This is Art

Today, I am going to talk about why I chose this name for my blog. My blog is titled "This is Art." A simple name, yes, but this is also representative of my philosophy on life. Every moment of every day, I do my best to say: "This is Art." Each waking moment: at school during my studies of cave paintings, Greek architecture, and Egyptian sculpture in my art history class, to the modern drawings, paintings, and sculpture being covered in Contemporary Art class, to the wonderfully abstract compositions from myself and fellow students in 2D design class, and even the cardboard and paper models we have been constructing in my 3D class, everything is art. This is in addition to the wonderful exhibits I have seen thus far at MOFA, including everything from reactive electronic exhibits to drawings from local high schools to work by individuals with Autism and much, much more.

But school is not the only place where I can say "this is art." Artistry can be found in nature: in the clouds, in the trees, in the flowing water, in the sound of the wind, and in the different smells as you walk through a familiar environment. I do my best to remain consistently mindful of these things, as I find they will often reappear in my own artwork in a different form. It is also a very meditative practice to constantly observe the beauty in our everyday outside surroundings. Artistry can be found in people: the way they present themselves, the clothes they choose to wear, the words they choose to express themselves, the way they move and carry themselves, and in every other aspect of what simply makes them... well, themself. Artistry can be found in architecture, in product design, music, juggling, playing, blog writing, and really, everything. This is really, truly, Art.

When it comes to the visual arts, the ones I see as truly great are those who I believe share a similar philosophy with me on this. Many notable examples of this were found in a recent lecture in my Contemporary Art class, which featured a Powerpoint presentation on sculpture. What a variety of interesting materials are utilized for art these days! I especially liked the work of Tara Donovan in this respect. Look at this:

What a beautiful work! And what is it made of? Plastic cups. Cups!

It is very satisfying to see that Ms. Donovan has created a work of art which almost anyone can glance at and say "that is beautiful." But I have no doubt that Tara herself sees the beauty in even a single plastic cup. Without this, how could one even begin to imagine the beauty of thousands of cups such as this? Tara utilizes a wide variety of these typical household materials such as paper plates, scotch tape, and drinking straws. I hope her work can make an even larger number of people begin to realize that every moment of every day: "This is Art."

Art shows Us where We have Been, Art shows Us where We are Going - Part 1

"May you live in interesting times."

ancient Chinese curse

     What an interesting time to be alive! What a wonderful time! What a crazy time! We live in an age where technology and information are increasing at an exponential rate. Think about this: 90% of the world's data has been created in the last two years alone(source). That, to me, is simply mind-blowing. Think about it: we now have access to almost any piece of information imaginable: access to almost every artwork, story, and philosophy, every holy book, every method and set of instructions for doing any thing. Any data from any country, any culture, from any time throughout history. It's overwhelming, to say the least.

    How is one expected to even begin the process of attempting to comprehend this enormous mountain of information? After all, us humans have more or less the same brain-power as our cave-dwelling ancestors, nothing much has changed except through our usage of words and tools. So where is one begin in this world where we are likely to consume more information in a single day then our grandparents would have consumed in 10 years? This is a question many people are wondering about, a question which many are responding to by attempting to expand and complicate our old paradigms, such as the concepts involved in traditional K-12 schooling, traditional methods of governance, and our traditional idea of what it means to think logically.

    But if one looks to the ancient masters, if one looks to the great men and women of our past and earnestly seeks their guidance, they will find that the solution is already here. The solution is Art. But before I get into this, let's take a look at how things are handled at the present time: much of our current philosophy on core issues such as education and governance seem to glorify the act of acquiring, manipulating, and then regurgitating ideas. From our earliest days as a kindergartner we are taught that ideas are knowledge, and knowledge is power. We are taught the idea of "2+2=4," and the idea of "the sky is blue." We are taught these things because we imagine them to be useful, to be a required part of becoming a functional adult which can operate within the "real world." Then, upon entering this "real world," the ideas which were memorized throughout the required 13+ years of educational indoctrination are organized, rearranged, and then spread throughout the world in order to make it a "better place."

    This system of ideas influencing ideas has surely made our world a more complicated place, a more fast-paced place, and a much, much more developed place. But rarely is the question asked: is the world a happier place? Is this world truly a "better place" to live in than the world of, say, 100 years ago? Do your research: most studies and people you ask will give you a resounding "no". Our modern, fast-paced world of cars and planes and cubicles and meetings and suits and ties and 24-hour gyms and such and such is not designed for our happiness. It's designed to perpetuate and build upon the ideas we have acquired.

   I was going to get into my explanation of how art can change this, but I think I'll sleep on it and write up that post tomorrow. For now, I'd like to leave ya'll to meditate on a video I've made, and I hope you'll see the connections with the topic which I have covered.

   So I guess this is Part 1 - I'll be back tomorrow with a continuation of these thoughts, and definitely a larger focus on contemporary art and its role in all this :)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

"Churn of the Century"

or "Where We have Been"

Synesthesia

"Vision"

Carol Steen

oil on paper

15" by 12 3/4"

1996

Well, this is my art blog: "This is Art." I plan to use this space to elaborate on some of the ideas in art which interest me the most, and to make clear what I see as art and how I interpret it.

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

syn·es·the·sia noun
a concomitant sensation; especially : a subjective sensation or image of a sense (as of color) other than the one (as of sound) being stimulated (Merriam-Webster).

I've decided to write this first post on the phenomenon of synesthesia and the role it plays in certain artworks. Put simply, synesthesia is the "blending" of the senses. A "synesthete," as they are called, is one who may hear visual images, or inherently see color in letters or numbers, as seen here:

Synesthesia has long played a role in influencing many artists' work, whether or not the individual actually experiences the condition. Above, you can see a work titled "Vision" by Carol Steen. Steen is a true synesthete, and she painted this piece after having a synesthetic "vision" during a visit to the acupuncturist. Steen experiences music -> color synthesia, touch -> color synesthesia, and grapheme -> color synesthesia. She utilizes all of these abilities to create her art, which has been featured in over 20 solo and 50 group exhibitions.

However, one does not need to actually experience synesthesia in order to use these concepts in their art. For example, many artists and musicians have experimented with what are called "color organs," which assign a corresponding color for each note on a keyboard to be displayed. Alexander Rimington, a professor of fine arts in London, is one of the many who experimented with this. 

Synesthesia has such interesting implications for artists, psychologists, scientists, and many other fields. It is such a fascinating effect. I hope to return to this topic in future blog posts.

(Source: wikipedia.org)