Artvocabulary

Thisisatoughtopic.Thegoodnewsisthatyouonlyneedafairlylimitedrangeofartvocabulary.
Thereisnoneedtolearnthetechnicalwords,justthegeneralwordsthataneducatedperson
shouldknow.
What is art?
Thisisabig,bigquestion.Herearesomebasicdistinctionsyoumaywanttoconsider.
The fine arts
Thefineartsarewhatmostpeoplemeanwhentheyjustsayart.Theseincludeartistic
disciplinessuchaspaintingandsculpture.Typically,theyareobjectscreatedtobebeautiful.
Arts and crafts
Acraftisasimilar,relatedconceptandwedousethetermartsandcrafts.Inartsandcrafts,
objectsarecreatedbyhand.Agoodexamplewouldbetapestry.
The visual arts
Thesearetheoneswelookatandincludepaintings,drawingsandphotographs.Does
cinemacount?Forsomepeople,yes.Television?
The plastic arts
Thesearetheoneswecantouch.Asculptureandapieceofpotteryareexamples.
Performance art
Thisiswhenyouseesomeoneperformingandwhattheydo/produceisapieceofart.Theatre
canbecalledaformofperformanceart,perhapsabetterexampleisjuggling.Wenormallyuse
thistermforartthatisdifferent.Thereisalsoarelativelynewphenomenonofthestreetartist.
Pictures
Therearemanytypesofpictures.Ifitispictureofsomebody,itisgenerallyaportrait.ifitisa
pictureofaplace,itisgenerallyalandscape.Whileapictureofanobjectbyitselfisastilllife.
Threegenresofpicturepossiblyworthknowingareawatercolourwhichispaintedontopaper,
anoilpaintingwhichisnormallypaintedontocanvas(atentlikematerial)andasketchwhich
isnormallyapreparatorydrawing.
Philosophies of art
Arthaschangedgreatlyovertheages.Youcertainlydontneedtobeabletotalkaboutthe
differencesbetweenRenaissanceart,Mannerism,theBaroque,thePreRaphaelites,
ImpressionismandCubismifyoudid,youwouldprobablyscareyourIELTSexaminer.Itmight
helptohavethismuchknowledgethough:
figurative/representationalart:thisiswherethepainting/objectlookslikesomethingfromlife
abstractart:thisiswhereyouseesquares,circlesandothershapesandyoucannot
(immediately)tellwhatthepaintingisabout
contemporaryart:thisistheartofnow.Itsdangeroustousethewordmodernbecause
modernisminartactuallyhappenedquitealongtimeago(the1930swasprobablyitsheyday).

Where do you see art?

Younormallyfindartinanartgallery.Youwalkaroundandadmiretheexhibitsinan
exhibition,whilediscussingwhetherthecuratorhasgotthelightingrightandwhetherthat
pictureshouldreallybehungnexttothatone.
Sometimesyoumightalsofindartinmuseums,butthatismuchlesscommon.Forexample,
theBritishMuseumhasartefactsfromBritainspast,whiletheNationalGalleryisacollection
ofart.

Would you buy it?

Arttendstobeexpensive.AmasterpiecebyVanGoghcouldbesaidtobepricelessthatsso
expensivethatnoonehasthemoneytoaffordit.Alotofartformspartofanationsheritage
andthegovernmentprotectsitfromsaleabroad.

People and art

Noteveryonelikesart.Peoplewholiketospendalotoftimeadmiringartareoftentermed
culturevultures(afairlyidiomaticterm),whiletheidiomforpeoplewhodislikeartis
philistines.
Thereisofcourseartandart.Peoplewhoappreciatethemoreelitistformsofartmaybesaid
tohavehighbrowtastes,whilethosewhopreferthelessintellectualartformsmayhave
lowbrowtastes.

What makes art special?

Anotherbigquestion.Somepeoplethinkthatitisimportantforaworkofarttobeoriginalor
creative.Otherswouldsaythatwhatmattersishowitappealstoourimagination.

One or two idioms

Perspectiveshowsthedepthofapicturehowmanydimensionsyousee.Ifyouhave/keepa
senseofperspective,thenyouseeaproblem/issueforwhatitisoftenmeaningthatitisnot
asseriousasitseems.
Ifyoudescribesomeoneasbeingnooilpainting,becareful.Thismeansthattheyareugly.