The arts, orcreative arts, are a vast range ofhuman practices involvingcreative expression,storytelling, andcultural participation. The arts encompass diverse and plural modes of thought, deeds, and existence in an extensive range ofmedia. Both a dynamic and characteristically constant feature of human life, the arts have developed into increasingly stylized and intricate forms. This is achieved through sustained and deliberate study, training, or theorizing within a particular tradition, generations, and even betweencivilizations. The arts are a medium through which humans cultivate distinct social, cultural, and individual identities while transmitting values, impressions, judgments, ideas, visions, spiritual meanings, patterns of life, and experiences across time and space.
The arts are divided into three main branches: visual arts, literature, and performing arts. Examples ofvisual arts includearchitecture,ceramic art,drawing,filmmaking,painting,photography, andsculpture. Examples ofliterature includefiction,drama,poetry, andprose. Examples ofperforming arts includedance,music, andtheatre. The arts can employskill andimagination to producephysical objects andperformances, convey insights andexperiences, and construct newnatural environments and spaces.
The arts can refer to common, popular, or everyday practices as well as more sophisticated, systematic, or institutionalized ones. They can be discrete and self-contained or combine and interweave with other art forms, such as combining artwork with the written word incomics. Art forms can also develop or contribute to aspects of more complex art forms, as incinematography. By definition, the arts themselves are open to being continually redefined. The practice ofmodern art, for example, is a testament to the shifting boundaries, improvisation and experimentation, reflexive nature, andself-criticism or questioning that art and its conditions of production, reception, and possibility can undergo.
As both a means of developing capacities of attention and sensitivity and ends in themselves (art for art's sake), the arts can be a form of response to the world. It is a way to transform human responses and what humans deem worthwhile goals or pursuits. Fromprehistoric cave paintings during the Upper Palaeolithic, to ancient and contemporary forms ofrituals, to modern-dayfilms, the arts have registered, embodied, and preserved the ever-shifting relationships of humans with each other and the world.
The arts are considered various practices or objects done by people with skill, creativity, and imagination across cultures and history.[1] These activities include painting, sculpting, music, theatre, literature, and more.[2] Art refers to the way of doing or applying human creative skills, typically, but not necessarily, in visual form.[3][4]
However, there have been disputes on whether or not to classify something as a work of art, referred to asclassificatory disputes about art. For example, classificatory disputes in the 20th century have includedCubist andImpressionist paintings,Marcel Duchamp'sFountain, the movies,J. S. G. Boggs' superlative imitations of banknotes,conceptual art, andvideo games.[5]
InAncient Greece, art andcraft were referred to by the wordtechne. Ancient Greek art introduced veneration of the animal form and the development of equivalent skills to show musculature, poise, beauty, and anatomically correct proportions.Ancient Roman art depicted gods as idealized humans, shown with characteristically distinguishing features, such asZeus' thunderbolt. InByzantine andGothic art of theMiddle Ages, the dominant church insisted on the expression of Christian themes due to the overlap ofchurch and state in medieval Europe.[6]Asian art has generally worked in style akin to Westernmedieval art, namely a concentration on surface patterning and local colour.[a] A characteristic of this style is that local colour is defined by an outline, thecartoon being a contemporary equivalent. This is evident in the art ofIndia,Tibet, andJapan.Islamic art avoids the representation of living beings, particularly humans and other animals, in religious contexts.[7] It instead expresses religious ideas throughcalligraphy and geometrical designs.[8]
In the Middle Ages,liberal arts were taught in Europeanmedieval universities as part of thetrivium, an introductory curriculum involvinggrammar,rhetoric, andlogic,[9] and of thequadrivium, a curriculum involving the "mathematical arts" ofarithmetic,geometry, music, andastronomy.[10] In modernacademia, the arts can be grouped with, or a subset of, thehumanities.[11]
The arts have been classified into seven forms: painting, architecture, sculpture, literature, music,theatre, andfilmmaking.[12] Some arts may be derived from others; for example, drama is literature withacting,[13] dance is music expressed throughmotion,[14] andsongs are music with literature andhuman voice.[15] Film is sometimes called the "eighth" and comics the "ninth art" in Francophone scholarship, adding to the traditional "Seven Arts".[16][17] Cultural fields likegastronomy are only sometimes considered as arts.[18]
Visual art forms includearchitecture,ceramic art,crafts,design,drawing,filmmaking,image,painting,photography,printmaking,sculpture, andvideo. Many artistic disciplines such asperforming arts,conceptual art, andtextile arts, also involve aspects of the visual arts, as well as arts of other types. Within the visual arts, theapplied arts,[19] such asindustrial design,graphic design,fashion design,interior design, anddecorative arts[20] are also included.
