Introduction to Art: Design, Context, and Meaning - Vocabulary

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the key terms, definitions, and concepts from Chapters 1 through 11 of Introduction to Art: Design, Context, and Meaning.

Artworld theory of art

An approach to defining art as whatever the artworld says it is; also known as the Institutional theory of art.

Catharsis

The process of releasing pent up emotion resulting in personal change.

Circumambulate

To “walk around”—a ritual practice of circling a sacred site, following a set path either inside or outside of a structure.

Communication theory of art

An approach to defining art as a transfer of feeling from artist to spectator.

Mimesis

An approach to defining art as a copy of perceived reality.

Significant Form

An approach to defining art as what we notice.

Trompe l’oeil

Art so realistic that it “fools the eye.”

Zeuxis and Parhassios

An ancient Greek myth about two competing painters who vie for the title of greatest artist by copying reality most faithfully.

Abstract Expressionism (ABEX)

An art historical term specific to a group of painters working in New York after the Second World War (including Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Lee Krasner, and Helen Frankenthaler) whose primary approach was gestural and “all over.”

Actual Texture

The condition in which texture is created, not represented; the opposite of simulated texture. Examples include brushstrokes, impasto, collage, and inclusion.

Atmospheric Perspective

The use of color to simulate the illusion of space.

Buon Fresco

Literally, “good fresco”; a mural process in which pigment is painted on and absorbed into wet plaster.

Encaustic

A painting process which uses wax as the binder.

Fresco Secco

The process of painting on dry plaster.

Gestalt

Intuitive perception of an artwork as a single whole experience.

Gicleé

An Ink-Jet print, usually on acid-free paper with archival inks.

Lithograph

A printing process that relies on the repulsion between oil-based ink and water, executed on a stone or aluminum plate.

Lost Wax

A casting process in which a wax original is molded, then wax is melted out and replaced with metal.

Metalpoint

Drawing using ductile metal such as silver, gold, or pewter as the pigment, usually on paper or gessoed panel.

Orthogonal

In linear perspective, lines that recede to the vanishing point.

Psychic Line

In art, a line that is understood without being seen by the eye.

Tughra

An Islamic calligraphic device designating a high status individual.

Undercut

In sculpture, an overhang created by removing material from underneath an object without detaching it from the base or support.

Willow/Vine Charcoal

A drawing medium made from burned willow twigs, used primarily for initial layout of paintings as it does not adhere well to drawing surfaces.

Codex

The book form in which pages (or leaves) of material such as parchment, vellum, or paper are gathered into bundles and bound together, initially by sewing and now usually by gluing, and provided with a cover.

Cultural value

The perceived quality or merit of the work: what it is worth according to that culture’s standards of artistic importance or excellence.

Monetary value

The worth of materials or objects in terms of “market value,” determined by the value of materials used or the finished art object.

Illumination

Literally, given light; specifically through the use of gold or silver for lettering or illustrative touches in a manuscript, or manuscripts that have images added to them.

Parchment

Sheepskin prepared for use in manuscripts; less refined than vellum, used for finer and more expensive works.

Porcelain

Highly refined ceramic ware, initially produced in China with materials like petuntse and kaolin to create a semi-translucent material with glass-like surfaces, fired at high temperatures.

Putti

Plural of putto: a small winged baby angel, a cherub.

Spolia

Bounty taken from an original context, as in the “spoils of war,” often re-used in later works to imply conquest and superiority over the original owner.

Vellum

Calfskin prepared for use in luxury manuscripts, more highly prized than the rougher, less expensive parchment.

Andachtsbilder

A German term to denote devotional images used to aid prayer.

Bodhisattva

In Buddhism, an enlightened person or Buddha-to-be who has postponed Nirvana and remains in the world in order to help others attain enlightenment.

Catalogue Raisonné

A published collection of all the works of a given artist or art exhibition.

Composite view

The construction of a human figure from both profile and frontal views, for example, as in ancient Egyptian art.

Contrapposto

An asymmetrical arrangement of the human figure in which the line of the arms and shoulders contrasts with and balances the line of the hips and legs.

École des Beaux-Arts

An influential art school in France.

Hierarchical proportion

The condition in which the size of figures is determined by social importance rather than observation.

Photo-transformation

A type of photography created by Lucas Samaras which uses fingers and a stylus to move and smear the dyes of a Polaroid print while still wet.

Tetrarch

In Roman political history, the term for one of four co-emperors of the Roman Empire installed by Diocletian in 293 CE.

Tympanum

In Gothic and Romanesque architecture, the semi-circular area above a doorway or Portal, traditionally embellished with sculptural decoration.

Yakshi

In Hindu and Buddhist mythologies, female counterparts to male Yaksha, who are mythical beings that guard treasure hidden in the Earth.

Cloisonné

Decorative work created by affixing metal strips to a surface, making compartments that are filled with powdered material and melted at high temperatures.

Golden ratio

A relationship of parts achieved when the longer part divided by the smaller part is equal to the whole length divided by the longer part, providing harmonious and pleasing proportions.

Iconography

The study and interpretation of subject matter, pictorial themes, and symbolism in a work of art.

