• WHEN WE SAY ART, WE HAVE MANY ASSUMPTIONS

• ART IS UNIVERSAL
• ART IS CULTURAL
• ART IS NOT NATURE
• ART INVOLVES EXPERIENCE
• ART AS EXPRESSION
• ART AS A FORM OF CREATION
ART IS UNIVERSAL
• ART IS UNIVERSAL, BECAUSE IT EVOKES
AN EMOTIONAL RESPONSE FROM US IF IT
IS DOING THE JOB WELL.
• THE BEST ART IS BEAUTIFUL AND
INSPIRES AWE. OR JOY. BUT IT EVOKES
EMOTION.
• SOME ART, SUCH AS ILLUSTRATION, TELLS A STORY
OR SHOWS YOU FANTASTIC PLACES OR PEOPLE.
• SOME ART HAS A SPECIFIC STYLE THAT APPEALS TO
CERTAIN GROUPS OF PEOPLE.
• AND THEN YOU’VE GOT DECADES OF VARIOUS ATTEMPTS TO COME UP WITH ORIGINAL MOVEMENTS IN
ART. SOME OF THEM ARE GREAT SOME OF THEM ARE PURE TRASH.
• BUT ART AND THE VALUE OF IT IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER.
• EVEN IF YOU DO NOT SPEAK THE SAME LANGUAGE, ART CAN SPEAK TO ANYONE WHETHER VISUALLY OR
EMOTIONALLY, WITH HUMOR OR WITH THOSE WE DON’T EVEN RECOGNIZE AS ART
• IN REALITY, ART IS EVERYWHERE WE LOOK. IT’S ON THE SIGNS WE READ, ON THE CLOTHING WE WEAR, ON
THE PACKAGES OF EVERYTHING WE BUY, ON THE BUILDING AS WE DRIVE PAST, IN THE SHAPE AND DESIGN
OF THE VEHICLES WE DRIVE.
ART IS CULTURAL

• CULTURE CAN GIVE PEOPLE A CONNECTION TO CERTAIN SOCIAL VALUES, BELIEFS, RELIGIONS AND
CUSTOMS.
• IT ALLOWS THEM TO IDENTIFY WITH OTHERS OF SIMILAR MINDSETS AND BACKGROUNDS.
• ANOTHER BENEFIT THAT COMES FROM PRESERVING CULTURAL HERITAGE AS A WHOLE IS THE COMMUNAL
SUPPORT. THOSE THAT IDENTIFY STRONGLY WITH A CERTAIN HERITAGE ARE OFTEN MORE LIKELY TO HELP OUT
OTHERS IN THAT SAME COMMUNITY.
ART IS NOT NATURE
• ART IS NOT NATURE BECAUSE IN MANY WAYS, ART IS NOT “NATURAL”, IT IS AN ARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCT
CREATED BY MAN.
• SOMETIMES IT APPEARS TO BE CLOSE TO NATURE OR IT MAY EVEN SOMETIMES “GO BEYOND” NATURE BUT
IT ALWAYS RETURNS TO THE MIND, HEART AND HANDS OF MAN.
• NATURE IS: PHENOMENA; THE CONTENTS OF THE UNIVERSE; UNCUT ‘REALITY’.
• ART IS ANNOTATION.
• ART CAN EASILY EXIST CONCEPTUALLY, WITHOUT EMBODIMENT, WHEREAS NATURE IS PURE
EMBODIMENT, EXISTENT WITH OR WITHOUT CONCEPTUALITY.
ART INVOLVES EXPERIENCE
• AN ARTIST GAINS EXPERIENCE WHILE DOING THE CREATIVE PROJECT, THEREFORE EACH PROJECT REQUIRES A
CERTAIN AMOUNT OF EXPERIENCE AND AS THE CREATIVE PROCESS EVOLVES INTO THE ARTIST'S PERSONAL
STYLE, EXPERIENCE IS THE FACTOR THAT PROVIDES NUANCE, BALANCE, PERSPECTIVES AND DEPTH
• THE ABILITY TO DESCERN THE DESIRED QUALITY OF THE WORK.
• IF YOU DESIRE AS AN ARTIST TO BE AS ACCURATE AS POSSIBLE IN DEPICTING A SCENE ON PAPER OR CANVAS, YOU
NEED THE EXPERIENCE OF YOUR SKILL SET TO APPLY YOUR MEDIUM TO THE MATERIAL IN ORDER TO

