Art Appreciation Midterm: Definitions

Midterm Review

Work of Art

The visual expression of an idea or experience formed with skill through the use of a medium 

Medium/ Media

Material with technique  

Mixed Media

Art made with different materials/ media  

Representational Art

Art that shows forms in the natural world 

Abstract Art

Art that is simplified, fragmented, or otherwise distorted but depicts real world still 

Nonrepresentational Art

Nonobjective; doesn’t depict or reference anything from the visible world 

Aesthetics

Philosophy of sensory experience; studies feelings from sight/sound, nature of art, and beauty 

Wabi

Values naturalness, simplicity, subtlety, and impermanence 

Sabi

Adds a sense of age, loneliness, and peacefulness 

Installation Art

Art where a whole space is set up for people to enter and experience 

The Sacred Realm

Art that helps people connect with and represent the sacred, shaped by each society’s beliefs 

Bodhisattvas

Enlightened beings who delay nirvana to help others reach it 

Infinity Mirrored Room

Room lined with mirrors; anything in it multiplies in endless

6 Visual Elements

Line, Light, Color, Texture and Pattern, Space, Time and Motion 

Line

A path made by a moving point; used as a symbol 

Values

Shades of light and dark (Italian name: Chiaroscuro) 

Primary Colors

Red, yellow, blue 

Secondary Colors

Orange, green, violet 

Warm Colors

Red–orange side 

Cool Colors

Blue–green side 

Color Harmonies/Schemes

Use of 2+ specific colors in one artwork 

Monochromatic Scheme

One hue with different values and intensities 

Complementary Color Scheme

Uses colors opposite each other on the color wheel 

Texture

The surface quality; a perception of smooth or rough, flat or bumpy, fine or coarse 

Pattern

Any decorative, repetitive design or motif 

Unity

A sense of oneness; things belonging together, making up a whole 

Variety

Difference, which provides interest 

Visual Weight

How heavy or light something looks in a design, based on how much it grabs your attention 

Symmetrical Balance

Parts of a design are the same on both sides of a central line, like a mirror image 

 

Asymmetrical Balance

A composition has two sides that do not match 

Emphasis

Drawing attention to certain parts of a design so they stand out 

Subordination

Making other parts less noticeable to help the main focus stand out more 

Scale

The size of something compared to a usual or normal size 

Proportion

The size relationship between different parts of a whole 

Rhythm

The repetition of elements in a design, creating movement or flow 

Dry media

Graphite, charcoal, crayon, pastel and chalk 

Principles of Design

Rhythm, Balance, Scale and Proportion, Emphasis and Subordination, Unity and Variety

Liquid Media

Pen and Ink, Brush and Ink 

Collage

From the French for “pasting” or “gluing” 

Fresco

Pigments mixed with water and applied to a plaster support, usually a large-scale wall or ceiling coated in plaster   

Tempra

Fast-drying paint made with pigments and egg yolk 

Oil

Slow-drying paint made with pigments and oil, usually linseed oil 

Watercolor

Transparent paint made with pigments and water

Acrylic

Fast-drying paint made with pigments suspended in a plastic polymer 

The 3 Historic Art Print Methods

Relief, Intaglio and Lithography 

6 types of intaglio printing

Engraving, drypoint, mezzotint, etching, aquatint, and photogravure 

Intaglio

Design is carved into a surface, and ink fills the carved lines to make a print. 

Lithography

Printing from a flat surface treated to repel ink except where the image is drawn 

Screenprinting

Ink is pushed through a mesh screen to create an image 

Memento Mori

Latin for "remember that you must die" 

Camera Obscura

Latin for "Dark Room" 

Daguerreotype

An early type of photograph made on a silver-coated metal plate 

Dada

An art movement from 1916 that made nonsense art to protest World War I

Video

Technology that shows moving images by sending electronic signals to a screen 

Internet Art

Art that uses internet as a medium (aka net art) 

Casting

A process where liquid or soft material is poured into a shaped mold and left to harden into that shape 

Carving

A process where an artist starts with a solid block and cuts or chips away parts until the sculpture takes shape 

Assembling

Process where individual pieces or segments or objects are brought together to form a sculpture 

Formal pose

Meant to convey not only the power of the rulers but also their serene, eternal existence 

Contrapposto

A pose where the body forms a gentle S-shape by shifting weight onto one leg. It shows balance and suggests natural movement 

Earthwork

A work of art made for a specific place using natural materials found there 

Ceramics

The art of making objects from clay/ naturally occurring earth substance 

Stained Glass

A technique where colored glass is used in windows and lamps to let light shine through. In cathedrals, these glowing windows were seen as spiritually uplifting 

Olumeye

Yoruba word meaning: “one who knows honor”; stores kola nuts 

Post-and-lintel construction

Two vertical supports (posts) hold up a horizontal beam (lintel) 

Ionic style

An architectural style marked by the use of volutes (spiral, scroll-like ornaments) 

Oculus

A circular opening at the top of a dome, symbolizing the “eye of heaven” 

 

Crystal Palace

Framed in cast iron and sheathed in glass 

Cantilever

A projecting form supported at only one end