Architecture is the art and science ofdesigningbuildings andstructures. Some definitions include the wider design of the built environment, from the macro level ofurban planning,urban design, andlandscape architecture, to the micro level of creating furniture.[21] Architectural design usually must address feasibility andcost for the builder, as well as function andaesthetics for the user.[22]
In modern usage, architecture is the art anddiscipline of creating or inferring an implied or apparent plan for a complex object orsystem.[23] Some types of architecture manipulate space, volume, texture, light, shadow, or abstract elements, to achieve pleasing aesthetics.[24] Architectural works may be seen as cultural and politicalsymbols or works of art. The role of architects, though changing, has been central to the design and implementation of pleasingly built environments in which people live.[25]
Ceramic art is art made fromceramic materials,[26] which may take forms such aspottery,tiles,figurines,sculptures, andtableware. While some ceramic products are consideredfine art, others are considereddecorative,industrial, orapplied art objects. Ceramics may also be consideredartefacts inarchaeology. People design, manufacture, and decorate pottery in pottery or ceramic factories. Some pottery is regarded asart pottery.[27] In one-person pottery studios, ceramists or potters producestudio pottery. Ceramics excludeglass andmosaics made from glasstesserae.[28]
Conceptual art is art where the concepts or ideas involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic and material concerns.[29]The inception of the term in the 1960s referred to a strict and focused practice of idea-based art that defied traditional visual criteria associated with the visual arts in its presentation as text.[30] Through its association with theYoung British Artists and theTurner Prize during the 1990s,[31] the popular usage of conceptual art, particularly in the United Kingdom, developed into a synonym for allcontemporary art that does not practice the traditional skills of painting and sculpture.[32]
Drawing is a means of making animage using various tools and techniques. It generally involves making marks on a surface by applying pressure from a tool, or moving a tool across a surface. Common tools aregraphitepencils, pen andink, inkedbrushes, waxcoloured pencils,crayons,charcoals,pastels, andmarker pens. Digital tools with similar effects are also used. The main techniques used in drawing are line drawing,hatching, cross-hatching, random hatching, scribbling,stippling, and blending. An artist who excels in drawing is referred to as adrafter,draftswoman, ordraughtsman.[33] Drawing can be used to create art used in cultural industries such asillustrations, comics, and animation. Comics are often called the "ninth art" (le neuvième art) in Francophone scholarship, adding to the traditional "Seven Arts".[16]
Painting is considered to be a form of self-expression.[34] Drawing,gesture (as inaction painting),composition,narration (as innarrative art), orabstraction (as inabstract art), among other aesthetic modes, may serve to manifest the expressive and conceptual intention of the practitioner.[35] Paintings can be on a wide variety of topics, such asphotographic,[36] abstract,[37] narrative,[38]symbolistic (symbolism),[39]emotive (Expressionism), or political in nature (artivism).[40] Some modern painters, such asJean Dubuffet orAnselm Kiefer, incorporate different materials, such assand, cement,straw, wood, or strands of hair, for theirartwork texture.[41][42]
Photography as an art form refers to photographs that are created in accordance with the creative vision of the photographer. Art photography stands in contrast tophotojournalism, which provides a visual account of news events, and commercial photography, the primary focus of which is to advertise products or services.[43]
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. It is one of theplastic arts. Durable sculptural processes originally usedcarving (the removal of material) and modelling (the addition of material, such as clay), instone, metal,ceramic, wood, and other materials, but shifts in sculptural processes have led to almost complete freedom of materials and processes followingmodernism. A wide variety of materials may be worked by removal such as carving, assembled bywelding or modelling, ormoulded orcast.[44][45]
The applied arts are the application ofdesign and decoration to everyday, functional objects to make themaesthetically pleasing.[46] The applied arts include fields such asindustrial design,illustration, and commercial art.[47] The term "applied art" is used in distinction tofine art, where the latter is defined as arts that aim to produce objects that are beautiful or provide intellectual stimulation but have no primary everyday function. In practice, the two often overlap.
