PART A
GLOSSARY
A
- abject
- Sunk to or existing in a low state or condition. In recent theory it refers to our reaction (horror, disgust) to a threatened breakdown in meaning caused by the loss of the normal distinctions between subject and object, self and other.
- abstract art
- A term referring to various art styles that first emerged in the early twentieth century in Europe and that do not use representational imagery, or that select and then exaggerate or simplify forms suggested by the world around us. Artists focus on the formal properties of line, colour, shape and texture. Cubism and Futurism explore abstraction, while Wassily Kandinsky (Russian, 1866–1944) and Piet Mondrian (Dutch, 1872–1944) were two of the first creators of pure abstraction.
- Abstract Expressionism
- An American painting movement that originated in the 1940s and became popular in the 1950s. It is characterised by a strong dependence on intuition, spontaneity, accident and chance. Often using large canvases, artists painted rapidly and with energy in an effort to express peaceful or anguished emotions. Works were painted gesturally and non-geometrically, sometimes with paint applied using large brushes or dripped or thrown onto canvas. The expressive action of painting was often considered as important as the finished painting. The movement is connected to parallel tendencies in other media, such as jazz music. Artists who painted in this style include Mark Rothko (American, 1903–70), Willem de Kooning (Dutch-American, 1904–97), Clyfford Still (American, 1904–80), Jackson Pollock (American, 1912–56) and Robert Motherwell (American, 1915–91).
- absurd
- Ridiculous or unreasonable. Also refers to the view that there is no order or value in human life or in the universe – to the idea that human beings exist in a meaningless, irrational world, and that our lives have no purpose. During the 1940s and 1950s this concept became important in relation to contemporary art. ‘The painting expressed a vision of life as absurd.’
- academic art
- Works of art made according to established and traditional rules and conventions, and usually hostile to progress. Considered in contrast to avant-garde, radical or progressive art.
- accident, accidental
- Anything that happens by chance or is uncontrolled. In art this may be considered a negative quality, or it can be taken in a positive sense, as an opportunity to break free from conventions. ‘The use of accidental effects (or “the use of accident”) in the artist’s work…’
- achromatic
- Black, white and greys. Artwork that is executed without colour.
- acrylic
- A water-based paint that uses a liquid plastic medium. This kind of paint is thicker and stronger than tempera or watercolour paint.
- action painting
- A style of abstract painting linked to Abstract Expressionism. It emphasised process or gesture, using techniques such as the dripping, throwing or splashing of paint to achieve a spontaneous, unplanned effect. In action painting the canvas is often described as the arena in which the artist acts – painting is a kind of performance or event, and the action of making becomes a moment in the biography of the artist. Associated with several of the Abstract Expressionist artists, including Willem de Kooning (Dutch-American, 1904–97) and Jackson Pollock (American, 1912–56).
- adhesives
- Substances such as glues, pastes and cements that cause one thing to attach itself to another through stickiness.
- aerial perspective
- The perception of depth in a painting produced by the depiction of the appearance of humidity, cloudiness, rain, snow, smoke or any other kind of atmospheric vapour. It is achieved by using less line and focus, and bluer, lighter and duller hues for distant spaces and objects.
- aestheticism or æstheticism or estheticism
- The belief that the pursuit of beauty rather than some social, moral or educational purpose is the most important goal in art. Prominent in the nineteenth century, it is now often viewed in a negative light. It is mostly associated with the painter James A. McNeill Whistler (American, 1834–1903), with the circle of the writer Oscar Wilde (English, born Ireland, 1854–1900) and with the illustrator Aubrey Beardsley (English, 1872–98).
- aesthetics or æsthetics or esthetics
- The part of philosophy that deals with the nature and value of art objects and experiences. Originally, it meant any activity connected with art, beauty or taste, or with the appreciation of beauty or good taste, but now it is more broadly used to refer to the study of art’s function, character, essential character, purpose and so on. Also: a set of principles underlying and guiding the work of a particular artist or artistic movement.
- affective
- Relating to feelings or emotions. The noun form is ‘affect’.
- aleatory, aleatoric
- Depending on chance or accident, or improvised. Art and design of an aleatory nature aims at freedom from the influence of the past, from academic formulas and from the limitations placed on the imagination by the conscious mind. Such techniques were employed by many twentieth-century avant-garde artists, such as the Dadaists, the Surrealists, the Abstract Expressionists and the musician John Cage (American, 1912–92). ‘The artist used aleatory effects to produce new forms.’
- alienation
- The sense of being unhappily alone, isolated or powerless. It is often considered a major cause of modern social problems – especially of the poor, youth, women and racial minorities – and as a result is an important cultural issue of the twentieth century. ‘The artwork expressed a powerful sense of alienation.’
- all-over painting
- A painting technique that treats a surface as continuous and indivisible, without a focus of attention, and where paint is applied so that every portion receives equal attention. First used to describe the method of Jackson Pollock (American, 1912–56).
- allusion
- An indirect reference to or suggestion of something or someone understood to be already familiar to the viewer. The verb form is ‘allude’. ‘The artist’s work was full of allusions to the art of the past’; ‘The artist alluded to the works of other landscape painters.’
- ambiguity, ambiguous
- A situation in which something can have two or more possible meanings. Many works of art are characterised by a strong sense of ambiguity. ‘It was difficult to clearly describe the work because of its ambiguous character.’
- ambivalence
- Mixed or uncertain feelings. Conflicting attitudes or emotions, such as love and hate, that one can feel towards a person, a thing or an idea. ‘His work expressed a powerful sense of ambivalence towards women.’
- analogy, analogous
- Similarity in some respects between things that are otherwise dissimilar. ‘The painting’s surface was like skin.’
- analysis
- The separation of the parts of something for individual study in order to find out their nature, function and meaning. As a result, its organisational structure may be better understood. ‘The critic made a thorough analysis of the artist’s work.’
- anarchic
- No controlling rules or principles; wild; entailing the expression of extreme hostility to order and tradition. Much avant-garde art has embraced an anarchic relationship to art and society. ‘By seeking to express her emotional confusion, her paintings appeared extremely anarchic.’
- anarchist
- A person holding an extreme political position known as ‘anarchism’ that is hostile to the state and government, which are considered to be inevitably oppressive. The movement originated in the nineteenth century.
- anarchy
- Political disorder and lawlessness, civil war.
- anomaly, anomalous
- A change from the normal or expected form, order or arrangement. Incorporating one or more anomalies in an artwork is one way to achieve a new or challenging effect.
- anti-aesthetics
- A term referring to negation and an aesthetics of negation, opposition or an art of the ‘anti’.
- anti-art
- Art that rejects conventional theories, forms, techniques, materials and traditional methods of display. Examples of anti-art are Dada and neo-Dada.
- anti-authoritarian
- Showing opposition to obedience to authority and favouring individual freedom. ‘It was work of a strongly anti-authoritarian nature.’
- anti-intellectualism
- Any point of view that opposes, fears and mistrusts logical and rational thought, and/or intellectuals and intellectual views.
- antiquity
- The name given to the historical period in the West between around 1000 bce and 500 ce. It was dominated by the rise and fall of the Egyptian, Greek and Roman Empires, and was followed by the Middle Ages.
- anxiety, anxious
- Fear, either justified or not. ‘It was an age of anxiety’; ‘He was of an anxious disposition.’
- applied arts
- Arts concerned with making objects with functional or practical purposes but for which aesthetic concerns are also significant. They may include architecture, interior design, manufactured items, ceramics, textiles and so on. Commercial art may be considered a branch of applied art. The applied arts are usually contrasted with the fine arts.
- appropriation
- The act of taking or possessing something. In art and design, it refers to using another’s imagery or material, often without permission, in a context that differs from its first context. A key concept in postmodern art and design. The verb form is ‘appropriate’. ‘X appropriated certain stylistic characteristics of Y.’
- appropriation art
- The act of adopting, borrowing, recycling or sampling aspects or the entire form of existing cultural artefacts, usually to examine issues concerning originality or to reveal some meaning not previously seen in the original. An image reused in a Cubist collage is an example, but the term became commonplace in the late 1970s in relation to postmodernism. Some contemporary artists using appropriation as a central strategy are Christian Marclay (American, 1955–), Dinos Chapman (British, 1962–), Pierre Huyghe (French, 1962–), Damien Hirst (British, 1965–) and Jake Chapman (British, 1966–).
- archaic
- Very old or ancient. In art and design, used to describe a work that stylistically is deliberately primitive in appearance.
- archetype, archetypal
- The original pattern or model from which all things of the same kind are copied or on which they are based; a model or first form; a prototype. In the psychology of Carl Jung (Swiss, 1875–1961), a collectively inherited unconscious idea, pattern of thought or image that is universally present in individual psyches. ‘The work used archetypal symbolism.’
- archive
- A collection of information, typically of documents, that is ordered in some way.
- armature
- A structure used beneath something else for support. For example, a sculptor might create a clay sculpture with a wood or wire armature beneath it as support.
- art brut
- French for ‘raw art’. A term invented by Jean Dubuffet (French, 1901–85) in 1945 for the imagery made by children and ‘outsiders’, such as naive artists, criminals and the mentally ill.
- art centre or arts’ centre
- Typically, a group of buildings for the exhibiting, teaching and performance of the arts. May also be a place where artists live.
- art deco
- A decorative art movement largely of the 1920s and 1930s. It evolved a variety of modern styles whose principal characteristics were derived from various avant-garde painting styles of the early twentieth century, such as Cubism, Russian Constructivism and Italian Futurism.
- art engagé
- French for ‘art involved in life’. Art with social or political significance.
- art fair
- A commercial event or market in which art galleries and other art-related organisations participate. Art fairs are held in many major cities around the world.
- art for art’s sake
- The belief that art should be independent of practical goals and should pursue only expressive and aesthetic ends. The term is primarily used in relation to artists and art writers of the second half of the nineteenth century, especially Charles Baudelaire (French, 1821–67), James A. McNeill Whistler (American, 1834–1903) and Oscar Wilde (English, born Ireland, 1854–1900).
- Art Nouveau
- French for ‘the new art’. An international art movement and style of decoration and architecture of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Typically characterised by curvilinear and organic forms derived from nature. Artists and architects associated with the style include Antonio Gaudí (Spanish, 1852–1926), Alphonse Mucha (Czech, 1860–1939), Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (French, 1864–1901), Gustav Klimt (Austrian, 1862–1918) and Aubrey Beardsley (English, 1872–1898).
- arte povera
- Italian for ‘poor art’. Mostly sculptural and installation work made from everyday materials including soil, cement, plastic, twigs, clothes, living plants and animals, neon and newspapers. Artists associated with arte povera include Mario Merz (Italian, 1925–2003), Michelangelo Pistoletto (Italian, 1933–) and Jannis Kounellis (Greek, 1936–).
- artefact
- An object of any kind that is of historical interest.
- artificial
- Made or produced by human beings rather than occurring naturally, especially as a copy of something natural. In the arts, calling something ‘artificial’ may be intended be a positive, negative or neutral judgement. A negative interpretation implies lack of authenticity, while a positive one implies a connection to new technology (as in ‘artificial intelligence’). ‘The work lacked authenticity and seemed rather artificial.’
- artisan
- A craftsperson; a skilled manual worker.
- artists’ book
- An artwork in book form, not a book about art or art made of books.
- artists’ proof
- A small group of prints for the artist’s use that have been set aside from the edition prints.
- assemblage sculpture
- A three-dimensional composition made of various materials, such as found objects, metal, paper, wood and textiles.
- attitude
- A settled way of thinking or feeling about something. ‘The artist’s attitude was one of contempt for bourgeois society.’
- attribute
- A characteristic feature or quality of a thing. ‘The principal attributes of the painting were bold brush strokes and heavy impasto.’
- authentic
- Genuine; original; the real thing. Having a claimed and verifiable origin or authorship; not counterfeit or copied. This is usually considered an important prerequisite for the evaluation of art. Recent theory, however, challenges the idea that anything can be authentic, arguing that everything is already culturally conditioned and therefore in some senses a copy.
- author
- The maker of a work. In recent art criticism, attention has moved away from analysis of the author, his or her biography and intentions, instead looking towards analysis of the contexts – social, political, cultural – within which the work is produced.
- automatism
- Sometimes referred to as ‘pure psychic automatism’. A process of making artworks mechanically, randomly or by unconscious free association rather than under the control of a conscious maker. It was valued as a way of liberating the creative mind from conventions and habits. Also called ‘automatic drawing’, ‘automatic painting’, ‘automatic sculpture’ or ‘automatic writing’. Often associated with Surrealism.
- autonomy, autonomous
- Acting independently or having the freedom to do so; existing and functioning as an independent organism. In art, it means the artwork is understood to be important because of its own formal and aesthetic qualities rather than because it has some social purpose. ‘An autonomous work of art.’
- avant-garde
- French for ‘vanguard’, or the foremost or leading position. Artists and their works that are self-consciously at the forefront of a movement or of new ideas, often in opposition to established ideas and traditions. Also refers to art that is ahead of its time, innovative or experimental. It also often refers to art that has a revolutionary political purpose.
- awareness
- The condition of having knowledge, or being conscious or cognisant. ‘Her awareness of the context of her work was impressive.’
B
- background
- The part of a picture or scene that appears to be farthest away from the viewer, usually nearest the horizon. This is the opposite of the foreground. Between the background and foreground is the middle ground.
- balance
- The arrangement of one or more elements so that they appear symmetrical (even or balanced) or asymmetrical (uneven or unbalanced) in composition and proportion.
- Baroque or baroque
- Of, relating to or characteristic of a style in art and architecture that developed in Europe from the early seventeenth to the mideighteenth century. It emphasised dramatic effects and used bold, curving forms, elaborate ornamentation and overall dynamic balance of different parts. Artists include Michelangelo Caravaggio (Italian, 1571–1610), Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish, 1577–1640) and Gian Lorenzo Bernini (Italian, 1598–1680). Also, more generally, a term used to describe something extravagant, complex or bizarre, especially in ornamentation.
- Bauhaus
- An influential German school of art and design founded in 1919 and closed by the Nazis in 1933. Underlying the Bauhaus aesthetic were utopianism and left-wing politics. Aesthetically, the ideal was simplified forms and pure functionalism. This was linked to a belief that machine technology could provide designed items for the masses. Artist and architects associated with the Bauhaus school include Wassily Kandinsky (Russian-German, 1866–1944), Paul Klee (Swiss-German, 1879–1940), Walter Gropius (German-American, 1883–1969), Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (German-American, 1886–1969), László Moholy-Nagy (German, born Hungary, 1895–1946, active in the US) and Josef Albers (German-American, 1888–1976).
- bce
- Before the Common Era. Used to denote dates before the year 0. Until recently, the initials bc were used, meaning Before Christ.
- bespoke tailoring
- A traditional and labour-intensive method of making clothes, especially suits (custom-made clothing).
- bias
- Prejudice for or against some thing, person or group, usually in ways that are considered unfair and that refuse to consider the possible merits of alternatives.
- bibliography
- A list of sources (usually literary) referred to in a research project.
