Comprehensive Art and Humanities: Key Concepts, Art Forms, and Historical Periods

Humanities

Study of human culture, condition, and values using methods that are mainly critical, speculative, or historical.

Arts

Also called visual art, visual object or experience consciously created through an expression of skill or imagination.

Nature of arts

A way of dealing with man's internal world, personality and experiences.

Function of arts

Based on the premise that an object is to perform its function.

Plato (428 - 347 BCE)

Art is imitation / art is dangerous.

Aristotle (384 - 322 BCE)

Art is an imitation or representation of nation, imagination, ideas and reality.

Interchange

Willem de Kooning, a Dutch American abstract expressionist artist.

Immanuel Kant (1724 - 1804)

Subjective taste - emotions; Universal taste - appreciation.

Artist

A person who exhibits exceptional skills in the visual and/or performing arts.

Artisans

A person who is in a skilled trade that involves making things by hand.

Visual arts

Creative expressions that appeal to the sense of sight, such as painting, sculpture, photography, and design.

Performing arts

Music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience.

Digital arts

Any creative practice that uses digital technology as an essential part of the artistic process.

Painting

Application of pigment to a surface or the process of applying paint, or another medium, to a solid surface - usually a canvas.

Sculpture

Described as three-dimensional. The sculptor creates a solid form using molding, carving, welding, casting and assembling.

Architecture

Functional of all the art forms. It involves creating designs for buildings and infrastructure.

Music

The art of sound expressed through a song, through the use of instruments or a combination of both.

Dance

Art of body movements that is attuned to a musical piece.

Literature

Art of using words to express thoughts, ideas, and feelings.

Theatre

Performance of drama, the actor performs on stage in front of a live audience.

Photography

Art of capturing light with a camera, usually via a digital sensor or film to create an image.

Line

Strongest and most important and influential element of art.

Shape

Enclosed area or surface created when a line crosses itself or intersects with other lines.

Form

Overall design of an artwork that describes the structure of shape and object from different perspectives.

Space

Surface or the area within the artwork, constituting the area or distance between, around, above or within things.

Color

The most expressive of all the elements of art, easily recognized in a visual experience.

Texture

Found in all visual arts, dealing primarily with the sense of touch or tactile sensation.

Value

The lightness or darkness of a color, adding dimension in a piece.

Balance

Something to do with visual weight, using elements like value, color, and texture to create visual weight and balance.

Emphasis

Part of design that catches the viewer's attention, making one area stand out by contrasting it with other areas.

Pattern

Repeating of an object or symbol all over the work of art, used to create balance or contrast.

Sources of object

Nature, people, history, legends, and religion.

Religion

Based on the sacred texts.

Mythology

Based on the stories of the gods and goddesses of ancient Greece, Rome, Celts, Norse, and the Egyptians.

Dreams and fantasies

Intrigue of the unconscious that inspires the artist to present it through art for others to see, relate and interpret.

Technology

Tall buildings and machineries are also subject matter for the artists.

Prehistoric era 40,000 B.C. - 2300 BCE

Refers to artifacts from ancient civilization such as Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and Rome.

Mesopotamia

Ancient empire in what is known as modern-day Iraq.

Egypt

Expressed through painting, sculpture, and jewelry.

Greece

Sculpture and architecture from Greek civilization have influenced others throughout history.

Rome

Greatly influenced by Greek culture, the ancient Romans excelled in painting, sculpting, and architectural design.

Middle Ages 200 - 1400 A.D

Marks a period in between classical and modern history.

Medieval

Term used to describe the art created over a span of 1,000 years during the Middle Ages.

Byzantine

Art and architecture during the Byzantine era followed a religious theme.

Romanesque 100 A.D.

Marked by lavishly decorated architecture, manuscript, and embroidery.

Gothic

Developing in France, Gothic art began with the construction of monumental architecture.

Renaissance 1400-1600

Known as a period of rebirth, this was a time when artists looked back to ancient traditions while applying new scientific knowledge.

Baroque 1600-1775

Characterized as art that conveys a religious theme, through movement and emotions.

Mannerism

Period in which artists created images of elongated and slightly disproportionate figures.

Rococo

Period of ornate interior design and decorative arts.

Neoclassicism 1700-1800

Sought to bring back classical elements of the ancient Greeks and Romans.

Romanticism 1700-1800

Sought to remove themselves from social and political influences.

Realism

Artists began to create images that depicted objective reality.

Impressionism 1886-1906

Characterized by vivid color and loose, visible brushwork.

Post Impressionism

Vincent van Gogh continued to develop images with vivid colors and dynamic brushwork.

German Expressionism 1900-1910

Coined as avant-garde or experimental and innovative.

Fauvism 1905-1907

French term which means the wild beast.

Futurism 1909-1918

Sought to transform how we see old forms in new innovative ways.

Dada 1916-1923

Cultural movement rooted in Switzerland, characterized as anti-war and anti-art.

Surrealism 1924-1940

Characterized by its dreamlike qualities.

Abstract Expressionism 1940-1950

Known for its spontaneous and subconscious style.

Action Painting 1950

A painting is meant to be a revelation of the artist's authentic identity.

Color Field Painting 1950

Known by its application of flat fields of color.

Pop Art 1950

Explored the influences of popular culture such as advertising and comic books.

Minimalism 1960

Became an expression of the basic and simplified form.

OP Art

Art of optical illusion.

Present Post Modern Art 1970

Today's art continues to transform, working in a variety of mediums.