Introduction What Is Art art Etymology Middle English

Introduction What Is Art?

art Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin art-, ars -- more at ARM 1 : skill acquired by experience, study, or observation <the art of making friends>2 a : a branch of learning: (1) : one of the humanities (2) plural : LIBERAL ARTS b archaic : LEARNING, SCHOLARSHIP 3 : an occupation requiring knowledge or skill <the art of organ building>4 a : the conscious use of skill and creative imagination especially in the production of aesthetic objects; also : works so produced b (1) : FINE ARTS (2) : one of the fine arts (3) : a graphic art 5 a archaic : a skillful plan b : the quality or state of being artful 6 : decorative or illustrative elements in printed matter synonyms ART, SKILL, CUNNING, ARTIFICE, CRAFT mean the faculty of executing well what one has devised. ART implies a personal, unanalyzable creative power <the art of choosing the right word>.

Fig. 0. 0. 1. The Journey of the Sun God Re, detail from the inner coffin of Nespawershefi, 990 -969 BCE. Plastered and painted wood.

Frederick Edwin Church, Niagara, 1857. Oil on Canvas.

Louise Nevelson, White Vertical Water, 1972. Painted wood.

Discussion: Marcel Duchamp—Is it Art?

Marcel Duchamp [French, 1887– 1968], Fountain, (second version), 1950. Ready-made glazed sanitary china with black paint, 1 ft. (30. 5 cm) high.

Original version of Duchamp’s Fountain, Photograph by Alfred Stieglitz.

Fine Art and Graphic Art

Fig. 0. 0. 4. Agnolo Brozino, Portrait of Eleonora of Toledo with Her Son, Giovanni de ‘Medici, 1544 -55.

Fig. 0. 0. 4. Fed Ex Express Logo

The Visual World

Fig. 0. 0. 6. El Anatsui, Old Man’s Cloth, 2002.

Where Is Art?

Fig. 0. 0. 7. Philadelphia Museum of Art, Pennsylvania.

Fig. 0. 0. 8. Simon Rodia, Watts Towers, 1921 -54. .

Who Makes Art?

Fig. 0. 0. 9. Jeff Koons, Rabbit, 1986.

Fig. 0. 0. 10. Tea Bowl, 16 th Century.

Fig. 0. 0. 11. Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa.

Fig. 0. 0. 12. Titian, Isabella d’ Este, 1536.

The Power and Value of Art

Fig. Gustav Klimt, Adele Bloch-Bauer II, 1912.

Rembrandt van Rijn, Self Portrait, 1630.

Fig. 0. 0. 15. Marc Quinn, Self, 1991.

Fig. 0. 0. 16. Johannes Vermeer, Girl with a Pearl Earring, 1665.

Fig. 0. 0. 17. The Virgin of Guadalupe, Mexico City.

Censorship of Art

Fig. 0. 0. 18 a. Ai Weiwei, E ntropy, 2011 -13.

Fig. 0. 0. 18 b. Ai Weiwei, E ntropy, 2011 -13.

Studying Art

Things to Consider: 1. Content 2. Subject Matter 3. Context 4. Formal Analysis

Fig. 0. 0. 18. Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius, c. 175.

Fig. 0. 0. 20. Jose de Rivera, Infinity, 1967.

Fig. 0. 0. 21. Alan Houser, Reverie, 1981.

Carved Ivory Mask-shaped Pendant, mid 16 th Century, Ivory inlaid with Iron and Bronze.

Fig. 0. 0. 23. David Hockney, Portrait of an Artist (Pool with two Figures), 1972.