“What is art?” is a question that could be thought about for seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, and even years. Interpreting art essentially depends on a person’s attitude, background, imagination, along with many other factors. Since peoples’ life change based on culture and society norm and these norms always change with time, it makes the definition a constant work in progress. Art is similar to music in that there are an infinite amount of definitions due to its complexity. Therefore, I’m going to try my best to narrow the definition down as much as possible.
My journey around the Baruch campus took longer than I thought it would. At first, I thought “how hard could it be to take a couple of pictures and label them art or not art”. But as time went by, I couldn’t wrap my fingers around my own unique definition of art, thereby, making it pretty difficult to take the right pictures. So, I thought about a definition, decided to come back another time and this is what I got!!!
At first, the graffiti was just a bunch of shapes and colors that were put together by a person who wanted to express his “artistic” skills. It was neither thought provoking, beautiful, nor symbolic. But as I kept passing by, I was able to find multiple layers of meaning to what used to be a dull piece of graffiti. Knowing that I was passing by this piece every day, I decided to make something out of it. What used to be pipes are now a series of complex passage ways. What used to be metal scraps are now birds making their way heavenward. This piece of art conveys a totally different message now. This adds meaning, emotion, thought, and beauty to my everyday life in Baruch. It allows me to go to school every day with a new mindset of the sky is the limit.
This photograph really triggered the thought of “is this really art?”. This photograph can really go in both directions. Some could view it as just a passageway to the entrance of the building or as elegant modern artwork that makes the residents feel special and luxurious. I photographed this because this showed me that defining art doesn’t only vary from person to person but it also varies within the person. Everyone sees the same photo and yet no one has the same definition.
This final picture shows a concrete design of the sidewalk. I don’t think this serves a purpose other than creating more traction for your feet. Just because it helps a person doesn’t make it art. It could be there for making the street look nice but beauty doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s art. Furthermore, just because it might be thought provoking doesn’t make it art. It’s just there. So, what is art?
Art is what a person makes out of it. It has to affect an individual in some sort of way. This effect doesn’t have to be physical but could be emotional and even spiritual. It has to leave an imprint on a person and change the individual’s life even in the most minute way. Even though arts definition is contingent upon time, people, and place that doesn’t mean it doesn’t leave a lasting impression.
By: Alon Bezalel
Your post got me thinking when I noticed that you considered the archway to maybe be art but the bumpy thing on the sidewalk to not be art. They were both designed by someone with a specific purpose in mind. Does this mean that they’re art? Or does design not necessarily need to correlate with being art? I think that engineers or architects might consider themselves artists, but maybe not.
I think I could consider the building entrance art. I think most people would consider architecture and building design as art. Architects use programs such as CAD in which they can create very beautiful designs that are appealing and have purpose. I think the passageway can definitely be considered art, because not only does it have a purpose of creating a cover for walkers but it also is appealing to the eye and brings out emotion in the viewer.
Hi Alon,
I saw your first picture outside of campus as well! I agree with your statement, when you stated on how the picture, “adds meaning, emotion, thought, and beauty to my everyday life in Baruch.” In my opinion, that’s the purpose of art, so people can have a feeling towards it when they see it. I similarly took a picture of the ground as my third picture as well. I don’t consider it art as well because I see know aesthetic value to it, and I don’t have a feeling or reaction towards it either. Great job! I love the pictures.
Alon,
I love how you started your quest for taking pictures of art insufficiently and then successfully completing your quest once having a definition for art. I had the same experience. At first glance, you and the graffitied wall didn’t have a personal connection until you looked deeply into the artwork and found a deeper meaning. That deeper meaning created art to you and you saw the graffitied painting in a new and positive light. It give you a different perspective and inspiring mindset “everyday in Baruch.” My favorite lines in your blog are, “I photographed this because this showed me that defining art doesn’t only vary from person to person but it also varies within the person. Everyone sees the same photo and yet no one has the same definition.” I can relate to those sentences in my blog because what the worker cleaning out the children’s school defined as trash, I saw the easel in my blog post as art.
Great work Alon,
Andrew Langer
On your second photograph, I really like how you acknowledged that art also “varies within the person.” Some days, when I’m feeling particularly contemplative, everything I see will impress upon me as an art form, while on other days, the things I see may just be ordinary objects. I believe that the architecture in the photograph really does represent a person’s creative expression; however, that vision could be due to the fact that I have recently been considering architecture. That further illustrates the point that my own views are all relative to the day I see something.