- biennial or biennale art fair
- An art fair that happens every two years, such as in Venice.
- binder
- A liquid or paste used to suspend pigment in order that it can be applied to a surface.
- biotextiles
- Textile products that have been given a biological finish for a specific end use.
- Blaue Reiter, Der
- German for ‘The Blue Rider’. A group of artists based in Munich from 1911 to 1914. They were mostly painters, and worked in an Expressionist style, emphasising non-naturalistic colours, bold brushstrokes and unorthodox subject matter. Some of the important members of the group were Alexei von Jawlensky (Russian, 1864–1941), Wassily Kandinsky (Russian, 1866–1944), Gabriele Münter (1877–1962), Paul Klee (1879–1940), Franz Marc (1880–1916) and August Macke (1887–1914).
- blow-up
- An enlargement, or increase in size, of a part of a larger image. The term is most commonly used in photography.
- body art
- An art form in which the artist’s body is the principal medium. A precursor to performance art. Body art often involved public or private performances, many of which became known more widely through photographic and textual documentation. Among the body artists at the form’s height (from the 1960s to about 1980) were Vito Acconci (American, 1940–), Carolee Schneeman (American, 1939–), Chris Burden (American, 1946–) and Ana Mendieta (Cuban-American, 1948–1985).
- bourgeoisie, bourgeois
- People or values or behaviour typical of the middle class. All those who are bourgeois comprise a group called the ‘bourgeoisie’. Most members of this group are executives and professionals. The upper middle class is known as the ‘haute bourgeoisie’. These terms appear frequently in Marxist texts, where they are used with a negative meaning. In that context, to describe an artwork as ‘bourgeois’ is considered an insult.
- bricolage
- Similar to collage. An assemblage improvised from everyday materials, or the practice of transforming ‘found’ materials by incorporating them into a new work.
- British Standards Institution (BSI)
- The professional organisation that sets the standards for various industries and decides what tests need to be applied to products.
- Brücke, Die or Die Brucke or The Bridge
- A group of German Expressionist artists based in Dresden and Berlin between 1905 and 1913, mostly painters. They painted portraits, landscapes and nudes in strong colours and crude, simplified forms. Die Brücke artists include Emil Nolde (1867–1956), Ernst Kirchner (1880–1938), Erich Heckel (1883–1970) and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (1884–1976).
- brush
- A thin wooden handle made in various lengths with either animal or synthetic hairs attached at one end and used for applying paint to a surface.
C
- c. or circa
- Latin for ‘about’ or ‘approximately’. Used when an exact historical date is not known.
- CAD (computer-aided design)
- The use of computers as tools to create designs.
- calligraphy
- The writing by hand of a text using a brush and (usually) ink.
- canvas
- Fabric prepared for painting; usually linen or cotton.
- catalogue
- A book containing the works of one or more artists and intended to record an exhibition in book form.
- catalogue raisonné
- French, meaning a textual study of one artist that includes a complete list of their works, or all works produced in a particular medium or during a specific period of time.
- ce
- Common Era. Used to denote dates after the year 0. Until recently, the initials ad were used, meaning Anno Domini (Latin for ‘year of the Lord’).
- charcoal and Conté crayons
- Charcoal is made from burnt wood, while Conté is made of compressed powdered graphite or charcoal. Both give a very strong, dark line and come in stick form.
- chiaroscuro
- A word borrowed from Italian for ‘light and shade’, or ‘dark’, referring to the technique of using strong contrasts of light and shade in pictorial representations.
- chroma
- The intensity, strength or purity of a colour, or its state without white or grey.
- CIM (computer-integrated manufacturing)
- The use of computers as part of the design and manufacturing process. Production data is transferred to an electronic system so all relevant people in a company can have access to the same data.
- cinematic montage
- Motion-picture effects produced by superimposing separate, unrelated images, or showing them in rapid sequence.
- Classical or classical, classicism
- A term with several meanings. Originally it was used to refer to the art of ancient Greece produced during the fifth and fourth centuries bce. Later it included all works of art created from 600 bce until the fall of Rome. Still later it was used to describe any art form that was thought to be inspired or influenced by ancient Greek or Roman examples. Today, ‘classical’ is used to describe perfect or ideal form, with an emphasis on harmony, purity, unity and control of emotion. Usually, it is applied to works that are representational but idealised.
- cliché
- An image or phrase that is overused and shows a lack of original thought, and so is empty, meaningless and even irritating. In postmodern art, however, there can be deliberate use of cliché in order to be ironic or critical of authenticity. Artists who use cliché include Andy Warhol (American, 1928–87), Ed Ruscha (American, 1937–) and Damien Hirst (British, 1965–). ‘His work was rather clichéd.’
- close-up
- A detail or part of a whole. Often used in relation to photography.
- cloth spreading
- Spreading of fabric onto a table prior to cutting out. The fabric can be laid out by hand or by machine.
- clumsy
- Lacking physical coordination, skill, or grace; awkward. ‘Her work was clumsy in execution.’
- cognisant
- Fully informed; conscious. ‘She was cognisant of the various interpretations of her work.’
- cognition, cognitive
- The mental process of knowing something, or pertaining to the mental processes of perception, memory, judgement and reasoning, in contrast to emotional and physically active processes. ‘An artwork should appeal both to cognitive and emotional values.’
- collaboration
- Two or more artists working together in a joint effort to produce artworks. ‘They collaborated on an art project with great success.’
- collage
- An artwork made by attaching various materials such as newspaper clippings, photographs and pieces of paper or fabric onto a single surface; the action of composing in this way.
- Color Field painting
- An American art tendency in which solid and flat areas of colour cover the entire canvas. Exemplified in the work of Mark Rothko (American, 1903–70), Barnett Newman (American, 1905–70), Ellsworth Kelly (American, 1923–) and Kenneth Noland (American, 1924–2010).
- colourway or colourways
- How colours are combined in a particular colour design.
- commercial art
- Images and objects created for commercial purposes (often for the mass market), rather than for fine art ones. Today, the term more commonly used for commercial art is ‘design’ – especially three-dimensional works, with two-dimensional works referred to more specifically as graphic design. In the context of fine art, the term is often used with a negative meaning. ‘His paintings were too commercial, lacking true expressive feeling.’
- commission
- The act of hiring someone to execute a certain work or set of works. Such an act is often made in the form of a contract. The term may also refer to a work executed under such an agreement.
- commodity fetishism
- A term deriving from Marxist thought that draws attention to the tendency of capitalist societies to encourage their members to treat products as powerful forces with almost magical powers.
- commodity, commodified, commodification
- A commodity is something that can be bought and sold; an article of trade. Referring to an artwork as a ‘commodity’ minimises its significance in important ways – as an expression of an artist’s feelings, or as an expression of formal values. Emphasising or exploiting this quality in an object is called ‘commodification’. ‘The commodification of art in the contemporary world is one of the greatest tragedies for culture.’
- compass
- A mechanical tool that has two hinges and adjustable legs for drawing various diameters of circles and arcs.
- complementary colours
- Colours that are opposite to one another on the colour wheel. The complementary colours are red and green, blue and orange, and yellow and purple.
- composition
- The combining of forms, colours and media to make a complete work.
- concept
- An idea, thought or notion conceived through mental activity. ‘The concepts behind (or informing) his work were fascinating.’
- conceptual
- In general, the term refers to a concept or conception. In reference to art and design, works that depart from a concern with aesthetics in favour of a mental formulation, rather than appearance alone. Art concerned with the conceptual is primarily interested in ideas, thought and thinking rather than aesthetics. ‘Her work showed a clear conceptual basis.’
- conceptual art
- Art that is about an idea or a concept rather than aesthetic qualities or representations. Conceptual art emerged in the 1960s and continues to be an important tendency in contemporary art. Conceptual artists include Sol LeWitt (American, 1928–2007), Lawrence Weiner (American, 1942–), Joseph Kosuth (American, 1945–) and the Art & Language group in the UK.
- connotation
- An idea or meaning suggested by or associated with a word or thing. ‘His paintings were full of sexual connotations.’
- conscious
- Being aware; knowing; awake. Its opposite is ‘unconscious’.
- consciousness
- The habitual or familiar state of mental awareness. ‘Art is the expression of human consciousness.’
- conservative
- Someone who is against change and holds to traditional values and attitudes, typically in relation to political belief.
- Constructivism
- A movement originating in Russia in the early twentieth century. It rejected the idea of autonomous art, and was in favour of art as something with social purpose. For a time, it was supported by the new communist state in the Soviet Union before it was condemned and replaced by socialist realism. It had a great effect on modern art movements of the twentieth century, influencing major trends such as Bauhaus and Neo-plasticism. Its influence can be seen upon architecture, graphic and industrial design, theatre, film, dance, fashion and to some extent music. Important artists include El Lissitzky (Russian, 1890–1941) Alexander Rodchenko (Russian, 1891–1956) and Varvara Stepanova (Russian, 1894–1958).
- consumerism
- A social and economic order that is based on the systematic creation and encouragement of a desire to purchase goods or services in increasing amounts.
- contemporary
- Of the present period. In the arts, this usually refers to works made since the 1960s.
- context
- The circumstances or setting in which something occurs, and the terms in which it can be fully understood. ‘She explained the context of her work in relation to her cultural background.’
- contrast
- The action of comparing things and finding a difference. Contrast in fine art and design means the use of opposites near or beside one another, such as a light object next to a dark object, or a rough texture next to a smooth texture.
- convention
- The way in which something is usually done.
- conventional
- Based on or in accordance with what is generally done, agreed upon, believed or customary. This can be considered a negative quality of an artwork. His artwork was very conventional and did not express his own personal views.
- cost control
- The act of ensuring that there are no hold-ups in production, as well as controlling the costs of components.
- cost price
- The price paid by a retailer for goods.
- counterfeit
- As a verb, to make a copy of something with the intent to deceive and sometimes defraud. As an adjective, referring to the condition of being false or fake.
- creative
- Having the ability or power to produce with originality or novelty and expressive power. ‘He was an extremely creative person.’
- creativity
- The ability or power to create. Productivity with originality, novelty, expression or imagination. This typically requires being comfortable with making mistakes and not being in fully conscious control of what one is doing. ‘Her work showed great creativity.’
- criteria
- Principles, methods or standards by which something may be judged or decided.
- criterion
- Singular form of criteria.
- critical theory
- An influential and many-sided approach to the analysis of culture that applies knowledge across the social sciences and humanities. Based on Marxist critiques of society, it is essentially negative, even nihilistic, in its assessment of contemporary society, and is ambivalent about the possibility of human emancipation and freedom. It is also characterised by what is called the ‘crisis of representation’ – the rejection of the idea that there can be any objective depiction or description of the world we live in.
- crop and crop mark
- To trim or cut one or more of a picture’s edges; to place one or more of the edges of an image so that only part of the original composition can be seen. Crop marks show where these edges are.
- Cubism
- Dating from c. 1907 to c. 1920, Cubism was begun by Georges Braque (French, 1882–1963) and Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973). These artists were greatly inspired by African sculpture; by the painters Paul Cézanne (French, 1839–1906) and Georges Seurat (French, 1859–91); and by the desire to make art that reflected the dramatic cultural changes occurring around them. In Cubism the subject matter is broken up, analysed and reassembled in an abstracted form, or invented independently of any eternal subject.
- cursive
- Letters made by hand.
- custom, customised
- A practice followed by people of a particular group or region. Also, a product made to the specifications of an individual customer.
- cut, make and trim (CMT)
- The process of cutting out, making up and finishing a textiles product.
- cybernetics
- The theoretical study of communication and control processes in biological, mechanical and electronic systems, especially the comparison of these processes in biological and artificial systems.
- cyberspace
- The virtual world produced by computer programs.
D
- Dada
- An anti-art movement in the arts. It originated in Zürich, Switzerland, in 1916 and flourished in New York City, Paris and the German cities of Berlin, Cologne and Hanover in the early twentieth century. The movement grew out of disgust with bourgeois values and despair over World War I. Typical Dada forms of expression were the nonsense poem and the ready-made. Artists included Francis Picabia (French, 1879–1953), Jean Arp (French, 1886–1966), Marcel Duchamp (French, 1887–1968) and Man Ray (American, 1890–1976). They emphasised the illogical and absurd. Dada had far-reaching effects on the art of the twentieth century; the creative techniques of accident and chance were sustained in Surrealism, Abstract Expressionism, conceptual art and Pop Art.
- darkroom
- A light-tight or completely dark room used for processing or printing photographic materials.
- deconstruction
- A method of critical analysis that assumes that the only way to properly understand culture is to deconstruct the assumptions and knowledge systems that produce the illusion of a singular or correct meaning. As an important aspect of poststructuralist theory, deconstruction exposes the dependency of the dominant term in any binary opposition (man–woman, good–bad, etc.) on its apparently subservient counterpart. This act of deconstruction shows how male can become female, how speech can become writing and how rational can become emotional. The method is primarily associated with the philosopher Jacques Derrida (French, 1930–2004). In the arts, deconstruction argues that visual and verbal languages refer only to themselves rather than to a reality outside a text or work. There can be multiple and conflicting interpretations of such a text or work, and such interpretations are based on the philosophical, political or social implications of the use of language, rather than on the author’s intention. In textile and fashion it refers to taking apart a product.
- decorative arts
- A collective term for such art forms as ceramics, enamels, furniture and textiles, especially when they take forms used as interior decoration. Works intended to make things beautiful, to adorn, to embellish or to be ornamental.
- deface
- To destroy or disfigure a surface.
- define, definition, defining
- The action of making something or an idea definite and clear. In art and design, distinct outline or detail, with sharp edges or limits, providing clear focus and contrast, as well as high resolution. ‘She defined her work as feminist.’
- deform
- To distort, corrupt or change form. ‘In Cubism, images appear to be deformed.’
- deformalism
- A postmodern development in painting with a tendency towards ‘bad taste’ and kitsch. Examples include the late works of Philip Guston (American, 1913–80) and the artists Carroll Dunham (American, 1949–), Takashi Murakami (Japanese, 1962–) and Matthew Ritchie (American, born Britain, 1964–).
- delineate
- To depict by drawing with a tool that leaves a linear trail behind the drawer’s gesture. ‘He delineated the model’s form with a few pencil marks.’ May also mean, more generally, ‘to describe’.
- dematerialise
- To become immaterial or free of physical substance; to disappear. In art, it refers to the process whereby artworks become less concerned with visual perceptions or the making of an object and more about ideas and concepts.
- depict
- To make an image of something in two or more dimensions.
- description, describe
- A statement or account that creates a mental image of something experienced; the act of making such a statement. ‘She described the techniques she had used to design her work.’
- design
- A plan, drawing or sketch (noun); or, to plan, conceive, fashion in the mind or invent (verb). May also refer to the organisation or composition of a work, or to the skilled arrangement of its parts.
- design attributes
- The visual and tactile properties of a textiles product.
- design brief (or proposal)
- A short statement about a task or project to be undertaken that is intended to give a clear and easy-to-read overview of the task or project.
