Works of Art

Within the Western tradition, the term works of art often refers to the visual arts, including but not limited to painting, sculpture, architecture, drawing, printmaking, photography, and other visual media. The performing arts – such as theatre, opera, dance and music – are included in a separate category. One can speak of them as “art forms”, or as “branches” of the arts. Sometimes, the “fine arts” are considered a separate category from the “performing arts”, on the basis that the former are static (i.e., non-performance) art forms, while the latter often incorporates aspects of performance.

The Western tradition generally includes the following significant periods and movements:

• Ancient art refers to the art of cultures with a long tradition of visual art, such as those from China, India, Mesopotamia, Persia, Egypt, Greece and Rome. This includes prehistoric art (such as cave paintings) as well as the art of ancient civilizations. Ancient Greek art is usually divided into four periods: the Geometric, Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic.
• Medieval art covers a wide range of periods, from the Byzantine art of Eastern Christianity to the Romanesque and Gothic art of Western Europe. A very important period in this tradition is the Carolingian Renaissance, which lasted from the 9th to the 11th centuries.
• Renaissance art is the painting, sculpture and decorative arts of the period of European history known as the Renaissance, which occurred roughly between 1400 and 1600. The word “Renaissance” is derived from the French word for “rebirth”, and this period saw a renewed interest in the classical arts of Ancient Greece and Rome.
• Baroque art is the art of the period from the early 17th to the mid-18th century, when the style was characterized by dramatic and grandiose compositions. The Baroque period saw an increase in the use of perspective and a greater emphasis on realism.
• The Rococo art movement, which began in France in the late 17th century, was characterized by its lightness, elegance and ornate style.
• The Neoclassical art movement emerged in the late 18th century as a reaction against the excesses of the Rococo period. Neoclassical artists sought to revive the formal and rational elements of Classical art.
• The Romanticism art movement, which began in the late 18th century, was characterized by its emotional intensity and its focus on the individual.
• The Realism art movement, which began in France in the mid-19th century, was characterized by its faithful depiction of everyday life.
• The Impressionism art movement, which began in France in the late 19th century, was characterized by its light and spontaneous brushwork.
• The Post-Impressionism art movement, which began in the late 19th century, was characterized by its rejection of the limitations of Impressionism.
• The Art Nouveau art movement, which began in the late 19th century, was characterized by its use of sinuous, organic lines.
• The Cubism art movement, which began in the early 20th century, was characterized by its geometric compositions.
• The Surrealism art movement, which began in the mid-1920s, was characterized by its use of automatism and its exploration of the subconscious mind.
• The Abstract Expressionism art movement, which began in the mid-20th century, was characterized by its non-representational art.
• The Pop Art art movement, which began in the mid-20th century, was characterized by its use of popular culture imagery.
• The Minimalism art movement, which began in the late 20th century, was characterized by its simple compositions and its emphasis on process.
• The conceptual art movement, which began in the late 20th century, was characterized by its focus on ideas rather than on objects.
• The performance art movement, which began in the mid-20th century, was characterized by its live performances.
• The Installation art movement, which began in the late 20th century, was characterized by its large-scale installations.
• The video art movement, which began in the late 20th century, was characterized by its use of video technology.
• The digital art movement, which began in the late 20th century, was characterized by its use of computer-generated images.
• The contemporary art movement, which began in the late 20th century, is characterized by its diversity and its global reach.