Thursday, January 19, 2017

Jerry Saltz writes, "Art is an energy source that helps make change possible; it sees things in clusters and constellations rather than rigid systems." Art is a way of interpreting the world and making sense of your surroundings. Art is "a medium or matrix through which one sees the world." Like Psychology and Philosophy, Art explains how the world works according to the artist. Sometimes an artist gets lucky and stumbles upon a great idea, just like a scientist or a philosopher. Art is appreciated when the way that the artist explains or depicts something about the natural world resonates with others. In this way art is more than just a hobby or a quirky talent. Additionally, we all have the ability to be artists, just like we can be philosophers. You don't need to have a steady hand to be an artist, you can be an artist even if you are blind. To be an artist is just to express an emotion or depict a phenomenon in an honest way. For this reason, "Art is not optional; it is necessary." For centuries people have tried to make sense of the natural world and find meaning in it. As humans, we look for explanations. Science, or what was once considered science, has shaped society and evolved throughout the decades. Art is no different. Art has been a part of life for as long as science. Art is expression of what we now as our personal truths and what we observe firsthand about the world and people. As Saltz writes, "Art is about experience; it's "I experience, therefore I am'." Saltz quotes Oscar Wilde's remark, "The moment you think you understand a work of art it's dead for you." In this way Saltz conveys that art is not necessarily a puzzle or a math problem to be solved. There is no "correct" answer. Art is about finding meaning and making meaning. To observe art is to find your own meaning in it or completely disagree with the meaning the artist found because you have your own ideas and interpretations. However, by disagreeing you may just be misinterpreting. The point is that you cannot assume that you have taken everything there is to absorb from a piece of art. Saltz summarizes this writing, "Art is a region where protocols are invented or suspended and things one doesn't understand change one's life."

4 comments:

  1. I really liked when you mentioned how we can all be artists and we all have that ability or potential.

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  2. The connection between an artist stumbling upon a great idea like a scientist or a philosopher really caught my attention. I always find that when I am working on an art project, the final product is usually completely different than my initial idea. I definitely agree that art is more about the experience and learning about yourself through the process.

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  3. I completely agree with the point you made when saying that everyone observes art in different ways and needs to observe the art in order to find their own meaning (agreeing or disagreeing with the artist).

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  4. I agree with your point about how there is always something new to learn from art. There is always something that you did not see before, which makes it very interesting.

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