Art style ranges from artist to artists wildly. However, there are different types of art styles that land into distrinct categories whether that's realism or abstraction or something else completely. In this post, we're going over 4 common art styles and what they look like.
Art style means a lot more than just how a piece of art actually looks. Different types of art styles can determine inspirations, techniques, and perspective that leads to the creation of that art.
While each artist has their own unique style, many find that they align with one of the many types of art styles out there. In this post, we’re going to go over 4 different types of art styles that many artists align with. This is far from a comprehensive list, but it gives you a good idea of the variety of inspirations artists look at to create their own style!
Let’s get started.
1. Multicultural Art
Kristen Ali Eglinton, an artist and author, defined multicultural art as:
"the study of artistic and aesthetic endeavors of the people and cultures that form the non-Western world.”
As you can probably tell, this is quite a broad art style that can have a number of different outcomes, inspirations, and locations. Let’s look at a few examples to get a better idea.
Siona Benjamin is a multicultural artist who takes inspiration from her Jewish and Indian backgrounds. You can see from her art commissions and her other work that she features many Indian blue-skinned figures, Jewish symbols, sacred space art, and traditional multicultural styles.
Yinka Shonibare is another example of a multicultural artist. He’s a British-Nigerian artist born in London and raised in Nigeria. Both of these locations have had huge impacts on his style and art. Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle, one of Shonibare’s most famous works, features a replica of the Lord Nelson’s ship HMS Victory.
Shonibare created the gorgeous patterned sails with Indonesian and West African inspiration. It’s said to have symbolism to represent, “colonialism, industrialisation, emigration, cultural appropriation, and tradition.”
2. Abstract Art
The Tate Art Institution defines abstract art as, “art that does not attempt to represent an accurate depiction of a visual reality but instead use shapes, colours, forms and gestural marks to achieve its effect.”
Abstract art requires immense creativity and originality in order to create abstraction that’s both interesting and skilled. Anyone can make a mess and call it abstract, but not everyone’s abstract are resonates with others besides the creator.
Many of Jackson Pollock’s work is considered to be abstract like his 1952 painting titled Convergence. Cy Twombly’s 1962 piece called Leda and the Swan is another famous abstract piece.
This is quite a free and varied art style since it relies solely on the imagination and inventiveness of the artist and their creative expression. There are no rules with abstraction, so it allows artists to be free from convention and create exactly what they want.
3. Impressionism
Impressionism emerged in the 19th century and is characterized by:
Claude Monet is probably the most well-known impressionist artist of all time with his most famous impressionist works featuring landscapes, natural beauty, gardens, and more.
Women in the Garden (1866), Boulevard des Capucines (1873), Woman with a Parasol (1875), and Bridge over a Pond of Water Lilies (1899) perfectly capturing the impressionist style and the soft, natural beauty that Monet sought to capture.
4. Photorealism
As you could potentially guess from the name, photorealism is art (usually painting or sculpture) that appears as realistic as a photograph would. Artists study photographs of places, people, and events to create works that perfectly recreate that picture.
They can spend hours and days creating these pieces in order to make art that perfectly recreates a photo in another medium.
Many people are impressed by this art style thanks to the detail and the amazing recreations that people can create. Photorealism emerged as a polar opposite to abstract art creating an interesting dichotomy of styles.
Many photorealistic artists include pop culture references, consumer references to brands and businesses, celebrities, and portraits. Photorealism is often seen as “American” art, as there are many pieces and artists from America focusing on this style. However, it’s definitely seen around the world and is often seen as the most layperson-friendly style of art.
Some of the most famous works of photorealism include:
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