Why is art ageless & timeless?

As humans, we’ve created and appreciated art since time immemorial. It has been part and parcel of human history, dating back to ancient times. From cave paintings to blockchain-powered NFTs, art has truly transcended both cultural and time boundaries.

At its very heart, art is a vessel for human expression. It’s not just something to admire – art allows us to convey our experiences, feelings, and thoughts in ways that words cannot. It opens a window into the heart and mind of the artist, allowing us to connect with them in a powerful way. Whether an oil painting or a bronze sculpture, art has the inherent power to challenge, provoke, and inspire us, and it continues to appeal to us no matter the passage of time.

But what makes art so timeless and ageless? How is it that a masterpiece like Mona Lisa, which was painted in 1503, still appeals and moves us today? In this article, we will explore the many facets of art that contribute to its ageless and timeless nature.

First things first – What actually is art?

Art is a form of expression – be it your emotions, experiences, thoughts, or anything in between. It’s an umbrella term for an array of media. Talk about installations, photography, art deco, drawings, printmaking, sculpture, painting, you name it!

Top reasons why art is timeless & ageless

The evolution of art – How art has evolved over time

Art didn’t appear yesterday. Its colorful history can be traced back to tens of millennia to prehistoric times. Ancient civilizations turned to art, using available media and techniques to portray culturally important events. A laundry list of art movements¹ has emerged since these early times of art history.

Each art movement boasts unique characteristics and styles that mirror the social and political experiences of the era it emerged. Let’s take a brief look at the most notable movements in art history – from prehistoric art to contemporary art.

Prehistoric art

The roots of art history go way back to the Prehistoric era. Spanning roughly between 40,000 and 4,000 B.C., this period saw the emergence of art before humans started keeping written records. The earliest art forms can be traced back to the Old Stone Age – that’s when humans started creating stone arrangements, sculptures, engravings, and cave carvings. Good examples are the Lascaux cave paintings, which can be traced back to 20 millennia ago.

Ancient art

Ancient art (4,000 B.C.–A.D. 400) is widely acknowledged as the point at which modern art kicked off. These artworks of this era were created by advanced civilizations with written language – think ancient Greece, Incas, Egypt, and Mesopotamia.

They used art mostly to showcase social status, pay homage to their deities, and tell stories. In fact, many ancient artworks feature or tell stories of goddesses, gods, and rules of the time (a good example is Code of Hammurabi, which depicted the Mesopotamian god Shabash).

Medieval Art (500–1400)

Medieval art emerged during the middle ages (aka Dark Ages). The period started in 500 AD, right after the dramatic fall of the Roman Empire in 476 AD. Not surprisingly, most medieval artworks depict the gloomy experiences of the period. They feature brutal scenery and grotesque imagery, with the church and religion taking center stage.

Gothic architecture and decorated manuscripts also emerged during this period. Examples of medieval art: Notre Dame (Paris), Hagia Sophia (Istanbul), catacombs (Rome), and Lindisfarne Gospels.

Renaissance Art (1400–1600)

Renaissance art is an art movement that focused mainly on the concepts of individualism, realism, and nature. The style of decorative art, sculpture, and painting tried to speak to the thought of humans as self-reliant and independent. They also paid homage to secularization (moving away from the church) that was evident during the 15th and 16th centuries.

Examples of Renaissance artists: Donatello, Filippo Brunelleschi, Raphael, Michelangelo, and da Vinci.

Mannerism (1527–1580)

Mannerist art borrowed a big leaf from the ideals of Italian artists of the Renaissance era. In particular, Raphael and Michelangelo had an immense influence on Mannerist artists. They heavily focused on technique and style instead of the concept.

Mannerist artworks sported stylized features, small heads, and elongated hands with exaggerated details. Well-known mannerist artists – Bronzino, Domenico Beccafumi, Francesco Salviati, and Giorgio Vasari.

Baroque (1600–1750)

Following the footsteps of their immediate Mannerist counterparts, Baroque artists used over-the-top features and elaborate architecture. Their artworks were marked by indicators of wealth and grander. Most paintings were dramatic and made evident their increasing intellect.

Baroque art was borderline snobbish and made use of intense color contrasts. Well-known baroque artists – Rembrandt (Dutch) and Caravaggio (Italian).

