When pictures are Art

I think I've found an important difference between art and craft. A vase is an object. It can be beautiful. A picture is also an object, but it is not its main identity or function. A picture represents something. Often something real. But if it is art, it also represents something else. Something in the mind or the universe of the artist. A thing, an object, an idea or a scene in the universe of the artist.

This is good to remember, for when you make pictures, it is easy to get lost in the object, and think of the lines and shapes as being the thing you're working with. But if you wanted to make a picture, you probably had an idea in mind, something you wanted to represent. And if you keep your focus on this, the art will work better.

Often the idea does not look or behave like anything in the "real" world, and so some level of abstraction is required.

In case of a photograph, when it represents not only something real, but also an idea, it is Art.