- design specification
- The specific design details that a product has to match.
- detail
- An individual, small or subordinate part of a whole. A distinctive feature of an object or scene that can be seen most clearly close up. Also, a small part of a work of art, enlarged to show a close-up of its features, as in a photographic reproduction. The term can also refer to finely or carefully designed, crafted or finished portions of any composition. ‘The drawing was very detailed.’
- digital image
- An electronically processed image composed of binary code of bits and bytes, usually relating to the use of a computer.
- digital printing
- The method of printing using computers.
- digitise
- To convert an image into binary code of bits and bytes. Visual images are digitised by scanning them and assigning a binary code to the resulting vector graphic or bit-mapped image data.
- dingbats
- Ideograms available in computer fonts.
- distort, distortion, distorted
- To give a false or misleading account; to misrepresent something; to change the way something looks; to pull or twist something out of shape. ‘His portrait of X was very distorted, showing great distortion.’
- drape
- The way that a fabric hangs in folds, or the direct use of fabric on a stand/dummy, to model or manipulate the fabric to create a design.
- dry mount
- A mounting technique in which film is applied in a pressing machine with heat in order to attach one flat surface to another.
- dry transfer graphics
- Manufactured graphic elements a designer can transfer (remove) from a transparent backing sheet and reattach to paper or another smooth surface by pressing and rubbing, either wholly or in pieces.
- Duchampian
- Often used synonymously with conceptual art. Art made in reference to the pioneering work of Marcel Duchamp (French, 1887–1968) and showing a tendency towards intellectual analysis, anti-aesthetics, use of visual and verbal puns, and appropriation. See also ready-made.
- dye-lot
- A batch of material that has been prepared for dyeing.
- dye transfer
- A colour-printing process that gives maximum control of colour, balance and contrast for colour prints or transparencies.
- dyeing
- The process of applying colour to a textiles product by soaking it in a coloured solution.
- dyslexia, dyslexic
- Impaired ability to read, often characterised by reversals in the direction of reading. To a dyslexic person, a printed page may appear jumbled. Dyslexia is a common learning disability, especially among students and practitioners of the visual and applied arts.
E
- earth art or earthworks or land art
- An art tendency with wide-ranging goals but that has as a major component the desire to work beyond the limits of the art space, and to site art within natural environments, employing such materials as stones, dirt, trees and leaves. Most works are sculptural or installations and on a large scale. Examples of artists are Robert Smithson (American, 1938–73), Michael Heizer (1944–) and Walter De Maria (1935–2013).
- easel
- A tool used to support a canvas while painting. May be made of wood or metal and may be a collapsible tripod, a large-scale studio type or part of a unit combined with a sketch-box.
- ecology
- The branch of biology concerned with the relations between living organisms and their environment.
- edition
- A group of identical prints that may be numbered and signed by the artist. An ‘open edition’ is an unlimited number of prints. A ‘limited edition’ consists of prints that have a known number of impressions and are usually signed and numbered by the artist.
- egg tempera
- A water-based paint made with an egg-yolk binder.
- electronic media
- Media that use electronics or electromechanical energy for the audience to access the content. This is in contrast to static media (mainly print media), which today are most often produced electronically but do not require electronics to be accessed by the audience in printed form.
- elitism and elitist
- The belief that certain people deserve favoured treatment by virtue of their superior artistic or intellectual accomplishments, or because of some other real or perceived status. Elitism in the art world is the insistence that art is somehow beyond common experience, that its pleasures are not available to everyone.
- emotionalism
- An aesthetic and critical theory of art that places emphasis on expressive qualities. According to this theory, the most important thing about a work of art is to stress the value of deeply felt responses.
- empathy
- Identification with and understanding of another’s situation, feelings and motives. An imaginative projection of one’s own feelings onto an object or event. ‘She showed great empathy with animals.’
- emphasis
- The importance given to a word or words, or part of a composition, to indicate particular importance. A work lacking emphasis may result in monotony.
- empirical
- Relying on or derived from observation or experiment.
- empiricism
- The philosophical position that says that experience, especially of the senses, is the only source of knowledge. Also, the use of empirical methods.
- empower
- To enable or give someone the authority or power to do something, as in giving recognition to those who are members of marginalised or unrecognised groups. ‘She felt empowered to talk about her own life.’
- encaustic
- A technique involving painting images onto surfaces with pigments blended with wax. When used with heat (e.g., applied with an iron), the colour is permanently burnt into the surface.
- end user
- The audience. Often used in relation to electronic media.
- entrepreneurial skills
- The knowledge and ability to do business.
- environment art
- Art in the 1960s and 1970s that involved the creation or use of a large or enclosed space. The goal was to expand the frame of the work to surround its audience. Artists include Edward Kienholz (American, 1927–1994) and Lucas Samaras (Greek-American, 1936–).
- environmental art
- A tendency beginning in the late 1960s and early 1970s whose early phases were mostly associated with sculpture (especially in the cases of site-specific art, earth art and arte povera), having resulted from criticism of traditional sculptural forms and practices that were seen as outdated and potentially out of harmony with the natural environment. The category now encompasses many media. Artists include herman de vries (Dutch, 1931–), Richard Long (British, 1945–) and Andy Goldsworthy (British, 1956–).
- environmentalism
- The advocation of or working towards the protection of the natural environment from destruction or pollution. The theory that environment rather than heredity is the primary influence on intellectual growth and cultural development.
- epistemology
- The branch of philosophy that studies the nature of knowledge, its extent and its validity. An epistemological question might be, ‘How can we really know that …?’
- eraser
- Also known as a ‘rubber’ in British English. A tool used in the erasure or deletion of parts of drawings.
- erasure, erase
- The removal of material recorded digitally, as in the use of the delete key on a computer keyboard. In art, the removal or deletion of marks by erasing. ‘She erased the drawing.’
- essentialism, essentialist
- The belief that certain properties possessed by a group (e.g., people, things, ideas) are universal and not dependent on context or historical change. The opposite of pluralism.
- etching
- The most widely used form of the intaglio processes, in which the line and tone of an image are created by exposing areas of a metal plate to acid.
- ethnic
- Relating to sizeable social groups sharing a common and distinctive racial, national, religious, linguistic or cultural heritage.
- ethnic art
- Art that embodies the beliefs and techniques of a traditional cultural heritage rather than those of modern technological society.
- ethnocentrism
- The tendency to see one’s own ethnic group as the norm, the correct or the best, and to see all others as marginal. A form of racism.
- Eurocentrism, Eurocentric
- The tendency to see European culture and history as the norm or model, and all other cultures and histories as marginal or inferior.
- existential
- Relating to human existence.
- existentialism
- A philosophical theory and attitude to life concerned with being in the world or existence of the free individual in an absurd or meaningless universe. Its most prominent spokesmen were Søren Kierkegaard (Danish, 1813–55), Martin Heidegger (German, 1889–1976) and Jean-Paul Sartre (French, 1905–80). Very influential on the art of the post-World War II period.
- exponent
- Someone who believes in, explains and promotes the truth or benefits of an idea or theory.
- expression, express
- Emotions as shown through bodily gesture; the action of making known one’s thoughts or feelings; the communication (in visual image, speech or writing) of beliefs or opinions. ‘He expressed himself clearly.’
- Expressionism
- With a capital ‘E’, an art movement dominant in Germany from 1905 to 1925, especially in relation to Die Brücke and Der Blaue Reiter, which are usually referred to as German Expressionism. With a small ‘e’, a term used to describe all art that communicates strong or exaggerated emotions, such as, the work of Alberto Giacometti (Swiss, 1901–66) and Francis Bacon (British, 1909–92).
F
- fabric
- Yarns and fibres combined together to make a material surface or structure.
- facsimile
- An exact copy or reproduction, for example of a document. A method of transmitting images or printed matter by electronic means, usually by telephone. Also known as a ‘fax’.
- fake
- Having a deliberately false or misleading appearance; not authentic, a forgery, not genuine. Or, in the verb form, to intentionally make something that is intended to pass for something else.
- false consciousness
- A term derived from Marxism referring to the belief that culture is a reflection of the ideology of the ruling class – a ‘false’ or artificial consciousness produced by those who control material production. Thus, art is often understood in Marxism to be a ‘tool’ in the hands of the ruling class and it mirrors or expresses the dominant ideology.
- fascism
- An extreme right-wing political system originating in Italy; in fascist systems there is one leader who has complete power and forcibly suppresses opposition and criticism. Fascism emphasises aggressive nationalism and often racism. An example of a fascist regime is Italy under Benito Mussolini (1922–45). Nazi Germany (1933–45) can also be described as fascist.
- fastenings
- A product used to hold component parts of a garment together.
- Fauvism
- An early twentieth-century expressionist art movement and style of painting in France. The name Fauves, French for ‘wild beasts’, was given to artists working in this style because it was felt that they used strong non-naturalistic colours in a violent, uncontrolled way. Important Fauves were Henri Matisse (French, 1869–1954) and André Derain (French, 1880–1954).
- feminism
- A cultural tendency emerging in the 1960s that points out that throughout most of recorded history males have imposed patriarchal (father-centred) social systems in which they have controlled and suppressed females. Feminists seek to resist this continuing tendency through various forms of political, social and cultural interventions.
- feminist art
- An art tendency that emerged in the late 1960s that notes that, because of the dominant (especially Western) culture’s patriarchal heritage, most artists are male, that art is made for male audiences and that it sometimes abuses or criticises females. Feminist art challenges traditional aesthetic values as being patriarchal, and aims to produce a kind of art that can speak for women’s experiences. Examples of feminist artists are Judy Chicago (American, 1939–) and Mary Kelly (American, 1941–).
- feminist art history
- A tendency in the study and writing of art history that emerged in the 1970s, especially in the US. It addresses and criticises the patriarchal nature of society in relation to the history of art.
- fibres
- Fine, hair-like structures that can be natural, synthetic or regenerated and may be long (filament) or short (staple).
- figurative
- Artworks representing the form of a human, an animal or a thing. Abstract art is usually contrasted with figurative art.
- fin de siècle
- French for ‘end of the century.’ During the twentieth century, the term referred to the art of the 1890s – especially the art of aestheticism and Art Nouveau. When used in art criticism, ‘fin de siècle’ often signifies a style or movement in decline. For example, it was increasingly used to refer to the art of the 1990s as the end of the twentieth century drew near.
- finish
- Something that concludes, completes or perfects. Also, the point at which an artist decides to stop working on an artwork. A finished work could also be called ‘complete’, ‘done’ or ‘ready to be displayed’, and may be understood in relation to the level of perceived professionalism achieved in the work. Also, any material used in finishing or surfacing a work, especially the last coating or treatment of a surface, or the surface texture resulting from such a coating or treatment. A finish in this sense might be described as matt, semi-gloss, glossy or luminous.
- fitness for purpose
- Manufactured to a standard that is acceptable to the end user.
- fixative spray
- A liquid designed to protect, fix or coat drawings so they are not vulnerable to touch. Fixative spray is available in spray cans or for use with a mouth atomiser.
- flat-bed scanner
- An image-capturing device. The object to be scanned is placed face down on a glass plate and photographed automatically.
- flat-bed screen
- A fine mesh stretched over a wood or metal frame. This frame can then be used for screen-printing.
- Fluxus
- An international collective movement founded by the artist George Maciunas (1931–78) in 1960 that remained influential throughout the 1960s and beyond. Fluxus, like Dada, promoted anti-art ideals and sought to enlarge the meaning of art by challenging the public’s definition of it. Artists associated with Fluxus include Joseph Beuys (German, 1921–86), Yoko Ono (Japanese, 1933–) and Nam June Paik (Korean, 1932–2006).
- foam core or foam board
- A stiff, strong and lightweight board of polystyrene laminated with paper on both sides. It may be any of several thicknesses, in any of a variety of colours.
- focal length
- The distance from the surface of a lens or mirror to its focal point. In photography, the distance between the lens and the focal plane (the film’s or paper’s surface).
- focal plane
- In photography, the plane through the focus perpendicular to the axis of a mirror or lens.
- focal point
- The point at which rays or waves meet after reflection or refraction, or the point from which diverging rays or waves appear to proceed. Also, the portion of an artwork‘s composition on which interest or attention centres. The focal point may be the most interesting for several reasons.
- folk art
- Art made by people who have had little or no schooling in art. Folk artists usually make works of art with traditional techniques and content, in styles passed down through many generations and often from a particular region. Often used in a similar context to ethnic art.
- font
- In typography, a complete set of characters and spacing of one size of type.
- foreground
- The area of a representation that appears nearest to the viewer.
- foreshortening
- A way of representing something so that it conveys the illusion of depth and three-dimensionality, appearing to come forward or go back in space.
- forgery
- A fraudulent copy of something valuable. Or, a counterfeit; fake. Because fraud is involved, forgery is not to be confused with appropriation.
- form
- In its widest sense, this term means the whole structure – all the visible aspects of that structure and the manner in which they are united to create distinctive character. The form of a work is what enables us to perceive it.
- formal
- Relating to the outward form or structure of a work; not to be confused with ‘ceremonial’ or ‘stately’.
- formalism
- An aesthetic and critical theory especially influential in the 1950s and 1960s that focuses analysis on form – the structural qualities of a work – instead of on either content or context. The most important thing about a work of art is considered to be the effective organisation of its visual elements through the use of the principles of design. In art, this theory opposes the attribution to art of narrative or other kinds of content that are not intrinsic to the pure visual experience of art.
- formula
- An established form of words or symbols for use in a ceremony or procedure, including the making of artworks.
- formulaic
- Excessively based on conventional notions or beliefs. A hackneyed expression may also be called ‘formulaic’.
- found image or found material or found object
- Something not originally intended to be a work of art that is obtained, selected and exhibited by an artist, often without being altered in any way. Particularly important in relation to Cubism, Dada and Surrealism. Also known in the French: objet trouvé. Often used in the same sense as ready-made.
- free play
- Improvisation in thought and action. ‘The tutor encouraged the students to explore the free play of their imaginations.’
- free-hand
- Drawn by hand without the use of any mechanical device, and also without tracing. Free-hand is the opposite of mechanical drawing.
- freelance, freelancer
- A graphic artist or designer who sells his or her work to an employer without any long-term commitment to any one of them. Selling work in this way is known as doing freelance work.
- fresco
- Pigment applied directly to damp plaster.
- frottage
- A technique of rubbing with crayon or graphite on a piece of paper that has been placed over an object, or an image achieved in this way. Also simply referred to as ‘rubbing’. From the French frotter (to rub). Such impressions are usually made from highly textured sources. A technique especially employed by Surrealists, such as Max Ernst (German, 1891–1976).
- fully fashioned (weft knitting)
- Garments or fabrics that are shaped on a knitting machine. The shaping is done by increasing or decreasing the number of stitches in a design.
- function
- The intended use or purpose of an object. The term is often applied to manufactured products, particularly crafts, and when discussing designs for architecture. Anything that is not functional is called non-functional. Often the decorative qualities of a thing are considered non-functional. ‘The camera’s function is to take photographs.’
