Folk art encompasses art produced from an indigenous culture or by peasants or other laboring tradespeople. In contrast to fine art, folk art is primarily utilitarian and decorative rather than purely aesthetic. Folk Art is characterized by a naive style, in which traditional rules of proportion and perspective are not employed.

Term Folk art used broadly to describe those arts that exist outside the received canons of taste established by or on behalf of the leaders of a given societyImplicit in such a definition is the existence of a society that is sufficiently complex to permit more than one level of cultural activity to thrive. The art of the élite may be dominant, but it is usually a minority aestheticIn countries or regions that have at some time formed part of larger political entities, the élite culture may have dwindled while the folk culture has developed as a symbol of nationalism.

Folk art exists in clearly defined geographical regions among peoples with shared characteristics such as language or religion. Tradition usually provides some component, not only in terms of content, subject-matter or use but also in structure, craft techniques, tools and materialsFolk art is as inseparable from folk building as it was inseparable from daily life. The ‘applied’ or ‘decorative’ arts (e.g furniture) have their ‘folk’ equivalents.

As a phenomenon that can chronicle a move towards civilization yet rapidly diminish with modernity, industrialization, or outside influence, the nature of folk art is specific to its particular culture. The varied geographical and temporal prevalence and diversity of folk art make it difficult to describe as a whole, though some patterns have been demonstrated.

Folk art – the overall artistic activity of the local community, usually rural. Apart from creativity, which is called art for folk art, it also includes music, dances, legends, fairy tales, folk poetry and the entire artistic side of folk customs and rituals. All these phenomena were inextricably linked with each other and with the life of the village and formed a folk culture.

Origin:
The works of folk art are mostly of anonymous origin, their producers have not undergone aesthetic or artistic training in the narrower sense. The discovery of folk art by the science of art in the late 19th century as historically and aesthetically valuable part of the culture was accompanied by the increasing disappearance of this phenomenon in the industrializing European societies. The increasing loss of craft traditions at the end of the 19th century in Central and Western Europe deprived folk art of the basis of their work. Following the theories of primitivism, folk art as well as the so-called primitive art of non-European countries underwent special attention at that time, especially by modern artists.

Features:
The characteristic of folk art is that it is not influenced by academic art or fine art movement. And in many cases, folk art does not include artistic patrons’ purchase as “high-class art” or “art work” handled by artist as a professional . That said, many folk artists who were active in the United States in the 18th and 19th centuries were making a living by painting work, including traveling portrait painters. In addition, some of them have left a lot of work.

As terms overlapping with folk art, give naive art, primitive art, primitive vision, pop art, outsider art, traditional art, tribal art, “wandering art”, “self-taught” art You can even do it, and even the work of workers is included.

All these terms naturally show different meanings, but none of them are replaced with the term “folk art” often, so it is difficult to define each term properly.

Folk art is art with a utilitarian and aesthetic character that has arisen within a certain folk tradition. It is art by ordinary people, meant for a smaller group and without great artistic pretensions.

The folk art products are not independent works of art, but they always perform a specific function in the life of the village, and their artistic value goes hand in hand with the utility meaning. Folk art met the essential needs of the village, and the peasants within the self-sufficient economy were dependent on their own output in all areas of life. The basic products of folk handicrafts are fabrics, embroidery and lace, folk costumes, hand-made blacksmithing, blacksmithing and foundry products, weaves of straw, wicker and roots, wooden fancy goods, furniture and pottery and ceramic products.

Folk art is that created in a traditional way by peasants, sailors, artisans or merchants who do not have a formal preparation. It is also the art produced by members of a social or ethnic group that have preserved their culture. For an object or fact to be considered folkloric, it must be anonymous, that is, nobody knows who did it but everyone feels that it belongs to that people or culture.

It is, for the most part, functional, handmade for personal, limited or collective use. The paintings are usually decorative part of trunks, clocks and interior or exterior walls.

In addition to the great art movements, everyday people have been busy with art in all countries and in all times. This art does not have the commercial or artistic level of the great masters, but the intention is honest and dutiful. Folk art is usually more soberly worked out, but still very popular among collectors.

