It seems almost presumptuous to take a question that has challenged the best minds of the generations from Plato to Walter Pater and run up a Mudcat thread on it. But, hell, why not?

The only measure of art is communication. That means the intent to communicate carried across time and space, arriving at a receiving viewpoint (usually a human) and creating their some degree of duplication, perfect or not, of that which first emanated from the origin point.

One area this has not been taken to as far as I know is anyone seriously trying to develop art intended to communicate with other species--cows, aardvarks, or extra-terrestrials.

But the core definition remains, when that does happen. That which succeeds in fulfilling the meaning of communication is named Art; everything else is technique or technology or logistics or drab economics.


A