Literature (also known asliterary arts orlanguage arts) is generally identified as a collection ofwritings, which inWestern culture are mainlyprose (both fiction and non-fiction), drama, and poetry. In much, if not all, of the world, artistic linguistic expression can beoral as well and include suchgenres asepic,legend,myth,ballad, other forms of oral poetry, andfolktales. Comics, the combination of drawings or other visual arts with narrating literature, are called the "ninth art" (le neuvième art) in Francophone scholarship.[16]
Performing arts comprise dance, music, theatre,opera,mime, and other art forms in which human performance is the principal product. Performing arts are distinguished by this performance element in contrast with disciplines such as visual and literary arts, where the product is an object that does not require a performance to be observed and experienced. Each discipline in the performing arts is temporal in nature, meaning the product is performed over a period of time. Products are broadly categorized as being either repeatable (for example, by script or score) or improvised for each performance.[48] Artists who participate in these arts in front of an audience are called performers, includingactors,magicians,comedians,dancers,musicians, andsingers. Performing arts are also supported by the services of other artists or essential workers, such assongwriters and those involved withstagecraft. Performers adapt theirphysical appearance with tools such ascostumes andtheatrical makeup.[49]
Dance generally refers to humanmovement, either used as a form of expression or presented in a social,spiritual, or performance setting.[50][51][b]Choreography is the art of making dances,[56] and the person who does this is called a choreographer.[57] Definitions of what constitutes dance are dependent on social, cultural,aesthetic, artistic, and moral constraints, ranging from functional movement (such asfolk dance) to codifiedvirtuoso techniques such asballet. Dance disciplines in sports include gymnastics,figure skating, andsynchronized swimming. In martial arts,kata is compared to dance.[58]
Music is defined as an art form whichmedium is a combination of sounds.[59] Though scholars agree that music generally consists ofa few core elements, their exact definitions are debated.[60] Commonly identified aspects includepitch (which governs melody and harmony),duration (includingrhythm andtempo), intensity (includingdynamics), andtimbre.[61] Though considered acultural universal, thedefinition of music varies throughout the world as it is based on diverse views ofnature, the supernatural, and humanity.[62] Music is differentiated intocomposition and performance, whilemusical improvisation may be regarded as an intermediary tradition.[63] Music can be divided into genres and subgenres, although the dividing lines and relationships between genres are subtle, open to individual interpretation, and controversial.[64]
Theatre is the branch of the performing arts concerned with acting out stories in front of an audience using combinations of speech, gesture, music, dance, sound, and spectacle.[65] In addition to the standard narrative dialogue style, theatre takes such forms as opera (includingChinese opera), ballet, mime,kabuki, andIndian classical dance.[66][67][68]
Areas exist in which artistic works incorporate multiple artistic fields, such as film, opera, and performance art. While opera is often categorized as the performing arts of music, the word itself is Italian for "works", because opera combines artistic disciplines into a singular artistic experience. In a traditional opera, the work uses the following: sets, costumes, acting, alibretto, singers, and an orchestra.[69]
The composerRichard Wagner recognized the fusion of many disciplines into a single work of opera, exemplified by his cycleDer Ring des Nibelungen ("The Ring of the Nibelung"). He did not use the term opera for his works, but insteadGesamtkunstwerk ("synthesis of the arts" or sometimes "music drama"), emphasizing the literary and theatrical components, which were as important as the music.Classical ballet is another form that emerged in the 17th century in which orchestral music is combined with dance.[70]
Other works in the late 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries have fused other disciplines in creative ways, such as performance art. Performance art is a performance over time that combines any number of instruments, objects, and art within a predefined or less well-defined structure, some of which can be improvised. Performance art may be scripted, unscripted, random, or carefully organized—even audience participation may occur.John Cage is regarded by many as a performance artist rather than a composer, although he preferred the latter term. He did not compose for traditional ensembles. For example, Cage's compositionLiving Room Music, composed in 1940, is a quartet for unspecified instruments, really non-melodic objects, that can be found in the living room of a typical house, hence the title.[71]