Characteristics:
Characteristically folk art is not influenced by movements in academic or fine art circles, and, in many cases, folk art excludes works executed by professional artists and sold as “high art” or “fine art” to the society’s art patrons. On the other hand, many 18th- and 19th-century American folk art painters made their living by their work, including itinerant portrait painters, some of whom produced large bodies of work.

Terms that might overlap with folk art are naïve art, tribal art, primitive art, popular art, outsider art, traditional art, tramp art and working-class art/blue-collar art. As one might expect, these terms can have multiple and even controversial connotations but are often used interchangeably with the term “folk art”.

Folk art expresses cultural identity by conveying shared community values and aesthetics. It encompasses a range of utilitarian and decorative media, including cloth, wood, paper, clay, metal and more. If traditional materials are inaccessible, new materials are often substituted, resulting in contemporary expressions of traditional folk art forms. Folk art reflects traditional art forms of diverse community groups — ethnic, tribal, religious, occupational, geographical, age- or gender-based — who identify with each other and society at large. Folk artists traditionally learn skills and techniques through apprenticeships in informal community settings, though they may also be formally educated.

Antique folk art:
Antique folk art is distinguished from traditional art in that, while collected today based mostly on its artistic merit, it was never intended to be ‘art for art’s sake’ at the time of its creation. Examples include: weathervanes, old store signs and carved figures, itinerant portraits, carousel horses, fire buckets, painted game boards, cast iron doorstops and many other similar lines of highly collectible “whimsical” antiques.

Contemporary folk art:
Many folk art traditions like quilting, ornamental picture framing, and decoy carving continue to thrive, while new forms constantly emerge.

Contemporary folk artists are frequently self-taught as their work is often developed in isolation or in small communities across the country. The Smithsonian American Art Museum houses over 70 such artists; for example, Elito Circa, a famous and internationally recognized folk artist, developed his own styles without professional training or guidance from the masters.

Influence on mainstream art:
Folk artworks, styles and motifs have inspired various artists. For example, Pablo Picasso was inspired by African tribal sculptures and masks, while Natalia Goncharova and others were inspired by traditional Russian popular prints called luboks. In music, Igor Stravinsky’s seminal The Rite of Spring was inspired by pagan religious rites.

folk art architecture:
In terms of architecture, there are both public and residential buildings, examples of which are the wooden churches built in Eastern Europe and the classic American cabins. There are also samples of folk art in engraving, carving, ceramics and textiles.

Decorative folk art:
Furniture was manufactured in a simple way with a touch of artistry, sometimes there was also work for some pieces; in Germany the many Bauernschränke testify to this colorful art.

In the Catholic popular belief, different saints and religious affairs were depicted in their own way with the limited resources that were available. At best this was wood or metal, but more often one had to resort to alternative things such as (old) glass, paper, wax, pieces of fabric, wool, stones or even dough and bone.

Examples include waxing Our Lady’s images, paper prayer cards or rosaries. A remarkable phenomenon are the so-called Oratoires (chapels), a saint who is depicted in a private courtyard of papier-mâché, paintings behind glass (no stained glass), embroidered frames with prayers, etc.

Folk art collections:
Numerous private individuals collected the objects of folk art, which became rarer with industrialization. The first private collections and local museums were also created – mostly on private initiative as well. Examples are the Heimatmuseum Hüsli or collectors such as Georg Essl I or Oskar Spiegelhalder. Depending on their craftsmanship or their relation to a specific tradition, folk arts can have a more regional or rather supraregional character. As a rule, folk art originates from landscapes or tribes of narrow traditions and traditions, but they are also influenced by the high art (eg peasant furniture painting influenced by Baroque church art). They are often full of colorful imagery and use local materials. For example, folk arts with a more regional character belong

Since the second half of the 20th century, the term popular art is sometimes used to denote the current folk art, with this expression, the influences z. For example, modern mass media can be included in the individual aesthetic production on site (eg West Africa). Especially in industrial societies, folk art today is usually a production for tourism needs, which is based on traditional motifs and techniques.