• COMPLETE THE IDEA AS YOU ENVISIONED IT. EXPERIENCE ALSO PROVIDES THE SENSATION OF REPEATABILITY IN
YOUR WORKS SO AS TO MAINTAIN YOUR ARTISTIC PERSONNA.
ART AS EXPRESSION
• ART MAKING IS A UNIQUE FORM OF COMMUNICATION, ONE THAT RELIES ALMOST ENTIRELY UPON EXPRESSION
IN FORMING THE BASIS OF ITS INDIVIDUAL CHARACTER.
• IN OTHER WORDS, EACH ACT OF COMMUNICATION HAS ITS OWN UNIQUE EXPRESSIVE FINGERPRINT, ITS OWN
CHARACTER, ITS OWN SPEED AND MEANING.
• THE HUMAN BRAIN SEEKS OUT ITS NUANCES IN UNDERSTANDING WHAT IS BEING SAID AND HOW IT SHOULD
BE INTERPRETED.
• ARTISTS TEND TO HAVE A WELL DEVELOPED UNDERSTANDING OF THE QUALITIES THAT MAKE THEIR
EXPRESSIONS UNIQUE TO THEM, AND THEY ARE HIGHLY SKILLED AT USING THEM TO EVOKE DESIRED
RESPONSES IN AUDIENCES.
FORMS OF ART
VISUAL ARTS (2D & 3D)
• 2D, AS YOU MIGHT IMAGINE, HAS NO PHYSICAL DEPTH. IN THIS SENSE, A MOVIE, A PHOTOGRAPHY, AND
AN IMAGE ON A COMPUTER SCREEN ARE ALL TRULY 2D. ANYTHING PHYSICAL, LIKE A DRAWING OR
PAINTING OR A PRINT, HAS A MINIMAL AMOUNT OF DEPTH BUT FOR PRACTICAL PURPOSES, THESE ARE
CONSIDERED TO BE 2D
• IN 3D ARTS, YOU ADD PHYSICAL DEPTH TO HEIGHT AND WIDTH. IN MANY CASES THIS MEANS YOU CAN
WALK AROUND THE OBJECT OR SEE IT CHANGE AS YOU MOVE FROM ONE SIDE TO THE OTHER. IN SOME
WAYS, YOU MAY THINK OF IT AS BEING MORE REAL RATHER THAN A REPRESENTATION.
FILM

• ALSO CALLED MOVIE OR MOTION PICTURE, IS A MEDIUM USED TO SIMULATE EXPERIENCES THAT
COMMUNICATE IDEAS, STORIES, PERCEPTIONS, FEELINGS, BEAUTY OR ATMOSPHERE BY THE MEANS OF
RECORDED OR PROGRAMMED MOVING IMAGES ALONG WITH OTHER SENSORY STIMULATIONS.
• THE WORD "CINEMA", SHORT FOR CINEMATOGRAPHY, IS OFTEN USED TO REFER TO FILMMAKING AND THE
FILM INDUSTRY, AND TO THE ART FORM THAT IS THE RESULT OF IT.
PERFORMANCE ART
• IS A PERFORMANCE PRESENTED TO AN AUDIENCE WITHIN A FINE ART CONTEXT, TRADITIONALLY
INTERDISCIPLINARY.
• PERFORMANCE MAY BE EITHER SCRIPTED OR UNSCRIPTED, RANDOM OR CAREFULLY ORCHESTRATED,
SPONTANEOUS OR OTHERWISE CAREFULLY PLANNED WITH OR WITHOUT AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION.
• THE PERFORMANCE CAN BE LIVE OR VIA MEDIA; THE PERFORMER CAN BE PRESENT OR ABSENT. IT CAN BE
ANY SITUATION THAT INVOLVES FOUR BASIC ELEMENTS: TIME, SPACE, THE PERFORMER'S BODY OR
PRESENCE IN A MEDIUM, AND A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERFORMER AND AUDIENCE.
ARCHITECTURE

