Art - definition of art by The Free Dictionary
Art - definition of art by The Free Dictionary
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/art
n.
1.
a. The conscious use of the imagination in the production of objects intended to be contemplated or appreciated as beautiful, as in the arrangement of forms, sounds, or words.
b. Such activity in the visual or plastic arts: takes classes in art at the college.
c. Products of this activity; imaginative works considered as a group: art on display in the lobby.
2. A field or category of art, such as music, ballet, or literature.
3. A nonscientific branch of learning; one of the liberal arts.
4. A skill that is attained by study, practice, or observation: the art of negotiation. See Synonyms at skill .
5.
a. arts Artful devices, stratagems, and tricks.
b. Artful contrivance; cunning.
6. Printing Illustrative material, especially in contrast to text.
[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin ars, art-; see ar- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]
art 2
A second person singular present indicative of be .
[Middle English, from Old English eart; see er-1 in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]
art
a. the creation of works of beauty or other special significance
b. (as modifier): an art movement.
2. the exercise of human skill (as distinguished from nature)
3. (Art Terms) imaginative skill as applied to representations of the natural world or figments of the imagination
4. (Art Terms)
a. the products of man's creative activities; works of art collectively, esp of the visual arts, sometimes also music, drama, dance, and literature
b. (as modifier): an art gallery. See also arts , fine art
5. (Art Terms) excellence or aesthetic merit of conception or execution as exemplified by such works
6. (Art Terms) any branch of the visual arts, esp painting
7. (Art Terms) (modifier) intended to be artistic or decorative: art needlework.
8. (Art Terms)
a. any field using the techniques of art to display artistic qualities: advertising art.
b. (as modifier): an art film.
9. (Journalism & Publishing) journalism photographs or other illustrations in a newspaper, etc
10. method, facility, or knack: the art of threading a needle; the art of writing letters.
11. the system of rules or principles governing a particular human activity: the art of government.
12. artfulness; cunning
13. get something down to a fine art to become highly proficient at something through practice
[C13: from Old French, from Latin ars craftsmanship]
art
(ɑːt)
vb
archaic (used with the pronoun thou) a singular form of the present tense (indicative mood) of be 1
[Old English eart, part of bēon to be]
ART
(ɑrt)
n.
1. the quality, production, expression, or realm of what is beautiful or of more than ordinary significance.
2. the class of objects subject to aesthetic criteria, as paintings, sculptures, or drawings.
3. a field or category of art: Dance is an art.
4. the fine arts collectively.
5. any field using the skills or techniques of art: industrial art.
6. (in printed matter) illustrative or decorative material.
7. the principles or methods governing any craft or branch of learning: the art of baking.
8. the craft or trade using these principles or methods.
9. skill in conducting any human activity: the art of conversation.
10. a branch of learning or university study, esp. one of the fine arts or the humanities, as music, philosophy, or literature.
11. arts,
a. (used with a sing. v.) the humanities.
b. (used with a pl. v.) liberal arts.
12. skilled workmanship, execution, or agency, as distinguished from nature.
13. trickery; cunning.
14. studied action; artificiality in behavior.
15. an artifice or artful device: the arts of politics.
16. Archaic. science; learning.
[1175–1225; Middle English < Old French, acc. of ars < Latin ars (nominative), artem (acc.)]
art2
v. Archaic.
2nd pers. sing. pres. indic. of be.
[before 950; Middle English; Old English eart=ear- (see are 1) + -t ending of 2nd pers. singular]
-art
3. artist.
art
- Comes from a base word meaning "put together"; its original general meaning referred to any kind of skill.
See also related terms for skilled .
Art
aestheticism
1. the doctrine that aesthetic standards are autonomous and not subject to political, moral, or religious criteria.
2. used pejoratively to describe those who believe only in “art for art’s sake,” to the exclusion of all other human activities.
1. the art of carving works in low relief.
2. a low-relief sculpture. Also spelled anaglyph. — anaglyphic, anaglyptic, adj.
classicism
1. formerly, an imitation of Greek and Roman art.
2. currently, a dedication to the principles of that art: clarity of execution, balance, adherence to recognized standards of form, and conscious craftsmanship. — classicist, n. — classicistic, adj.
Dadaism
a revolt by certain 20th-century painters and writers in France, Germany, and Switzerland against smugness in traditional art and Western society; their works, illustrating absurdity through paintings of purposeless machines and collages of discarded materials, expressed their cynicism about conventional ideas of form and their rejection of traditional concepts of beauty. — Dadaist, n.
luminism
1. a movement in painting concerned with effects of light, especially the use of broken color in its full intensity with a minimum of shadow effects, applied especially to many Impressionist and Pointillist artists.