- functionality
- The purpose something is designed or intended to fulfil. ‘The brief showed a good awareness of the functionality of the product.’
- fuse, fusion
- To join together; the joining of two or more materials at a molecular level. ‘Fusion’ may also refer to the combination or blending of other things, such as styles or subjects. Fusion is often considered a central characteristic of contemporary art, where elements from many cultures often coexist in the same works (see also hybrid). ‘The painting was a fusion of Western and Eastern influences.’
- Futurism
- A modern art movement originating among Italian artists in 1909, when the poet Filippo Marinetti’s first manifesto of Futurism appeared, and lasting into the 1920s. It was a celebration of the machine age, glorifying war and later supporting the growth of fascism. Futurist painting and sculpture were especially concerned with expressing movement and the dynamics of natural and man-made forms. Important artist include Giacomo Balla (Italian, 1871–1958), Carlo Carrà (Italian, 1881–1966) and Umberto Boccioni (Italian, 1882–1916).
G
- gauge
- A term used to define the diameter of the needles on a sewing machine.
- gender
- The social construction of sexual identity, as opposed to biologically given sexual characteristics.
- gender studies
- The study of sexual identity. Theories of the body are particularly important because historically (in the humanities) the body has been associated with the feminine, the female and woman, and denigrated as weak, immoral or unclean. In relation to art, gender studies has focused on the ways in which symbolic systems conceal and reinforce gender inequality. Linked to feminism.
- generic
- Relating to or descriptive of an entire group or class. ‘The design was generic.’
- genius
- A person with outstanding talent, especially one whose cognitive or creative skills or achievements gain fame. The use of the term in relation to contemporary art is rare, as various cultural critiques question the unexamined biases lying behind such judgements.
- geometric art
- Works that typically use mathematical forms such as triangles, circles, squares and rectangles in order to convey a sense of abstract order.
- gesso
- Plaster or a fine plaster-like material made of gypsum (a soft white or grey mineral consisting of hydrated calcium sulphate) that is used for sculptures. Gesso may also refer to a gypsum material mixed with an animal-hide glue used as a ground or surface for sealing canvas or wood before painting. Also called ‘whiting’.
- gestalt or Gestalt
- A physical, psychological or symbolic arrangement or patterning of parts unified as a whole so its properties cannot be derived from a simple summation of its parts. May also refer to a school or theory in psychology known as Gestalt psychology that argued that it is necessary to consider not individual phenomena but their interrelationships.
- gesture, gestural
- A movement of the body or limbs that expresses or emphasises an idea, attitude or meaning. Gesture is a form of non-verbal communication made with a part of the body, and can be used instead of verbal communication or in combination with it. Also the action of making a mark on a surface. Gestural painting is often considered to be more expressive than other kinds of painting.
- glaze
- Colour thinned to a transparent state and applied over previously painted areas to modify the original colour.
- globalisation
- The process by which regional economies, societies and cultures have become integrated through a global network of political ideas through communication, transportation and trade. A key aspect of the contemporary art world.
- gloss
- Shine or lustre on a smooth surface. The opposite of matte. Also, a translation or explanation of a word or phrase.
- gothic
- An architectural style prevalent in Western Europe between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries characterised by pointed arches, rib vaulting and a developing emphasis on verticality and the impression of height. More generally, the term can mean works relating to the architectural style derived from medieval gothic. Often ‘gothic’ is used to generally describe art that emphasises the grotesque, mysterious and desolate – qualities identified as central to the historical period of the gothic.
- gouache (tempera)
- Opaque watercolours, and the technique of painting with such colours using white to make tints.
- graffiti
- A drawing or inscription made on a wall or other surface, usually so as to be seen by the public and often done illegally.
- graffiti art
- Also ‘spray-can art’ and ‘subway art’, an art tendency at its height in the 1980s. It was initially an expression of urban discontent, but some examples of it were quickly transformed into a lucrative art movement. Among those whose work emerged from graffiti are Keith Haring (American, 1958–90), Jean-Michel Basquiat (American, 1960–88) and Banksy (British), an exponent of ‘stencil graffiti’.
- graphic
- A thing or event that is very detailed and often dramatic and shocking. Any image that is especially linear in character, such as a drawing, and any image made by or for printmaking or digital imaging.
- graphic arts
- Visual arts that are predominantly linear in character, such as drawing and engraving, and other forms of printmaking. Also tends to be a term used for applied or commercial arts.
- graphic design
- Art and design, mostly for commercial purposes, focused on the creation of such products as advertisements, books, letterheads, logos, packages, posters, signage and web pages.
- graphic designer
- A person who designs for commercial purposes. Many graphic artists and designers are freelances.
- green
- Refers to something considered to be non-harmful to the environment, or groups or organisations devoted to such issues. ‘The advertising campaign centred on green issues.’
- green issues
- Ideas and actions focused on humans’ sustainable relationship with the environment.
- green textiles
- A term applied to textile products that are processed using recycled or organic products and are thought to be friendly to the environment.
- greige (grey) goods
- A term for textile products before colour is added.
- gross margin
- The profit made by a retailer from goods sold in shops.
H
- habitual
- Established by long use; usual; the normal or familiar state of things and mind. ‘The painting seemed to reflect his habitual frame of mind.’
- hallucination
- A sensory experience of something that seems real but does not exist outside the mind. It can be caused by various physical and mental disorders, or by reaction to certain toxic substances, such as drugs like LSD.
- haptic
- Of or relating to the sense of touch. In art, the term often refers to qualities in a painting’s surface that emphasise materiality. ‘The paintings showed powerfully haptic qualities.’
- Hard-Edge
- A twentieth-century art movement during the 1960s in which the edges of shapes were neat and precise rather than blurred, and geometric forms were frequently used. Artists include Barnett Newman (American, 1905–70), Agnes Martin (American, 1912–2004) and Ellsworth Kelly (American, 1923–). Linked to Color Field painting.
- harmony
- A pleasing combination of elements in a whole. In art and design, a relationship between parts of a composition that produces a pleasing effect.
- haute couture
- A phrase deriving from the French for ‘high fashion’, used to describe very expensive, handmade individual fashion garments.
- health and safety
- The correct and safe use of equipment, and the safety of the working environment.
- hermeneutics
- Interpretation theory. Can be either the art of interpretation or the theory and practice of interpretation.
- hierarchy, hierarchical
- An ordering of people, things or ideas according to a scale of relative values based on, for example, social class, race or cultural value.
- high art
- Fine art of universal value, having remained valued over time and representing the height of artistic achievement. Usually this is art associated with a social elite. It is opposed to low art, also known as mass culture. Cubism, Dada and Surrealism challenged the distinction, and artists in the 1980s and 1990s up to the present day – as various as Jeff Koons (American, 1955–), Jean-Michel Basquiat (American, 1960–88), Sarah Lucas (British, 1962–), Tracey Emin (British, 1963–) and the Guerrilla Girls (American) – further narrowed the traditional distinctions.
- high resolution
- In sharp, clear and detailed focus. Used in relation to the reproduction of images.
- highlight
- Small areas on a painting or drawing on which reflected light is the brightest.
- horizon
- The range of one’s knowledge, experience or interest. Also, the apparent intersection of the earth and sky in a landscape painting.
- horizontal
- In a composition, a line at right angles to a vertical line. Also, being parallel to or in the plane of the horizon.
- hue
- Another word for ‘colour’.
- humanism, humanistic
- Any attitude that gives priority to human endeavours and their values, capacities, worth, interests, needs and welfare, rather than to those of the gods, spirits, animals or any other non-human thing. Also, the study of the humanities. Often used in relation to the critique of religion.
- humanities
- The liberal arts – the non-scientific branches of study (such as philosophy, history, literature and the arts), which are concerned with human thought and culture.
- hybrid and hybridity
- A composite or combination of clearly distinguishable elements of mixed origin. An important concept in critical theory that challenges essentialism, and that is seen as a central effect of globalisation. It argues that there is no such thing as cultural purity or an original essence and that cultures, especially nowadays, are distinguished by their mixed and diverse character. ‘Her work was a strange hybrid of ancient and modern styles.’
- hypothesis
- A supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation. A specific, testable prediction about what is true.
I
- icon
- From the Greek for ‘image’. A painting produced within the Orthodox tradition of Christianity that represents a religious subject, usually against a gold background. A term used in semiotics to refer to a sign that resembles its referent (e.g., via similarity in shape).
- iconic
- A picture, a sculpture or even a building is said to be iconic when it is regarded as an object of veneration or of great influence.
- iconoclasm
- The wilful destruction of images.
- iconoclast
- Originally, one who destroys sacred religious images (or icons). More broadly, the attacking of established beliefs. In the nineteenth century, ‘iconoclast’ took on the secular sense that it has today: one who breaks traditions, doctrines, convictions, practices and so on. The Dada artist Marcel Duchamp (French, 1887–1968) is a modern example of an iconoclast.
- iconographer
- Someone involved in the analysis of the symbols within representational works of art.
- iconography
- The pictorial representation of a subject, or the collected representation of a subject or collected images (or icons) illustrating a subject, such as pictures or diagrams.
- iconology
- The study of subject matter and symbolism in the visual arts.
- idealism
- The pursuit of things in an ideal form. In philosophy, any of several theories that hold that reality has no objective existence but is produced in some way by the mind. In art, the tendency to make works that reject the real world in favour of a more perfect, idealised one.
- identity
- The characteristics by which a thing, a person or a people is definitively known. ‘Identity’ refers to individuality in some ways and sameness (identicality) in others.
- ideogram
- A simple picture-like sign or graphic symbol used either in signage or a writing system so that it represents a thing or an idea instead of a letter or specific word, as do the common symbol for ‘no smoking’ and many of the characters used in Chinese writing. In typography, ideograms are often available in fonts known as dingbats.
- ideology
- A body of ideas reflecting the social needs and aspirations of an individual, a group, a class or a culture; examples are ethnocentrism and class consciousness. The result, particularly according to Marxist thought, is a distortion of reality used by the ruling elite in order to maintain authority. Various applications of this sense of the word can be found in feminism and other types of critical theory, and are often very political. Others use the term with less political meaning, and ‘ideology’ refers to one type of symbolic system among others, such as art, religion and science. In contemporary theory, art itself is understood to be a powerful ideology that must be examined because it misleads or controls the subject
- idiom
- A style of artistic expression characteristic of a particular individual, school, period or medium, as in, for example, the idiom of the Abstract Expressionists.
- ikat
- A technique in which yarns that can be used in both the warp and weft of the fabric are tied and dyed. When the yarns are dry, they are untied and a pattern with blurred edges is revealed.
- illogical
- Lacking clear, sound, reasonable sense. ‘His argument was illogical.’
- illusion, illusory
- A deceptive, misleading or seemingly unreal image or idea. In art, the creation of a deceptive representation – for example, of a three-dimensional object on a two-dimensional surface. More broadly, anything that is not real.
- illusionistic art
- Art and decoration in which highly illusory effects are used, especially the use of perspective in painting to create an impression of three-dimensional reality.
- illustrate
- To produce designs and pictures for books, magazines or other print or electronic media to make clear or explain a text or to show what happens in a story. In a negative sense, to fail to directly express an idea and instead to show it through indirect and familiar references.
- image
- A picture, idea or impression of a person, thing or idea; or a mental picture of a person, thing or idea. The word ‘imagery’ refers to a group or body of related images.
- impact
- The effect or impression made by one thing on another; the power of making a strong, immediate impression. ‘Her paintings made a powerful impact on the teacher.’
- impasto
- A technique in which paint is laid on thickly so texture stands out in relief.
- Impressionism
- An art movement and style of painting that originated in France during the 1860s. Impressionist artists tried to paint rapidly in order to depict informal glimpses of their subjects – for example, showing the effects of sunlight on objects at various times of day. Artists often chose specifically modern subjects, such as railway stations or city cafés. The Impressionists were reacting against the excessively idealised and traditional art of the time. The leaders of this movement were Camille Pissarro (French, 1830–1903), Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917), Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926) and Pierre-Auguste Renoir (French, 1841–1919).
- improvisation
- A presentation made without planning, or a spontaneous creative act. ‘The tutor encouraged improvisation as a way of image-making.’
- informal, informality
- Not formal or ceremonious; casual. ‘The paintings were very informal, lacking any clear sense of structure but full of energy.’
- innovation
- A significant change in the typical thought processes or techniques involved in doing something. ‘The works were a real innovation.’
- inspiration
- A sudden brilliant idea; the condition or quality of being stimulated to creative thought or activity. Also, somebody or something that stimulates a person to a high level of feeling, to creative thought or to action. To those who are religious, inspiration may be considered to be caused by divine guidance and influence on human beings. An inspired person feels that he or she can achieve something difficult or special. ‘The works were an inspiration’; ‘The works were inspiring.’
- installation or installation art
- Art that is or has been installed – arranged in a place – either by the artist or as specified by the artist. The art may be site-specific or not, and either indoors or outdoors. The term became widely used in the 1970s and 1980s, and continues to be employed by many people. Installations may be temporary or permanent, but most will be recorded through documentation. As a consequence, one aspect of installations is often the difficulty with which they can be turned into saleable products or be commodified. Artists identified with installations include Walter De Maria (American, 1935–2013), Bill Viola (American, 1951–), Vong Phaophanit (Lao, 1961–) and Olafur Eliasson (Danish, 1967–).
- institutional critique
- A key aspect of postmodernism involving the critical analysis of the institutions (such as museums) that serve to structure and organise cultural production.
- intaglio
- The collective term for several graphic processes in which prints are made from ink remaining in the incisions in an incised metal plate, which when pressed or stamped into a soft substance, such as paper, produces a positive relief in that substance. Etchings and engravings are the most typical examples. It may also refer to imagery incised on gems or hardstones, seals and dies for coins, or to objects decorated in this way.
- integral
- Essential to completeness. ‘An integral part of his work was the use of collage.’
- intellectual
- Someone who values highly abstract and analytical thought as a means of reflecting upon and discussing the arts, culture and history.
- intensity
- The brightness or the dullness of a colour.
- intention
- An aim or purpose. ‘What is your intention in making this work?’
- interactive
- Acting or capable of acting on each other. Artworks can be said to be interactive when they involve two-way communication between a source of information and a user, who can initiate or respond to the stimulus.
- intermediate colours
- See tertiary colours.
- International Style
- A style in architecture and interior design developed in the 1920s that used modern materials such as steel, glass and reinforced concrete. It rejected traditional ornamentation in order to expresses structure directly. Important architects include Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (German, 1886–1969) and Le Corbusier (French, 1887–1965).
- interpretation
- An explanation or conceptualisation of a work; the meaning assigned to it.
- intuition, intuitive
- The act or faculty of knowing or sensing without the use of rational processes; immediate cognition. It is often related to unconscious thought processes. In the studying, making and appreciation of art, intuition is an important but little-understood factor. ‘She used her intuition while planning her work’; ‘She was highly intuitive in her approach to painting.’
