A few words about contemporary art

The text begins with etymological reflections on the term “art” in various Euro- pean languages and its numerous connotations. Five main basic meanings of the notion of art are enumerated and described, such as: disposition for action, this very action, the realm of life consisting of some kind of actions, the rules of ac- tion, and the results of action. Subsequently, two main traditional purposes of artistic actions are indicated and characterized, which are beauty and reality. This pair of notions implies four kinds of artistic creation: aesthetic/anti-aesthetic mi- metism/antimimetism. The term of mimetism can be applied both to the imita- tion of nature, as well as to the imitation of preceding artists. In the latter inter- pretation, a different classification appears: classical/original mimetism/antimi- metism. Next, Maria Gołaszewska’s definition of contemporary art is discussed in the light of previous analysis. In the conclusion of the essay the final characteristic of contemporary art is presented with a quote from Arthur Rimbaud’s poem, as “absolutely modern”.