2. a technique of painting employing minute modulations of tone, developed in America (1825-65) by John Singer Sargent, Mary Cassatt, William Merritt Chase, and others. — luminist, n.
mannerism
1. an overemphasis on any distinctive technique of expression, occurring when the manner of expression obscures the feeling or idea expressed in the work of art; considered by many art critics to be a sign of decadence. — mannerist, n. — manneristic, adj.
2. (usu. cap.) a style, developed between c.1530 and c.1590, marked by deliberate violations of earlier standards of painting in depicting the artist’s idea rather than nature by means of asymmetrical and crowded compositions, elongated and twisted figures, and emphasis upon devices like foreshortening. The style also afïected both architecture and sculpture. — Mannerist, n.
miniaturist
1. Obsolete, an artist whose task it was to draw in red certain words or letters in manuscripts.
2. a painter of miniature pictures or portraits, as on china or ivory, characterized by fineness of detail.
ornamentalism
1. a use of ornament for decorative purposes, especially its overuse.
2. the employment of several traditional architectural and decorative features into the design of interiors, buildings, furniture, etc., influenced by Art Deco and Art Nouveau.
1. an artist who specializes in ornamentation.
2. a person whose work is considered to be ornament rather than art.
Pointillism
a style of the late 19th century based upon some Impressionist techniques and the application of scientific theories of the process of vision; begun by Seurat, who gave it the name Divisionism, it consists of using dots of unmixed color side by side so that the viewer’s eye may mix them into the appropriate intermediate color. Also called Neo-Impressionism. — Pointillist, n. — Pointillistic, adj.
1. the process or art of painting portraits.
2. the portrait itself.
primitivism
1. the self-conscious return, for inspiration, to the archaic forms produced by non-Western cultures.
2. the practice of painting in a way alien to academic or traditional techniques, often displaying a highly individual naiveté in interpretation and treatment of subjects. Cf. archaism. — primitivist, n. — primitivistic, adj.
Realism
1. Naturalism.
2. a movement in the late 19th century stressing common rather than individual characteristics as the basis of reality. Cf. Verism. — Realist, n.
Romanticism
the reflection, in art, of a late 18th-century literary and philosophical movement in reaction against the intellectuality and rationality of Neo-Classicism. It produced no single artistic style or characteristic but strongly influenced the ideals of imagination, emotion, and the freedom of expression in other media. — Romanticist, n.
socialist realism
a Marxist-inspired artistic and literary theory or doctrine that calls on art and literature to promote the socialist cause and sees the artist, writer, etc. as a servant of the state or, in the words of Stalin, “the engineer of human souls.”
1. statues collectively or a group of statues.
2. the art of making statues. — statuary, adj.
Surrealism , Superrealism
a controversial movement in art and literature between the two World Wars in which the artist attempted to portray, express, or interpret the workings of the subconscious mind; in painting it found expression in two techniques, the naturalistic (Dali) and the abstract (Miró). — Surrealist, n. — Surrealistic, adj.
Tachism , Tachisme
a movement of the early 1950s which claimed to be in revolt against both Abstractism and naturalism, taking its name from patches of color (Fr. taches) placed on canvas spontaneously and by chance, the result being considered an emotional projection rather than an expression or a symbol. Cf. Abstract Expressionism. — Tachist, Tachiste, n.
Vorticism
an art movement in England in 1914-15 stimulated by Futurism and by the idea that all artistic creation must begin in a state of strong emotion; its products, intended to establish a form characteristic of the industrial age, tend to use angular, machinelike shapes. — Vorticist, n.
Noun
1.
art - the products of human creativity; works of art collectively; "an art exhibition"; "a fine collection of art"
artistic creation , artistic production , art - the creation of beautiful or significant things; "art does not need to be innovative to be good"; "I was never any good at art"; "he said that architecture is the art of wasting space beautifully"
artificial flower - a handmade imitation of a blossom
commercial art - art used for commercial purposes (as in advertising)
creation - an artifact that has been brought into existence by someone
cyberart - art that is produced with the help of computer hardware and software
decoupage - art produced by decorating a surface with cutouts and then coating it with several layers of varnish or lacquer
diptych - a painting or carving (especially an altarpiece) on two panels (usually hinged like a book)
gem , treasure - art highly prized for its beauty or perfection
genre - a class of art (or artistic endeavor) having a characteristic form or technique
graphic art - the arts of drawing or painting or printmaking
grotesque - art characterized by an incongruous mixture of parts of humans and animals interwoven with plants
kitsch - excessively garish or sentimental art; usually considered in bad taste
mosaic - art consisting of a design made of small pieces of colored stone or glass
plastic art - the arts of shaping or modeling; carving and sculpture
triptych - art consisting of a painting or carving (especially an altarpiece) on three panels (usually hinged together)
work of art - art that is a product of one of the fine arts (especially a painting or sculpture of artistic merit)
dance - an artistic form of nonverbal communication
2.
