The arts

The arts typically refer to the fine arts: literature, visual arts, decorative arts, performing arts, music composition, and architecture. These are forms of expression used in innovative ways to create objects, experiences, and environments that are aesthetic.

Literature includes drama, poetry, and works such as fiction. The visual arts encompass drawing, painting, sculpture, and other art forms. Decorative arts include enamelwork, furniture design, and mosaics. Dance, music, and theater are performing arts. Architecture includes both structural and interior design.

The fine arts have an ancient history. Early humans created cave paintings and other works of art. Long before written languages were developed, people experienced and passed on the tradition of oral storytelling. Music and dance developed in all human cultures. Theater has evolved over thousands of years in many forms. While art often has personal meaning, throughout history much of it has been created with a religious purpose. Art may also serve to prompt responses or actions, such as propaganda or social commentary works; evoke an emotional response; record or commemorate events; tell stories; please the eye; or reveal truths.

Background

Some of the earliest evidence of civilization includes cave drawings and sculptures. The oldest-known figurative art in the world is at least 35,400 years old. The line drawing of a babirus—a pig-deer—was found in a cave on the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia. Archaeologists say such figures indicate the development of higher order consciousness in early humans. This intellect allowed humans to adapt and survive, experience emotions, and imagine and create through symbolic thinking. This breakthrough in human evolution brought about the birth of the arts. In Europe, animal figurines and cave paintings believed to be about 30,000 years old have been found in France and Germany.

Works created before recorded history (the invention of writing) are described as prehistoric art. In addition to cave paintings and carvings, archaeologists working around the world have found other physical evidence that shed light on the arts in prehistory. Human and animal sculptures were created by many cultures on all inhabited continents. Bone flutes from the Paleolithic period (c. 35,000–10,000 B.C.E.) found in Europe indicate the significance of music to the people of the region. Other cultures also created bone instruments, and archaeologists have found clay and shell instruments dating to the Neolithic period, which began about 10,000 B.C.E. Many musical instruments were probably made of leather and wood, however, and because such organic materials did not survive, little is known about many cultures' early musical history. The importance of dance is similarly difficult to trace because no evidence of early dance remains.

Literature predates writing. Stories were passed down through oral tradition and were shared among cultures. Like figure drawings, stories arose when early humans developed imagination. Eventually, some stories were recorded. The oldest known written literary works are the "Kesh Temple Hymn" and the "Instructions of Shuruppak," which were found on clay tablets in Mesopotamia dating to about 2500 B.C.E. The oldest known work of fiction, The Epic of Gilgamesh, is a mythic poem based on a series of poems and stories that date to about 2100 B.C.E.

Early literature often developed as a way to explain the mysterious, such as natural events including lightning and thunder. Mythology—the stories of supernatural beings and events—arose in many cultures. Among the most well known and influential are the myths about the Greek gods. The epic poems of Homer, The Illiad and The Odyssey, date to about the ninth century B.C.E. and were shared as part of the Greek oral history. These epic tales relate exploits of heroes and their encounters with gods and monsters. Myths feature prominently in ancient Greek theater, including many famous tragedies from the fifth century B.C.E. The well-known adventures of Jason and the Argonauts searching for the Golden Fleece were recorded in the third century B.C.E. In many cases, however, evidence of the Greeks' myths exists largely on pottery.

These myths continue to have a strong influence on Western art and literature. Scholars in the field of comparative mythology have noted many cultures around the world developed similar tales, such as creation myths. The flood tale of Noah in the Old Testament closely resembles a flood story in The Epic of Gilgamesh. The Aztecs, Egyptians, and many other cultures also have tales of floods wiping out most of humankind.

Modern architecture owes a debt to the Greeks as well. The five orders of classical architecture are Greek in origin: Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, Tuscan, and Composite. Many structures of ancient Greece are regarded as examples of classic perfection. These include the Parthenon in Athens, the Temple of Zeus at Olympia, the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, and the Temple of Poseidon at Sounion, all of which were built in the fifth century B.C.E. Sculptures created by the Greeks were often housed in their temples and shed light on their mythology.

Ancient Greece was also known for its amphitheatres, where dramas were performed during religious festivals. These performances included acting, dance, and music. The Muses of Greek mythology—minor female deities—represent the arts (as well as liberal arts and sciences) themselves. Although various authors disagree as to their names, numbers, and relationships, many scholars identify nine Muses: Calliope, epic poetry; Clio, history; Erato, lyric and love poetry; Euterpe, music or flutes; Melpomene, tragedy; Polymnia, sacred poetry or mimic art; Terpsichore, dancing and choral song; Thalia, comedy; and Urania, astronomy.

The Greeks were defeated by the Romans in 146 B.C.E. The Romans incorporated a great deal of Greek culture, and it spread across Europe.

Middle Ages

While art arose and changed around the world largely independently throughout early history, a number of factors influenced the development and direction of the arts in recorded history. The Roman Empire exerted a strong influence over Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East for more than five centuries. Appropriated Greek culture became the basis of European culture. Christianity came to the forefront of Roman society beginning in the fourth century C.E. With the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 C.E., the period regarded as ancient history ended and much of the world entered the Middle Ages.

Christianity grew in strength and influence across Europe and had a profound effect on the arts. Significant Medieval literature includes The Canterbury Tales and The Divine Comedy, both of which are studied centuries later. Wealthy patrons of the church commissioned churches, manuscripts, paintings, sculptures, and other items, including religious jewelry, from artists. They also commissioned secular art objects for their homes. This demand supported and developed artistic communities.

