What is art: yesterday, today, tomorrow

Of course, what art is, certainly, will argue at all times. Different researchers have their own opinion on this score, which is formed not only from objective knowledge, but also from a subjective assessment. All, however, agree that, unlike science, which helps to understand the world in an experimental way and with the help of experience, art is a sensible way of knowing and mapping the world in visual forms.

The history of art is almost as old as the old world itself. Even in the time of primitive society, people separated the material culture from the spiritual, while also noting that they are closely related. For example, a successful hunt, the materiality of which was expressed in a large amount of food, was recorded on the walls of caves in the form of drawings depicting animals and people. Many will say what art is - and not art at all. However, it should be borne in mind that everything that is complex grows out of simple things.

Already in the III-IV centuries BC closely interwoven between themselves, philosophy and art. People not only created the beautiful, but also tried to understand why they so need to reflect the world around them through creativity. Even before Plato and Aristotle - the greatest philosophers - appeared the philosophy of art, dealing with the problems of aesthetics. Even then, people noticed that even phenomena and objects that are unpleasant to a person in real life, causing a feeling of fear and even disgust, can easily be realized in the form of creativity. The then scientists and philosophers said that art is a process of reflecting the surrounding world, albeit almost always in a distorted form: whether it be realism or, for example, surrealism (everyone remembers the amazing canvases of Salvador Dali?).

Art has passed many stages of development: from prehistoric to modern. As society evolves, the answer to the question of what art is, has been constantly changing. If art was initially reflected in the creation of paintings and sculptures that show the beauty of the human body - the power of the male, and the flexibility and grace of the female - for example, in the Middle Ages, art was completely centered around the soul, religion and God.

Later, in the course of numerous studies, scientists and philosophers said that art is intended to direct a person to the path of harmony and unity with the world. It is able not only to give aesthetic pleasure, but also to cure spiritual and even physical diseases, to teach what is good and what is evil.

Understanding of art itself is even more difficult than understanding its definition. It is multifaceted, and therefore often the thought that the artist or sculptor wanted to convey remains unrecognized and unsolved for the audience - and this is the norm. After all, art can hardly be called art, if its subject has only one true interpretation.

Unfortunately, closer to our time, art has acquired a commercial orientation, because of which its value is often underestimated: numerous installations and paintings that do not bear any meaning are usually called "modern art", and the world pearls of man's creative activity begin to be forgotten. However, a reasonable person, brought up on the ideals of spirituality and culture, certainly can always understand what art is and what are transient phenomena.