What is art?

[onlymystory]

So my class discussed this for a while and I thought it might be an interesting topic for here. And its actually something that can be discussed regardless of personal belief systems so hopefully more will join in.

So my question is; what is art? How do we define music, paintings, literature, drama etc and classify them as good art or not? What sort of criteria should we use?

[SpiritedWolf]

Art is an expression of anything, it could be your mood or your thoughts or anything really!!! :D

[Solya]

Art, to me, is the ultimate form of expressing what God wants to say in my life. :) It is my way of telling the world what I deal with and why I choose to deal with it.

It's not easy to judge art. Everyone will see it differently and the criteria used will not be the same for every person. For me personally, good art is the sort of art which makes me think about my connection to life and everything that is in it. Good art is not meaningless and not ever totally pointless.

[Gwen]

I think this is a nice definition of art: Art is the conscious production or arrangement of sounds, colors, forms, movements, or other elements in a manner that affects the sense of beauty...
But of course, art is hard to judge... We have so many sorts of art, it's hard to give a definition for them all.
For me personally, art must make me think and not be meaningless or pointless, just like you said, Solya. :)

[LifeMaiden]

Art is what you see, and it is also what you do not see. It's what you interpret. I'm a humanities person first and foremost...my big loves in life are art, literature, philosiphy, history and music.


When we say something is 'good' it moves us in a way that is often not definable by simple words alone, but by feelings in the heart and soul. We get positive feelings and joyful emotions, and get excited about a certain piece of literature, art or music. We are moved deeply to tears, to smiles and laughter, or to wonder and awe.


I am hesitant to say what art, literature or music is 'bad' because it's often just a matter of opinion. Some opinions will be more popular and understandable than others. Occasionally it's also notoriety that can make something 'bad' to some, and 'good' to others. Do you guys remember the photography exhibition of Robert Mapplethorpe? I personally did not find his photography to be of exceptional talent...but of something more shock value than of artistic value.


Modern art to me is kind of a mystery...my parents both enjoy modern art where employs the use of things I don't understand and find too simplistic. A big square sitting on a canvas for example, doesn't move it. It makes me blank and confused. There was an artist who crashed a school bus, painted it white, and dragged it into a museum on display where it was called CRASH. I didn't really understand that either. Modern art often fails to move me in any way other than to confuse me. However this is not to say that it's not as valuable or beautiful as a Rembrandt or a Titian, or a Monet. It just fails to move me in the same way that those paintings would.



I love many, many different kinds of literature, probably far more types than of music or art.


These things cannot always be defined as I said by words alone. Sometimes we are thrilled or shocked, or awed, into silence by what is considered art.

[EveningStar]

The cow said, "I give milk but I'm stuck in the barnyard while the dog lives in the house with the master."

The sheep said, "I give wool but I'm stuck in the barnyard too. The cat sleeps in the master's bed!"

The horse said, "I pull the master's plow and carry him about. The dog prances on his hind legs and catches a ball, and the cat only insists on attention."

They all looked at the dog with a scowl. "Why is this, dog?"

"Your skills are very useful," said the dog, "But what I do is ART!"

The moral:

If you can give wool, prance about on your hind legs and catch the ball, you can put the dog out of a job!

[Miss Freckles]

I think art is anything that you feel is beautiful.

[Wild Rose]

Art to me is a way to show my feelings, to discrib who I am

[Narborg]

Good question!!! something that I have often woundered. There seem to be a lot of definations and I thoght Ill thow this into thw mix. At universitys, a Arts degree inlcued stuff like Languages, history, politics and religous studies. What dose this do to our defination of the word art?

And here another thing, I may like one painting or syle of musoic, bus someone else make hate it. How do we define "good art"?

[Neevil]

I think art is taking something normal and either turning it into something creative and out of the ordinary, or putting a unique perspective on it.

[Clara Pendragon the Just]

Art si derived from the latin word "ARS",meaning ability or skill.Art is used in many varied ways.Art embraces the visual arts,literature,music and dance.

Art is an individual accomplishment. it begins as an idea and is complete as a viewed item.Artwork can be unique,visible stataement from the artists' inner voice.In an age of impersonal computerization and mass production, this individual statement is rare and wonderful. it is something to be valued

[tugce_lucy]

art is =( picture,sculptor,oil painting,paint,drawing...)a human being's draw or make a picture or statue!!!!!