Rococo (1699–1780)

You probably don’t know much about Rococo art. It emerged from Paris at the turn of the 18th century. The Rococo period mostly features decorative sculptures, architecture, and paintings. They’re characterized by elegance and lightness with subtle colors, an asymmetrical design, and natural forms. Well-known Rococo artists – Francois Boucher and Antoine Watteau.

Neoclassicism (1750–1850)

The Neoclassicism period is where art really came into its own. That’s when people started yearning for bygone eras. Coincidentally, this period emerged just when archaeologists began to discover artifacts and goodies of the ancient civilizations in Naples and Athens. It’s no wonder neoclassical art pays homage to classical ideals of proportion, simplicity, and harmony. Best-known neoclassical artists – Antonio Canova, Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, and Kauffman.

Romanticism (1780–1850)

Romantic artists focused on rejecting everything that their neoclassical counterparts idealized – rationality, simplicity, harmony, and order. Their literature, music, and paintings emphasized creativity and individualism, often appreciating nature.

During Romanticism, artists used their art to speak to concepts of sensation, emotion, and passion over reason and intellect. Well-known Romantic artists – William Blake and Henry Fuseli.

Realism (1848–1900)

Realism marks the first milestone of modern art history. It emerged in the 1840s in France, combining multiple inspirations – the invention of photography, the rise of journalism, and the anti-Romantic vibe in Germany. Realistic art, just as the name confirms, used life-like details and attention to accuracy to accurately depict everyday life.

Well-known artists of the Realism era – Gustave Courbet, Honoré-Victorin Daumier, and Edward Hopper.

Art Nouveau (1890–1910)

The era of new art ushered in an entirely authentic art movement. Artists of this period tried hard to move away from styles of previous movements. That’s why Art Nouveau artists influenced everything from illustration and graphics to applied arts. Well-known Nouveau artists – Antoni Gaudi, Alphonse Mucha, and Sarah Bernhardt.

Impressionism (1865–1885)

Impressionism welcomed the period of capturing the moment. Impressionist artists used sketches and quick brushstrokes to impress the subject matter. Artist examples – Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, and Édouard Manet. Masterpieces from the period include The Water Lily Pond (1899), Woman with a Parasol (1875), and Impression, Sunrise (1872).

Post-Impressionism (1885–1910)

Post-Impressionism ushered in the era of solo artists. They focused on personal meanings and subjective visions instead of observing nature. That’s partly thanks to their extensive use of abstract forms. Artist examples – Vincent van Gogh and Georges Seurat.

Fauvism (1900–1935)

Fauvism was built upon the styles and ideals of Post-Impressionist artists (read: George Seurat and Vincent van Gogh). Fauvist artists made heavy employed intense brushwork, lines, and color. Their works featured an imaginative sense of flat composition and surface design. Well-known Fauvist artists – André Derain and Henri Matisse – they inspired Expressionism and Cubism.

Expressionism (1905–1920)

As mentioned, the Expressionism art movement was largely inspired by Fauvist artists like Henri Matisse. It emerged to mirror the world in which the role of spirituality was waning. The artworks of the era looked to draw from within the artist to showcase raw emotions and anxieties. Expressionist artists – most notably Der Blaue Reiter and Die Brücke – used intense colors and distorted forms, majority of which were inspired by tribal art and folk tales.

Surrealism (1916–1950)

Dada art gave birth to the era of Surrealism. The artists of the period sought to defy reason and the laws of physics. They were heavily inspired by Sigmund Freud and Karl Marx. Well-known Surrealist artists – most notably Salvador Dalí, Pablo Picasso, and Joan Miró – combined bizarre and vivid imaginations with historical relevance.

The period after Surrealism welcomed major modern art movements. We’re talking about Abstract Expressionism (1940s–1950s), Op Art (1950s–1960s), Pop Art (1950s–1960s), Arte Povera (1960s), Minimalism (1960s–1970s), and Conceptual Art (1960s–1970s).

Contemporary Art

This period encompasses modern art from the 1970s to date. It’s an umbrella art movement that comprises other micro-movements. That means it entails Postmodernism, Feminist art, Street art, Neo-Expressionism, Digital Art, and Young British Artists (YBA).

Art constantly evolves

The first and perhaps the most notable reason art is timeless is that it constantly evolves. As you can see from the art movements above, artists look at both in the past and present to create futuristic styles. The Fauvist artists, for instance, didn’t just look at Impressionism and said “that’s the end of art.” They created art forms that inspired Cubism and Expressionism.