Religious dramas arose during the Middle Ages. Morality plays, miracle plays and mystery plays were devised to teach or reinforce lessons. Morality plays generally focused on a hero who struggles against sin and ultimately triumphs through faith in God. The most famous morality play, Everyman, from the fifteenth century, details Everyman as he makes a case for the life he led on Earth. Miracle plays focused on the lives and deaths of saints, and were often associated with church feast days or festivals. Mystery plays dramatized biblical tales, such as the story of Creation.

The eastern reaches of the former Roman Empire largely remained unified as the Byzantine Empire. There Christianity also flourished. Churches were built and decorated with frescoes and mosaics. The majority of art of this period is religious in nature, and uniform, following established traditions with no deviation. Byzantine architects designed churches with domes and vaults in a style that established the significance of each aspect of worship: God in the highest dome, angels arranged below him, and the Virgin Mary in a half-dome. The congregation occupied the lowest tier. Individuals in Byzantine art are representative of a human figure, with standard facial features such as large eyes and stylized patterns. Faces are depicted straight on rather than in profile. Colors gave the works vividness. Sculpture was rare in Byzantine art, with the exception of relief carvings. Highly skilled craftspeople produced embroidery, enamelwork, and goldwork for the upper classes.

Renaissance and Beyond

The Middle Ages gave way to a new era of artistic and intellectual growth. The Renaissance began in Italy late in the fourteenth century and lasted into the sixteenth century. It was a time when scholars and artists rediscovered classical Roman culture, and science flourished.

Renaissance art is characterized by realism. Significant artists include Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian, and Donatello. While religious art remained important, and a great deal was commissioned by wealthy patrons of the church, some of the world's most famous secular art was created during the Renaissance. This includes Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, the world's most famous painting. Michelangelo, who completed his masterpiece sculpture David about 1504 C.E., also painted the renowned ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

Much of the music composed and performed during the Renaissance was for religious services. Wealthy patrons also supported composers and musicians, who created and performed works for secular society. Multivoiced (polyphony) music developed ever-greater complexity. Some composers set French poetry to music. A greater range of musical instruments also developed. More people learned to play the viola, lute, harpsichord, organ, and other instruments, exposing more people to music.

The invention of the printing press around 1440 increased the reach of ideas, including music, which was first mass published by a printer in 1501. (Before the printing press, all musical scores had to be copied by hand.) As more printed material was distributed, more people were exposed to art and literature. Musicians had greater access to sheet music. Important Renaissance writers include Petrarch and Giovanni Boccaccio.

Dance developed hand in hand with music. Courtly dances—those performed by the titled class at their celebrations—became increasingly extravagant. Party attendees wore elaborate costumes, and the steps became more complicated. The more skilled dancers began to teach others the steps of dances. One of the earliest choreographers, Domenico da Piacenza, wrote the steps in manuals and included diagrams. He called the choreography ballo. Renaissance choreographers eventually became known as ballet masters. Ballet was created in 1581 after Catherine de' Medici brought her ballet master to Paris following her marriage to King Henry II. Ballet remained an amateur activity for nearly a century.

The revived interest in classical antiquity manifested itself in architecture. Columns, arches, domes, and tunnel vaults, as well as an emphasis on proportion, are evident in buildings of the Renaissance.

Since the Renaissance, the arts have seen a number of movements and periods. Romanticism, for example, arose during the early nineteenth century, and is characterized by art that emphasizes emotion and imagination. Many of the works feature man-vs.-nature scenes, such as ships being tossed in storms. Even images of nature, such as landscapes, are infused with emotion. Patrons were still important to artists and influenced the works produced.

The Industrial Revolution ushered in modernism. Artists began portraying scenes that were important to them and incorporated symbolism because of interest in psychology and the subconscious. Avant-garde artists deliberately used unconventional materials and colors in a revolt against realism. Photography, which was invented during the 1830s, brought new opportunities for artistic expression. Modern art movements include post-Impressionism, Fauvism, Cubism, Futurism, Vortism, Constructivism, Suprematism, De Stijl, Dadaism, and Surrealism.

Music evolved quickly beginning in the late nineteenth century and through the twentieth century. Two world wars found troops from many countries experiencing new cultures. Ragtime, blues, and jazz developed from the African American traditions of chants, slave spirituals, and work calls. Soul music was born. Swing music lifted spirits during the wars, and in the 1950s, rock and roll exploded in popular culture. Later in the twentieth century, hip-hop and rap music emerged. Dance evolved with the music. While ballet remained popular, the following for modern dance has grown. Art forms such as film have a strong influence in spreading awareness of dance, music, and theater. On stage, the emotional works of the nineteenth century gave way to realism in the twentieth century. New technology made it possible for playwrights to realize their visions.

The increased pace of change affected architecture as well. New styles, such as Art Deco, emerged. Science enabled architects to create taller and more complicated structures using available materials. While skyscrapers reached for the clouds, revivalist structures cropped up as well: Gothic, Medieval, Romanesque, and Egyptian buildings were constructed.

Artists have continually built upon the achievements of the past. Even as new styles emerge, artists borrow from the classical works and reinterpret them. The arts also borrow from and influence one another, as societies change.

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