One of my favorite works of Julian Beever.
To be honest, for a long time I have associated art with what I have seen in art museums. I have always linked the term “art” with paintings and sculptures. If someone had asked me, “what is art?” I would of simply said, “the stuff you see in museums.” But now that I truly think of the question, I see that it is not an easy one to answer. The more I ponder, the more I begin to think that there is no true, definite answer to such a question. Art can have such a vast meaning because anyone and everyone can have a different view.
What I consider to be art may not be art by someone else’s standards, by someone else’s definition. I think that places like the Museum of Modern Art and the Brooklyn Museum play a big part in determining what art is. After all, many artists hope to one day have their art displayed in a museum for all to see and appreciate. And, just like I once derived my definition of art by associating the term “art” with what I saw in art museums, so too have many others. In fact, at one point during the Night at the Brooklyn Museum trip, I saw a plain chair behind glass. I pointed to it and said, “That is not art.” One member of my group looked at me and smiled and said, “Well of course it is, it’s in a museum isn’t it?” And to that I now say that a museum cannot define art. However, museums can determine what they will and will not put on display, and thus they can and do influence the public’s idea of what is art.
When I hear the word “art” many things come to mind. I think of the words “beautiful,” “interesting,” and “creative.” Vibrant colors come to mind. I think of my favorite artist, Julian Beever. I think of the photograph that hangs over my bed. I also think of some famous works of art, specifically Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, and Vincent Van Gogh’s Starry Night. I think of my old sketchbook. To me, something becomes a work of art when it is able to convey a feeling or idea or produce a reaction. When I walk through an art museum I experience a variety of feelings and thoughts, it all depends on what I am looking at. Sometimes I laugh at the strange images and awkward poses, at other times I look at the intricate details of a sculpture with appreciation of skill, and at other times I feel confused. Now, I am not saying that an artwork that I think is uninteresting is not art, it is still art, but to someone else. To me, art is what I make it.
