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The visual arts are art forms
Art

Art is the process or product of deliberately arranging elements in a way that appeals to the senses or emotions. It encompasses a diverse range of human activities, creations, and modes of expression, including music and literature....
 that focus on the creation of works which are primarily visual in nature, such as drawing
Drawing

Drawing is a visual art that makes use of any number of drawing instruments to mark a two-dimensional medium. Common instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoals, chalk, pastels, marker pens, stylus, or various metals like silverpoint....
, painting
Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . In art, the term describes both the act and the result, which is called a painting....
, photography
Photography

Photography is the process, activity and art of creating still or moving by recording radiation on a sensitive medium, such as a photographic film, or an ....
, printmaking
Printmaking

Printmaking is the process of making artworks by printing, normally on paper. Except in the case of monotyping, the process is capable of producing multiples of the same piece, which is called a 'print....
, and filmmaking
Filmmaking

Filmmaking is the process of making a film, from an initial story idea or commission through scriptwriting, shooting, editing and finally distribution to an audience....
. Those that involve three-dimensional objects, such as sculpture
Sculpture

Sculpture is Three-dimensional space artwork created by shaping or combining hard and or plastic material, sound, and or text and or light, commonly Stone sculpture , metal, glass, or wood....
 and architecture
Architecture

The term architecture can refer to a process, a profession or documentation.As a process, architecture is the activity of designing and construction buildings and other physical structures by a person or a computer, primarily to provide shelter....
, are called plastic arts
Plastic arts

Plastic arts are those visual arts that involve the use of materials that can be moulded or modulated in some way, often in three dimensions. Examples are clay, paint and plaster....
. Many artistic disciplines (performing arts
Performing arts

The performing arts are those forms of art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical work of art....
, language arts
Language arts

Language arts is the general academic subject area dealing with developing comprehension and capacity for use of written and oral language.Traditionally, the primary divisions in the language arts are Literature and Language, where language in this case refers to both linguistics, and specific languages....
, textile arts
Textile arts

File:Painted silk.jpgFile:Chamba Rumal .jpgTextile arts are those arts and crafts that use fiber crop, animal fiber, or synthetic fiber fibers to construct practical or decorative objects....
, and culinary arts) involve aspects of the visual arts as well as other types, so these definitions are not strict.

The current usage of the term "visual arts" includes fine arts as well as crafts, but this was not always the case.






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The visual arts are art forms
Art

Art is the process or product of deliberately arranging elements in a way that appeals to the senses or emotions. It encompasses a diverse range of human activities, creations, and modes of expression, including music and literature....
 that focus on the creation of works which are primarily visual in nature, such as drawing
Drawing

Drawing is a visual art that makes use of any number of drawing instruments to mark a two-dimensional medium. Common instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoals, chalk, pastels, marker pens, stylus, or various metals like silverpoint....
, painting
Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . In art, the term describes both the act and the result, which is called a painting....
, photography
Photography

Photography is the process, activity and art of creating still or moving by recording radiation on a sensitive medium, such as a photographic film, or an ....
, printmaking
Printmaking

Printmaking is the process of making artworks by printing, normally on paper. Except in the case of monotyping, the process is capable of producing multiples of the same piece, which is called a 'print....
, and filmmaking
Filmmaking

Filmmaking is the process of making a film, from an initial story idea or commission through scriptwriting, shooting, editing and finally distribution to an audience....
. Those that involve three-dimensional objects, such as sculpture
Sculpture

Sculpture is Three-dimensional space artwork created by shaping or combining hard and or plastic material, sound, and or text and or light, commonly Stone sculpture , metal, glass, or wood....
 and architecture
Architecture

The term architecture can refer to a process, a profession or documentation.As a process, architecture is the activity of designing and construction buildings and other physical structures by a person or a computer, primarily to provide shelter....
, are called plastic arts
Plastic arts