Besides whipping up new pieces of art, artists continue to innovate, reinvent, and recreate. They don’t stop with the techniques, styles, and even ideals they currently have. Instead, artists always revive past artworks to birth new identities, styles, and even movements. That’s mostly thanks to their mission to appeal to the attention and interest of the current world.

For example, the Feminist art movement was birthed to accord respect and attention to the emergence of Feminism in the 1970s and beyond. They wanted their audience (aka feminists) to feel included and appreciated for their efforts.

Art is a sensory form of self-expression

As mentioned, art is in and of itself a way humans express themselves. In a lot of cases, it expresses emotions, experiences, and thoughts. That’s why art is timeless because the value or relevance of what artworks express is ageless. For example, the famous Mona Lisa half-smile expresses the unchanging cosmic connection between nature and humanity.

When art is examined closely, it becomes clear that it’s intertwined with human existence. Because we’ve always yearned to express ourselves, art has become a way to discover and understand our identity and nature as humankind. That’s something that’s not only irreplaceable but cannot change – we constantly want to understand ourselves, and art provides the perfect vessel for that.

Every form of art is ideal for human self-expression. A good painting from the Expressionism period can still help us express our personal tragedies and inner selves in a whole new way. That’s the beauty of art. The same goes for contemporary artworks, including video games, computer art, and comics – the depiction of Batman can still help someone in 3020 express heroism.

Art has timeless cultural significance

Different types and forms of art and culture have contributed to the development of our societies throughout history. After all, music, food, handmade artifacts, and art festivals are essential for fostering a sense of community among people all over the world. They help us with stories and knowledge about the connections between humans and nature across generations.

Art has a special ability to capture the winds of change as they affect the creation and growth of societies and the people who live in them. Where words fail, it has that propensity to perform and convey messages, ideas, and expressions. It can actually alter our mindsets more profoundly than other forms of communication because art can directly connect to our hearts and bodies, sometimes more than our minds.

Today’s artists hope to both increase the visibility of their ongoing artwork by speaking to the inherent relationship between art and culture in all of their forms. They also acknowledge, learn from, and open up to sharing their experiences in order to inspire others in the development of fresh viewpoints. And that’s partially why art has transcended the bounds of time and culture.

The universal appeal of art

Art is timeless because it rises above any barriers created by cultural and language differences. That’s because, as a form of human expression, art has a universal appeal. The overarching reason behind this worldwide love is that art has an intrinsic ability to help everyone communicate their experiences, emotions, and ideas without using words.

In other words, art is not hurdled by cultural or language barriers. This way, it serves as a universal tool for cultivating relationships and understanding between people from various walks for life.

This is especially true with visual forms of art – most notably, sculptures, paintings, and video. They help the artist to convey raw yet complex emotions, ideas, and experiences without needing any language. For instance, Claude Monet’s Grainstacks at the End of Summer portrays beautiful natural scenery that inspires wonder and awe.

Meanwhile, Edvard Munch’s painting The Scream expresses human nature in a manner that elicits connection and empathy. These visual artworks can be understood and appreciated by anyone regardless of their culture and language.

Likewise, music transcends both cultural and language boundaries. The emotion, melody, and rhythm that music communicates can create shared experiences and elicit strong feelings among listeners. It can do so, no matter the cultural or language background of listeners. As an art form, music can help express universal emotions like joy, grief, or love, which can be appreciated and understood by people from all walks of life.

The same goes for other visual art forms, especially theater and dance. They can transcend both cultural and language barriers, creating an appeal that is not just universal but also ageless and timeless.

The relationship between art & human experience

Another reason why art is ageless and timeless is its heavy use as a means of expressing human experiences. In fact, art, in almost every form and style, mirrors and influences human perceptions and experiences. From the middle ages to the era of AI, art has helped people convey their social, economic, and religious happenings.

We also use art as a tool for social commentary and self-expression. This is especially seen in visual art forms, particularly in contemporary media such as video, music, and photography. Even during the 15th to 20th centuries, artists used their artworks to speak to social injustices and other things that plagued their time. Superb examples include Pablo Picasso’s Guernica², and Ogut’s Bakunin’s Barricade.

Conclusion

Art is ageless and timeless primarily because it’s a form of human expression. It helps build relationships between people of different languages, ethnicities, and generations. Besides, art has a spiritual and creative essence to it that can have an everlasting influence on people across all age groups and languages. The timeless appeal of art speaks to its deeply complex elements that evoke emotions and express feelings & experiences.