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My hippy-dippy art theory.
18 years ago
General
I can only speak for m'self, but I firmly believe that any form of human expression is 'art'. Drawing, painting, writing, making films, cooking, even just talking... it can all be seen as a representation of a thought or feeling, and that, IMHO, is the very essence of art.
As to what makes something 'good', 'bad', or 'just not my thing'... well, obviously that's up to the individual. It’s one of the world’s oldest cliches to say that one person’s junk is another person’s masterpiece. That being the case, then, trying to pin down even a basic outline of standards (ie, all 'good' art has to match this or that criterion) is, in my experience, only going to lead to frustration. It’s like trying to tell someone what their favorite color ought to be. Ultimately, we can only make those decisions for ourselves - but that's what makes art so fascinating, because how we react when we look at it reflects a lot about who we are.
This is going to sound awfully 'kumbaya' of me, but I really do think the world would be a vastly improved place if we could all learn to see ourselves as artists. It's frustrating to me that so many people have the notion that 'art' is some rare and lofty subject, the exclusive domain of scholars and philosophers who alone are somehow qualified to appreciate it. That kind of thinking diminishes art. It strips it of its universal appeal by metaphorically locking it away under sterile glass like an insect to be studied and catalogued. It makes art seem separate from all other aspects of our lives, as though the only 'real' art out there is a handful of expensive paintings and dusty statues tucked away in a few Greek-columned museums. Worse, it gives us the mistaken impression that there is a 'right' and 'wrong' way to think about the very concept of art.
People shouldn't be intimidated by art, but I understand why many of us are. We're taught practically from day one that art is born of some mysterious, impenetrable creative impulse that only a few vastly gifted individuals are graced with. (Regrettably, there are plenty of artists out there who enjoy playing into this illusion... hey, who doesn't like to feel special?) I can't begin express how dismayed I get whenever I see or hear people pushing the notion that art works on some secret magical plane that most of us will never be special enough to touch.
Unfortunately, what we end up with then are a whole lot of folks who think of art only as a big, complicated, scary subject that's better left to the experts. Again, this frustrates me, and for two reasons. Firstly, because 'art', as I said before, is everywhere. It's in our books, our movies, our architecture, our language, our adverts and our products. It's on our radios and on our dinner plates. It's plastered across billboards and scribbled in magic marker on bathroom walls. It’s in the wavy lines on the side of your plastic soda cup, and it’s in the color scheme you picked out for your bathroom towels. It's everything we do to express who we are, and as such it's at the very heart of what makes us human.
And secondly, because what this all means is that everyone is, in their own way, an artist.
As to what makes something 'good', 'bad', or 'just not my thing'... well, obviously that's up to the individual. It’s one of the world’s oldest cliches to say that one person’s junk is another person’s masterpiece. That being the case, then, trying to pin down even a basic outline of standards (ie, all 'good' art has to match this or that criterion) is, in my experience, only going to lead to frustration. It’s like trying to tell someone what their favorite color ought to be. Ultimately, we can only make those decisions for ourselves - but that's what makes art so fascinating, because how we react when we look at it reflects a lot about who we are.
This is going to sound awfully 'kumbaya' of me, but I really do think the world would be a vastly improved place if we could all learn to see ourselves as artists. It's frustrating to me that so many people have the notion that 'art' is some rare and lofty subject, the exclusive domain of scholars and philosophers who alone are somehow qualified to appreciate it. That kind of thinking diminishes art. It strips it of its universal appeal by metaphorically locking it away under sterile glass like an insect to be studied and catalogued. It makes art seem separate from all other aspects of our lives, as though the only 'real' art out there is a handful of expensive paintings and dusty statues tucked away in a few Greek-columned museums. Worse, it gives us the mistaken impression that there is a 'right' and 'wrong' way to think about the very concept of art.
People shouldn't be intimidated by art, but I understand why many of us are. We're taught practically from day one that art is born of some mysterious, impenetrable creative impulse that only a few vastly gifted individuals are graced with. (Regrettably, there are plenty of artists out there who enjoy playing into this illusion... hey, who doesn't like to feel special?) I can't begin express how dismayed I get whenever I see or hear people pushing the notion that art works on some secret magical plane that most of us will never be special enough to touch.
Unfortunately, what we end up with then are a whole lot of folks who think of art only as a big, complicated, scary subject that's better left to the experts. Again, this frustrates me, and for two reasons. Firstly, because 'art', as I said before, is everywhere. It's in our books, our movies, our architecture, our language, our adverts and our products. It's on our radios and on our dinner plates. It's plastered across billboards and scribbled in magic marker on bathroom walls. It’s in the wavy lines on the side of your plastic soda cup, and it’s in the color scheme you picked out for your bathroom towels. It's everything we do to express who we are, and as such it's at the very heart of what makes us human.
And secondly, because what this all means is that everyone is, in their own way, an artist.
Art is in the air around you...