- irony, ironic
- Humorously sarcastic or mocking; characterised by often exaggerated difference or incongruity between what is expected and what actually is. Irony in art is often opposed to belief in authenticity and self-expression, and has been a powerful tendency in art and design since the 1980s.
- irrational
- Without the faculty of reason; deprived of reason; without or deprived of normal mental clarity or sound judgement; not in accordance with reason; utterly illogical. ‘His designs seemed completely irrational.’
- italic
- A style of handwriting or type in which the letters slant to the right.
J
- judge, judgement
- To determine or declare after consideration or deliberation; to have as an opinion or assumption; to suppose; to make a considered decision about something. In art history and criticism one comes to thoughtful conclusions about a work’s technical, historical or cultural significance after describing, analysing and interpreting it. Such conclusions might concern relationships to the styles of other works, a work’s influence on other artists’ works or a work’s impact on the lives of its viewers. As such, the ability to make judgements based on sound criteria is a central component of the study of art, media and design.
- juxtaposition, juxtapose
- The act of placing things close together or side by side, so as to permit comparison or contrast. ‘She juxtaposed red and green colours.’
K
- kinaesthetic
- The sensory experience of the body’s movement. Physical awareness of the body’s position in space.
- kinetic
- Expressing movement. ‘The design was powerfully kinetic.’
- kinetic art
- Sculpture that moves, such as a mobile. Examples include the work of Naum Gabo (worked in Germany and the US, born Russia, 1890–1977), Alexander Calder (American, 1898–1976) and Jean Tinguely (Swiss, 1925–91).
- kitsch art
- Art and design characterised by empty sentimentality, and often pretentious poor taste. Art and design that is typically clumsy, repetitive and excessively and intentionally commercial. Artists whose works have been considered kitsch are William-Adolphe Bouguereau (French, 1825–1905), Maxfield Parrish (American, 1870–1966), Norman Rockwell (American, 1894–1978) and Soviet and Nazi art. Among contemporary examples, the work of Thomas Kinkade (American, 1958–2012) has been called kitsch. The opposite of kitsch art is avant-garde art.
- knitting
- A method of constructing a fabric. Fabric is formed by the intermeshing of loops of yarn. This method of construction can be done by hand or by machine.
- knowledge, know
- Expertise and skills acquired by a person through experience or education; the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject; what is known in a particular field or in total; facts and information. In its verb form, to be absolutely certain or sure about something. ‘His knowledge of English art was impressive.’
L
- latex
- A rubbery substance used as a binder in latex paints, as a moulding compound and as the basis of certain adhesives.
- letter space
- In typography, letter space is the placement or retention of space between characters. The horizontal space between lines of type is called leading.
- letterhead
- A heading that usually consists of a name, an address and other contact details, often with a monogram or logo, printed on a sheet of letter-writing paper.
- lettering
- Drawing or creating letters used in words. In contrast to cursive writing, this action is sometimes referred to as ‘printing’. But the use of the term ‘printing’ in this sense should not be confused with making multiple identical images.
- liberal arts
- The humanities, or non-scientific branches of study, such as philosophy, literature and art, that are concerned with human thought and culture.
- life-drawing
- The act of drawing the human figure from a live (often nude) model. Also each such drawing produced.
- limited edition
- An edition or set of prints of a specific number of impressions, usually fewer than two hundred, numbered and signed by the artist.
- linear
- A technique in which forms are created using contours or outlines. The opposite of painterly.
- linear perspective
- A system of drawing or painting invented in Italy in the fifteenth century in which the artist attempts to create the illusion of spatial depth on a two-dimensional surface. It uses consistent geometric rules for rendering objects as they appear to the human eye. The lines of buildings and other objects in a picture are slanted inward, making them appear to extend back into space. If lengthened, these lines will meet at a point along an imaginary horizontal line representing the eye level. Each such imaginary line is called an orthogonal. The point at which such lines meet is called a vanishing point.
- linseed oil
- An oil used as a medium or binder for oil paint.
- lithograph
- A printing process involving a hard, flat surface.
- logic
- The science that investigates the principles governing correct or reliable inference. A particular method of reasoning or argumentation; the system or principles of reasoning applicable to any branch of knowledge or study; reason or sound judgement, as in utterances or actions.
- logical
- According to or agreeing with the principles of logic. ‘He made a logical argument for why he had created his work.’
- logo
- A name, symbol or trademark designed for easy and definite recognition.
- loom
- A machine used to produce cloth by weaving.
- low art
- The lesser or minor arts, including the decorative and applied arts, with the suggestion that these are low partly because of poor manufacturing and inferior materials. Also art of superficial kitsch value, simply satisfying popular and commercial taste and based on an unreflective acceptance of the conventional view of reality. The boundary between high and low art has become unclear in the contemporary art scene. Its place has been taken by discussion of popular culture or mass culture.
- lower-case
- Simplified forms of capital letters that gained this alternative name from the standard location in which typesetters stored them. Along with capital letters (also known as upper-case), they now serve as the form of most typographic communication.
- luminosity
- An effect used in painting that suggests the illusion of light coming from within the picture.
M
- made-to-order
- Made to the specifications of an individual customer.
- magic
- Beliefs often related to religion that hold that human life is controlled by non-material forces and that it is possible through the performance of special rituals to channel these forces in order to influence thoughts, behaviour and events in the past, present and future.
- magnum opus
- From the Latin for a great work or masterpiece; the greatest or most important work.
- manifesto
- A public declaration of principles, policies or intentions. Although usually of a political nature, in modernism (during the first half of the twentieth century), various avant-garde movements published manifestos in order to declare their beliefs, theories, motivations and goals, in order to draw attention and gain support or provoke reactions against them. These movements included Futurism, Dada and Surrealism.
- mannequin
- A life-size full or partial three-dimensional model of the human figure. Mannequins are often used for the fitting and exhibiting of clothes. May also refer to a jointed model of a human figure used by artists, and also to a person who wears clothes for a profession, such as a fashion model.
- mannerism
- A behavioural or stylistic habit or characteristic that is distinctive and peculiar to an individual; a deliberate pretence or exaggerated display. ‘One of his mannerisms was the use of thick paint.’
- Mannerism
- A period of European art that emerged from the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520 and lasted until about 1580 in Italy, when a more Baroque style began to replace it, although Northern Mannerism continued into the early seventeenth century throughout much of Europe. Mannerism challenged the harmonious ideals and restrained naturalism of the High Renaissance, and included a variety of approaches influenced by and reacting to Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael. Mannerism is noted for its intellectual sophistication as well as its artificial, exaggerated and spiritual qualities. Mannerist artists include Bronzino (1503–72), Parmigianino (1503–40) and El Greco (Greek, 1541–1614).
- manual skill
- The efficient use of hands in the performance of a specific task; fine motor or muscle control. Much valued in the fine and decorative arts.
- manufacture
- To fabricate, produce or process; often used in relation to the processing of raw materials, especially using large-scale industrial operations. Also, either the act of manufacturing or the manufactured product itself.
- maquette
- A small sculpture made as a preparatory study or model for a full-scale work.
- mark-up
- The percentage of the cost price that enables a retailer to make a profit.
- Marxism, Marxist
- The economic and political theories of Karl Marx (German, 1818–83) and Friedrich Engels (German, 1820–95), which argue that human actions and institutions are economically determined, that class struggle is needed to create historical change and that capitalism will ultimately be superseded by communism. In relation to art, Marxism was an influential cultural force for much of the twentieth century, connecting radical art to the desire for revolutionary social change.
- mass culture
- The popular culture that is widely disseminated via the mass media.
- mass media
- The technological media used for communication to a large (or mass) population. These generally include printed media such as books, newspapers and magazines, and such electronic media as radio, television, web pages, DVDs and CD-ROMs. The mass media are an important subject for contemporary art.
- mass-produced goods
- Goods that are manufactured on a large scale.
- material culture
- All of the physical products of a culture. An important concept in relation to contemporary art, where art is seen as part of a wider category of objects or artefacts made by a culture.
- materialism
- The attitude that physical well-being and worldly possessions matter most in life. Or, an excessive regard for worldly concerns. The theory or belief that nothing exists except matter and its movements and modifications. Marxism is an example of a materialist theory.
- matte
- A dull surface. The opposite of gloss.
- media
- The plural form of medium. Also may refer to mass media.
- medium
- The material used in a work of art, such as clay, paint or pencil, or any substance added to colour to facilitate application or to achieve a desired effect. Also may mean a category of works based on shared material properties as distinct from another group of works possessing different material properties. The plural, media, describes more than one art medium.
- memorise, memory
- Retaining and recalling past experience. In the noun form, recollection or remembrance; all that a person can remember, or something remembered; the period of time covered by the remembrance or recollection of a person or group of people. ‘His memories of the war were a great influence on his work.’ Also, the capacity of a material, such as plastic or metal, to return to a previous shape after manipulation.
- metamorphosis
- A transformation. To metamorphose is to change in appearance, character, condition or function. ‘His work went through a major metamorphosis during the semester.’
- metanarrative
- In critical theory and particularly postmodernism, an abstract idea that is thought to be a comprehensive explanation of historical experience or knowledge. The prefix ‘meta-’ means ‘beyond’ and is used to mean ‘about’, and ‘narrative’ is a story constructed in a linear way. Therefore, a metanarrative is a story about a story.
- metaphor
- When a word or thing that ordinarily designates one thing is used to designate another, thus making an implicit comparison. One thing conceived as representing another; a symbol.
- metaphysical painting or pittura metafisica
- An Italian art movement founded in 1917 by Carlo Carrà (Italian, 1881–1966) and Giorgio de Chirico (Italian, 1888–1978). They aimed to depict a non-rational, non-naturalistic reality that engaged more immediately with the unconscious mind and irrational thought. In this style of painting, an illogical reality seems believable.
- metaphysics
- The branch of philosophy concerned with the ultimate nature of existence. Its main branches are ontology (the study of the nature of being), cosmology (the study of the place of humans within the whole of the known universe) and philosophical theology (the study of humans in relation to ultimate reality).
- methodology
- A body of practices, procedures and rules used by those who work in a discipline or engage in an inquiry; a set of working methods. ‘His methodology was clear and persuasive.’
- Middle Ages
- The period in European history between antiquity and the Renaissance, often dated from 476 to 1453. Things that pertain to the Middle Ages are called ‘medieval’.
- middle ground
- The area of a representation that appears halfway between the foreground and the background.
- mimesis
- From the Greek for ‘imitation’. Used to describe the act of copying realistically.
- mimetic
- Copied. In art and design it is often used to mean figurative or representational work.
- minimalism or Minimalism
- With a small ‘m’, a general tendency in twentieth-century art towards the purification and reduction of artwork to minimal elements of colours, values, shapes and textures. With a capital ‘M’, a movement of the 1960s that stressed the idea of reducing works of art to the minimum, and where no attempt was made to represent or symbolise any other object or experience. This movement is sometimes called ABC Art, Minimal Art, Reductivism or Rejective Art. Minimal artists include Donald Judd (American, 1928–94), Sol LeWitt (American, 1928–2007), Robert Morris (American, 1931–) and Carl Andre (American, 1935–).
- mixed media
- The use of several different media in the same artwork.
- modelling
- A sculpture technique in which a three-dimensional form is manipulated in a soft material such as clay or wax. The term also refers to the effect of light on a three-dimensional form.
- modelling clay
- A non-hardening substance used for modelling sculptures.
- modern
- Generally refers to recent times or the present, or the sense of something being contemporary or up to date, recently developed, or advanced in style, technique, or technology. May sometimes imply that something is innovative or experimental. ‘Her designs were very modern.’
- Modernism, modernist
- An art and design movement dominant in the arts of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It is characterised by a deliberate departure from tradition and the use of innovative or seemingly non-artistic forms of expression. It questions traditional ideas about the arts and their role in society, and its goal was often to see the arts as performing a more directly political role in changing society. Typical characteristics of modernist art are the expression of feelings, ideas, fantasies and dreams and the creation of abstractions instead of the depiction of the visual world as we conventionally see and share it; the rejection of naturalistic colours and the use of expressive, clearly visible brushstrokes; the exploration of new types of paint and other materials; the acceptance of line, form, colour and process as valid themes by themselves regardless of any subject matter (formalism); and the requirement that an audience must take a more active role as interpreter such that each viewer must observe carefully and get information about the artist’s intentions and environment before forming judgements about the work.
- monochrome, monochromatic
- A painting, drawing or print in one colour, including the tints and shades of that colour.
- monogram
- A design composed of one or more letters, typically the initials of a name, used as an identifying mark.
- monograph
- A non-fiction book on a specific, often limited subject, in the art world most likely about the work of one artist.
- monoprint
- A print that repeats the same underlying common image but incorporates various designs, colours or textures.
- monotype
- A print made by painting on smooth metal, with the paint then transferred to paper, creating a texture that is not possible by using paint directly on paper.
- motif
- A recurrent thematic element. A distinctive and recurring form, shape, figure or other element in an artwork or design. ‘An important motif in her work was the symbol of the spider.’
- motivation, motivate
- The biological, emotional, cognitive or social forces that motivate and direct behaviour; an interest in or enthusiasm to make the effort to achieve something. In the verb form, to give a reason or incentive to achieve something. Motivation increases an individual’s energy and activity level. It directs an individual towards particular goals. It promotes the starting of particular activities and persistence in those activities. It affects the learning strategies and cognitive processes an individual employs. Sources of motivation can be either external or internal. ‘What is your motivation in making this work?’
- multiculturalism
- A theoretical and socio-political tendency aiming to broaden the range of cultures we study, in contrast to the dominant traditional and racist opinion that the great accomplishments have been made almost exclusively by males of European descent. It urges people of every culture to assess the qualities of other cultures through the lens of their own culture. Multiculturalism is one of the most important characteristics of contemporary art.
- multimedia
- A work that combines more than one specific format or medium to create a unified presentation. Commonly refers to audio-visual productions, but many exhibits and displays are multimedia. Audio-visual productions can be parts of larger multimedia products. In computing it refers to software and applications that combine text, sound, graphics and animation or video.
- museology
- The discipline of museum design, organisation and management, and the academic study of these.
- mystical
- Having a heightened sense of another and usually spiritual level of existence; often associated with altered states of consciousness.
- mystify
- To confuse or puzzle mentally, make difficult to understand; to make obscure or mysterious. The noun form is ‘mystification’.
- myth
- A traditional, often ancient story dealing with supernatural beings, ancestors or heroes that serves to help construct the world-view of a people or that defines the structure and meaning of the psychology, beliefs, customs or ideals of a society. Can also be used more broadly to define all false beliefs, and in this sense it is related to ideology.
- mythology
- A body or collection of myths belonging to a people that refers to their origins and history, often containing descriptions of gods, ancestors and heroes. Sometimes refers to a body of false stories concerning an individual, event or institution. Can also define a collection of false beliefs, and in this sense it is related to ideology.
N
- narrative art
- Art that tells a story. Modernists largely rejected narrative elements in art. More recently, postmodernism has embraced narrative.
