What is art Aspects of the definition of art - Essay Example

What Is Art? Art is considered to be indefinable. Art has no specific characteristics or features. Accordingto the romantic tradition, it is the subject of genius, whose perception is beyond any personal or social limitation and therefore it is considered as indefinable. In simple words art can be defined as a skillful piece that is the creation of a human artist. However the artists of modern age constantly have been pushing the boundaries of this definition and challenging new perceptions. The human artists have often left the psychologist, philosopher and critics far behind when it comes to preconception. Readymade art or found out often challenges the job of an artist as the creator of art (Tolstoy, n.d.). It is not always that an art is indefinable. It can be defined by the help of the institutional theory of Art. According to these institutional theories of art, it can be defined by the help of its partial or relational properties. The procedure through which art has been developed can also be considered as a way of defining art. According to the Formalist theory of art, the formal characteristic of artwork can be used to determine its aesthetic properties. This formal relation can be between its constitutive elements such as relationship between line, colors, volume and masses in the form of visual art work for e.g. paintings. There are theories present that confirm that content can be an effective contribution to the aesthetic value of artwork. This is the only story that supports such an argument. The general and non-honorific are two aspects of the classification of art and therefore it better to develop the understanding of the two aspects and the difference between them. The two main categories of art are fine art or applied and decorative art. Fine art consists of aesthetic objects that are not meant to be used to fill any kind of practical purpose or the art which is purely decorative but doesn’t have any facade of being considered as art. The foundation of conceptual or found art dates back to the time when Marcel Duchamp’s work was introduced, which was the representation of the enamel urinal as the subject of art. The object of questioning used by Marcel was purely based on the aesthetic view and the high level of aesthetic excellence that can be used as the instance of art. We can also observe that not always are these events the instances of art, irrespective of the fact that how they are being viewed by an institution. Objects can be classified as art or non-art. It order to place a project in the former category it is important to ask about the intention of the artist regarding his composition that whether it is aesthetic or the artistic appreciation, whether the creation of the artist is original or it is inspired by the work of others or whether the work is a reproduction or is it an object that is produced in bulk. Fine art, folk art and popular art can be distinguished from each other on the basis of several aspects. For e.g. in fine art almost every composition of the artist is original but there are so many reproductions of it present, whereas folk art is purely original with no reproduction or copy. However popular art can be distinguished from the other two form of art as all the work present in this category is merely copy and there is no originality present, or has been preserved. There are two aspects of the definition of Art i.e. horizontal and vertical. Both these aspects at times can be confusing and therefore it’s better to develop a clear understanding about them. The horizontal aspect of art is concerned with choosing the general aspect of different things and then contrasting it with different aspects of human culture. These aspects can be literature, science, sports, etc. Horizontal aspect can be considered as a non-honorific or general aspect of art in which different categories of art are included. These categories can be applied art, decorative art, amateur art, popular art, folk art and children art. According to the horizontal aspect of art, a drawing of a four year child is also considered as art. However the vertical aspect of art takes into account the professional or high art. The vertical aspect of art discards the pieces that are not horrific enough or sophisticated enough to be considered as capitalized art. We get the Eclectic theory of Art by combining any two theories present above. In order to judge the validity of the theory it is important to study it deeply for e.g. the mimetic as well as the expression theory both are considered true. Many theorists have taken the part from these theories and combined them in order to give birth to an Eclectic Theory. In this case the theorists are not discussing a single theory but a new theory, which is the result of the combination of these theories. But the theorists have got be careful while putting the claim forward as the claim proposed by the theorists should not make the theories contradict each other. In the 18th century the imitation theory of art was at decline, however it has been the important part of the popular consciousness in the 18th and 19th century. The evolution of the representational theory was an attempt by those theorists who still wanted to stick to some of the basic concept of the imitation theory, while updating the others. According to the representational theory philosophy of art can be defined as anything that is recognized by a mass audience and therefore it can be used to stand for something else. We can take the example of a portrait. The audience recognizes a portrait on the basis of its creator and therefore we can say that the artist represents its art. This can also be considered as an example of imitation, for imitation is a significant step of representation. However the concept of representation is broader than that of imitation, as there are thing that may stand for something else without being the exact image of it. For example, Fleur-de-lys represents the royal house of Bourbon without being like it. Representational art can be considered as thriving. It is more viewer friendly in comparison to other forms such as conceptual or abstract art. The audience has a higher degree of comfort for the art that has something recognizable within it. Saying that representational art is more acceptable doesn’t mean that other forms of art aren’t attractive. For example abstract art has its own separate characteristics as it stands alone on the basis of color, light and design. We can conclude that many people are fond of art and they need things that they can hang on their walls, whether it is an imitation or an original, a poster or any other qualitative reproduction of art (Esaak, 2013). High art comprises of the qualities such as originality, uniqueness, expression, sophistication, artistic freedom, etc. According to Fischer the value that categorizes art as popular art are escapism, dominance of audience and mass production. Art can simply be defined as reproduction of an object, the expression of opinions or any experience that has the capability of evoking the sense of delight within an individual. It can also be the emotion of shock, which is experienced by an individual at times. In order to get detailed knowledge about art, it is better to understand it with the help of an example. Mona Lisa is the most recognized painting worldwide. Mona Lisa is an original piece of art and one of its own kinds. However with the passage of time this unique piece of art has proved itself as the icon of renaissance. Mona Lisa is the portrait of the wife of a Florentine merchant and therefore her gaze is meant to be for him. The portrait was never delivered to its patron but Leonardo kept it with him because of several reasons (Leonardo's "Mona Lisa", 2013). The mysterious smile of Mona Lisa is the result of inspiration taken from different writers, painters and singers. Pyramid design has been used by Leonardo to calmly place the woman in the painting. The position of her hands forms the corner of the pyramid. Mona Lisa’s neck, breast and face glow has the same light as her hands. There are varieties of underlying and living surfaces have been added by the light in the form of circles and spheres. A simple formula is used by Leonardo for the seating figure of Mona Lisa. The formula of seating Madonna has been used by him was quite popular at that time. This seating formula however is modified by Leonardo for creating visual impression in order to maintain a distance between the observer and the sitter. The chair’s armrest is used for the purpose of partition between the viewer and the painting. There are several speculations present regarding the model and the landscape of the painting. It seems that Leonardo has painted this portrait quite honestly because the beauty of Mona Lisa is same as an average looking women. Some critics often argue that the landscape present in this painting is inspired by a Chinese painting. No clear evidence has been found regarding this thesis proposed by the critics. This woman in the painting has been identified as Lisa del Giocondo but still there are speculations present regarding the woman present in the painting being Caterina, the mother of Leonardo. Other speculation present regarding the painting is the original size of the painting, and whether it is painted on the size or its size is original. There are several explanations present for the ways through which the enigmatic smile of Mona Lisa has been achieved. However no one can deny the fact that this painting is the master piece and therefore it cannot be recreated by any ordinary artist. Art can be used to serve many different purposes but the general form of art used is free in all its aims and means. Art is the form of pure thoughts and it is a medium through which an artist gets connected to the external world. Art is anything that is not produced by the nature but it is the creation of the human mind. It is created specifically for humans and therefore its characteristics are quite relatable. Work Cited Esaak, S. (2013) What Is Representational Art?, [Online], Available: http://arthistory.about.com/cs/reference/f/representation.htm [15 December 2013]. Leonardo's "Mona Lisa" (2013), [Online], Available: http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/leonardo-mona-lisa.html [15 December 2013]. Tolstoy, L. What is Art?, [Online], Available: http://www.artofimagination.org/Pages/ArtEss.html [15 December 2013]. Read More