Plastic arts are those visual arts that involve the use of materials that can be moulded or modulated in some way, often in three dimensions. Examples are clay, paint and plaster....
. Many artistic disciplines (performing arts
Performing arts

The performing arts are those forms of art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical work of art....
, language arts
Language arts

Language arts is the general academic subject area dealing with developing comprehension and capacity for use of written and oral language.Traditionally, the primary divisions in the language arts are Literature and Language, where language in this case refers to both linguistics, and specific languages....
, textile arts
Textile arts

File:Painted silk.jpgFile:Chamba Rumal .jpgTextile arts are those arts and crafts that use fiber crop, animal fiber, or synthetic fiber fibers to construct practical or decorative objects....
, and culinary arts) involve aspects of the visual arts as well as other types, so these definitions are not strict.

The current usage of the term "visual arts" includes fine arts as well as crafts, but this was not always the case. Before the Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts movement

The Arts and Crafts Movement was a United Kingdom, Canada, and United States aesthetic movement occurring in the last years of the 19th century and the early years of the 20th century....
 in Britain
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 and elsewhere at the turn of the 20th century, "visual artist" referred to a person working in the fine arts (such as painting
Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . In art, the term describes both the act and the result, which is called a painting....
, sculpture
Sculpture

Sculpture is Three-dimensional space artwork created by shaping or combining hard and or plastic material, sound, and or text and or light, commonly Stone sculpture , metal, glass, or wood....
, or printmaking
Printmaking

Printmaking is the process of making artworks by printing, normally on paper. Except in the case of monotyping, the process is capable of producing multiples of the same piece, which is called a 'print....
) and not the handicraft
Handicraft

Handicraft, also known as craftwork or simply craft, is a type of work where useful and decorative devices are made completely by hand or using only simple tools....
, craft
Craft

A craft is a skill, especially involving practical The Arts. It may refer to a trade or particular art.The terms is often used as part of a longer word ....
, or applied art
Applied art

Applied art refers to the application of design and aesthetics to objects of function and everyday use. Whereas fine arts serve as intellectual stimulation to the viewer or academic sensibilities, the applied arts incorporate design and creative ideals to objects of utility, such as a cup, magazine or decorative park bench....
 disciplines. The distinction was emphasized by artists of the Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts movement

The Arts and Crafts Movement was a United Kingdom, Canada, and United States aesthetic movement occurring in the last years of the 19th century and the early years of the 20th century....
 who valued vernacular art forms as much as high forms. The movement contrasted with modernists who sought to withhold the high arts from the masses by keeping them esoteric. Art schools made a distinction between the fine arts and the crafts
Handicraft

Handicraft, also known as craftwork or simply craft, is a type of work where useful and decorative devices are made completely by hand or using only simple tools....
 in such a way that a craftsperson could not be considered a practitioner of art.

Visual arts and education


Visual arts have become an elective subject in most education systems .

Drawing


Drawing
Drawing

Drawing is a visual art that makes use of any number of drawing instruments to mark a two-dimensional medium. Common instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoals, chalk, pastels, marker pens, stylus, or various metals like silverpoint....
 is a means of making an image
Image

An image is an artifact, usually two-dimensional , that has a similar appearance to some subject —usually a physical object or a person....
, using any of a wide variety of tools and techniques. It generally involves making marks on a surface by applying pressure from a tool, or moving a tool across a surface using dry media such as graphite
Graphite

The mineral graphite is one of the allotropes of carbon. It was named by Abraham Gottlob Werner in 1789 from the Greek language ??afe?? : "to draw/write", for its use in pencils, where it is commonly called lead, as distinguished from the actual metallic element lead....
 pencil
Pencil

A pencil is a writing or drawing instrument consisting of a thin stick of pigment and clay, usually encased in a thin wood cylinder, though paper and plastic sheaths are also used....
s, pen and ink
Pen and ink

