Art is a fundamental form of human expression derived from the Latin 'ars,' encompassing a variety of disciplines such as literature, performing arts, and visual arts. It serves multiple functions beyond beauty, including reflecting culture, documenting history, and evoking feelings. Art spans from prehistoric cave paintings to contemporary works, actively shaping and mirroring societal experiences.

1. THE ARTS
Human100: Introduction to Humanities

2. WHAT IS ART?
ART comes from the Latin language “ars”
which means skill or craft. It constitutes one of the oldest
and most important means of expression developed by
human beings and has been a part of every society
across the globe.

3. WHAT IS ART?
The arts represent an outlet of human expression,
usually influenced by culture, and driven by human
creative impulse. Major constituents of the arts include
literature – including poetry, novels and short stories, and
epics; performing arts – among them music, dance,
opera, theatre and film; and visual arts – including
drawing, painting, and sculpting. Some art forms
combine a visual element with performance (e.g. film)
and the written word (e.g. comics).

4. WHAT IS ART?
From prehistoric cave paintings to modern day
films, art serves as a vessel for storytelling and conveying
mankind's relationship with its environment.
Pre-historic Paintings in the Cova dels
Cavalls cave in Valltorta, Spain

5. “Art is an imprint of people’s past,
present and future civilizations.”

6. CHARACTERISTICS OF
ART
Many of us assume that a work of art should be
beautiful, and even art’s entire purpose is to be beautiful.
However art serves a variety of functions encompassing
more than physical beauty.

7. CHARACTERISTICS OF
ART
 Art is about experience
 Art is uniquely individual
 Art reflects a society’s culture
 Art is produced by all people and speaks to us at our
most human levels of feeling and responding
 Art is not nature and is not intended to be nature
 Art is always about something
Art is dynamic

16. THE ARTISTS’ TASK
Create places for some human purpose

17. THE ARTISTS’ TASK
Create extraordinary versions of ordinary objects

18. THE ARTISTS’ TASK
Record and commemorate
George Washington, Thomas Jefferson,
Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln

19. THE ARTISTS’ TASK
Give tangible form to the unknown

21. THE ARTISTS’ TASK
Give tangible form to feelings and ideas

22. “
”
Artist refresh one’s vision and help see
the world in new ways.

23. CLASSIFICATION OF ART
• Visual Arts
• Drawing
• Painting
• Photography
• Architecture
• Sculpture
• Literary Arts
• Short Story
• Novels
• Poems
• Comics (both Visual and
Literary)
• Preforming Arts
• Music
• Theatre
• Dance

24. VISUAL ARTS
The visual arts are art forms that create works that
are primarily visual in nature, such as ceramics, drawing,
painting, sculpture, printmaking, design, crafts,
photography, video, filmmaking and architecture.
Also included within the visual arts are the applied
arts such as industrial design, graphic design, fashion
design, interior design and decorative art.

25. LITERARY ARTS
Literature, in its broadest sense, is any written work;
etymologically the term derives from Latin literature /
litteratura "writing formed with letters", although some
definitions include spoken or sung texts.
Literature can be classified according to whether
it is fiction or non-fiction, and whether it is poetry or prose;
it can be further distinguished according to major forms
such as the novel, short story or drama; and works are
often categorized according to historical periods, or
according to their adherence to certain aesthetic
features or expectations (genre).

26. PERFORMING ARTS
Performing arts are art forms in which artists use
their body, voice, or objects to convey artistic
expression—as opposed to visual arts, in which artists use
paint/canvas or various materials to create physical art
objects. Performing arts include a variety of disciplines
but all are intended to be performed in front of a live
audience.

27. ACTIVITY
In a ¼ sheet, answer the following questions:
1. Define arts base on your own understanding.
2. Explain one significant characteristic of arts that
strike you most.