What is Art?
To me art is a creative outlet one can use to display and share their inner thoughts and opinions. It’s an individual's way of expressing themselves without the complicated use of technical language. There are different types of art that play into the visual side of expressing emotions and opinions. Although art mainly consists of “visual language”, there are other aspects that go into it. Literature and theater performances can also be considered pieces of art. These types of performances and pieces lean more towards the “language side” of art. They are perfectly curated to capture exactly what the artist/creator was trying to portray. There is definitely an “aesthetic side” to art that I personally think most artists try to follow. Two subcategories to art are “aesthetics and order” and “freedom of expression and flow”. I personally combine both of these aspects into the artwork that I create. Art can be both a liberating form of expression, or a relaxing form of creating something pleasing to the eye. Technical skills that go into creating art are focusing on composition, the message to be conveyed, value, form, and passion.
What is Design?
Design is a subcategory of art that combines composition and technical skills. Some technical skills required for design include creativity, communication, collaboration, motivation, and perseverance. The art of design usually involves “new” or innovative ideas. Artists usually design pieces that would benefit a certain cause or capture the eye of a certain audience/demographic. Most designers take aesthetics and composition into consideration when designing their pieces. My personal take on design and composition is trying to see another individual’s perspective of your artwork and guessing what they think it conveys. Does it follow a certain flow? Is it aesthetically pleasing? Is it more organized or chaotic? How does the entirety of the piece make me feel and what emotions does it invoke? These are all questions designers and artists consider before finalizing their designs. Important aspects of design are modernization, flow, color, format, and composition. Since design is a subcategory of art, usually there are artistic/creative directions an individual makes during the planning process. Since design is more orderly and restricts more on free expression, these designs can be used in corporate settings, professional settings, and advertising.
What is Craft?
Craft is the process of making a physical creation based on the preparations of art and design. This is an important step to physically showing/displaying artistic thoughts or creative ideas an individual has. Craft can take many forms such as physical creations, digital media, drawings, paintings, digital art, sculptures, plays, films, literature, and technical/electrical objects. The first step to crafting a project or piece is preparing the supplies needed for crafting. Whether that ranges from paintbrushes to manuscripts. An important aspect to crafting something is passion. Without passion in craft, the finalized piece doesn't convey the initial design.
What is the relationship between creativity and knowledge?
In order to understand the relationship between creativity and knowledge, the first step is defining what they are. Creativity and knowledge are similar in many aspects, but they also play specific and important roles for an individual; such as an artist. Creativity is a staple principle for an artist. Without creativity and freedom of expression, artists are simply individuals withdrawn from their craft. The knowledgeable aspect of being an artist requires more preemptive thinking and a mix of techniques and skills learned along their journey. These both play important aspects and roles, but one thing they have in common is based on a persons process and how they prepare to use these traits to their advantage. Having both of these traits are a valuable part to creating in any form. Such as craftsmanship, art, academics, relationships, self care, and life in general. It’s extremely easy to breeze through creating a piece of art without using your knowledgeable aspects or creative traits, but when these aren’t applied to a piece your audience will notice that there is a lack of passion. It’s a powerful tool especially as a beginner to use your assets of creativity and knowledge. Combined, they can translate incomprehensible and complex thoughts into a physical creation.