Pen and ink refers to a technique of drawing or writing, in which colored ink is applied to paper using a pen or other stylus. It may be used as a medium for Sketch es, or for finished works of art....
, ink
Ink

An ink is a liquid containing various pigments and/or dyes used for coloring a surface to produce an , writing, or design. Ink is used for drawing and/or writing with a pen, brush or quill....
ed brush
Brush

The term brush refers to devices with bristles, wire or other filaments, used for cleaning, Personal grooming hair, cosmetics making painting, deburring and other kinds of surface finishing, and for many other purposes....
es, wax color pencils, crayon
Crayon

A crayon is a stick of colored wax, charcoal, chalk, or other materials used for writing and drawing. A crayon made of oiled chalk is called an oil pastel; when made of pigment with a dry binder, it is simply a pastel....
s, charcoal
Charcoal

Charcoal is the blackish residue consisting of impure carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances....
s, pastel
Pastel

Pastel is an art medium in the form of a stick, consisting of pure powdered pigment and a binder. The pigments used in pastels are the same as those used to produce all colored art media, including oil paints; the binder is of a neutral hue and low saturation....
s, and marker
Marker pen

A marker pen, marking pen, felt-tip pen, or marker, is a pen which has its own ink-source, and usually a tip made of a porous material, such as felt or nylon....
s. Digital tools which simulate the effects of these are also used. The main techniques used in drawing are: line drawing, hatching
Hatching

Hatching is an artistic technique used to create tonal or shading effects by drawing closely spaced parallel lines. When lines are placed at an angle to one another, it is called cross-hatching....
, crosshatching, random hatching, scribbling, stippling
Stippling

Stippling is the technique of using small dots to simulate varying Grayscale or shading.In a drawing or painting, the dots are made of pigment of a single color, applied with a pen or brush; the denser the spacing of the dots, the darker the apparent shade?or lighter, if the pigment is lighter than the surface....
, and blending. An artist who excels in drawing is referred to as a draftsman or draughtsman".

Painting


Painting
Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . In art, the term describes both the act and the result, which is called a painting....
 taken literally is the practice of applying pigment
Pigment

A pigment is a material that changes the color of light it Reflection as the result of selective color absorption. This physical process differs from fluorescence, phosphorescence, and other forms of luminescence, in which the material itself emits light....
 suspended in a carrier (or medium
Paint

Paint is any liquid, liquifiable, or mastic composition which after application to a Substrate in a thin layer is converted to an opaque solid film....
) and a binding agent (a glue
Adhesive

Adhesive or glue is a compound in a liquid or semi-liquid state that adhesion or bonds items together. Adhesives may come from either natural or Chemical synthesis sources....
) to a surface
Surface

In mathematics, specifically in topology, a surface is a two-dimensional topological manifold. The most familiar examples are those that arise as the boundaries of solid objects in ordinary three-dimensional Euclidean space E3....
 (support) such as paper
Paper

Paper is thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon or packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
, canvas
Canvas

Canvas is an extremely heavy-duty plain weave cloth used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, and other functions where sturdiness is required....
 or a wall. However, when used in an artistic sense it means the use of this activity in combination with drawing
Drawing

Drawing is a visual art that makes use of any number of drawing instruments to mark a two-dimensional medium. Common instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoals, chalk, pastels, marker pens, stylus, or various metals like silverpoint....
, composition
Composition (visual arts)

In the visual arts ? in particular painting, graphic design, photography and sculpture ? composition is the placement or arrangement of visual elements or ingredients in a work of art....
 and other aesthetic considerations in order to manifest the expressive and conceptual intention of the practitioner. Painting is also used to express spiritual motifs and ideas; sites of this kind of painting range from artwork depicting mythological figures on pottery to The Sistine Chapel
Sistine Chapel

Sistine Chapel is the best-known chapel in the Apostolic Palace, the official residence of the Pope in Vatican City. Its fame rests on its architecture, evocative of Solomon's Temple of the Old Testament and on its decoration which has been frescoed throughout by the greatest Renaissance artists including Michelangelo, Raphael, Bernini, and...
 to the human body itself.

