What is Art?
Jul. 30th, 2009 11:29 am(Post inspired by a back episode of the Overthinking It Podcast)
How do you define art? Where do you draw the line between art and craft?
Personally, I define art as any creative work that lasts. That is, anything that people are still talking about and responding to years, decades, or even centuries after it was originally created.
A craft, on the other hand, is any work of creation that the person did with their full effort and skill.
Someone can be a craftsman* without being an artist, but it's rare for an artist to not also be a craftsman. In fact, I would suspect that many of the people that we now think of the great artists thought of themselves more as craftsmen.
What do you guys think?
(*Gender assigned because "craftsperson" looked clunky.)
How do you define art? Where do you draw the line between art and craft?
Personally, I define art as any creative work that lasts. That is, anything that people are still talking about and responding to years, decades, or even centuries after it was originally created.
A craft, on the other hand, is any work of creation that the person did with their full effort and skill.
Someone can be a craftsman* without being an artist, but it's rare for an artist to not also be a craftsman. In fact, I would suspect that many of the people that we now think of the great artists thought of themselves more as craftsmen.
What do you guys think?
(*Gender assigned because "craftsperson" looked clunky.)
no subject
Date: 2009-07-31 06:57 pm (UTC)Is this poetry?
Why or why not?
When that was given as my final in college for a class on Poetry I put down the simplest answer I could.
Yes. Because.
I was the only 100%. "Art" is defined by the beholder, not the creator. "Craft" is defined by the artisan/crafter who made the work and those others in the field.
They are more often one and the same thing than not.
IMHO