- Naturalism or naturalism, naturalistic
- A style in which artists represent a subject as it appears in the natural world (based on the rules of fixed-point perspective and objective analysis) as opposed to in a stylised, ideal or intellectual manner. Unlike realism, naturalism is not committed to the depiction of the ugly, overlooked or marginal. Examples include the artists of the Barbizon school (c. 1830–c. 1870) in France.
- negation
- The action or logical operation of negating or making negative; a negative statement, judgement or doctrine. ‘His works were the negation of classical purity.’
- negative space
- Empty space in an artwork; a void. It is considered an intrinsic part of composition. The opposite of positive space.
- neo
- New. Used as a prefix, as in Neo-expressionism.
- Neo-classical
- A revival in art and literature in the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. It was characterised by belief in the importance of the classical ideals of pure form, reason, analysis and restraint. Artists include Jacques-Louis David (French, 1748–1825).
- neo-Dada
- A term applied primarily to audio and visual art of the 1950s and 1960s with conscious similarities in method or intent to earlier Dada artwork. Examples are Fluxus, Pop Art and nouveau réalisme. Neo-Dada art prefers modern materials, popular imagery, provocation and nonsense. It also denies traditional concepts of aesthetics. Artists include Robert Rauschenberg (American, 1925–2008), Yves Klein (French, 1928–62) and Jasper Johns (American, 1930–).
- Neo-expressionism
- Usually, the primarily German and Italian Expressionist art revival of the 1970s and early 1980s. Rejecting both conceptual and minimalist modes, these Neo-expressionists returned to gestural, figurative painting, often evoking German history. Examples are paintings by Georg Baselitz (German, 1938–), A. R. Penck (German, 1939–) and Anselm Kiefer (German, 1945–). An American exponent is Julian Schnabel (American, 1951–).
- Neo-impressionism
- A movement in painting that was developed out of Impressionism. It explored the more analytic use of colour and form. The chief exponent was Georges-Pierre Seurat (French, 1859–91). Other Neo-impressionists include Camille Pissarro (French, 1830–1903), Henri-Edmond Cross (French, 1856–1910), Théo van Rysselberghe (Belgian, 1862–1926) and Paul Signac (French, 1863–1935).
- Neo-plasticism
- Also called De Stijl. A mostly Dutch art movement advocating pure abstraction and simplicity in art and design. Forms are reduced to the rectangle and square, and colours to primaries, along with black and white. Piet Mondrian (Dutch, 1872–1944) was the group’s leading figure. Other members include the painters Theo van Doesburg (Dutch, 1883–1931) and Georges Vantongerloo (Belgian, 1886–1965) and the architects Gerrit Rietveld (Dutch, 1888–1965) and J. J. P. Oud (Dutch, 1890–1963). Their work exerted tremendous influence on the Bauhaus and the International Style.
- new media
- Widely used since the early 1990s to refer to the latest electronic media.
- newsprint
- Cheap, low-quality paper produced in large sheets. Newsprint will eventually yellow, and is not a good choice for preserving artwork. Pen and marker will bleed through newsprint.
- nihilism, nihilistic
- From the Latin nihil (nothing). A philosophical idea suggesting the negation of one or more meaningful aspects of life. Most commonly, nihilism is presented in the form of ‘existential nihilism’, which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose or intrinsic value. Paradoxically, nihilism has been an important motivation behind much modern art.
- nihilist
- Someone who believes life is without objective meaning, purpose or intrinsic value.
- non-objective art
- Art with no recognisable subject matter and that does not aim to represent an object or person. Also known as ‘non-representational art’. Used to describe, for example, the work of Wassily Kandinsky (Russian, 1866–1944) and Piet Mondrian (Dutch, 1872–1944).
- nude
- Having no clothing; naked. Also, an unclothed human figure.
O
- objective
- Judgements that are influenced by facts instead of emotions or personal prejudices are termed ‘objective’. The opposite of subjective. ‘He tried to be as objective as possible.’
- objectivity
- The state of being objective. ‘In studying art, objectivity is difficult.’
- obscene
- Offensive to accepted standards of decency or modesty. More broadly, repulsive or offensive to the senses. ‘Obscenity’ is the state or quality of being obscene. Some artists consider this a valid goal. ‘Many people thought her paintings were obscene.’
- obsession
- Excessive preoccupation with a fixed idea, in a way that often causes an uncomfortable or troubling feeling or emotion. A compulsive, often unreasonable idea or emotion.
- offset printing
- A printing process in which an inked image on a metal or paper plate is transferred to a smooth rubber cylinder and then to paper.
- oil paint
- A paint medium based on the mixing of coloured pigments with oil (usually linseed oil) as a binder.
- oneiric
- Of or pertaining to dreams. ‘Salvador Dali’s paintings are powerfully oneiric.’
- online art
- A type of new media. Art created solely or principally to be seen on the World Wide Web. Typically, these works use the latest Internet languages. Many are interactive, with motion and sound components, and sometimes involve telephones, cameras and other devices.
- ontology
- The branch of philosophy that studies the nature of being; the area of metaphysics relating to the being or essence of things, or to ‘being’ in the abstract.
- Op Art
- A twentieth-century art movement and style in which artists sought to create an impression of unstable visual perceptions on a surface by means of optical illusions. Also known as Optical Art and Perceptual Abstraction. Artists include Victor Vasarely (Hungarian-French, 1906–1997) and Bridget Riley (British, 1931–).
- opacity, opaque
- The quality of being non-transparent. In painting, the power of a paint pigment to cover or obscure the surface to which it is applied.
- opinion
- A judgement one holds as true but on which one is open to dispute. ‘She gave her opinion on the subject.’
- organic
- Shapes that are not regular or even, using a combination of edges that are curved or angled. Often related to natural forms.
- organise
- To arranging by contrasting different values, resolving conflicts between them and creating a system. The emphasis is on comparing, relating and synthesising.
- Orientalism or orientalism
- Historically, Western art of the nineteenth century whose subject or style was drawn from Eastern, usually Middle Eastern, influences. More recently, the word ‘orientalist’ has come to imply someone holding a Eurocentric point of view. ‘Orientalism’ is the belief system that underpins such a bias. The concept is especially relevant in the multicultural art context of today.
- original
- The first, preceding all others; referring to a prototype, a model after which other works are made that have great similarity to the first. Any work considered to be an authentic work of an artist, rather than a reproduction or imitation. Also, a work unlike any other. ‘It was a highly original piece of work.’
- originality
- The quality of being original. A quality of works that are not obviously derived from or copies of other works. The concept has strongly influenced art historians’ judgement of what artists and artworks are most highly regarded. Originality was a major goal of avant-garde artists, but, with increased use of technological means of reproduction and as a result of the influence of non-Western perspectives on culture, originality has come to be de-emphasised. The ‘myth of originality’ is a central principle of postmodernism.
- Orphism
- A style of painting related to Cubism, sometimes called Orphic Cubism. It is characterised by overlapping planes of bright colours. Generally more abstract and colourful than other forms of Cubism. Artists include František (Franz or Frank) Kupka (Czech, 1871–1957), Robert Delaunay (French, 1885–1941) and Sonia Delaunay-Terk (French, 1885–1979).
- orthogonal line
- A straight line imagined to be behind and perpendicular to the picture plane. The orthogonals in a painting appear to converge on each other as they recede towards one or more vanishing points on the horizon.
- outsider art
- Works by those outside or unnoticed by mainstream society, including folk and ethnic artists as well as prisoners, the mentally ill, children and those who are neither trained in art nor create their works in order to sell them. Such works are admired by professional artists because they did not conform to conventional ideas of cultural value. Linked to art brut.
P
- Paganism, pagan
- The beliefs and cultures of the West before the adoption of Christianity under the Roman Empire in the fourth century CE. Often, paganism was characterised by the worship of nature, many gods and ancestors.
- paint box
- A piece of equipment used for storing brushes, paint, palettes and accessories when painting outdoors.
- painterly
- A painting technique in which forms are created with patches of colour, exploiting colour and tonal relationships. The opposite of linear. Baroque and Romantic art are painterly, as are Expressionism and Abstract Expressionism.
- painting or palette knife
- A flexible knife used to mix paint or to apply it directly to a painting’s surface. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes.
- palimpsest
- An object or image that reveals its history by leaving traces of previous activity that has been erased; anything with visible layers or aspects beneath its surface. Any old objects that show the effects of their past can be called palimpsests.
- papier mâché
- A sculptural technique that uses paper and a binder, such as wallpaper paste or glue.
- paradigm
- An example that serves as a pattern, an exemplar or a model. ‘His designs were paradigms of organisation and clarity.’
- paradigm shift
- Describes the phenomenon in which, when one era shifts into another, the habits of the earlier one are disrupted by new ones that eventually settle into a familiar routine. The phrase is used to describe any sort of major shift of mindset or world-view.
- paradox
- A seemingly contradictory statement that may nonetheless be true. A statement contrary to received opinion.
- parody, parodic
- A work that imitates the characteristic style of another work, for comic effect, ridicule or critical analysis. ‘She parodied the style of X.’
- pastel
- Compressed coloured pigment in stick form.
- patriarchy, patriarchal
- The social dominance of the father or the father figure; men’s rule as heads of families, and the preference given to males in descent and inheritance. Feminism sees patriarchy as pervasive and as oppressive to women. The opposite of patriarchy is matriarchy. Each is a form of sexism.
- patron
- Someone who supports, protects or champions somebody or something such as an institution, an event or a cause; a sponsor or benefactor. The physical or emotional support of a patron is called ‘patronage’.
- pattern
- The repetition of anything; a motif. One of the principles of design. A pattern can also be a model or mould intended to be copied. Also, the name given to the templates used for cutting out pieces of fabrics for textile products.
- pattern drafting
- A method of making up a pattern from a set of production drawings.
- pattern grading
- A method of scaling a pattern up or down from a basic block to create all the necessary sizes.
- pattern repeat
- The way in which a design repeats horizontally or vertically across or along a length of fabric.
- perception
- The process of becoming aware through sight, sound, taste, smell or touch; detection.
- perfect, perfection
- The quality of being without defect; accurate, exact; complete, absolute. Or, completely suited for a particular purpose. ‘The paintings were perfect for the collector’s bedroom.’ Perfection is the condition of being perfect.
- perform, performative
- The demonstration of an assertion or idea through an action rather than by linguistic means.
- performance art
- Art executed before a live audience. Examples include body art, Fluxus, happenings, process art and street works. The 1980s saw the emergence of performance artists such as Marina Abramović (Serbian, 1946–) and Laurie Anderson (American, 1947–). Contemporary exponents include Zhang Huan (China, 1965–).
- phenomenology
- The branch of philosophy that studies all possible human experiences (phenomena). It aims to disregard considerations of objective reality and purely subjective response.
- photorealism
- A style in painting in which the results are nearly photographically accurate, and in which paintings are often painted from photographs. Although its centre was in the US, the photorealism movement was also strong in Europe from the late 1960s into the 1970s, where this type of illusionism is known principally as super-realism. Some American photorealist painters are Ralph Goings (1928–), Audrey Flack (1931–), Richard Estes (1932–) and Chuck Close (1940–).
- pigment
- A material used to create the effect of colour on any surface.
- plaster
- When mixed with water, this powder will harden into a chalk-like solid that is used to create sculptures and other forms of artwork.
- plastic
- Capable of being shaped or formed; having the qualities of sculpture; well formed. Also, as a material quality, any of various organic compounds produced by polymerisation.
- plastic art and plastic arts
- The singular form, ‘plastic art’, generally refers to three-dimensional art, such as sculpture, as distinct from drawing and painting. It also refers to two-dimensional art that strives for an illusion of depth. The plural form, ‘plastic arts’, generally refers to one or more of the visual arts, which include sculpture, architecture, painting, drawing and the graphic arts as distinct from music, poetry, literature, dance and theatre.
- plinth
- A block of wood or stone or a box, sometimes placed beneath a sculpture or a video monitor. Also known as a ‘pedestal’.
- pluralism, pluralistic
- The existence of multiple and opposed viewpoints. This is a key aspect of postmodernity, where various world-views and beliefs co-exist without hierarchy. The opposite of essentialism.
- plurality
- Having multiple as opposed to single characteristics and meanings, or open to multiple interpretations. ‘Her work showed a plurality of influences.’
- pointillism
- A method of painting developed in France in the 1880s in which tiny dots of colour are applied to the canvas. The key artist was Georges-Pierre Seurat (French, 1859–91). When viewed from a distance, the points of colour appear to blend together to make other colours and to form shapes and outlines.
- political correctness, politically correct, PC
- Developed as a theoretical position in the mass media in the 1980s to describe a specific attitude towards social transformation aiming to address discrimination of various forms. In education, for example, it challenged the extent to which the traditional curriculum had stayed unchanged for many years, and demanded the inclusion of the study of non-mainstream cultures. In the arts, it challenges traditional ideas of identity (race, gender, class and sexuality) and encourages sensitivity to unconscious racism and sexism and to environmental concerns. Influential on progressive art since this period.
- Pop Art
- An art movement and style that had its origins in the UK in the 1950s and also emerged in the US during the early 1960s. Pop artists focus their attention on familiar images of mass or popular culture such as billboards, comic strips, magazine advertisements and supermarket products. They thereby challenge ideas about the nature and content of high art and the myth of originality by incorporating the new systems of mass production into art-making. Leading exponents are Richard Hamilton (British, 1922–2011), Roy Lichtenstein (American, 1923–97), Robert Rauschenberg (American, 1925–2008), Andy Warhol (American, 1928–87), Claes Oldenburg (American, 1929–) and Jasper Johns (American, 1930–).
- popular culture
- Low (as opposed to high) culture, parts of which are known as kitsch. The transition to the postmodern age was characterised by the collapse of the old distinctions between elite and popular culture.
- portfolio
- A portable case for holding material, such as loose drawings, photographs or other images and designs. It may also be the materials collected in such a case, especially when they are representative of a student’s or artist’s work. By extension, a portfolio might be a portable collection of originals or reproductions of an artist’s work in a format other than the traditional case – as a set of digital images online or on a disk, for example.
- positive space
- Space in an artwork that is filled with something, such as lines, designs, colours or shapes. The opposite of negative space.
- postcolonialism or postcolonial theory
- Theories that consist of reactions to, and analysis of, the cultural legacy of colonialism (the forced occupation and settlement by one nation of another).
- posterity
- Future generations of humanity.
- Postimpressionism
- A French art movement that immediately followed Impressionism and Neo-impressionism. It showed greater concern for expression, structure and form than did Impressionism. Artists include Paul Cézanne (French, 1839–1906), Paul Gauguin (French, 1848–1903), Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853–90) and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (French, 1864–1901).
- Postminimalism
- Art from the 1970s onward with minimalist tendencies and that is more content-laden and symbolic than Minimalist art. Examples of artists include Eva Hesse (German-American, 1936–1970), Tony Cragg (English, 1949–) and Richard Deacon (English, 1949–).
