What, exactly, is art? Since people have been asking this question (and arguing over it) for hundreds of years. Art literally means effort, or attempt, so we have words like artful, artisan, artistic, etc. All of these imply that in some way, humans have intended or planned something.

A big part of art is intention. A practical element of art is public recognition.

Perhaps the best way then to define art is as created work which is calculated for some kind of effect, whether in the publics eye or the artist's own. We can say that often it is designed to please and delight. Often it has a symbolic meaning buried within it.

Having said that, art today is even more complex than what they where then centuries before. In many cultures we see the growth of secular art coinciding with the growth of a new kind of art, one which focuses on people and everyday events rather than idealized spiritual and mythical figures.

It may still be a form of communication or record keeping from one generation to another. This is applicable in All known forms of Art that we knew today. For an example, do you know that there are more than 20 Genres / Types of Music that existed today ?

There are also more than 20 Genres for Images as well too. Art in the form of Music and Images (photographs, animation, illustrations, paintings, etc.,) are the most commonly seen form of art that are easily recognizable by the general public.

It is very much agreed that what a viewer sees or interpret has something to do with His or Her experiences, mode and sometimes preferences. Yes, many times you get common or similar reaction yet they are not the same.