A work of art is a created thing of real artistic worth. A painting, a sculpture, a piece of music.
The phrase is used precisely in galleries and insurance and loosely everywhere else, since calling a cake or a piece of joinery a work of art is a genuine compliment about craft. That looseness is part of what makes the phrase so useful. There is a long argument about what qualifies, and the answer has expanded steadily for a century to include a great deal nobody expected.
1nounwork of artA created object of artistic value.
“Every work of art in the room was on loan.”
Practised in A Man Called Ove
First appears in chapter 7 of A Man Called Ove.
Practise this word