oeuvre

plural oeuvres · alternative œuvre

1. A work of art, music or literature.

   1 more example

   (Calvin) This piece is about the inadequacy of traditional imagery and symbols to convey meaning in today's world. By abandoning representationalism, I'm free to express myself with pure form. Specific interpretation gives way to a more visceral response. (Hobbes) I notice your oeuvre is monochromatic. (Calvin) Well c'mon, it's just snow.

   1990 February 22, Bill Watterson, Calvin & Hobbes

2. collectiveuncountableA substantial or complete corpus of works produced by an artist, composer, or writer.

   the complete oeuvre of Mozart

   3 more examples

   Let’s “fictionalize” Foucault’s life by turning it into a biographical account of Foucault and his oeuvre or work.

   1997, Chris Horrocks, Introducing Foucault, Totem Books, Icon Books, →ISBN, page 7

   There, in that pale region, beneath that essential cover, the twin incompatibility of an œuvre and madness is unveiled; it is the blind spot of each one's possibility, and of their mutual exclusion.

   2006, Michel Foucault, “Madness, the absence of an œuvre.”, in Jean Khalfa, transl., edited by Jean Khalfa, In History of Madness, Routledge, →ISBN, pages 541–549

   Although, at the onset of my writing this catalogue, his forty-eight opus numbers suggested a small output, in fact his oeuvre comprised more than 100 published and nearly as many unpublished pieces representative of nearly every musical genre.

   2012 April 23, Barbara B. Heyman, “Introduction”, in Samuel Barber: A Thematic Catalogue of the Complete Works, Oxford University Press, →ISBN

   Synonyms: body of work, corpus