It has long been synonymous with skill. Most societies, when they are asked to name accomplishments by which another peoples will judge them, cite their arts first among their strengths.
Art is creativity.
Not just on canvas, but in movement, in river-mud or marble, in sounds from metal instruments or human throats. In understanding that each human has a separate and distinct world-view, people are brought together, and are able to celebrate each other's different visions. A concise history of art is impossible, because the history is art is essentially the history of mankind. It is this, not toolmaking or cognitive thinking, which separates Homo sapiens from the other species we study on earth. The histories and biographies provided here are small, anachronistic portions of a gargantuan whole, hopefully diverse enough to give some impression of the magnitude of the human imagination.