Art Glossary

A curator is a professional responsible for managing and overseeing a collection of art pieces or artifacts. Employed by a gallery or museum, curators use their expertise to acquire, develop, (...) read more

Cynical Realism is a term first used in 1992 by art critic Li Xianting to describe a group of Beijing artists who created satirical social realist paintings. The group aimed to depict the (...) read more

Also known as Dadaism, Dada was a literary and artistic movement that began in 1916 in Zurich, Switzerland. It emerged as a rejection of rationalism and nationalism, which were seen as contributing (...) read more

Tansaekhwa, also known as monochrome painting, is a movement in Korean art that began in the mid-1970s. These artworks are characterized by the manipulation of painting materials, such as pushing (...) read more

Dau Al Set was an artistic movement that sought to express both the conscious and unconscious mind through art. Initially an offshoot of Surrealism, it evolved into a distinct movement over time. (...) read more

De Stijl, meaning The Style, was a group of Dutch artists who created abstract art based on strict adherence to vertical and horizontal geometry. The group was founded by Piet Mondrian and Theo van (...) read more

Digital art refers to art which is created using digital technology. It can be generated by computer, drawn or scanned with a tablet using a mouse. Video may be downloaded to computers so artists can (...) read more

Digital art refers to artistic practices or works that utilize digital technology as an essential component of both the creation and presentation process. Since the 1970s, various terms like (...) read more

A diptych is an artwork composed of two panels. These panels can be painted, carved, or made using various mixed media techniques. They may be connected by hinges, allowing them to close for (...) read more

Drawing and watercolor are two traditional art techniques which stand alone as media, but are often used in conjunction with each other. Drawing can create the basic outlines for watercolor painting. (...) read more

The Düsseldorf School of Photography refers to a group of photographers who studied under Bernd and Hilla Becher at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf during the 1970s. This group was known for its (...) read more

Earth art, also known as Land Art, emerged in the 1960s and 70s as part of the conceptual art movement. It involves creating artworks by sculpting the land or constructing structures in the landscape (...) read more

In 1981, Patti Astor opened the first art gallery in New York City's East Village, helping to launch the careers of various artists and musicians. The gallery started small but quickly gained (...) read more

EAT (Experiments in Art and Technology) was a movement formed to foster collaborations between engineers and artists. It facilitated direct, person-to-person connections between these two groups. The (...) read more

In art, an edition refers to the total number of identical or closely similar items produced as a set. This often applies to prints, such as lithographs, where multiple copies are made from a single (...) read more

Emulation is the process of recreating digital art to ensure it remains accessible and functional, even when the original technology used to create it becomes obsolete. This is done by using newer (...) read more

Entropy, in a broader sense, refers to the inevitable deterioration or decline of a society or system. In art, the concept was popularized by artist Robert Smithson in the 1960s. He used the term to (...) read more

Environmental art is a collective term that refers to a wide range of artistic practices and works that engage with historical and ecological themes. The term often encompasses ecological concerns, (...) read more

Ephemeral art is a type of art that occurs only once and typically lasts for a very short period. It cannot be displayed as a traditional work of art in a gallery or museum. Examples of ephemeral art (...) read more

Épreuve d'Artist refers to the artist's proofs in a limited edition of prints. These are a small number of prints reserved by the artist for personal use and are typically marked with the (...) read more

Feminist art refers to the art that emerged from the feminist art movement during the 1960s and 1970s. It developed with the intention of critiquing 20th-century gender ideals and challenging the (...) read more

Figuration Libre is an art movement that is equivalent to the French Bad Painting and Neo-Expressionism in Europe and America. The term was coined by Ben Vautier and the Fluxus movement. In 1981, (...) read more

Sometimes known as Figurativism, figurative art refers to sculptures and paintings that are clearly or specifically derived from real objects, making them representational. The term figurative art is (...) read more

Derived from the Latin word meaning flow, Fluxus is an international movement of designers, composers, and artists known for blending various artistic disciplines and media during the 1960s. The (...) read more