Artwork Category Definitions

Below is a list of category definitions to select from when purchsing your art.

Abstract - Abstract art uses a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition, which exists independently of visual references to the world. Artists take a form and reduce it to its most simple form while still retaining its intrinsic values.

Animal – Pieces related to the animal kingdom, be it mammal, bird, crustacean, or insect; essentially anything breathing that is non-human or flora.

Anime/ Manga – Originating with roots of Japanese animation and comic art, Anime and Manga covers a broad variety of topics ranging from action, adventure, fantasy, erotic, horror and many others.

Architectural – The design and physical construction of a structure, ranging from ancient castles to modern skyscrapers. Classic architecture is noted for being more about everyday needs such as shelter while modern architecture has a focus on aesthetics.

Artistic Nude – An iconic staple of art, this category displays images of unclothed persons used for either aesthetics of the human body or to create a narrative.

Automotive – Artwork depicting motor vehicles, either images of an automobile or concept art.

Beauty/ Glamour – Artwork with an emphasis on the idealized form of a human being using cosmetics and lighting to make the model extremely physically appealing.

Black and white – Forms of art with a monochromatic appearance. That is only using black and white and occasionally the shades of greys in between those two values.

Caricature – A humorous portrait that exaggerates physical features of the model to increase a visual likeness to the actual person while remaining distorted.

Character Portraits – A representation of a fictional character, intending on capturing mood and personality.

Childrens – Artwork with a dominant theme of adolescent motifs. For the children.

Collage – An assembly of different pieces, often photos, pages of art or text and occasionally physical objects, to make a unique new form. Many artists consider it the collision of the painterly and sculptural forms of art.

Comic/Cartoon – A stylized illustration where images are used to further narration in various situation. Pieces in this category can be very broad and in a multitude of unique styles.

Conceptual – This type of art maintains that the concept or idea of the piece is more important than the aesthetics of it and may defy traditional values of art to make its purpose clear.

Dark – Artwork with more grim and sinister themes, relating to such themes as alienation, loneliness and depression. Pieces may have a gothic, disturbing or sometimes aggressive nature.

Emotive – Emotional expressions used by the artist to convey a thought or feeling to the viewer. These expressions may be related to the environment the character is interacting within.

Fantasy – A genre of art with elements of magic, the supernatural and an elemental world ruled by the above themes. It may be influenced by mythology or religions and cultures of the world.

Fashion – Emphasizing a popular style of clothing or dress of an era, it used to display physical beauty, glamour and style.

Floral – Artwork based inside the realms of natural flora, including flowers, trees and other plants, and it’s interactivity in its environment.

Fractal – Calculating fractal objects and representing the calculations create Fractal art. Fractal art is usually created indirectly with the assistance of a computer, iterating through three phases: setting parameters of appropriate fractal software, executing the possibly lengthy calculation and evaluating the product.

Historical – Celebrating the continuous narrative of mankind, these pieces represent a phase of our history; a person, place or thing from a time before ours.

Horror/ Macabre – A broad title with pieces that are meant to horrify, scare or make the viewer feel disturbed, whether through mood, characters or gore. This category may include supernatural elements, but modern horror focuses more on fright within the realms of reality.

Humor – Comical or funny artwork meant to provoke laughter and amusement, whether satirical, political or just plain whimsical.

Landscape/ Waterscape – The visible features of an area of land, including physical elements such as landforms, living elements of flora and fauna, abstract elements such as lighting and weather conditions, and human elements, for instance human activity or the built environment.

Macro – An image is depicted in the same scale as the subject, focused sharply on that subject. The subject matter is usually very diminutive object and is meant to make that object appear larger than life.

Music Portraits – A depiction of a likeness of a famous musical personality or a character partaking in a musical activity.

Natural World – Images depicting the untamed wild, parts of geography that are untouched by human activity.

Nautical – Artwork relating to, or adjacent to, the sea, or maritime themes, boating and navigation.

Photo-Manipulation – The application of image editing techniques to photographs in order to create an illusion or deception (in contrast to mere enhancement or correction), through analog or digital means.

Political – Imagery relating to or mocking corporate, academic, religious institutions or behavior within governments.

Pop Art – Characterized by themes and techniques drawn from popular mass culture, such as advertising and comic books, pop art is widely interpreted as either a reaction to the dominant ideas of abstract expressionism or an expansion upon them.

Portrait – A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person.

Religious – Imagery intended to uplift the mind to the spiritual. It can be an object to be venerated not for what it is but for what it represents using motifs and iconography.

Rural – Campestral artwork, that is pieces relating to the countryside and simpler things, as opposed to rural metropolises. Themes include farms, plains, and other places outside of towns.

Sci-Fi – A broad genre of fiction that often involves speculations based on current or future science or technology ranging from computers, robotics, vehicles and other elements not found in contemporary reality.

Space/ Celestial – Relating to the sky or the vast expanse that is the universe, or an astronomical object such as a celestial body, sun, star or planet.

Sport – Depictions of physical activities governed by a set of rules or custom and is engaged in competitively. This may include professional athletes or amateur subject matter.

Still life – A still life is a work of art depicting inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which may be either natural or man-made.

Surreal – Surrealist works feature the element of surprise, unexpected juxtapositions and non sequitur often depicted in a very realistic style. A twist on reality.

Urban – A style of art that relates to cities and city life often done by artists who live in or have a passion for city life. Sometimes Urban art is called "street art". The term “urban” means "from the city".

Vector – Vector graphics is the use of geometrical primitives such as points, lines, curves, and shapes or polygon(s), which are all based upon mathematical equations, to represent images in computer graphics.

Vintage – Characterized by a specific year of origin or appearance, vintage art is an homage to images broadly from 1920-1980’s. It is sometimes referred to as “retro”. A style with a feeling of age.