Visual Arts
These are the arts that meet the eye and evoke an emotion through an expression of skill and imagination. They include the most ancient forms, such as painting and drawing, and the arts that were born thanks to the development of technology, like sculpture, printmaking, photography, and installation art, the latter a combination of multiple creative expressions. Though beauty is in the eye of the beholder, different eras in art history have had their own principles to define beauty, from the richly ornamented taste of the Baroque to the simple, utilitarian style of the Prairie School.
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Featured content, September 16, 2020
The Most Stolen Work of Art
Jan van Eyck’s Ghent Altarpiece has been stolen by Napoleon and Hitler, among others.
#WTFact / Visual Arts
8 Mythological Monsters You Should Be Glad Aren’t Real
There’s a reason you wanted your parents to check under the bed.
List / Visual Arts
Street Photography: How a Single Camera Brought About a Genre
The invention of the Leica camera allowed photographers to move through the streets and capture moments that come and go...
Companion / Visual Arts
What’s the Difference Between Modern and Contemporary Art?
Is that odd installation piece that rains on you when you get near it modern or contemporary art? Here are some tips on how...
Demystified / Visual Arts
Flemish art
Flemish art, art of the 15th, 16th, and early 17th centuries in Flanders and in the surrounding regions including Brabant,...
Encyclopedia / Visual Arts
Motion picture
Motion picture, series of still photographs on film, projected in rapid succession onto a screen by means of light. Because...
Encyclopedia / Visual Arts
Mesopotamian art and architecture
Mesopotamian art and architecture, the art and architecture of the ancient Mesopotamian civilizations. The name Mesopotamia...
Encyclopedia / Visual Arts
Rembrandt Research Project
Rembrandt Research Project (RRP), an interdisciplinary collaboration by a group of Dutch art historians to produce a comprehensive...
Encyclopedia / Visual Arts
Visual Arts Quizzes
Visual Arts Videos
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Visual Arts
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Visual Arts Subcategories
Architecture
Architecture is a sphere of art and design in which functionality and aesthetics can combine to produce visually stunning structures that manage to both catch the eye and serve a functional purpose. The expansive variety of architectural styles that have been employed throughout the ages underscores the fact that not every building need look the same, a principle that is readily apparent when comparing Gothic cathedrals with igloos or pagodas with cliff dwellings. Noted architects such as Le Corbusier, Frank Lloyd Wright, I.M. Pei, Zaha Hadid, and Jeanne Gang are acclaimed not only for the striking aesthetics of their designs but also for the way in which their work reflected cultural themes and values. Although architecture is commonly associated first and foremost with the design and construction of buildings, landscape architects may work with gardens, parks, and other planned outdoor areas, aiding in the development and decorative planning of such spaces.
Articles
- Egyptian art and architecture
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Alison Smithson and Peter Smithson
British architects
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Christopher Wren
English architect
Arts Awards
Awards such as the Praemium Imperiale and the Pritzker Prize honor artists for a job well done.
Articles
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Akutagawa Prize
Japanese literary prize
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PEN/Nabokov Award
American literary award
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Governor General's Literary Awards
Canadian awards
Decorative Art
People appreciate the usefulness of things like glassware and furniture, but they appreciate such objects even more when they’re aesthetically pleasing, too. That’s where decorative art comes in. Explore the world of basketry, metalwork, pottery, interior design, tapestry, and more.
Articles
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Pollaiuolo brothers
Italian artists
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Charles Eames and Ray Eames
American designers
- Korean art
Fashion Design
Looking to make a statement without even saying a word? Fashion designers know that clothing and accessories can speak volumes about the wearer, affecting both how the wearer is perceived by others and how the wearer perceives of him- or herself. The fashion industry has become a multibillion-dollar global enterprise devoted to the business of making and selling clothes; it thrives by being diverse and flexible enough to gratify any consumer's desire to embrace or even to reject fashionability, however that term might be defined.
Articles
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Hubert de Givenchy
French fashion designer
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Ralph Lauren
American fashion designer
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Rei Kawakubo
Japanese fashion designer
Graphic Art
Calligraphy, graffiti, engraving, caricature: graphic art's domain stretches as far as the eye can see. Take a look at some of the other types of graphic art, and learn more about the artists working within this category of fine arts.
Articles
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Photoengraving
printing
- Calligraphy
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Michelangelo
Italian artist
Installation & Performance Art
Learn about the artists who create installation art, which can incorporate a variety of different materials and artistic forms, such as sculptures, videos, and music, all with the purpose of transforming a given space. Performance artists may also make use of videos and music—as well as such varied elements as acting, poetry, dance, and painting—to create a live presentation for an audience; here, the "audience" could simply consist of onlookers on the street or patrons browsing the halls of a museum, among countless other possibilities.
Articles
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Lee Ufan
Korean artist, critic, philosopher, and poet
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Ann Hamilton
American installation artist
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Marcel Broodthaers
Belgian artist
Need help distinguishing your Picassos from your Monets? Learn about history’s celebrated painters and the different styles, techniques, mediums, and forms that have been used to create such unique visual images as Salvador Dalí’s melting clock and the ever-shifting eyes of Leonardo da Vinci’s enigmatic Mona Lisa.
Articles
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Mona Lisa
painting by Leonardo da Vinci
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Impressionism
art
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Surrealism
art and literature
Photography
Photography’s history began long before we were snapping pictures on camera phones. Learn about the masters of the craft and explore the development of photographic technology as it progressed through daguerreotypes and tintypes on the way to modern day’s increasingly sophisticated digital cameras.
Articles
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Lee Miller
American photographer, artist, and model
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Edward S. Curtis
American photographer
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Marie Curie
Polish-born French physicist
Sculpture
Looking to find a use for that extra clay, stone, plaster, or metal that you have lying around? Consider sculpture, in which artists employ these materials and others to create three-dimensional art. Perhaps you’ll join the ranks of noted sculptors such as Michelangelo, Auguste Rodin, and Donatello.
Articles
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Andrea del Verrocchio
Italian painter and sculptor
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Joan Miró
Spanish artist
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Ivory carving
art form

