Art & Design
What is art, craft and design?
GCSE Art and Design is about visual ideas - and how these are used in art, or craft or designed objects. You'll need to show what you know about some of these ideas.
Art, craft and design - exploring ideas, and some definitions
As you explore ideas about art, craft and design, you'll be looking at:
- Line, shape, pattern, texture, colour, tone, form and space
- Materials used
- Art, craft and design in different times and places
First you'll need to know the differences between art, craft and design - here are the main pointers:
- Art - painting, drawing, sculpture, printmaking
- Art, in its broadest meaning, is the expression of creativity or imagination, or both.
- Craft - ceramics, weaving, jewellery-making
- Craft involves making useful things skilfully by hand. It sometimes shades into art, particularly when an object is so beautiful you'd rather display it than use it.
- Design - architecture, graphics, textile design, product design, interior design
- Design concerns what any man-made object can be made to look like.
Can you see how man-made objects might fall into the three art and design categories? And can you see how they overlap? Some objects are hard to put in one category only. Play the animation to get a feel for it - it'll help with the next section.
The examples on the next few pages should now start to fall into place ...
What is art?
Artists create art. They may draw, paint or make sculptures. The subject of their art usually falls into one of four categories:
Click on the images to see a bigger version. (If you have Flash, click Magnify to see the detail - to remove the viewfinder just click Magnify again.)
- Still-life - representations of objects such as a bowl of fruit.
Copyright © The Barnes Foundation, Merion, Pennsylvania, USA Bridgeman
- Portraits - representations of a person.
- Landscape - representations of a natural or environmental scene.
Copyright © DACS / Pompidou, Paris RMN/ADAGP
Autumn in Bavaria, 1908, Wassily Kandinsky, © DACS / Pompidou, Paris
- Abstract - the use of colour and form in a non-representational or subjective way.
You can find out more about art on the following websites:
What is craft?
Craft is created by craftworkers using many different materials and processes. Craft is often used to make useful things such as cups or plates, but sometimes these are worked with such creativity they become works of art in their own right.
Here is an example of a piece of ancient craftwork - a decorated pottery 'askos'. It came from Canosa, an important town in ancient Apulia (modern Puglia, south-eastern Italy). Archaeologists are not sure what these were used for.
Copyright © Trustees of the British Museum
Askos
The askos above is quite different from the piece of contemporary art below, made from rope, created by Susie MacMurray. You can read more about how and why Susie MacMurray created this in the Artists Explanations and SEMI Gallery.
Copyright © Artist
The Coil, 2005, Susie MacMurray
Rachel Howard is a textile artist, and most people would place her in the crafts category. She, however, describes herself as follows:
"I think of myself as a craftsperson, a designer and an artist. I think I've got all three in my work. The artist is the drawing, the designer is the composition and the craftsperson is the making of it."
Find out more about Rachel Howard in the Artists Explanations and SEMI Gallery.
You can find out more about craft on the following websites:
What is design?
The design process (from the idea to the finished article) is also used by artists and craftworkers. Design covers activities such as thinking through different ideas, problem solving and adapting and changing the suitability of ideas. Good design is when the look of something is combined perfectly with its function.
Copyright © Richard G Pierse
Guggenheim Museum, New York
Copyright © Le Corbusier Foundation/DACS Photo courtesy of Cassina I Maestri Collection
LC4 chaise longue
Design is a process, but also an occupation.
You can find out more about design on the following websites:
Art, craft or design? - activity
There is a difference between art, craft and design, although often skills overlap.
For example, all artists and craftworkers will use design processes as they work; an artist will use craft skills to create a sculpture; a craftworker can be highly creative and artistic when making objects such as a teapot or bowl.
Play the activity below:
Can you see that art, craft and design all overlap?