Printmaking


Printmaking
Printmaking

Printmaking is the process of making artworks by printing, normally on paper. Except in the case of monotyping, the process is capable of producing multiples of the same piece, which is called a 'print....
 is creating for artistic purposes an image on a matrix which is then transferred to a two-dimensional (flat) surface by means of ink (or another form of pigmentation). Except in the case of a monotype, the same matrix can be used to produce many examples of the print. Historically, the major techniques (also called media) involved are woodcut
Woodcut

Woodcut - formally known as Xylography - is a relief printing artistic technique in printmaking in which an image is carved into the surface of a block of wood, with the printing parts remaining level with the surface while the non-printing parts are removed, typically with gouges....
, line engraving
Line engraving

Line engraving is a term for engraving images printed on paper to be used as Old master print or illustrations. The term is now much less used and when is, it is mainly in connection with 18th or 19th century commercial illustrations for magazines and books, or reproductions of paintings....
, etching
Etching

Etching is the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio in the metal ....
, lithography
Lithography

Lithography is a method for printing using a stone or a metal plate with a completely smooth surface. By contrast, in intaglio a plate is engraving, etching or mezzotint to make cavities to contain the printing ink, and in woodblock printing and letterpress ink is applied to the raised surfaces of letters or images....
, and screenprinting (serigraphy, silkscreening) but there are many others, including modern digital techniques. Normally the surface upon which the print is printed is paper
Paper

Paper is thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon or packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
, but there are exceptions, from cloth and vellum
Vellum

Vellum is mammal skin prepared for writing or printing on single pages, scrolls, Codex or books. It is generally thin, smooth and durable, although there are great variations depending on preparation, the quality of the skin, and the type of animal....
 to modern materials. Prints in the Western tradition produced before about 1830 are known as old master print
Old master print

An old master print is a work of art produced by a printing process within the Western tradition . A date of about 1830 is usually taken as marking the end of the period whose prints are covered by this term....
s. There are other major printmaking traditions, especially that of Japan (ukiyo-e
Ukiyo-e

, "pictures of the floating world", is a genre of Japanese woodblock printing and paintings produced between the 17th and the 20th centuries, featuring motifs of landscapes, tales from history, the theatre and pleasure quarters....
).

Photography


Photography
Photography

Photography is the process, activity and art of creating still or moving by recording radiation on a sensitive medium, such as a photographic film, or an ....
 is the process of making pictures by means of the action of light. Light
Light

Light, or visible light, is electromagnetic radiation of a wavelength that is Visible spectrum to the human eye , or up to 380?750 nm. In the broader field of physics, light is sometimes used to refer to electromagnetic radiation of all wavelengths, whether visible or not....
 patterns reflected or emitted from objects are recorded onto a sensitive medium or storage chip through a timed exposure
Exposure (photography)

In photography, exposure is the total amount of light allowed to fall on the photographic medium during the process of taking a photograph. Exposure is measured in lux seconds, and can be computed from exposure value and scene luminance over a specified area....
. The process is done through mechanical
Machine

A machine is any device that uses energy to perform some activity. In common usage, the meaning is that of a device having parts that perform or assist in performing any type of work....
, chemical or digital
Digital

A digital system uses discrete values, usually but not always symbolized numerically to represent information for input, processing, transmission, storage, etc....
 devices known as camera
Camera

A camera is a device that records images, either as a still photograph or as moving images known as videos or movies. The term comes from the camera obscura , an early mechanism of projecting images where an entire room functioned as a real-time imaging system; the modern camera evolved from the camera obscura....
s.

