The Changing Definition of Art

The Changing Definition of Art

Trying to explain the purpose of prehistoric art is impossible because no one really knows, and playing with a reader’s mind is a big mistake. Moreover, there are various arguments that what we consider to be prehistoric art, including images and objects, could have been used for other purposes, like rituals (Lesure, 2011). For example, some claim that the images we see from prehistoric times could have been drawn by children who were just playing around and came across a way to draw what they saw. Another argument is that these images and objects let future generations know of those who came before them. Nevertheless, these arts from thousands of years ago are used to provide a much clearer understanding of the need for self-expression. The art demonstrates the nature of humans and the natural world around them. Moreover, a few centuries ago, art was mainly used for beauty, religion, and status symbols in society (Kleiner, 2020). Do you need help with your assignment ? Contact us.

Contrastingly, today, art is mostly about transforming people’s lives by artists choosing to focus on works that address matters regarding social issues (Mesch, 2014). This could be because we have more elaborate ways of creating art, including films, music, and books. One major reason that is constant is how humans interact as well as relationships. For example, prehistoric periods were mostly about survival in the wild; later on, more advancements took place in ancient communities, money was introduced, and people from different continents met. These changes highlighted all the differences between people, like money and race, all of which played a part in the arts.

My definition of art is an expression that uses creativity to produce something that has an emotional impact on people, such as sadness, happiness, awe, comfort, inspiration, anger, and shock, among others. According to Shao, Zhang, Zhou, Gu & Yuan (2019), culture plays a significant role in a person’s creativity. Over time, human interactions have continued to change rapidly, which then changes our culture and our art.

References

Kleiner, F. S. (2020). Gardner’s Art through the Ages: The Western perspective, Volume I. Cengage Learning.

Lesure, R. G. (2011). Interpreting Ancient Figurines: Context, comparison, and prehistoric art. Cambridge University Press.

Mesch, C. (2014). Art and politics: A small history of art for social change since 1945. Bloomsbury Publishing.

Shao, Y., Zhang, C., Zhou, J., Gu, T., & Yuan, Y. (2019). How does culture shape creativity? A mini-review. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1219.

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Unit 1 DB: The Changing Definitions of ArtUnit 1 DB: The Changing Definitions of Art
Discussion Board Statement: These discussions are meant for you to jot down your thoughts and analyses of the works of the week. In art, everything is evaluated by your perspective. There is no right or wrong answer to be graded against; instead, you will be graded on how you defend your analysis of the art pieces and the use of the resources (when appropriate).

The Changing Definition of Art

After you have completed this week’s reading, consider the changes in art that occurred alongside the changes in socio-political development from prehistoric Europe to ancient Mesopotamia and Persia.
How does art evolve in its design and purpose to keep pace with social change?
How does your definition of art allow for this kind of change?
In response to your peers, identify at least one element of their definition of art that differs from your own. Did reading a different perspective make you reconsider your definition?