Mandorla (Aureole)

A pointed circle of light or radiance surrounding a holy figure.

Ara Pacis

An enclosed altar in Rome dedicated to Pax, the Roman goddess of Peace.

Avant-garde

Works of art that are innovative, experimental, different from the norm, or on the cutting edge.

Bhudevi

A Hindu earth goddess and the divine wife of Varaha, an Avatar of Vishnu.

Central-plan churches

Churches with a round, cruciform, or polygonal design symbolic of the cross of Christ, popular in the West and East after the fourth century.

Gui

A ritual scepter, held by a ruler during ceremonies as a symbol of rank and power.

Kente cloth

Woven silk and cotton wrap worn by Ashante kings during special ceremonies.

Klismos chair

A curved-leg chair style popular in Ancient Greece.

Les Nabis

A movement of Post-Impressionist graphic and fine artists in France during the 1890s.

Neolithic period

Also known as the Stone Age, the last stage of prehistoric human cultural evolution known for polished stone tools, architecture, megaliths, and animal domestication.

Palace of Knossos

The first Minoan monument located in Knossos; the residence where King Minos's dynasty ruled.

Shandong Longshan Culture

Central China’s Neolithic culture named after Longshan, Shandong Province, known for its production of black pottery.

Varaha

A Hindu god in the form of a boar during the Satya Yuga, an Avatar of Vishnu.

Acropolis

“High city”—a hilltop setting such as that reserved for the temple complex in ancient Athens, associated with greater proximity to the gods.

Basilica

A building of longitudinal plan, originally designed for Roman law courts and public meetings, later adopted for Christian churches to accommodate large congregations.

Cantilever

A long beam or other horizontal prop projecting from a wall to support a balcony, stairs, or similar structure.

Castrum

A Roman military encampment or fortress, specifically designed on a grid plan with specific zones related to activities or uses.

Garba Griha

Literally, the “womb” or most sacred precinct and sanctuary in a Hindu temple.

Hypostyle hall

A structure consisting of a “forest of columns” arranged in numerous rows that support a flat roof.

Insula

An apartment building in ancient Roman civilization.

Mandapa

An audience hall in Indian architecture, often a porch-like ante-room to a temple, or a free-standing gathering hall.

Oculus

“Eye”; an opening in an architectural structure to let in light, located in a ceiling, a dome, or on a wall.

Peristyle

A row of columns that surrounds a space such as a courtyard.

Post-and-lintel

A basic architectural structure creating an opening in a wall using two vertical members (posts) spanned by a horizontal member (lintel).

Qibla

A wall in an Islamic mosque situated so that prayer is oriented towards Mecca.

Rammed earth

Dampened earth mixed with sand, gravel, or clay that is compacted into a temporary frame to create a wall.

Stoa

A covered walkway in a public area, often fronting market stalls or other commercial spaces.

Wattle and daub

Branches intertwined with twigs and straw, then coated with a substance such as plaster or clay to create a wall.

Ziggurat

A man-made mountain designed to be the platform for a temple, raising it closer to the heavens where the gods were believed to reside.

Bottari

Cloth wrapped and tied around clothes, fabric, or items into a bundle for carrying.

Grave stele

A stone or wooden slab, generally taller than it is wide, erected usually in Greek cemeteries as a monument for funerary or commemorative purposes.

Hypogeum

An underground prehistoric burial site.

Obas

The title of “oba,” or king, passed on to the firstborn son of each successive king of Benin, Africa at the time of his death.

Tableau

An incidental scene, as of a group of people.

Tower tomb

Mausoleums built in 1067 and 1093.

Aniconic

The avoidance of figural imagery within a religion.

Caricature

A portrait containing features or characteristics exaggerated for comic effect.

Frieze

A horizontal row of relief sculpture or painting on a building.

Animist

The belief that spirits are associated with objects in the natural world.

Cromlech

A circular arrangement of megaliths.

Dolmen

A large upright stone or marker.

Effigy Mounds

Earth mounds formed in the shape of animals or symbols.

Egungun

A general term for Yoruba masquerade rituals.

Mandala

A ritual diagram with cosmic significance, circular or containing circular components, designed for contemplation of specific religious teachings.

Pagoda

A Buddhist structure in China, Japan, and elsewhere that evolved from the Stupa burial mound into the native architectural form of the watchtower.

Sarcophagi

Plural of sarcophagus; a burial container, usually of stone or other masonry material, often embellished with sculptural decoration.

Stonehenge

A famous arrangement of vertical stones from prehistoric Britain.

Stupa

A domed, hemispherical Buddhist shrine signifying relics of Sakyamuni Buddha, designed for ritual circumambulation.

Terracotta Army

A famous arrangement of 6,000 clay soldiers meant to guard the grave of the first emperor of China.

Toranas

Stone structures placed at the Buddhist Stupa at Sanchi and other sites that form gateways to the circular path around the stupa.

Appropriation

The use of pre-existing objects or images with little or no transformation applied to them.

Censorship

The suppression of art and other forms of communication considered to be objectionable or harmful for moral, political, or religious reasons.

Cloning

The repeated duplication of a digital effect.