21 The visual arts

tongue in cheek

If you say something (...), you intend it to be understood as a joke, although you might appear to be serious

priceless

A priceless object has such a high value, especially because it is rare, that the price of it cannot be calculated

peerless

Something that is peerless is better than any other of its type

exquisite

very beautiful and delicate

evocative

making you remember or imagine something pleasant

sophisticated

having a good understanding of the way people behave and/or a good knowledge of culture and fashion

highbrow

(of books, plays, etc.) involving serious and complicated or artistic ideas, or (of people) interested in serious and complicated subjects

original

An (...) piece of work, such as a painting, etc. is produced by the artist and not a copy

the visual arts

the arts of painting and sculpture, rather than literature and music

subject matter

the things that are being talked or written about, or used as the subject of a piece of art, etc.

op art

a type of modern art that uses patterns that do not exist naturally in order to create images that appear to move or to be something that they are not

deem

to consider or judge something in a particular way

surrealist

relating to or producing a type of 20th-century art or literature in which unusual or impossible things are shown happening

cubist

belonging or relating to a style of modern art in which an object or person is shown as a set of geometric shapes, or typical of this style of painting

daub

to spread a thick or sticky liquid on something or to cover something with a thick or sticky liquid, often quickly or carelessly

Impressionism

a style of painting, which began in France in the 1860s, in which the artist tries to represent the effects of light on an object, person, area of countryside, etc.