Essay on Art

Art is everywhere, or is everything art?

Art is everywhere, its beauty or uniqueness surrounds and communicates with us on a daily basis. It has been around since pre-historic times, from cave paintings and tribal dances to our modern-day abstract sculptures. It is said that all children are artists. They create dances, stories, drawings or paintings with outstanding creativity at every opportunity. Art is therefore something that is sewn into our fibre from birth. Before his death in 322 BC Aristotle, teacher of the Macedonian King Alexander the Great, told of Art's deeper meaning by saying, “The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.” But does art really have such a profound message? Its a philosophical question that seemingly does not have one answer but many complex theories.

Art much like sport is an umbrella term comprising of numerous disciplines and sub-disciplines. Art in its broadest form includes, performance arts such as cinema, theatre and dance; visual arts consisting of photography, sculptures and paintings; not forgetting music and literature.

The paradox of art is that it is nothing more than shapes, lines, colours, movements or words: yet its so much more than that. We are captivated by its mystery. Two people are able to look at the exact same painting or read the same passage at the same time and have two or more completely different interpenetration. Art works can act as a symbol of freedom for someone but a symbol of rebellion to another, such in the cases of a graffiti painting of Che Guevara or the Statue of Liberty. They can represent greatness and dominance like of giant statues of kings and leaders and castles of old. Their have been artists that have produced music that have become anthems against oppression and galvanised communities and nations in unity to fight for their liberation. Another dimension of the paradox which is all art, is that in some cases it can transcend cultures, ethnicity and religion appealing to something deep at the core of all humans but in others it is bound by culture and can only serve to unite the people of one region.

The renowned 20^th century painter Pablo Picasso once said “The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls.” Although an atheist did Picasso hint at a deeper meaning and purpose to art? Perhaps something deeply spiritual? Art in its entirety seems to mimic creation. Painters paint landscapes which a writer might describe. Dancers steal the movements of animals and nature, while photographers capture what has already existed for millennia. But this theft or piracy is not cynical in nature, much like a child that idolises his sporting hero and tries imitate his hero's skill, do we artists not try imitate ours �" The Creator. The notion that the message behind art, its purpose or at least one aspects of art's complex conundrum, is deeply spiritual was backed by the late French novelist, essayist and Nobel Prize winner André Gide. Gide's view on art was that, “Art is a collaboration between God and the artist, and the less the artist does the better.”

Art's paradoxical nature is carried through into her power. She is a powerful mistress, she has the ability to create as well as the ability destroy. She can devastate or motivate, she can disillusion or inspire. She has been proven to rescue people from the depth of despair or send them there. A practitioner of the arts may gain fame and fortune, become a super-star and have the world at his feet because of the success of one of his creations. Yet another one of his creations could damn him and send him into the abyss. Some of the greatest pieces of art have been created when the artist was in a place of pure happiness and ecstasy or in the dark lonely days of depression. The 20^th century writer Thomas Merton expands the paradox and its significance to our inner-selves by stating, “Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.” Art is freedom, art is self-expression: Art is the freedom of self-expression. To paraphrase American painter Georgia O’Keeffe, she allows us to say things we can't say any other way. Unlike most things she has the power to provoke both thought and action. Picasso said: “Art is a lie that makes us realise the truth.” Through art people have the ability to become fearless, to ask questions that no-one dares to ask and comment on society in a bold uninhibited way. Through whichever artistic medium, whether music, film, dance or paintings, people can not only push boundaries but break them. Together she and her followers can bring an end to an era and start a new age, renaissance or collective mindset. The impact of their work can leave a lasting impression for centuries to come.

Art is something that art itself cannot describe. It is something mysterious and majestic. A writer does not just write nor does a painter just paint for painting sake. It is a passion, a conviction that consumes you. It is a drug that gets you to the highest high then abandons you. Art is a brutal cocktail of inspiration, hard-work and talent. Art may mean different things to different people but it means everything to the artist. It is both your master and your slave.

Art's purpose or meaning is more than to decorate or entertain. It has many messages far deeper than just paint on a canvas, negatives on a spool or performers on stage. It is necessary for progression, it represents the refusal to accept things as they are, it expresses the boldness to change, innovate and take a stand knowing you might fail. But more than this, art is an act of your soul. It is about a connection to something or someone bigger and more powerful than we are. God is the greatest artist of all, all creation is His work and we artists can only seek to glorify Him.

Reviews

[VasaK]

Thanks for your job!!!!!!!!

[Matthew M Murill]

Thank you very much for sharing these valuable thoughts on culture and your relationship to it. It was very pleasant and interesting for me to read your essay.