Art is a medium used by people world wide to express their ideas, their fears,and their joys. The artist takes the experiences of life and translates theminto a visual object, rich in colors, shapes and sizes, for all the world toobserve. As a casual observer of art, one is able to relive the feeling orexperience the artist was trying to display, if only for a brief moment in time. No matter what cultural background one comes from, art appreciation andenjoyment erases the barriers and the limits, and allows cross-culturalunderstanding and appraisal.
Art has always relied heavily upon universal symbols. One of the most wellknown universal symbols is the cross, meaning of course, religion. Religion ofa culture is one of the most frequently misjudged and stereotyped aspects Fromthe prehistoric times of the cave man to present day, art has depicted religiousscenes native to a specific culture. This is where most of the culturalboundaries lie. To one person, a smiling monkey can instill a primal feeling offear, while to another the first reaction is one of amusement. This differencein reaction is based upon religious upbringing, and nothing more. To certainculture, a smiling monkey is the scariest thing they could ever imagine, and toanother, it means laughter.
A close minded person viewing an ancient religiousmask would see nothing more than nonsense, while one who wishes to understandart would see the beauty of that culture and it’s beliefs, and would try toplace themselves in a way so that they may understand the original meaning ofthemask, and form an educated opinion on it.
Anyone can enjoy a piece of art, but what is it that makes a piece of art”good”? Is it the realism of the piece? Or the absolute perfectness of asculpture? Maybe good art is abstract, an array of shapes put together to makea point. Or maybe good art is a classical sculpture that catches the light justso and brings a warm smile to the viewers face. Is it a measure ofcraftsmanship? A measure of mediums used? A measure of technique? Or is itjust a measure of how it affects the viewer? Is good art visually irritating orvisually pleasing?
The beauty of art is impossible to define, for it’s beautyinherently lies in the eye of the beholder. As Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegelsaid, “Beauty is the spiritual put into a form.” So, in defining beauty, one isattempting to define the spiritual beliefs behind the form. This means thatthat which is seen as ugly is just something that is new or is not fullyunderstood by the viewer.
Knowledge of art is just a measure of experience. It is impossible for someoneto know art, but it is possible for someone to be well briefed in the field ofart and have an understanding of it. No one can ever be an expert on art,because art is indefinite. There is no right or wrong, good or bad, and therules change every day. When art is studied, the observer may note things suchas symmetry and balance, but they may never understand why they are there.
Onemay carefully measure the dimensions of an object, catalogue its mediums, itsshapes, its patterns. One may even catalogue their opinions on the piece, butthey will never fully capture the meaning of the piece, for seeing is notunderstanding. Maybe this is why art is studied. The absolute uncertainty isguaranteed, and it is human nature to want to understand what is not understood. This may be what draws people to art exhibits and museums, the primal urge tounderstand, to solve the great mystery of art, to be able to say “I get it, Ifully understand art”. This will never be possible.
