What Makes Art Art?

Historical Framework

Throughout human history, concepts have taken on different meanings and been interpreted in various ways by different societies. Even the same concept could be understood differently across different geographies. The question of what art is has been interpreted in distinct ways during different periods of human history. Form and content have evolved over time.

In the years when humans still lived in caves, art carried a ritualistic and almost magical significance. In the millennia-long history of Ancient Egypt, art functioned as a tool to make the political and theological order visible. With the philosophical approaches of the Greeks, art encountered the concept of aesthetics. Under the dominance of Christianity, art transformed into a medium for conveying the message of God. During the Renaissance, the thematic content may not have changed drastically, but new dynamics—such as anatomy and perspective—emerged in art. In the periods that followed, various artistic movements introduced new layers and dimensions. Among these developments, perhaps the most significant was the emergence of individuality.

Lascaux Cave, “Running Bull” Wall Painting (c. 15,000 BCE)

With modernization, the ways societies think, their values, and their understanding of aesthetics began to change. Art, too, was influenced by this transformation.

With modernism, art moved away from the formal patterns of previous periods. For artists, what mattered was no longer how they created, but what they wanted to express. Form gradually receded to the background, while ideas and thought increasingly took center stage.

Pablo Picasso, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, 1907.

Art and the Human Experience

Before opening the concept of art to debate, it is necessary to revisit existing terminological definitions. The Turkish Language Association defines art as “a means by which an individual externalizes their inner world.” Throughout life, people encounter numerous events and individuals; some experiences are positive, while others are negative. When negative experiences accumulate within a person, they may gradually lead to psychological strain. For this reason, art serves as a crucial medium of expression and a therapeutic tool that enables individuals to transform their inner burdens.

Sharing is one of the fundamental human needs. Just as sharing a meal, a journey, or a memory creates a shared emotional space, encountering an artwork offers a similar experience of shared feeling. Through art, connections are formed between emotions, thoughts, and sensations, and such connections often provide a sense of relief. Indeed, the songs we embrace most strongly are usually those created by individuals.

Art creates a profound connection between the artist and the viewer. Through this connection, both sides have the potential to heal. (Rubin, 2024).

Subjectivity in Art

For those who acknowledge the existence of a creative divine power, a more metaphysical approach to the origin of art becomes possible. According to this view, God created the universe out of nothing, while human beings were granted only a limited share of this creative power. Yet human creation does not emerge from nothingness; it is a process of reconstruction nourished by emotion, thought, experience, and the subconscious. Therefore, the artist’s production is an expression of the subjective inner world.

We express our existence through creation; creativity is a necessary continuation of being. (May, 1994).

Plato, in his discussion of the nature of art, states that “there are three arts concerned with all things: one that uses them, one that makes them, and one that imitates them” (Plato, 1992). This classification still provides an important framework for considering the artist’s relationship with reality.

The artist is the one who makes their inner world visible through their own will and chosen methods. In this regard, intention and subjective expression are key elements. The example of Leonardo da Vinci is particularly striking. When his working practice is examined, it becomes evident that the number of his completed works is limited and that he often worked on commission. For this reason, defining him solely as an “artist” may fall short. His development of the sfumato technique makes him a master painter, while his studies in anatomy, engineering, and optics position him simultaneously as a scientist and an engineer.

Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa, 1503–1519.

Similarly, musicians in an orchestra possess a high level of technical skill; however, they mostly perform works created by others. For this reason, it may be more accurate to describe them as “interpreters.” While Sezen Aksu’s artistic identity stems from transforming her own life and emotions directly into song, Sertab Erener stands out as a vocalist who interprets works with her powerful voice.

If a work does not represent who you are and what you have lived through, how can it create a strong impact? (Rubin, 2024).

Whatever the artist designates as art is art; therefore, it is not possible to speak of absolute categories such as “good art” or “bad art.” There are only expressions that resonate with us and those that do not.

The idea that something can be considered art even without being beautiful is one of the most significant achievements of twentieth-century philosophy. (Danto, 1981).

This can be illustrated with a simple analogy: think of your favorite and least favorite fruit. The one you do not like is just as valuable and meticulously created as the other; it simply does not appeal to your palate. The same is true for artworks. The fact that a piece does not resonate with us does not mean it is worthless; it only means that it has not aligned with the frequency of our inner world.

Therefore, aesthetic value is not absolute; it gains meaning through the personal frequency that emerges between the viewer and the artwork.

References

Turkish Language Association. (2025). Güncel Türkçe Sözlük. https://sozluk.gov.tr

Rubin, R. (2024). The Act of Creation: A Mode of Existence (E. Gözgü, Trans.). Domaniora.

May, R. (2017). The Courage to Create (B. Onaran, Trans.). Okyanus Publishing.

Plato. (1992). Republic (G. M. A. Grube, Trans.). Hackett Publishing.

Danto, A. C. (1981). The Transfiguration of the Commonplace: A Philosophy of Art. Harvard University Press.