- postmodernism, postmodern
- A tendency in contemporary culture since the late 1970s characterised by the rejection of objective truth and global cultural narrative, and a general distrust of cultural norms. It emphasises the roles of language, power relations and unconscious motivations. In particular, it attacks the use of sharp binary (in two opposing parts) classifications, such as male versus female, straight versus gay, white versus black, and imperial versus colonial. It is often connected to self-conscious or self-reflexive forms of institutional critique. In art, postmodernism signals a reaction against earlier modernist principles, for example, by reintroducing traditional or classical elements of style or by carrying modernist styles or practices to extremes. It rejects the belief in progress in art, and in this way aims to overturn the central belief of the modernist avant-garde. It involves the self-conscious use of earlier styles and conventions, appropriation and the parodic mixing of various artistic styles and media. It disrupts conventions with collision, collage and fragmentation, and often holds that all beliefs are unstable and insincere, and therefore that irony, parody and humour are the only positions that cannot be deconstructed by critique or revision. Like modernism, it further confuses distinctions between high and low art through the use of industrial materials and pop culture imagery. Pluralism and diversity are other defining features.
- poststructuralism
- A loose grouping of theories that reject structuralism’s claims to objectivity and emphasise the plurality of meaning. More broadly, a term used to describe much of the theory that came to dominate discussion of culture in the 1980s and 1990s. Poststructuralist theorists such as Roland Barthes and Jean Baudrillard merge traditional Marxist ideas relating to capitalist exchange value (e.g., commodity fetishism) with an emphasis on the absence of any objective reality. They also bring to our attention the relationship between consumerism and the realm of the sign. Anti-humanism and a rejection of the traditional idea of the self are often central tenets. The movement is closely related to postmodernism. The artist’s intended meaning, from a poststructuralist perspective, is secondary to the meaning that the viewer perceives, which is inherently unstable.
- precursor
- Something that is historically before something or someone, and related to it in some way. ‘His precursors were X.’
- prejudice
- An opinion or feeling not based on reason or actual experience.
- premise
- A proposition upon which an argument is based or from which a conclusion is drawn. ‘The premise of X was that art is about beauty.’
- Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood or The Pre-Raphaelites
- A group of English nineteenth-century artists who consciously sought to emulate the simplicity and what they saw as the greater sincerity of the work of Italian artists from before the time of Raphael. The group included William Holman Hunt (1827–1910), the painter and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828–82) and John Everett Millais (1829–96).
- primary colours
- Red, yellow and blue.
- primitivism
- In general, a belief in the value of what is simple and unsophisticated. In art, it refers to a broad movement away from traditions associated with Western classicism at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries. This was motivated by a wish to criticise the negative impact of modernisation on life in the developed world, and reflected a desire to return to the values expressed by societies before industrialisation. A particular point of reference were the artefacts produced by non-Western cultures that were being encountered through colonisation, such as in Africa and the South Pacific. Postimpressionism, Expressionism and abstract art often display the characteristics of primitivism by emphasising intuition, expression, emotionalism, the irrational, the spiritual and the subjective. Works appeared by conventional standards to be unfinished, distorted and gestural, and to use unnaturalistic colours. Today, ‘primitivism’ is considered to depend on a Eurocentric world-view, and is therefore used only to refer to a tendency in Western culture during a specific historical period.
- print media
- A means of storing or communicating information using printing.
- processed materials
- Materials prepared, treated or converted by subjecting them to a given process.
- project
- An individual or collaborative enterprise that is carefully planned to achieve a particular aim. It has a defined beginning and end, usually determined by date but sometimes dependent on funding or delivery issues.
- propaganda
- Information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote a political cause or point of view. Typically used in referring to artworks that support a particularly political belief or movement. Often used with a negative connotation.
- proposition
- A plan, idea or scheme suggested for acceptance; a proposal.
- prototype
- An original type, form or instance serving as a basis or standard for later stages. In art and design, a first or preliminary version of a device from which other forms are developed.
- protractor
- A semicircular tool used in the measurement and construction of angles.
- psychoanalysis
- A method of studying the mind developed by the neurologist Sigmund Freud (Austrian, 1856–1939) at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries. Freud argued that the self – the conscious, rational mind – is far less in control of thought and behaviour than we believe, and that the unconscious mind, which Freud described as being driven by powerful, unresolved and often destructive emotions, is continuously breaking through into everyday conscious life and causing people to behave in irrational ways. Freud especially argued that sexual repression starting in childhood causes deep and long-lasting harm, and advocated various methods to free his patients. The analytical psychologist Carl Jung (Swiss, 1875–1961) subsequently proposed a different perspective, emphasising the power of non-rational beliefs, such as magic and religion, to condition the mind at an unconscious level, serving to direct it towards unpredictable and sometimes liberating ends. These ideas have had an enormous influence on modern art, especially on the Surrealists and their descendants.
- psychomotor skills
- Manual or physical skills.
- public art
- Artwork designed to be installed in a public space, often outside, and usually as the result of a commission.
Q
- quotation
- Words taken from a text or speech and repeated by someone other than the original author or speaker. Also, a formal statement setting out the estimated cost of a particular job or service. In art, it refers to the repetition of one expression or image as part of another one, particularly when the quoted expression or image is well known or clearly attributed (by citation) to its original source.
R
- radical
- Relating to or affecting the fundamental nature of something; in the humanities, more often used to refer to having extreme, usually left-wing, principles. Radical art is closely associated with the idea of the avant-garde and with hostility to traditional art forms.
- random
- By chance, without planning; happening without method or conscious decision. ‘The drawing was covered in random dots and dashes.’
- range
- A set of garments or designs developed for a presentation as the products to be sold during a design season.
- rational
- Based on, derived from or in accordance with reason or logic.
- rationalism
- The philosophical position that states that reason alone is a source of knowledge and is independent of religious belief or emotional response.
- raw materials
- Unprocessed materials of any kind.
- reactionary
- Having extreme, usually right-wing, principles; opposing progress. Reactionary art is closely associated with the idea of tradition and with hostility to the avant-garde.
- ready-made
- Ordinary manufactured objects that an artist selects and may modify and that are presented as artworks. A strategy invented by Marcel Duchamp (French, 1887–1968), it has since become an important and now conventional way of making art.
- ready-to-wear (RTW)
- A range of clothing that is mass-produced. This allows for a customer to try on a garment, buy it and take it home straight away.
- recto
- The front side of any work on paper. May also be the right-hand page of a book. The opposite of verso.
- recycle
- To extract useful materials from garbage or waste and reuse them.
- reflexivity, reflexive
- The process of making oneself aware of one’s position within the context of visual culture in order to examine one’s own position, in order to recognise the meanings and possible interpretations of what one is doing, and also to identify otherwise hidden influences. Also, the idea that a person’s thoughts and ideas tend to be inherently biased. ‘A reflexive attitude to their work is essential for students.’
- religion
- A set of beliefs that are culturally specific and relate to some kind of higher reality and meaning, and that aim to give some kind of deeper value to life and to produce social unity.
- Renaissance
- From the French for ‘rebirth’ or ‘revival’. The Renaissance was the humanistic revival of classical art, architecture, literature and learning that originated in Italy in the fourteenth century and later spread throughout Europe. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to early modern times.
- repetition
- The recurrence of an action or event. Repetition in art and design is created when objects, shapes, space, light, direction, lines and so on are repeated.
- representation
- The presenting in the form of an image of something that already exists in a particular way, usually by copying or making a likeness.
- representational art
- Figurative or mimetic image-making.
- research
- In the broadest sense of the word, the systematic investigation into and study of materials and sources in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions. This requires some kind of interpretation and opinion from the researcher, and this opinion is the underlying principle, or question, that establishes the nature and type of research.
- restrained
- Held back or kept in check; controlled. Classicism in the arts is often described as restrained.
- rhizome
- A term associated with the theory of Gilles Deleuze (French, 1925–95), where it is used as a means of describing the complex nature of cultural sign systems, as enabling the connection of any point to any other point through navigation and construction processes. It is modelled on the botanical description of root-like subterranean stems that usually produce downward-growing roots and send shoots up to the surface.
- rhythm
- A strong, regular repeated pattern of movement or sound. In a work of art or design, the regular repetition of particular forms or elements.
- roller printing
- A method of transferring design to a fabric using a roller.
- Romanticism
- An artistic and intellectual movement originating in Europe in the late eighteenth century and characterised by a heightened interest in nature and emphasis on the individual’s expression of emotion and imagination. It rebelled against the attitudes and forms of classicism, and established social rules and conventions. The movement focused on intense emotion as an authentic source of aesthetic experience, placing new emphasis on such emotions as anxiety, horror, terror and awe, which were associated with the sublime in nature. Important artists include Caspar David Friedrich (German, 1774–1840), Joseph Mallord William Turner (British, 1775–1851), John Constable (British, 1776–1837) and Eugène Delacroix (French, 1798–1863).
S
- scale
- A system of ordered marks at fixed intervals used as a reference standard in measurement. Also, a standard of measurement or judgement; a criterion.
- scanner
- A device for copying a digital image. Scanners are used with a computer. Once copied, images can be manipulated using graphics software.
- screen-printing
- A design reproduction process, developed from stencilling, in which print paste is forced through unblocked areas of a mesh. The mesh may be a woven fabric or a fine screen, and may be flat or cylindrical (rotary screen). Pressure is applied to the paste by a squeegee (blade roller), which is moved when the screen is stationary or is stationary when the rotary screen is rotating.
- secondary colours
- Orange, violet and green. Each colour is midway between the primary colours from which it is mixed.
- self-reflection
- Analytical thought processes involving thinking about one’s own position or beliefs so as to subject them to critique. Self-reflexive art is art that emphasises the absence of originality.
- semiotics
- The study of signs and symbols and their use or interpretation. Semiotics is studied by a semiotician (the term favoured in the US) or semiologist (Europe). Semiotics also shifts the focus of study away from the maker of a work and onto the work itself and how it functions within the broader culture of signs.
- sense
- A feeling, sensation or perception. A meaning conveyed; signification. It may also refer to sensations understood, estimated, intuited or even vaguely felt. ‘He sensed that the student was beginning to understand.’
- senses
- The faculties through which the body perceives, receives and feels stimuli from outside.
- sensitivity
- The quality or condition of being capable of perceiving with a sense or senses; of being responsive to external conditions or stimulation; or of being susceptible to the attitudes, feelings or circumstances of others. Also, the degree to which something may be affected by something else. ‘Her work displayed great sensitivity.’
- sensorial and sensory
- Of or pertaining to the senses.
- sensuality
- Devotion to the delights of the physical, especially sexual, senses; worldliness.
- sentiment
- Refined or tender emotion; manifestation of the higher or more refined feelings. Often associated with the Romantic movement.
- sentimental
- Resulting from or coloured by emotion; appealing to tender emotions and feelings. In a negative sense, weakly emotional. ‘His work was too sentimental.’
- sewing machine
- A manual or automated machine used for sewing.
- shade
- To combine black with a colour to make it darker. The opposite of shade is tint.
- shaman, shamanism
- A priest or medicine man often found in traditional societies who (it is believed) can influence good or evil spirits. Shamanism is an archaic magico-religious phenomenon in which the shaman is the great master of ecstasy. The cultures in which shamanism has been noted include those of various Stone Age peoples, and, today, American Indian, Australian Aboriginal, Inuit, Korean, Mexican, Siberian and other peoples. The activities of shamans are occasionally compared to those of visual artists in non-shamanic cultures, and several artist have claimed to be shamanic in their intentions, such as Joseph Beuys (German, 1921–86).
- shape
- The external form, contours or outline of someone or something. In art and design, shapes can be geometric or they can be based on organic and non-geometric forms. They may be two-dimensional or three-dimensional.
- silk-screen
- A printmaking process in which an image is imposed on a screen of silk or other fine mesh, with blank areas coated with an impermeable substance, and ink is forced through the mesh onto the printing surface. Also called ‘serigraphy’ and ‘screen-printing’.
- silver print
- A generic term covering all prints made on paper that are coated with silver salts. Black-and-white photographs are usually silver prints.
- simulacrum
- An image or representation of someone or something. The plural is ‘simulacra’. The term became popular within postmodern thought as a way of describing the power of the mass media and the ‘late capitalist’ economic system to cast a distracting and illusory veil over reality.
- site-specific
- See installation.
- Situationism or Situationist International (SI)
- Situationist International was a group of international revolutionaries founded in 1957 and at its peak of influence during the period of unrest in May 1968 in France. Its anti-capitalist principles, furthered through imaginative interventions, and its extreme hostility to conventional society have had a great influence on art. A key figure is Guy Debord (French, 1931–94).
- slant
- A line, plane, course or direction that is other than perpendicular or horizontal.
- social realism
- The realistic depiction in art of contemporary life, as a means of social or political comment. More specifically, a type of art as practised, for example, by Jean-François Millet (French, 1814–75). The greatest impact of this art movement occurred in the first half of the twentieth century, with the Mexican muralists José Clemente Orozco (1883–1949), Diego Rivera (1886–1957) and David Alfaro Siqueiros (1896–1974) and other artists with left-wing political beliefs.
- socialist realism or Socialist Realism
- The official style in the arts in the Soviet Union (USSR) and its dependent states from the early 1930s until the decline of communism in the 1980s. Also with a variant form in China and North Korea. The onset of socialist realism meant the end of the avant-garde in the Soviet Union. Artistic works were supposed to reflect and promote the ideals of a socialist society. The style was conservative, figurative and narrative, meant to be accessible to all viewers and meant to act as propaganda and never to deviate from the Party line.
- socially engaged art practice
- Art intended to participate in socially useful activities.
- specification sheet
- A document that details the key points about a product. Used at the design stage (in pre-production) and during the post-production stages.
- spectrum
- Colours that are created by a beam of white light being broken by a form of prism into its hues.
- spinning
- A process in which fibres are made into yarns.
- spiritual
- Describes a non-material and transcendent reality that is often related to religious practice and that is usually considered to be of more significance than material reality. Many artists, especially those pursuing abstraction, have been concerned with this dimension to existence.
- spontaneity, spontaneous
- Spontaneity is the quality of being spontaneous: behaviour proceeding from natural feeling or from a momentary impulse, without having been planned. Also refers to behaviour that develops from within, without apparent external influence, force, cause or treatment; not apparently contrived or manipulated. See also improvisation. ‘Her work lacked spontaneity.’
- spray-paint
- Paint in an aerosol container for spraying onto surfaces.
- steaming
- Application of steam to a textile product. A finishing process used prior to distribution.
- stencil
- A thin sheet of card, plastic or metal with a pattern or letters cut out of it, used to produce the cut design on the surface below by the application of ink or paint through the holes. ‘Stencil’ is also the verb form.
- stereotype
- A conventional, formulaic and oversimplified conception, opinion or image. For example, an unfair belief that all people or things with a particular characteristic are the same.
- storyboard
- A series of simple pictures that depict the important changes of scene and action in a planned film or video production. In the production of an animated film, for example, a series of sketches, comparable to a comic strip, that outline the narration of a scene – its visual and audio changes.