The word comes from the Greek words f?? phos ("light"), and ??af?? graphis ("stylus", "paintbrush") or ??af? graphê, together meaning "drawing with light" or "representation by means of lines" or "drawing." Traditionally, the product of photography has been called a photograph
Photograph

A photograph is an created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic imager such as a Charge-coupled device or a Complementary metal?oxide?semiconductor chip....
. The term photo is an abbreviation; many people also call them pictures. In digital photography, the term image has begun to replace photograph. (The term image is traditional in geometric optics
Optics

Optics is the study of the behavior and properties of light including its optical phenomena with matter and its imaging by optical instruments....
.)

Filmmaking

Filmmaking is the process of making a motion-picture, from an initial conception and research, through scriptwriting, shooting and recording, animation or other special effects, editing, sound and music work and finally distribution to an audience; it refers broadly to the creation of all types of films, embracing documentary, strains of theatre and literature in film, and poetic or experimental practices, and is often used to refer to video-based processes as well.

Computer art


Visual artists are no longer limited to traditional art media
Media (arts)

In the arts, media are the materials and techniques used by an artist to produce a work....
. Computers may enhance visual art from ease of rendering or capturing
Capture

Capture can refer to a number of things aside from its usual...
, to editing, to exploring multiple compositions
Composition (visual arts)

In the visual arts ? in particular painting, graphic design, photography and sculpture ? composition is the placement or arrangement of visual elements or ingredients in a work of art....
, to printing
Printing

Printing is a process for reproducing text and image, typically with ink on paper using a printing press. It is often carried out as a large-scale industrial process, and is an essential part of publishing and transaction printing....
 (including 3D printing
3D printing

3D printing is a unique form of printing that is related to traditional rapid prototyping technology. A three dimensional object is created by layering and connecting successive cross sections of material....
.)

Computer art is any art
Art

Art is the process or product of deliberately arranging elements in a way that appeals to the senses or emotions. It encompasses a diverse range of human activities, creations, and modes of expression, including music and literature....
 in which computer
Computer

A computer is a machine that manipulates Data according to a list of Code .The first devices that resemble modern computers date to the mid-20th century , although the computer concept and various machines similar to computers existed earlier....
s played a role in production or display of the artwork. Such art can be an image, sound, animation, video
Video

Video is the technology of electronics Videography, recording, processing, storing, transmitting, and reconstructing a sequence of still images representing Scene in motion....
, CD-ROM
CD-ROM

CD-ROM is a pre-pressed Compact Disc that contains Computer data storage accessible to, but not writable by, a computer. While the Compact Disc format was originally designed for music storage and playback, the 1985 Yellow Book standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of Binary file....
, DVD-ROM, videogame, web site, algorithm
Algorithm

In mathematics, computing, linguistics and related subjects, an algorithm is a sequence of finite instructions, often used for calculation and data processing....
, performance
Performance

A performance, in performing arts, generally comprises an event in which one group of people behave in a particular way for another group of people ....
 or gallery installation. Many traditional disciplines are now integrating digital
Digital

A digital system uses discrete values, usually but not always symbolized numerically to represent information for input, processing, transmission, storage, etc....
 technologies and, as a result, the lines between traditional works of art and new media works created using computers have been blurred. For instance, an artist may combine traditional painting
Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . In art, the term describes both the act and the result, which is called a painting....
 with algorithm art and other digital techniques. As a result, defining computer art by its end product can thus be difficult. Nevertheless, this type of art is beginning to appear in art museum exhibits.

