art, technique, skill

A J   Sat Dec 31, 2005 2:11 am GMT
art, technique, skill

How do they differ?
Is art more involved with skills treated like a state-of-the-art?
Is technique associated with machines or something?

Do you have preferences on these words?
Mxsmanic   Sat Dec 31, 2005 7:46 am GMT
Art implies a need for talent and a lack of objectively definable procedure. Painting is an art because good painters need talent, and because there's no clear step-by-step procedure for painting a picture.

Technique is an objectively definable method for accomplishing something. Some painters have an identifiable technique that they use to actually put paint on canvas (although the overall composition of the painting is still a matter of art). A good portrait or landscape painter will probably have an excellent technique. A house painter, though, could have excellent technique even in the absence of art.

Skill is competence in doing something, whether it be from natural talent or specific training. A skilled painter is a good painter, whether he is working on pure art such as portraits or something purely practical such as a painted house.

Stated another way, art is something that requires subjectivity. Technique is something that can be learned and documented. Skill is an ability, and can be inborn or acquired.