What is art?
There has always been a lively debate about what is art and
what place the arts has in our society. It can get a little confusing, so it may be better to try to keep it simple
and just enjoy.
The Arts can be described as a collective of the imaginative
and creative use of skill in the creation of aesthetic objects, environments or experiences that can be shared with
others.
This broad and nebulous concept includes many creative
endeavors. Traditionally, the arts are classified as seven although the list has been expended to nine. These being
Architecture, Sculpture, Painting, Music, Poetry, Dance, Theater/Cinema, with the modern non-traditional additions
of Photography and Comics.
"Arts" is frequently linked to "Culture" and "Humanities".
Culture includes thought and expression and conversely that influences culture. Humanities is the study of the
human condition which includes the fields of Classics, History, Langue ages, Law, Literature, Performing arts,
Philosophy, Religion and Visual Arts.
There are often considered 2 general classifications of art; 1)
Fine Art: purposely created for pleasure an appreciation includes music, painting, sculpture, literature, drama and
dance 2) Practical Arts: are also called useful, functional or manual art since they are created by people for use
in their daily lives.
However, that line is often blurred and many don't feel the
need to define art. The mere act of defining or categorizing art, some feel, can limit it's expression or
enjoyment.
Art is an activity which spans the globe and encompasses a host
of disciplines, as evidenced by the range of words and phrases which have been invented to describe its various
forms. Examples of such phrases and forms indclude: Fine Arts, Liberal Arts, Visual Arts, Decorative Arts, Applied
Arts, Design, Crafts, Performing Arts and so on.
For our purposes, we propose the following as included in "The
Arts":
- Painting & Drawing
- Sculpture & Carving
- Music
- Dance
- Theatre/Film
- Graphic Design
- Writing
- Architecture
- Wood working
- Metal work
- Fiber arts
- Culinary arts
- Photography
- Folk arts
- Pottery & Ceramics
- Crafts
We invite you to share with us
your vision of what art is!
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