Art and Design. Is There a Definitive Definition?

[Keiravarutri]

Decided to start up a discussion to see what the opinions of this guild are, just for fun and something to talk about.

I'm sure a lot of you have heard the question, "What is Art?" or "What is Design?" or if you haven't, you will probably hear those two questions at some point in your life if you do pursue a career in Graphic Design or something similar.

So here my question to you is, What is your definition of Art? and What is your definition of Design? There really are no right or wrong answers, I'm just curious to see what others may think about this. smile

As for me,...

I believe Art is anything that comes out of the imagination of an individual, to produce a piece of work through that person's feeling or emotion. Art can reach a wide variety of people, and it usually aims to leave the piece of work up for critique by many audiences.

I believe Design can be a form of Art, but they are not always directly related. Design has a more definite purpose, whether it be through the use of advertisements, websites, or mass media, etc. Design has a more monetary purpose for self satisfaction.  

[Larzar]

Well design is pretty much the visual extensiveness applied to any topic/subject/item. As pretty much everything has some sort of visual thought according to it whether it is a simple as deciding weather to make a box blue or red.

I think that made sense. xd

 

[Blaq Cat]

Well, the way I look at it "Art" is an expression of any idea, emotion, or fantasy through a chosen medium ( be that medium paper, video, or by instrument, or even the human body). Design, on the other hand, seems to be applying knowledge with the intention of making, or improving on something that will have a set purpose. That....kind of sounded like the begining of a rant...x_X  

[amosa]

I agree, design is a part of "art", but the concept doesn't really have a large enough category of its own to stand next to "art'.

This is sort of like the never ending debate between illustration and fine art drawing and painting.

In some ways it seems as though "design" sells out a little bit compared to "art". Design in the marketing sense has very minimal personalization- a single artist's touch can be invisible in the final version because a "piece" goes through so many eyes and crits that the work is based more on the ideas of others than the artist(s) who actually render(s) it.

"Art" is usually made individually or conceptualized among a small few, and usually, individual personality and style are much more prominent.

fine art and marketing design do share a similar purpose in that they attempt to get the viewer to see things from their point of view. What's the point of showing people your own personal expression? Maybe show them what you see and view their reaction. The point of marketing is to relate to the viewer, get them to see from your point of view, and then transform them.

my, what a devilish field of work.

 

[DarkSakura]

I think art is anything of a creative nature that can evoke an emotional response through a particular medium, be it fine art, comics, music, dance, sculpture, architecture, ect.

I think design can be art, but it can also be printed word, a logo, the walls in a house. Design, to me, is the act of conveying an idea in purposeful ways through various forms of construction.

Here's a couple of examples: the contents of a novel can be considered art, but the typographical choices, cover designs, layout, and illustration choices are design. A painting can be art, but its frame and placement are design. The music of a symphony can be art, but the layout, the dress, the venue, and composition choices are all design.

Make sense?