The oldest documented forms of art are visual arts , which include creation of images or objects in fields including today painting, sculpture, printmaking , photography, and other visual media.
Architecture is often included as one of the visual arts; however, like the decorative arts , or advertising, it involves the creation of objects where the practical considerations of use are essential—in a way that they usually are not in a painting, for example.
Music, theatre, film, dance, and other
performing arts , as well as literature and other media such as interactive media , are included in a broader definition of art or the arts . Until the 17th century, art referred to any skill or mastery and was not differentiated from
crafts or sciences .
In modern usage after the 17th century, where aesthetic considerations are paramount, the fine arts are separated and distinguished from acquired skills in general, such as the decorative or applied arts