Video games are multidisciplinary works that include uncontroversial artistic elements such as visuals and sound, as well as an emergent experience from the nature of their interactivity. Withinvideo game culture, debates surround whether video games should beclassified as an art form and whethervideo game developers—AAA orindie—should be classified as artists.[72]Hideo Kojima, a video game designer considered a gamingauteur, argued in 2006 that video games are a type of service rather than an art form.[73][74] In the social sciences, cultural economists show how playing video games is conducive to involvement in more traditional art forms.[75] In 2011, theNational Endowment for the Arts included video games in its definition of a "work of art",[76] and theSmithsonian American Art Museum presented an exhibit titledThe Art of the Video Game in 2012.[77]
Art criticism is the discussion or evaluation of art.[78][79][80]Art critics usually criticize art in the context ofaesthetics or the theory of beauty.[79][80] A goal of art criticism is the pursuit of a rational basis for art appreciation[78][79][80] but it is questionable whether such criticism can transcend prevailing sociopolitical circumstances.[81]
The variety ofart movements has resulted in a division of art criticism into different disciplines, which may each use different criteria for their judgements.[80][82] The most common division in the field of criticism is between historical criticism and evaluation, a form ofart history, and contemporary criticism of work by living artists.[78][79][80]
Despite perceptions that criticism is a lower-risk activity than making art, opinions of current art are liable to corrections with the passage of time.[79] Critics of the past can be ridiculed for dismissing artists now venerated (like the early work of theImpressionists).[80][83][84] Some art movements themselves were named disparagingly by critics, with the name later adopted as a badge of honour by the artists of the style with the original negative meaning forgotten, e.g. Impressionism andCubism.[83][85][86] Artists have had an uneasy relationship with their critics. Artists usually need positive opinions from critics for their work to be viewed and purchased.[79][87]
Many variables determine judgement of art, such as aesthetics, cognition, or perception. Aesthetic, pragmatic, expressive, formalist, relativist, processional, imitation, ritual, cognition, mimetic, and postmodern theories are some of the many theories to criticize and appreciate art. Art criticism and appreciation can be subjective based on personal preference toward aesthetics and form, or on the elements and principles of design and by social and cultural acceptance.[88]
Arts in education is a field ofeducational research and practice informed by investigations intolearning through arts experiences. In this context, the arts can includeperforming arts education (dance, drama, and music), literature and poetry,storytelling,visual arts education in film,craft, design,digital art, media, and photography.[89]
A strong relationship between the arts and politics, particularly between various kinds of art andpower, occurs across history andarchaeological cultures.[90] As the arts respond tonews and politics, they take on political as well as social dimensions, becoming a focus of controversy and a force of political andsocial change.[91]
Some artists have been observed to havefree spirits. For instance,Alexander Pushkin, a well-regarded writer,[92] attracted the irritation ofRussian officialdom, particularlyEmperor Alexander I, since he "instead of being a good servant of the state in the rank and file of the administration and extolling conventional virtues in his vocational writings (if write he must), composed extremely arrogant, independent, and wicked verse in which dangerous freedom of thought was evident in the novelty of his versification, in the audacity of his sensual fancy, and in his propensity for making fun of major and minor tyrants."[92] In more recent times,Banksy, an England-basedgraffiti artist who constantly conflicted with the authorities, has also been considered a "free spirit" due to his work.[93][94]
Artists use their work to express their political views and promote social change, from negatively influencing throughhate speech to positively influencing throughartivism.[95] Governments use art, orpropaganda, to promote their own agendas.[96]
Moral issues impact on the arts and the arts impact on discussion of moral issues. One approach to this issue is that taken by theCatholic Church, which declared in 1963 that the arts are "not exempt" from "the absolute primacy of the objective moral order".[97]
The quadrivium consisted of arithmetic, music, geometry, and astronomy.
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