Computer usage has blurred the distinctions between illustrator
Illustrator

An illustrator is a graphic artist who specializes in enhancing writing by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text....
s, photographer
Photographer

A photographer is a person who takes a photograph using a camera. A professional photographer uses photography to make a living whilst an amateur photographer does not earn a living and typically takes photographs for pleasure and to record an event, place or person for future enjoyment....
s, photo editors
Photo editing

Photo editing can refer to:* techniques applied to photographs.* The cultural impact and ethical concerns of photo manipulation....
, 3-D modelers, and handicraft artists. Sophisticated rendering and editing software has led to multi-skilled image developers. Photographer
Photographer

A photographer is a person who takes a photograph using a camera. A professional photographer uses photography to make a living whilst an amateur photographer does not earn a living and typically takes photographs for pleasure and to record an event, place or person for future enjoyment....
s may become digital artists. Illustrators may become animators. Handicraft may be computer-aided
Computer-aided

Computer-aided- or computer-assisted- is a prefix that hints to the use of a computer as an indispensable tool in a certain field, usually derived from more traditional fields of science and engineering....
 or use computer generated imagery as a template. Computer clip art
Clip art

Clip art, in the graphic arts, refers to pre-made images used to illustrate any medium. Today, clip art is used extensively in both personal and commercial projects, ranging from home-printed greeting cards to commercial candles....
 usage has also made the clear distinction between visual arts and page layout
Page layout

Page layout is the part of graphic design that deals in the arrangement and style treatment of elements on a page. Beginning from early illuminated pages in hand-copied books of the Middle Ages and proceeding down to intricate modern magazine and catalog layouts, proper page design has long been a consideration in printed material....
 less obvious due to the easy access and editing of clip art in the process of paginating
Pagination

Pagination is the system by which the information on a newspaper, bookpage, manuscript, or otherwise handwritten, printed or displayed document is laid out....
 a document, especially to the unskilled observer.

Sculpture

  • Ceramics
    Ceramics (art)

    Ceramics is the art and science of making objects from inorganic, non-metallic materials by the action of heat. In art history, ceramics and ceramic art mean tableware, Work of art and tiles made from clay and other ceramic materials by the process of pottery, so excluding glass and also mosaic, normally made from glass tesserae....
  • Glass
    Glass

    Glass generally refers to a Hardness, brittle, transparency amorphous solid, such as that used for windows, many Glass Bottles, or eyewear, including, but not limited to, soda-lime glass, borosilicate glass, acrylic glass, sugar glass, Muscovite , or aluminium oxynitride....
  • Land art
    Land art

    Land art, Earthworks, or Earth art is an art movement which emerged in the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s, in which landscape and the work of art are inextricably linked....
  • Metalworking
    Metalworking

    Metalworking is the process of working with metals to create individual parts, assemblies, or large scale structures. The term covers a wide range of work from large ships, bridges and oil refineries to delicate jewellery....
  • Mosaic
    Mosaic

    Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other material. It may be a technique of Decorative arts, an aspect of interior decoration or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral....
 Paper art
  • Stone carving
    Stone carving

    Stone carving is an ancient activity where pieces of rough natural Rock are shaped by the controlled removal of stone. Owing to the permanence of the material, evidence can be found that even the earliest societies indulged in some form of stone work....
  • Textile art
    Textile art

    Textile art may refer to:*Any one of the textile arts, those arts and crafts that use plant, animal, or synthetic fibers to construct practical or decorative objects...
  • Woodworking
    Woodworking

    Woodworking is the process of building, making or carving something using wood....


Art-related terms in visual arts

  • Asemic writing
    Asemic writing

    Asemic writing is a wordless open semantic form of writing. The word asemic means "having no specific semantic content".Illegible, invented, or primal manuscripts are all influences upon asemic writing....
  • Collage
    Collage

    Sorry, no overview for this topic
  • Comics
    Comics

    Comics is a graphic Mass media in which are utilized in order to convey a sequential narrative; the term, derived from massive early use to convey comic themes, came to be applied to all uses of this medium including those which are far from comic....
  • Composition
    Composition (visual arts)

    In the visual arts ? in particular painting, graphic design, photography and sculpture ? composition is the placement or arrangement of visual elements or ingredients in a work of art....
  • Computer art
    Computer art

    Computer art is any art in which computers played a role in production or display of the artwork. Such art can be an image, sound, animation, video, CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, videogame, web site, algorithm, performance or gallery installation....
  • Conceptual art
    Conceptual art

