these are the aesthetic theories:
Imitationalism- The artist focuses on the realistic qualities. The subject comes from recognizable objects from real life and the artwork was created with accurate details like shading, textures, and proportions.
Formalism-The artist does not believe the artwork needs a subject. The focus of the artwork is the formal qualities such as the elements and principles used to create the composition. Emphasis is on the use of colors, lines, shapes, patterns, movement, etc.
Emotionalism-The artist wants to create artwork that will cause you to have a strong emotional reaction when looking at it. This theory focuses on the expressive qualities of the artwork and how it made you feel. Emotions do not always have to be positive (happy, exciting) artwork can make you feel scared, confused, sad, etc.
Instrumentalism-The artist creates artwork that causes you to think and then react. The artwork inspires people to act for the betterment of society. People are motivated to change a behavior or join a cause to help others.
Institutionalism-The artist uses ordinary objects that wouldn’t normally be considered art but then display the artwork in a museum or art gallery…even if it is just an ordinary object. The artist is making you think about why it was worthy to be on display.