Art Dictionary

Lets say you have a question about the Da Da movement, want to use trompe l'oeil in your next art piece or or wonder what a deltiologist is, then art lex is the place for you. It's a really useful website with art definition and terms, pretty much anything about visual culture. You can find examples of artwork and other related links to reference as well. The only bummer is that I can't seems to link to each definition. I can cut and paste so here we go ...

Da Da movement- An early twentieth century art movement which ridiculed contemporary culture and traditional art forms. The movement was formed to prove the bankruptcy of existing style of artistic expression rather than to promote a particular style itself. It was born as a consequence of the collapse during World War I of social and moral values which had developed to that time. Dada artists produced works which were nihilistic or reflected a cynical attitude toward social values, and, at the same time, irrational — absurd and playful, emotive and intuitive, and often cryptic.

Trompe l'oeil A French term literally meaning "trick the eye." Sometimes called illusionism, it's a style of painting which gives the appearance of three-dimensional, or photographic realism. It flourished from the Renaissance onward.



Deltiology is the collecting of picture postcards. A deltiologist is a collector of them. Short of framing them, a preferred means of storing and displaying postcards is in polypropylene sheet protectors.

Who knew there was a term for someone who collects postcards! I wonder if there is a name for those of you who love your fabric! I'll look into that.