Art Fundamentals

Study Notes

Origins of Art

The word "art" comes from the Latin word "ars", meaning skill or craft.

Types of Art

Drawing: a type of visual art that involves marking paper or another two-dimensional medium using different drawing instruments.
Painting: the art of applying paint, pigment, or any other medium to a solid surface.
Sculpture: the art of making symbolic or abstract objects in two or three dimensions, especially by carving stone or wood or casting metal or plaster.
Photography: the art and practice of creating visual images either electronically or chemically, by detecting light or other electromagnetic radiation.
Film: a series of still images that create the illusion of moving images when shown on a screen.
Architecture: the art and science of constructing buildings and non-construction structures.
Literature: writing that is regarded as having artistic merit.
Music: a type of art and cultural activity whose medium is arranged in time with sound.
Dance: a performing art form composed of sequences of human movement chosen deliberately.
Theatre: a collective type of fine art that uses live performers to portray an event or imagined event in a specific location.

Categories of Art

Visual arts: art forms that create works that are primarily visual in nature, such as drawings, ceramics, painting, crafts, and film.
Fine arts: an art form practiced mainly for its aesthetic value and beauty rather than its functional value.
Contemporary arts: modern art forms such as assemblage, mixed-media, collage, and photography.
Decorative arts or Crafts: includes ceramics, pottery, stained glass, tapestry, mosaic, and others.

Art Terms

Mimesis: means to imitate.
Subject of Art: refers to any person, objects, scene, or event described in a work of art.
Representational art: represents an object or event in the real world.
Non-representational art: art without reference to anything outside itself.
Artist: a person dedicated to the creative side, making visually pleasing work only for the enjoyment and appreciation of the viewer, with no functional value.
Artisan: a manual worker who makes items through skill and experience, creating beauty as well as being functional.
Medium: the material used by an artist to express their feelings or thoughts.
Technique: the approach, method, or process used to create a work using a material or medium.
Collage: means to paste.

Description

Test your knowledge of the basics of art, including its definition, different forms of visual art, and various techniques. Explore the world of art and discover the different ways artists express themselves.