What is Art?
Well, hello~! :]
Turns out there are still a myriad of topics I could absolutely write books on if I so chose…but with other priorities taking the lead, instead, I’m reviving the old blogging habit for my tangent-ridden, psychological headaches. :] If you’re cool with that, welcome to (or back to) the rabbit hole of my abyssal thoughts. Buckle up.
So, what is art?
[baby don’t hurt me]
We now live in a world where artificial intelligence (AI) can generate imagery that some folks consider art and where definitions we once universally understood can be re-worked on a whim by anyone for any reason. This peculiar reality forced me into my deep-thinking mode for longer than usual, so I asked some folks for their thoughts on art, specifically.
“Without a dictionary…define art. I’m curious what it is to you,” I requested.
Responses included:
“…the creative expression of one's soul.”
“Visual expressions of the heart.”
“Something that expresses a thought or feeling, or something that is beautiful to the artist (even something like a building or a man made garden). A recreation (painting of something, etc) of a beautiful nature made scene would be art too, no matter how real or abstract it is. A human would have to be the creator.”“Self expression using visuals.”
“Expressions of the heart!”
“…self/group expression in any form. And self expression doesn’t necessarily have to pertain to one’s self.”“Art = release”
“I believe art can be anyway someone expresses themselves and can express themselves without fear of being judged or being able to capture a moment or tell a story. Whether it be music, painting, sculpting, dancing, singing, acting, photography etc.”
“Creative expression using media.”
“An expression of one's inner or outer self in the form of acts, audio, and visual representations.”
“Art provokes thought and/or emotion.”
“Aesthetics.”
“Art is the expression of feeling, thought or actions. It is a form of communication where the message is fluid depending on the observer. There are works of art. There are skills and performances that are art. There are displays that wasn’t [sic] suppose to be art, but seen as art.”
“Art is the expression from within one person expressed outwardly for another person to appreciate.”
“The ability to take experiences and thoughts and communicate them in a visual manner.”
In a conversation over the phone, my dad mentioned similar things as above and added that there’s an “orderliness” to what he considers art. Abstract isn’t something he understands in a way that makes it seem like art to him. I held the same sentiment for many years and still do, to an extent, despite recognizing some abstract work as successfully meaningful.
And then someone let ChatGPT have a say:
“Art is highly subjective, and what one person considers art, another may not. The diversity of artistic expressions and personal interpretations make it challenging to establish a universal definition that satisfies everyone. The concept of art has evolved over time and continues to do so. What was considered art centuries ago may not align with contemporary perspectives. As societal values, cultural contexts, and artistic trends change, attempting to define art becomes increasingly complex.”
There were some clear themes to be found those inquiry results. ‘The personal expression of a human being’ seemed to resound the loudest. Of course, AI had to get a little loose with its answer. :] But I’ve got some good thoughts to work with on this.
ChatGPT successfully gathered human insights on how subjective art really is. And the subjectivity is actually what perpetuated my love/hate relationship with art school (aside from the mind-numbing, multi-hour critique sessions). The concept of allowing an opinionated instructor to slap a grade on any piece of artwork based on anything except objective assignment goals was and will always be asinine to me. But I digress.
Especially as a digital artist, I am more than willing to leave room for new artistic frontiers. What I’m not as ready to budge on is the basic, core definition of what art is.
Why should art have a core definition?
[minitangent]
As human beings, we operate on belief systems. A few years ago, I read a book on imposter syndrome (which I absolutely plan to write about later) and learned that our minds form beliefs about the world we live in partially to lessen the cognitive load on our brains. If we constantly have to re-learn or re-evaluate what we’re experiencing in life, the efficiency of our functionality is compromised. Beliefs make it easier to conduct ourselves in a learned fashion in familiar situations. It’s how we have judicial systems that bring order to societies and how we know not to repeat actions that caused us harm in the past. At some point, we have to take a stance on something, or we’ll either experience analysis paralysis or chaos and lack of structure forever and ever amen. This is also why it’s so hard to let go of beliefs once we’ve formed them.
There’s certainly something to be said about continuing to learn and grow with our environments, but there’s also the need to move forward and do so with what we know and understand. Constantly recalculating is exhausting and unproductive. We will learn many things the hard way because of this, but the point is that we WILL LEARN.
This is reiterating what may be common sense to some. Definitions have very real and powerful purpose in our lives as they aid us in forming beliefs to support the functionality of our existence. Take them away or make them subjective and we’ve got a sizable, steaming heap of human malfunction and vulnerability. George Orwell’s book, 1984, portrayed this concept terrifyingly well.
