A genre system divides artworks according to depicted themes and objects. A classical hierarchy of genres was developed in European culture by the 17th century. It ranked genres in high – history painting and portrait, - and low – genre painting, landscape and still life. This hierarchy was based on the notion of man as the measure of all things. Landscape and still life were the lowest because they did not involve human subject matter. History was highest because it dealt with the noblest events of humanity. Genre system is not so much relevant for a contemporary art; there are just two genre definitions that are usually applied to it: abstract or figurative.