    Conceptual art is art in which the concept or idea involved in the work take precedence over traditional Aesthetics and material concerns. Many of the works, sometimes called Installation art, of the artist Sol LeWitt may be constructed by anyone simply by following a set of written instructions....
  • Contemporary art
    Contemporary art

    Contemporary art can be defined variously as art produced at this present point in time or art produced since World War II. The definition of the word contemporary would support the first view, but museums of contemporary art commonly define their collections as consisting of art produced since World War II....
  • Crafts
  • Decollage
    Décollage

    D?collage, in art, is the opposite of collage; instead of an image being built up of all or parts of existing images, it is created by cutting, tearing away or otherwise removing, pieces of an original image....
  • Decorative art
    Decorative art

    The decorative arts are traditionally defined as ornamental and functional works in ceramic, wood, glass, metal, textile. The field includes Ceramics , furniture, furnishings, interior design, and architecture....
  • Design
    Design

    Design is used both as a noun and a verb. The term is often tied to the various applied arts and engineering . As a verb, "to design" refers to the process of originating and planning for a product, structure, system, or component with intention....
  • Drawing
    Drawing

    Drawing is a visual art that makes use of any number of drawing instruments to mark a two-dimensional medium. Common instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoals, chalk, pastels, marker pens, stylus, or various metals like silverpoint....
  • Film
    Film

    Film encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the film industry. Films are produced by recording images from the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or special effects....
  • Found art
    Found art

    The term found art—more commonly found object or readymade—describes art created from the undisguised, but often modified, use of objects that are not normally considered art, often because they already have a non-art function....
  • Graffiti
    Graffiti

    Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property. Graffiti is sometimes regarded as a form of art and other times regarded as unsightly damage or unwanted....
  • Graphic design
    Graphic design

    The term graphic design can refer to a number of artistic and professional disciplines which focus on visual communication and presentation. Various methods are used to create and combine symbols, images and/or words to create a visual representation of ideas and messages....
  • Illustration
    Illustration

    An illustration is a Information graphic such as a drawing, painting, photograph or other work of art that stresses subject more than form. The aim of an illustration is to elucidate or decorate textual information by providing a visual representation....
  • Image development
    Image development (visual arts)

    Image development is the process of development for any use. It is often both a synonym for a specific process and a label for a unique combination of processes....
  • Installation art
    Installation art

    Installation art is the use of sculptural materials and other interesting material to transform a space or, argueably, an area. Installation art is not necessarily confined to gallery spaces and can be any material intervention in everyday public or private spaces....
  • Landscape art
    Landscape art

    Landscape art depicts scenery such as mountains, valleys, trees, rivers, and forests. Sky is almost always included in the view, and weather usually is an element of the composition....
  • Mail art
    Mail art

    Mail art is art which uses the postal system as a medium. The term mail art can refer to an individual message, the medium through which it is sent, or an artistic genre....
  • Mathematics and art
    Mathematics and art

    Mathematics and art have a long historical relationship. The history of Egypt and history of Greece knew about the golden ratio, regarded as an aesthetically pleasing ratio, and incorporated it into the design of monuments including the Great Pyramid, the Parthenon, the Colosseum....
  • Mixed media
    Mixed media

    Mixed media, in visual art, refers to an work of art in the making of which more than one Art medium has been employed.There is an important distinction between "mixed-media" artworks and "multimedia artist"....
  • Painting
    Painting

    Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . In art, the term describes both the act and the result, which is called a painting....
  • Photography
    Photography

    Photography is the process, activity and art of creating still or moving by recording radiation on a sensitive medium, such as a photographic film, or an ....
  • Portraiture
    Portrait painting

    Portrait painting is a Hierarchy of genres in painting, where the intent is to depict the visual appearance of the subject. Beside human beings, animals, pets and even inanimate objects can be chosen as the subject for a portrait....
  • Old master print
    Old master print

