What Does "fine Art" Mean To You

Anything that people enjoy, appreciate, and acquire.

"Fine art is art developed primarily for aesthetics, distinguishing it from applied art that also has to serve some practical function" this is a quote from wiki of which I agree. To me fine art implies nothing more than that.... So the most horrible painting is fine art and the most beautiful hat rack is not.

Fine art is what each person defines to be beautiful to them. My style and taste is not the same as the next person. Whom am I to say something passes as fine art. I know my definition what I expect. I try to be open and view art before deciding which category I would sort it into.

this topic comes up about every 2 months. fine art is a deliberate act to create something that looks better than real life.


---Mike Savad

Art created for the purpose of being displayed.

developed, created, deliberate, intended - all good words that distinguish fine art from "happenstance".

As a photographer, I debate that fine art has to be created and is distinguished from happenstance. Most photographers see art, capture art, and display art, but have little or nothing to do with the creation of that art. There are a few instances where photographers create the art, but the norm is recognizing, capturing, and editing it to make it all it can be!

You are describing something more involved than happenstance. The vary act of post processing is bringing the image in line with your artistic vision. As a fine art photographer I am involved in every decision from the selection of the subject, angle of the view, lighting decisions, camera lens choice, camera settings, post processing decisions etc. There are probably thousands of elements that come into play.

If the camera is the artist then it should be listed that way. Perhaps something like "Artwork created by FujiFilm X100" or something.

Edward...LOL! As a retired construction worker, the camera is just a tool. Much like the hammer didn't build the house, but as a contractor I made the beauty and art a reality from someone else's designs. Just like when a photographer captures a sunset or flower, the camera is a tool, Mother Nature created the art :) However, reflecting art in post-processing is a little different by allowing the artist to "help" the existing art. A lot of the artists I converse with and myself, wonder if the artist should be changing an image to the point of removing what was originally captured, but most agree that minor enhancing is alright.

Mother nature doesn't create art. The artist finds the art among the randomness of nature. The artist processes the scene (in the case of landscape) and filters it through their artistic vision.

Artistic vision goes beyond the skills of using tools. It incorporates all the makes up that individual. All of their past experiences, all that they have seen and done.

Ansel Adams said it best:

“You don't make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.”
― Ansel Adams

Who says "minor enhancing'" is ok but major enhancing is not? I guess I missed the fine art rule book. ;-)

The point is that the artist brings their vision to the image. That's what makes it art. Otherwise its just a security camera snapping away.

Both points seem valid by interpretation of each person. I do however hope we don't go down the Ansel Adams road of quotes or what other famous artists said in the past. This is about what "YOU" think fine art is.

"Mother nature doesn't create art."

I hate to be difficult this morning, but.... really?

It might be more accurate to say Mother Nature doesn't create photos. The art is right there in front of us 24/7. Sometimes it's big and obvious, sometimes subtle, but it's always there.


Dan Turner
Dan Turner's Seven Keys to Selling Art Online

@Edward, this is easy for me because I accept your viewpoint, but you might not be so accepting. After looking at your art which is very good, I think you give yourself way too much credit because the star of most of your work is Mother Nature :)

Fine art makes you go "Hmmmm..."
Fine Art is art for art's sake.
Fine Art means the artist originally created the piece to be enjoyed and complete on it's own. S/He didn't created it to sell insurance or muffins, although it may be well-suited for that purpose. Then it also becomes commercial art.


Dan Turner
Dan Turner's Seven Keys to Selling Art Online

I agree 100% with this definition and this is my opinion as well.

fine art = a work that requires skill and care

When I was growing up, photography was not considered art, nor did I think it should be.

When I was in the army I visited the art museums in New York and Paris as often as I could.

I would have loved to have been an artist, and even went to art school, only to learn that I had no drawing skills. My brain saw one thing, but my hand was a savant.

Now, many years later, thanks to technology, I am an artist.

I owe it all to technology.

Fine art is any work that is socially valued based on the name of the artist irrespective of it's intrinsic value.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fine_art

When I was growing up - there were photographers whose work was considered 'fine art' - the prime example being Ansel Adams. but then, I had an uncle who was a photographer - some of his work would be considered fine art.

Yes, Sooner Photo, the star behind most photographers work, and not just Edward's, is Mother Nature. We have been down this path before. And I speak this point again--the camera does too much of the work. Without the camera's ability to uplift an image already staged in the natural world, awaiting the photographer's technical virtuosity to then "readjust" a ready-made composition through digital software, the camera wielder is stumped. The "picture taker" runs through too many would-be creative photographers.

Kenneth, lets stay on track. The thread is about what you think fine art is, not to bash others or their type of art or style.

Paint slapped on a canvas can be fine art if the result agrees with the artist's intention. I don't consider art made by an elephant at the zoo to be fine art.

I wasn't talking about others. Just "I". If a gorilla at the zoo picks up a camera and starts snapping away, I wouldn't consider that art either. Even if he/she managed to capture Mother Nature reclining on a chaise in the nude.

Same reason no intent just random happenstance.

Did we define "art" vs "fine art" or are they the same? Good vs bad is not the point.

There is also commercial art and commercial art shown in a fine art context. Or fine art used in a commercial context. So there is plenty of room for overlap. (I still don't think an animal is producing art - well maybe to other gorillas who can understand where Koko is coming from and they get it.)

Then there is street art shown either on the street or in a gallery.

Fine art (photography) is such if you can convince someone else that is a piece of art they need to hang on their wall and should pay a premium for.

It's like the difference between a Holiday Inn and a Holiday Inn Select or a Crown Plaza. Both offer a bed and a shower. In some cases there is no real difference between the hotel brands or the photographs except in the mind of the consumer/collector/traveler.

It is sometimes amusing to listen to people explain why their photography is "fine art" and so much better than others work or how to take "fine art" photographs.

Fine a nice scene, frame it up, get a decent exposure and make sure it is sharp or fuzzy if that is the desired look.

Get those right and you can have a photo or a "fine art" photo depending on how it is marketed or perceived.

I would say the artwork of the craggy cliff is a form of communication between humans, where as the cliff itself is simply the result of erosion. Most of the humans would pass by unaware of its importance (as beauty or foreboding or what ever the artists vision of it was) until it was pointed out by the artist.

Creating something you really enjoy & hope that others will enjoy it as well!

Art with an aesthetic value of beauty. Art that promotes beauty.

Ditto Donna.

Fine Art?
Its Art.
Created,Displayed,Seen,Enjoyed,Critique, and possibly bought...Fine Art.

I wrote a blog on this last year:
http://mary-ellen-anderson-fine-art.blogspot.com/2013/11/how-is-fine-art-different-than-other-art.html
--mary ellen anderson