Art is said to be the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power…but that’s someone else’s definition, not yours necessarily.
All works that make me take the time to stop and think has an artistic element to it. You may not fully agree with its importance or significance, but that does not mean it does not have one. The ’emotional power’ art can have over a person is what convinces me to go to an exhibit and see how the works affect me. Most of the time, I have not heard of the artist before… but that is the interesting bit. Not knowing ensures that I have an open mind about what I am about to experience and I am not influenced by the strong opinion of critics.
At times, the works are not really my taste, but this brings on a debate with friends later on, or a deep discussion with a stranger about what he has taken away from the viewing. Either way, the event is never boring…
Many people who have visited the Tate Modern for a major exhibition can encounter a time where they viewed an exhibit, thought nothing of it, and felt like they wasted their time. You can overhear some of the conversations in museums and galleries of either over-zealous couples reading a tad too much into the works on display, versus the groups of 20-something boys in the next corner laughing at the nonsensical bunch of random objects on display that they claim they ‘can make at home’. That’s the emotion talking: one party has got more than their money’s worth, the other is thinking of all the better things they could have been doing with their time.
Art is in the mind of the beholder, so for me, if one artist does not stir positive emotions with their work, there are countless others that will. Art feeds the creative part of me and generates more ideas when I take in the surroundings, the opinions, colours, shapes and sounds. Think of yourself in a new beautiful home with blank walls. You will find yourself thinking, “There’s something missing…”
Cary x
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