    An old master print is a work of art produced by a printing process within the Western tradition . A date of about 1830 is usually taken as marking the end of the period whose prints are covered by this term....
  • Printmaking
    Printmaking

    Printmaking is the process of making artworks by printing, normally on paper. Except in the case of monotyping, the process is capable of producing multiples of the same piece, which is called a 'print....
  • Sculpture
    Sculpture

    Sculpture is Three-dimensional space artwork created by shaping or combining hard and or plastic material, sound, and or text and or light, commonly Stone sculpture , metal, glass, or wood....
  • Sketch (drawing)
    Sketch (drawing)

    A sketch is a rapidly executed freehand drawing that is not intended as a finished work. If in oil paint it is called an oil sketch. In general, a sketch is a quick way to record an idea for later use....
  • sketchbook
    Sketchbook

    A sketchbook is a "a book or pad with blank pages for sketching," and is frequently used by artists for drawing or painting as a part of their creative process....
  • Sound art
    Sound art

    Sound art is a diverse group of art practices that considers wide notions of sound, listening and hearing as its predominant focus. There are often distinct relationships forged between the visual and aural domains of art and perception by sound artists....
  • Textile art
    Textile art

    Textile art may refer to:*Any one of the textile arts, those arts and crafts that use plant, animal, or synthetic fibers to construct practical or decorative objects...
  • Video art
    Video art

    Video art is a type of art which relies on moving pictures and comprises video and/or sound reproduction data. . Video art came into existence during the 1960s and 1970s, is still widely practiced and has given rise to the widespread use of video installations....


See also


  • Avant-garde
    Avant-garde

    Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English, to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
  • List of basic visual arts topics
    List of basic visual arts topics

    The visual arts are a class of Art#Art forms, including painting, sculpture, photography, printmaking and others, that focus on the creation of works which are primarily visual in nature....
  • History of art
    History of art

    The history of art usually refers to the history of the visual arts of painting, sculpture and architecture as well as architecture. It is the history of one of the fine arts, others of which are the performing arts and literary arts....
  • History of graphic design
    History of graphic design

    Graphics are the production of visual statements on some surface, such as a wall, canvas, pottery, computer screen, paper, stone or landscape. It includes everything that relates to creation of signs, charts, logos, graphs, drawings, line art, symbols, geometric designs and so on....
  • History of film
    History of film

    The history of film spans over a hundred years, from the latter part of the 19th century to the beginning of the 21st. Motion pictures developed gradually from a carnival novelty to one of the most important tools of communication and entertainment, and mass media in the 20th century....
  • History of painting
    History of painting

    The history of painting reaches back in time to artifacts from pre-historic humans, and spans all cultures, that represents a continuous, though disrupted, tradition from Antiquity....
  • History of sculpture
    History of sculpture

    The history of the sculpture is varied and is illustrative of how sculpture has changed extensively over the ages. The art of sculpture continues as a vital artform worldwide....
  • List of art movements
    List of art movements

    This is a list of art movements. These terms, helpful for curriculum or anthology, evolved over time to group artists who are often loosely related....
  • Plastic arts
    Plastic arts

    Plastic arts are those visual arts that involve the use of materials that can be moulded or modulated in some way, often in three dimensions. Examples are clay, paint and plaster....
  • Mathematics and art
    Mathematics and art

    Mathematics and art have a long historical relationship. The history of Egypt and history of Greece knew about the golden ratio, regarded as an aesthetically pleasing ratio, and incorporated it into the design of monuments including the Great Pyramid, the Parthenon, the Colosseum....


External links

  • - online dictionary of visual art terms.
  • by the Metropolitan Museum of Art
    Metropolitan Museum of Art

    The Metropolitan Museum of Art is an art museum located on the eastern edge of Central Park, along what is known as Museum Mile, New York City in New York City, USA....
    .
  • - essay. (PDF)
  • A collection of art terms and glossaries