Kurt Morrison

Art 3700

Shakespear

What is Art?

Attempting to answer this question has proven to be more complicated than I first thought it might be.  The numerous references given, as well as discovering my own, have helped to guide me to a somewhat satisfactory answer.  I say somewhat satisfactory for the simple reason that my answer is just that, my answer, and the conclusion that another would come up with may be different and possibly even lead me to another revision of my belief of what art is.

As I first started to explore this question I wanted to refer to a more rigid definition of art.  I therefore went straight to the dictionary online and chose what I considered to be a fairly straightforward definition.  “dictionary.reference.com” stated the definition of art as, “The quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance.”  This initially seemed to me a great final answer.  After all, as one initially ponders this question it seems pretty simple that art is something produced and is found aesthetically pleasing by those who view it.  Well, after more research I realized it wasn’t quite so simple.

In the first reading, “Art and Artworks”, a great example is given of running into a well known artist while strolling along your local beach.  You recognize the artist and ask if he would supply a piece of art for your local art museum.  He thinks for a moment and reaches down and hands you a piece of driftwood and says, “Take this.  Call it Driftwood.”  To me, a piece of driftwood could be aesthetically pleasing but to another it could seem like a plain old piece of wood.  The question is then asked if you would display this in your museum.  I might decide to question the artist as to his reasoning behind choosing the driftwood to judge whether or not he was serious, and if he was I would display it under his name and let viewers contemplate the display for themselves.  This example illustrates quite well the idea that art can be anything around us. 

Leo Tolstoy in his essay, “What Is Art?” shares an even deeper view of art.  He states, “In order to correctly define art, it is necessary, first of all, to cease to consider it as a means to pleasure and to consider it as one of the condition of human life.  Viewing it in this way we cannot fail to observe that art is one of the means of intercourse between man and man.”  Art, from what we just learned, is a means of communication between men and who are we to judge whether the way one communicates with another is valid or not.  A very literal example of this is taken from the YouTube video, “What is Art?”  A comment made after one watched the video wondered why the written language was not also pointed out as art.  The author in response agreed with the comment.  I also agree that the written language could easily be considered a beautiful art form as well as a literal way of communicating with your fellow men, therefore aligning somewhat with Tolstoy’s view. 

A great example of how we judge art is given in the blog “artthatselementary.blogspot.com”.  Several examples of art is displayed and asked whether it qualifies as art.  At first thought I might judge some of it as insignificant but as I read about how it was produced, some by an animal or a baby, and one produced simply by erasing the existing artwork of another abstract artist, I came to view it differently, and put into context it, it becomes artistic to me.  I should mention that I am still undecided about the urinal.

While again exploring references of my own I came upon an article entitled, “What is Art…?  …What is an Artist?”  Supplied by Sweet Briar College Department of Art History.  It shares the idea that art is viewed differently through the ages.  For example, hundreds of years ago a woman was making some pottery for use by her family.  She was not necessarily an artist and was not producing what she thought to be art.  The pottery is discovered in present day and displayed quite prominently in a museum as a beautiful piece of art.  Subsequently, the question of what art is can be relative to a particular time period.  Further examining the idea of art being relative, has to do with possibly the most important factor for us as individuals.  Is the art displayed pleasing to us?  From the website, “Philosophytalk.org”, they state, “Alexandar Nehamas of Princeton University thinks that all art is beauty although all art may not be pretty.  Beauty, he says, involves whether you like it.”

In conclusion, to the question of where do we draw the line between what is art and what is not, I say that no line should be drawn.  Let each individual, as he encounters or perhaps produces art, decide for themselves if they are experiencing art.  The YouTube video, “What is Art” mentioned, “art is the expression of creativity or imagination or both.”  Art truly is personal and whether or not a single individual draws that line for themselves, let us not draw a line for others who may not view art exactly as we do.