what_is

"Art is the method of opening up areas of feeling rather than merely an illustration of an object." (Statements by Francis Bacon)

In the broadest sense, art is a free creative expression which our imagination invents. It can be poetry, literature, music, pottery, dance, paintings, drama or virtually anything and everything that suits the creative world. However, the term as it is commonly used relates to a tangible visual object which communicates with the senses. In other words, it is an object of contemplation. Art involves a high degree of human involvement- through manual skills and thought. Art has an aesthetic value, whether it is considered good or bad, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder".

Ellen Dissanayake adds that art serves as therapy, gives meaing to life, gives unselfconscious experience, provides paradigms for order and/or disorder, and trains perception of reality. According to ArtLex.com, early in the twentieth century, artists expanded the definition of art to include such things as abstraction, collage and ready-mades. The art world expanded its definition of art to include textiles, costumes, jewerly, photographs, video concepts, theatrical performances, and even architecture as art.

According to Robert J. Belton, the basic functions of art are "to adorn, to beautify, to express, to illustrate, to mediate, to persuade, to record, to redefine reality, and to redefine art."

Art is a very rewarding activity which provides self pleasure for those individuals who wish to express themselves artistically. Art can also be considered artificial, meaning that it is made by humans not by nature.

Artistic Movements:

Artistic movements are different categories in which to define art throughout history. It is where talented and creative individuals have expressed their ideas, thoughts, and emotions in a similar artistic manner.

Click on the following links to view the art movements of:
Impressionism
Cubism
Optical Art

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