- structuralism
- An approach to the study of cultures that arose in the fields of linguistics and anthropology but that became generally influential in the humanities in the 1960s and 1970s. It is a method of analysing phenomena and is chiefly characterised by contrasting the elemental structures of the phenomena in a system of binary opposition, rather than in relation to historical, narrative or expressive contexts.
- subjective
- Judgements that depend upon ideas within a person’s mind (but not necessarily in reality) or that take a personal point of view are termed ‘subjective’. The opposite of objective.
- subjectivity
- The state of being subjective. The opposite of objectivity. ‘The work communicated a powerful feeling of the subjectivity of the artist.’
- sublime
- Originally meaning noble and majestic, and the experience of transcendence; also a concept, thing or state of exceptional and awe-inspiring beauty that is of high moral or intellectual expression. As such, sublimity was a goal to which many nineteenth-century artists aspired in their artworks. However, in postmodernist thought the word took on another of its meanings – derived from philosophy – and became closely associated with the analysis of the limits of representation and with what lies beyond the structures supplied by reason. Hence, ‘the sublime’ also addresses the unrepresentable in art.
- supernatural
- Not of this world. Fantastic, sometimes frightening. Possibly belonging to the world of the spirits or the dead.
- Surrealism or Surrealist art
- A twentieth-century avant-garde art movement that originated in the nihilistic ideas of the Dadaist and French literary figures. Influenced by the theories of Sigmund Freud (Austrian, 1856–1939), the images found in Surrealist artworks are intended to suggest dreams. They can have a realistic, though irrational, style, describing dreamlike fantasies, as in the works of René Magritte (Belgian, 1898–1967), Yves Tanguy (French, 1900–55) and Salvador Dalí (Spanish, 1904–89). These artists were partly inspired by Symbolism and partly by the metaphysical painting of Giorgio de Chirico (Italian, 1888–1978). Surrealism could also appear as a more abstract style, as in the works of Max Ernst (German, 1891–1976), Joan Miró (Spanish, 1893–1983) and André Masson (French, 1896–1987), who invented spontaneous techniques modelled upon the psychotherapeutic procedure of ‘free association’ – a spontaneous, logically unconstrained and undirected association of ideas, emotions and feeling – as a means to eliminate conscious control in order to express the workings of the unconscious mind.
- sustainability
- A means of organising civilisation and human activity so that society, its members and its economies are able to meet their needs and express their greatest potential in the present, while preserving the natural world and planning and acting for the ability to maintain these ideals in the very long term.
- sustainable art
- A alternative term for environmental art or green art. Art responding to the challenges that problems of environmental sustainability bring for contemporary art as a whole.
- sustainable textiles
- Textile products that are friendly to the environment.
- symbol
- A sign (written, printed or painted) that has acquired a conventional significance through continuous use. In semiotics, a symbolic sign is a sign that has meaning only through conventional agreement, such as a red light meaning ‘stop’.
- Symbolism
- An art movement that rejected the purely visual realism of the Impressionists and the rationality of the industrial age in order to depict a more imaginative and subjective reality. Influenced by Romanticism and the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, it thrived in France in the late nineteenth century, its influence spreading throughout much of Europe. Symbolist painters believed that art should reflect an emotion or idea rather than represent the natural world in the objective, quasi-scientific manner embodied by Realism and Impressionism. They felt that the symbolic value or meaning of a work of art stemmed from the recreation of emotional experiences in the viewer through colour, line and composition. In painting, Symbolism represents a synthesis of form and feeling, of reality and the artist’s inner subjectivity. The work of one group, including Pierre Puvis de Chavannes (French, 1824–98), Gustave Moreau (French, 1826–98) and Odilon Redon (French, 1840–1916), took a literary approach. Another group took a formal approach in which linear stylisations and innovative uses of colour produced emotional effects; its exponents included Paul Gauguin (French, 1848–1903), Vincent van Gogh (Dutch, 1853–90) and the Nabis (French, 1890s).
- symmetry
- When one side of something balances with the other side.
- synaesthesia or synesthesia, synaesthete or synesthete
- A subjective sensation in which one sense (e.g., sound) is experienced as another (e.g., colour).
- synergy
- The working together of two things to produce an effect greater than the sum of their individual effects. ‘The colours created a wonderful synergy.’
- synthesis
- A structure or pattern created from diverse elements. Putting parts together to form a whole, with emphasis on creating a new meaning or structure. ‘His work was a synthesis of many different styles.’
T
- T-square
- A long, flat ruler that is attached to a short piece to create the shape of a ‘T’. The short piece slides along the edge of a drawing board to position the ruler so parallel lines can be drawn.
- tactile
- Of or relating to the sense of touch. See also haptic.
- tactile properties
- How a thing or product feels.
- taste
- The capacity to tell what is aesthetically excellent or appropriate. Sometimes, the sense of what is proper, or least likely to give offence. A personal preference or liking. ‘His work wasn’t to my taste.’
- tautology
- Unnecessary or needless repetition of the same meaning in what are merely different words.
- taxonomy
- Division into ordered groups or categories. ‘She produced a taxonomy of the needs of various clients.’
- technology
- Science employed especially to achieve industrial, commercial or engineering, as well as artistic, results; or, a particular scientific method or material used to achieve those results. ‘Technology’ often refers to the essential qualities of a person’s or society’s tools, machines or other apparatus used to achieve a mechanical end. In discussing art, technology might refer to complex machines used in the creation, exhibition, conservation or study of art, such as potter’s wheels, presses, cameras, projectors, computers, lasers and video equipment.
- teleology
- The philosophical study of design or purpose in natural phenomena. The use of ultimate purpose or design as a means of explaining natural phenomena. Purposeful development, as in nature or history, towards a final end.
- tempera
- Any type of binder, such as oil, water or egg, that makes a pigment workable as a paint form.
- terra cotta
- A brownish-orange earthenware clay historically commonly used for ceramic sculpture.
- tertiary colours
- Colours obtained by mixing adjoining primary colours and secondary colours.
- text
- The main body of words in a book, magazine, pamphlet or other printed or electronic publication, or in any work of art. Also, the body of writing about a topic. In poststructuralist theory, all representations are treated as ‘texts’ – that is, as things to be read as social signs.
- textile
- A cloth usually made by weaving or knitting fibre or yarn; a fabric. Materials might include fibres of raffia, wool, cotton, linen, silk or synthetics.
- texture
- Creates the feeling of an object. Also, the way that something feels when you touch it.
- texture mapping
- A process of mapping fabrics onto various items using a computer-aided design (CAD)-based graphics program.
- theoretical
- Not implemented. Describes work dominated by ideas rather than considerations of aesthetics. Contrasts with applied arts. ‘His work was less to do with aesthetics and more concerned with being theoretical.’
- theory
- A set of abstract rules, ideas and principles intended to explain a particular subject, as opposed to actual practice. Or, an unproved assumption; a hypothesis or conjecture assumed for the sake of argument. In contemporary art, theory is an important explanatory tool, and is usually based on various poststructuralist ideas. In art, it is considered important to support a practice by relating it to a relevant and clearly expressed theory.
- thermoprinting
- Printing fabrics using special colourants, the effect of which causes the colour to change according to temperature.
- three-dimensional
- Having, or appearing to have, height, width and depth.
- time-based media
- Art and design works that have duration in time, using the media of film and video.
- tint
- To combine white with a colour to make it lighter. The opposite of shade.
- toile
- A sample garment made from cotton calico.
- tone and tonality
- The quality of a colour resulting from saturation, intensity, luminosity and temperature; also, to create such a quality in a colour. May refer to the general effect in painting of light, colour and shade, or the relative range of these qualities in colour schemes.
- totalising
- Describes an action or thought aimed at making parts into a total entity or whole.
- tradition
- A form of thought or behaviour continuously followed by a people from generation to generation; a custom or usage.
- transcend, transcendent or transcendental
- To go beyond the limits of something. To surpass, as in intensity or power. To go beyond the ordinary range of perception. ‘The paintings transcended questions of good and bad.’ It may also mean above and independent of material experience or the universe, as in the experience of a god.
- transfer paper
- Paper coated with a packed pigmented powder.
- transfer-printing
- The transfer of a printed design from paper to fabric, using heat, pressure or steam.
- transform, transformation
- To change something in shape or appearance. ‘Transformation’ is the act of doing this. Most definitions of art require that a substance or material be transformed in order for an artist to produce art.
- translucent
- Allowing some light to pass through but greatly obscuring the image of objects on the other side. A quality that is between transparent and opaque.
- transparency
- A picture on a transparent surface, such as glass or photographic film. The picture can be projected onto a flat, white surface. Examples are photographic slides. Also, the quality of being transparent.
- transparent
- Allowing light to pass through so that objects can be clearly seen on the other side; the opposite of opaque. Window glass, cellophane and watercolours are usually transparent.
- trustees
- In museums, a group of people who make decisions about acquiring new pieces for the collection, and also develop budgets, help raise funds and set policies for the museum’s operations.
- truth, truthful
- Conformity to fact or actuality; the real facts about something. Being in accord with fact or reality; expressing something with integrity, accuracy and honesty.
- turpentine or turps
- A liquid used for cleaning equipment and to thin oil media. It is produced by distilling into an oil the resin secreted by any of several types of coniferous tree.
- two-dimensional
- Having height and width but no depth; flat.
- type and typeface
- In typography, type is a letterform produced electronically or photographically, most often with a computer. Before computers took over this function in the late twentieth century, type was a small block of metal or wood bearing a raised letter or character on the upper end that leaves a printed impression when inked and pressed on paper. ‘Type’ can also refer to the full range of type of a single design. A ‘typeface’ is the design of a full set of letterforms, numerals, punctuation and other characters unified by consistent visual qualities.
- typography
- The design, arrangement, style and appearance of type matter.
U
- uncanny
- Peculiarly unsettling, as if of supernatural origin or nature; otherworldly. Especially connected to the psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud (Austrian, 1856–1939), where it plays a central role in explaining how unconscious memories from our childhood can ‘haunt’ our present.
- unconscious
- Not having awareness or sensory perception. Occurring in the absence of conscious awareness or thought. Without conscious control; involuntary or unintended. Often considered a source of creative potential. In psychoanalytic theory, the portion of the mind that holds such things as memories and repressed desires that are not subject to conscious perception or control but often affect conscious thoughts and behaviour. The unconscious is an important issue to artists influenced by Surrealism, and also to much postmodern art. ‘His art expresses his unconscious desires.’
- underpainting
- Preliminary painting used as a base for textures or for subsequent painting or glazing.
- unique
- One of a kind. ‘His designs were unique.’
- unity
- A whole or totality created by combining all of something’s parts into one. A feeling of completeness created by the use of compositional elements in an artwork.
- upper-case
- In typography, capital letters, which gained this alternative name from the standard location in which typesetters stored them. They are used, for example, when writing the first letters of proper nouns, such as names.
V
- value
- An amount, of goods, services or money, considered to be a fair and suitable equivalent for something else. An element of art that refers to luminance or luminosity – the lightness or darkness of a colour.
- vandal
- Originally, a member of a Germanic people that overran Gaul (modern-day France), Spain and northern Africa in the fourth and fifth centuries CE, destroying the Roman Empire. Now used to describe someone who deliberately defaces or destroys public or private property.
- vanishing point
- In linear perspective, a position on a horizon where lines or rays between near and distant places appear to come together or converge. In order to produce an illusion of depth in a two-dimensional representation of space, artists sometimes use one, two or more vanishing points.
- varnish
- A protective transparent finish applied in a liquid state to a surface.
- verisimilitude
- The quality of having the appearance of truth or reality.
- vernacular
- The standard native language of an area. May also refer to architecture, furniture or some other art or craft of a region, culture or period. Vernacular architecture and furniture are made in local rather than cosmopolitan traditions of design and construction, reflecting the needs of ordinary people’s lives.
- verso
- The second or back side of any work on paper. May also be the left-hand page of a book. The opposite of recto. The front and rear sides of other two-sided objects that have a painting on each side (such as coins, medals or panels) are more often referred to as obverse and reverse.
- video
- Images recorded on videotape or on optical disk to be viewed on television screens, or the medium through which these images are recorded and displayed.
- video art
- Works using videotape or on optical disk. They are viewed on television screens or projected on walls or other surfaces. Many contemporary artists may at some time use video. Examples of video artists are Nam June Paik (Korean-American, 1932–2006), Bill Viola (American, 1951–) and Christian Marclay (American, 1955–).
- virtual reality
- An interactive computerised simulation or synthesis of an experience in several bodily senses.
- visual culture
- Refers to what we have traditionally called art, but the term is more inclusive and less likely to rely upon value judgements. Visual culture includes imagery in all kinds of media – for example, in electronic games, sports, cosmetics (and other fashion-related settings), comic books and politics, and holidays and terrorism.
- visualisation, visualise
- A process of sighting or looking that is more purposeful, critical and direction-oriented than seeing; to see or form a mental picture of something. ‘I could visualise clearly in my mind what I planned to paint.’
- void
- Containing no matter, empty, negative space.
- volume
- The space within a form. Thus, in architecture, volume refers to the space within a building.
W
- warp
- The vertical threads in a woven fabric.
- warp knit
- Fabric knitted on a warp knitting machine.
- wash
- Highly fluid application of colour. A thin, translucent layer of pigment, usually watercolour or India ink.
- watercolour
- A translucent, water-based paint that comes in cake or tube form.
- wax crayon
- Coloured pigment mixed with wax to produce a stick.
- weaving
- The interlacing of long, thin materials, such as yarn or thread, to make cloth (fabric) or baskets.
- weft
- The horizontal threads in a woven fabric; also referred to as ‘picks’.
- weft knit
- Fabric knitted on a weft knitting machine.
- welding
- The process of joining metals by fusing them together under direct, intense heat. A commonly used source of heat for welding is an oxyacetylene torch.
- white spirits or mineral spirits
- A petroleum distillate used as a paint thinner (as a substitute for turpentine). It is less expensive than turpentine and less sticky, and has a less enduring odour.
- wood engraving
- A print similar to a woodcut (woodblock print) in that it is made by cutting (engraving) a design into a block of wood, usually boxwood. However, unlike in a woodcut, the artist cuts the design on the end-grain of hardwood rather than the side-grain of soft wood. The print’s design can therefore be more intricate than a typical woodcut.
- world-view
- The overarching or dominant point of view one has, from which one interprets the world. A collection of beliefs about life and the universe held by an individual or a group. The mindset or outlook of a particular group, whether (for example) aesthetic, ethnic, political or social. World-views are usually limited to readily identifiable historical, geographical, ethnic and other groupings.
- woven fabric
- Fabric constructed by weaving weft yarns in and out of warp yarns placed on a loom.
Y
- yarn
- A length of fibres and/or filaments with or without twist.
- yarn count
- The term for the size or weight of yarn. Yarn is measured in terms of ‘denier’ and ‘tex’.
Z
- Zeitgeist
- From the German for the spirit or dominant attitude of the times, describing the taste, outlook or general trend of thought that is characteristic of the cultural productions of a period or generation. For example, the Zeitgeist of the Neo-classical period is considered to be rationalism, whereas that of the Romantic period is sentiment.
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