art - the creation of beautiful or significant things; "art does not need to be innovative to be good"; "I was never any good at art"; "he said that architecture is the art of wasting space beautifully"
creation , creative activity - the human act of creating
arts and crafts - the arts of decorative design and handicraft; "they sponsored arts and crafts in order to encourage craftsmanship in an age of mass production"
ceramics - the art of making and decorating pottery
decalcomania - the art of transfering designs from specially prepared paper to a wood or glass or metal surface
decoupage - the art of decorating a surface with shapes or pictures and then coating it with vanish or lacquer
draftsmanship , drawing , drafting - the creation of artistic pictures or diagrams; "he learned drawing from his father"
glyptography - carving or engraving (especially on stones)
gastronomy - the art and practice of choosing and preparing and eating good food
origami - the Japanese art of folding paper into shapes representing objects (e.g., flowers or birds)
painting - creating a picture with paints; "he studied painting and sculpture for many years"
perfumery - the art of making perfumes
printmaking - artistic design and manufacture of prints as woodcuts or silkscreens
sculpture , carving - creating figures or designs in three dimensions
topiary - making decorative shapes by trimming shrubs or trees
Americana - any artifact (such as books or furniture or art) that is distinctive of America
art , fine art - the products of human creativity; works of art collectively; "an art exhibition"; "a fine collection of art"
ground - (art) the surface (as a wall or canvas) prepared to take the paint for a painting
talaria - a winged sandal (as worn by Hermes in Graeco-Roman art)
vocabulary - the system of techniques or symbols serving as a means of expression (as in arts or crafts); "he introduced a wide vocabulary of techniques"
aesthetics , esthetics - (art) the branch of philosophy dealing with beauty and taste (emphasizing the evaluative criteria that are applied to art); "traditional aesthetics assumed the existence of universal and timeless criteria of artistic value"
cinema , film , celluloid - a medium that disseminates moving pictures; "theater pieces transferred to celluloid"; "this story would be good cinema"; "film coverage of sporting events"
expressive style , style - a way of expressing something (in language or art or music etc.) that is characteristic of a particular person or group of people or period; "all the reporters were expected to adopt the style of the newspaper"
tout ensemble , ensemble - an assemblage of parts or details (as in a work of art) considered as forming a whole
expo , exposition , exhibition - a collection of things (goods or works of art etc.) for public display
authenticator , appraiser - one who determines authenticity (as of works of art) or who guarantees validity
idealogue , theoretician , theoriser , theorist , theorizer - someone who theorizes (especially in science or art)
tension - a balance between and interplay of opposing elements or tendencies (especially in art or literature); "there is a tension created between narrative time and movie time"; "there is a tension between these approaches to understanding history"
doldrums , stagnation , stagnancy - a state of inactivity (in business or art etc); "economic growth of less than 1% per year is considered to be economic stagnation"
longueur - a period of dullness or boredom (especially in a work of literature or performing art)
finger-paint - apply colors with one's fingers
fresco - paint onto wet plaster on a wall
distemper - paint with distemper
illuminate - add embellishments and paintings to (medieval manuscripts)
miniate , rubricate - decorate (manuscripts) with letters painted red; "In this beautiful book, all the place names are rubricated"
airmanship , aviation - the art of operating aircraft
eristic - the art of logical disputation (especially if specious)
falconry - the art of training falcons to hunt and return
fortification - the art or science of strengthening defenses
homiletics - the art of preaching
horology - the art of designing and making clocks
minstrelsy - the art of a minstrel
musicianship - artistry in performing music
enology , oenology - the art of wine making
puppetry - the art of making puppets and presenting puppet shows
taxidermy - the art of mounting the skins of animals so that they have lifelike appearance
telescopy - the art of making and using telescopes
ventriloquism , ventriloquy - the art of projecting your voice so that it seems to come from another source (as from a ventriloquist's dummy)