Kunststile

Kunststile is a German term that translates to 'art styles' and is used in art history to refer to the characteristic visual language shared by artists within a particular period, region, or media. It encompasses patterns of form, color, composition, technique, and subject matter that enable scholars to group works and compare them across time and space.

In scholarly usage, Kunststile are distinguished from related concepts such as Kunstbewegung (art movement), which emphasizes shared aims, and Kunstschule (art school), which highlights institutional influence. Style focuses on formal and perceptual qualities rather than biographies or manifestos. The study of Kunststile combines formal analysis with historical context, considering technologies, patronage, transport networks, and cultural exchange.

Western art outlines a wide range of well known styles, from Renaissance and Baroque to Romanticism, Realism, Impressionism, and Modernism; non-Western traditions also develop recognizable stylistic families, such as East Asian ink traditions or Islamic geometric design. Styles often survive alongside or fuse with others, producing hybrids and cross-cultural juxtapositions.

Because styles are abstractions of complex practices, boundaries between Kunststile are debated, and changes can be gradual or abrupt. Critics note that stylistic analysis can reflect modern categories as well as historical ones, and emphasize the role of perception, interpretation, and context in defining a style.