Gilbert and Using simple methods like woodcuts or stencils, the more
George, is clear evidence in support of this view. demanding techniques of engraving, etching and lithography,
or the more modern forms like screen-printing, foil imaging or
giclee prints.
• Sculpture
In bronze, stone, marble, wood, or clay.
A Working Definition of Art
Another type of Western fine art, which originated in China, is
In light of this historical development in the meaning of "art", calligraphy: the highly complex form of stylized writing.
one can perhaps make a crude attempt at a "working"
definition of the subject, along the following lines: The Evolution of Fine Arts
Art is created when an artist creates a beautiful object, or After primitive forms of cave painting, figurine sculptures and
produces a stimulating experience that is considered by his other types of ancient art, there occured the golden era of
audience to have artistic merit. Greek art and other schools of Classical Antiquity. The
sacking of Rome (c.400-450) introduced the dead period of
the Dark Ages (c.450-1000), brightened only by Celtic art and 6. Applied Arts
Ultimate La Tene Celtic designs, after which the history of art
in the West is studded with a wide variety of artistic 'styles' or This category encompasses all activities involving the
'movements' - such as: Gothic (c.1100-1300), Renaissance application of aesthetic designs to everyday functional
(c.1300-1600), Baroque (17th century), Neo-Classicism (18th objects. While fine art provides intellectual stimulation to the
century), Romanticism (18th-19th century), Realism and viewer, applied art creates utilitarian items (a cup, a couch or
Impressionism (19th century), Cubism, Expressionism, sofa, a clock, a chair or table) using aesthetic principles in
Surrealism, Abstract Expressionism and Pop-Art (20th their design. This wide area includes architecture,
century). photography, industrial design, graphic design, fashion
design, interior design, as well as all decorative arts. Noted
For a brief review of modernism (c.1860-1965), see Modern styles include, Bauhaus Design School, as well as Art
art movements; for a guide to postmodernism, (c.1965- Nouveau, and Art Deco.
present) see our list of the main Contemporary art
movements.
The Tradition
Fine art was the traditional type of Academic art taught at the
great schools, such as the the Accademia dell'Arte del
Disegno in Florence, the Accademia di San Luca in Rome,
the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris, and the Royal
Academy in London. One of the key legacies of the
academies was their theory of linear perspective and their
ranking of the painting genres, which classified all works into
5 types: history, portrait, genre-scenes, landscape or still life.
2. Visual Arts
This category includes all the fine arts as well as new media
and contemporary forms of expression such as Assemblage,
Collage, Conceptual, Installation and Performance art, as well
as Photography, and film-based forms like Video Art and
Animation, or any combination thereof. Another type of visual
art, sometimes created on a monumental scale is the new
environmental land art.
3. Plastic Arts
4. Decorative Arts
5. Performance Arts