Fine Art

[raymondborg]

<p>This may sound silly, but anyone can explain me what classify a photo as 'fine art'? I have seen some photos in here posted as fine art that confuses me. Any explanation would be greatly appreciated. Regards from Malta.</p>

[john_macpherson]

<p>The question is not silly, but some of the responses you receive likely will be! (ducking and running for cover as I type!).</p>

<p>Its a nebulous term, used and misused as the mood takes people.</p>

<p>One definition is - if it sells, its art.</p>

<p>But basically if the author wants to call it fine art, they can, but beauty will ALWAYS remain firmly in the eye of the beholder.</p>

[Wouter Willemse]

<p>Hi,<br>

In this thread, you may find many good insights and ideas: http://www.photo.net/philosophy-of-photography-forum/00WlNX .<br>

Hope it helps a bit!</p>

[keith selmes]

<p>Very simply, it has no purpose except being looked at. Art for arts sake. It was taken and its viewed for no other reason.</p>

<p>It wasn't taken for commercial purposes, advertising, promotional, scientific or technical reasons, not scene of crime, nor family records, including the wedding photos. Or any other practical purpose.</p>

<p>However, sometimes the boundaries are unclear, for example an advertising image may outlive its campaign and become fine art.</p>

<p>Then some people expect that "fine" also implies high quality, or "art" implies some subjective, perhaps emotional, quality.<br>

And for some, only those photos that will sell from a Fine Art Gallery are Fine Art.<br>

(Thats quite important if you want to sell Fine Art photos, have to find out what the gallery customers want)<br>

Worse, there are those for whom Fine Art must be three hundred years old at least, so there are no fine art photos at all.</p>

<p>And it goes on and on with different specialist or preferred definitions, but for general purposes, I think my first sentence is as good as you'll get, and shorter than most.</p>

[Matt Laur]

<p>Very succinct, Keith. A photograph made for its own sake (rather than to serve some other role). This becomes a work of the artist's/photographer's own expression, and is frequently understood to be an expression through photography because a <em>photograph</em> was the right medium to convey what the artist wanted to communicate.</p>