• THE ART AND TECHNIQUE OF DESIGNING AND BUILDING, AS DISTINGUISHED FROM THE SKILLS
ASSOCIATED WITH CONSTRUCTION.
• THE PRACTICE OF ARCHITECTURE IS EMPLOYED TO FULFILL BOTH PRACTICAL AND EXPRESSIVE
REQUIREMENTS, AND THUS IT SERVES BOTH UTILITARIAN AND AESTHETIC ENDS.
• THE CHARACTERISTICS THAT DISTINGUISH A WORK OF ARCHITECTURE FROM OTHER BUILT
STRUCTURES ARE :
• (1) THE SUITABILITY OF THE WORK TO USE BY HUMAN BEINGS IN GENERAL AND THE ADAPTABILITY OF IT TO
PARTICULAR HUMAN ACTIVITIES,
• (2) THE STABILITY AND PERMANENCE OF THE WORK’S CONSTRUCTION, AND
• (3) THE COMMUNICATION OF EXPERIENCE AND IDEAS THROUGH ITS FORM. ALL THESE CONDITIONS MUST BE
MET IN ARCHITECTURE.

• ALL THESE CONDITIONS MUST BE MET IN ARCHITECTURE.

• THE MOVEMENT OF THE BODY IN A RHYTHMIC WAY, USUALLY TO MUSIC AND WITHIN A GIVEN SPACE, FOR
THE PURPOSE OF EXPRESSING AN IDEA OR EMOTION, RELEASING ENERGY, OR SIMPLY TAKING DELIGHT IN
THE MOVEMENT ITSELF.
• DANCE IS A POWERFUL IMPULSE, BUT THE ART OF DANCE IS THAT IMPULSE CHANNELED BY SKILLFUL
PERFORMERS INTO SOMETHING THAT BECOMES INTENSELY EXPRESSIVE AND THAT MAY DELIGHT
SPECTATORS WHO FEEL NO WISH TO DANCE THEMSELVES.
• THESE TWO CONCEPTS OF THE ART OF DANCE
• DANCE AS A POWERFUL IMPULSE AND
• DANCE AS A SKILLFULLY CHOREOGRAPHED ART PRACTICED LARGELY BY A PROFESSIONAL FEW
• ARE THE TWO MOST IMPORTANT CONNECTING IDEAS RUNNING THROUGH ANY CONSIDERATION OF THE
SUBJECT.
APPLIED ARTS
• THE TERM "APPLIED ART" REFERS TO THE APPLICATION (AND RESULTING PRODUCT) OF ARTISTIC DESIGN
TO UTILITARIAN OBJECTS IN EVERYDAY USE.
• WHEREAS WORKS OF FINE ART HAVE NO FUNCTION OTHER THAN PROVIDING AESTHETIC OR
INTELLECTUAL STIMULATION TO THE VIEWER, WORKS OF APPLIED ART ARE USUALLY FUNCTIONAL
OBJECTS WHICH HAVE BEEN "PRETTIFIED" OR CREATIVELY DESIGNED WITH BOTH AESTHETICS AND
FUNCTION IN MIND.
• FOR THE SAKE OF SIMPLICITY, WORKS OF APPLIED ART COMPRISE TWO DIFFERENT TYPES:
• STANDARD MACHINE-MADE PRODUCTS WHICH HAVE HAD A PARTICULAR DESIGN APPLIED TO THEM, TO MAKE
THEM MORE ATTRACTIVE AND EASY-TO-USE; AND
• INDIVIDUAL, AESTHETICALLY PLEASING BUT MOSTLY FUNCTIONAL, CRAFT PRODUCTS MADE BY ARTISANS OR
SKILLED WORKERS.
• ARTISTIC DISCIPLINES THAT ARE CLASSIFIED AS APPLIED ARTS, INCLUDE INDUSTRIAL DESIGN, FASHION
DESIGN, INTERIOR DESIGN, AND GRAPHIC ART AND DESIGN (INCLUDING COMPUTER GRAPHICS), AS WELL
AS MOST TYPES OF DECORATIVE ART (EG. FURNITURE, CARPETS, TAPESTRY, EMBROIDERY,
BATIK, JEWELLERY, PRECIOUS METALWORK, POTTERY, GOLDSMITHING, BASKETRY, MOSAIC ART, AND
GLASSWARE). ILLUMINATED MANUSCRIPTS AND LATER BOOK ILLUSTRATION ARE ALSO CLASSIFIED AS
APPLIED ARTS.