L'art (document en anglais)

This article is about the general concept of art. For people named Art, see Arthur. For other uses, see Art (disambiguation).

Clockwise from upper left: a self-portrait from Vincent van Gogh, an African Chokwe statue, detail from the Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli and a Japanese Shisa lion

Art is a diverse range of human activities and the products of those activities; this article focuses primarily on the visual arts, which includes the creation of images or objects in fields including painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography, and other visual media. Architecture is often included as one of the visual arts; however, like the decorative arts, it involves the creation of objects where the practical considerations of use are essential—in a way that they are usually not for a painting, for example. Music, theatre, film, dance, and other performing arts, as well as literature, and other media such as interactive media are included in a broader definition of art or the arts.[1] Until the 17th century, art referred to any skill or mastery and was not differentiated from crafts or sciences, but in modern usage the fine arts, where aesthetic considerations are paramount, are distinguished from acquired skills in general, and the decorative or applied arts.

Many definitions of art have been proposed by philosophers and others who have characterized art in terms of mimesis, expression, communication of emotion, or other values. During the Romantic period, art came to be seen as "a special faculty of the human mind to be classified with religion and science".[2] Though art's definition is disputed and has changed over time, general descriptions mention an idea of human agency[3] and creation through imaginative or technical skill.[4]

The nature of art, and related concepts such as creativity and interpretation, are explored in a branch of philosophy known as aesthetics.[5]

Contents [hide]

1 Definition

2 History

3 Forms, genres, media, and styles

3.1 Skill and craft

3.2 Value judgment

4 Purpose of art

4.1 Non-motivated functions of art

4.2 Motivated functions of art

5 Public access

6 Controversies

7 Theory

8 Classification disputes

9 See also

10 Notes

11 Bibliography

12 Further reading

13 External links

Definition

Works of art can tell stories or simply express an aesthetic truth or feeling. Panorama of a section of A Thousand Li of Mountains and Rivers, a 12th-century painting by Song Dynasty artist Wang Ximeng.

The Encyclopædia Britannica Online defines art as "the use of skill and imagination in the creation of aesthetic objects, environments, or experiences that can be shared with others". By this definition of the word, artistic works have existed for almost as long as humankind: from early pre-historic art to contemporary art; however, some theories restrict the concept to modern Western societies.[6] The first and broadest sense of art is the one that has remained closest to the older Latin meaning, which roughly translates to "skill" or "craft." A few examples where this meaning proves very broad include artifact, artificial, artifice, medical arts, and military arts. However, there are many other colloquial uses of the word, all with some relation to its etymology.

20th-century Rwandan bottle. Artistic works may serve practical functions, in addition to their decorative value.

In medieval philosophy, John Chrysostom held that "the name of art should be applied to those only which contribute towards and produce necessaries

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