Not really until you mentioned it. Technically anything that is the result of expressing or applying human creative skill and imagination is art. So, while you're limited in creating a sim in CAS by what team Maxis has provided in the game, as you state in your post, you do spend a lot of time using your imagination and applying your creative skills to create something as original (or 'correct') as possible with the tools provided. And the end results may vary, what looks good to you may not look all that... interesting to someone else (or vice versa). Pretty much the same as when someone creates a painting or a piece of music. It takes skill, imagination, and maybe also talent to create the sims you play with.