[/endminitangent]
Don’t get me wrong - I’m certainly not the most in-the-box-living kind of gal. However, bestowing art with a core definition is important to me, not just because I’m an artist, but also because art, as we’ve understood it up to this point, is a foundational building block in the livelihoods of each person on planet Earth. Don’t worry, I’ll save that tangent for another blog entry. But this is something worth our attention.
How is and was art defined?
Currently, the first definition of art in the Oxford Dictionary is: “the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.”
That pretty much jives with the main theme in my earlier inquiry. Although, an article I read on ThoughtCo.com recently went a little deeper and pulled up ancient history to help explain how we got to our view art today.
“Mimesis,” a word from ancient Greek, was a term that was used to describe things like imitation, representation, the act of expression, or the presentation of the self. Plato is credited with using this term in relation to art, specifically, as it pertained to the creation of something that held beauty, meaning, and a true likeness of the subject.
Then, there came the idea that art should convey a deep expression of emotion during the Romanticism movement in the 18th century, followed closely by a notion from Immanuel Kant that art is found in the forming or making of a piece.
We see a piece of each of these definitions in how we define art today, and I think it’s important to note how the evolution of our views on art has been as much of a spiritual journey as it has technical. There’s a clear connection across the ages between the artist and their creation in a way that explores the essence of existence and everything therein.
What are “the arts?”
Pertinent to the core definition of art is what we consider “the arts” to be. While slightly derivative of the term “art,” the concept of the arts as a whole helps to paint a more detailed picture of what exactly art is. Within, we find continued themes of expression, storytelling, and cultural practices. They each, unfailingly, explore the intricacies of human life across a broad spectrum of visual, literary, and performance media.
However, the arts can delve into more than what we consider mere expression. Multidisciplinary works such as video games and functional design pull from a deep understanding of the humanities (e.g. philosophy, religion, language, history, etc.) to enhance the human experience on the daily. In addition, fields such as education, politics, medicine, and engineering employ an arguably large measure of creativity to experiment, problem solve, and ultimately cater to the complexities of human nature.
“The art of…” and “There’s an art to it…”
That brings us to my final (at least for this blog) segment of thoughts on what art may actually be: what do people mean when they say “the art of” something, or “there’s an art to it?” I alluded to part of the answer in the previous paragraph with that measure of creativity needed to effectively tackle varying focus areas.
When people say "the art of..." they are typically referring to the skill or practice involved in mastering a particular activity, craft, or discipline. The phrase implies that there is a level of expertise, creativity, and finesse involved in performing or creating something in that domain. For example…"the art of cooking" refers to the skill and creativity involved in preparing delicious meals. "The art of negotiation" refers to the strategic skill and tactics used to reach agreements in business or personal interactions. And "the art of communication" refers to the ability to convey ideas effectively and persuasively through various forms of expression, such as speaking, writing, or body language.
In essence, "the art of..." suggests that there is both a science and an artistry (creative skill) to the activity, emphasizing the importance of skill, technique, and creativity in its execution.
Similarly, when people say "there's an art to it," they are expressing that a particular task or activity requires skill, finesse, creativity, or a certain level of expertise to be done well. The statement suggests that there is more to the task than just following a set of instructions or guidelines…but that there’s a nuanced approach or technique that separates a proficient performance from an average one.
Delving into that perspective put my previous beliefs about art in a bit of a bind and was partially responsible for my reevaluation on what I think art is.
I started listening to some podcasts by Dr. Jordan Peterson last year, and he said something about art that really ticked me off. In his episode titled ‘Art is Not Optional, It’s the Point,’ he adamantly asserted that “art means spectacular skill.” I flew off the handle and ranted about this to my boyfriend and the colleague who suggested the podcasts…attesting that I couldn’t believe he’d said something like that about a thing as subjective as art. Are you really going to tell me the soulful expression of a person isn’t art if it’s not done on a subjectively skillful level? But then, this year, I did the deep dive I’m writing about now. And you know what? I’m backtracking…just a bit.
So what is art, really ?
I have been so humbled on this quest for a simple definition with deep, existential connotations. Some of my previous assumptions are still in tact, others have been reworked…and I’ve got some brand new beliefs to go along with those. The concept of art has the capacity to span far greater lengths than what I’m willing to cover here. But I think I’ve settled on my stance.
Before I drop the definition, some notes to keep in mind:
✧ Creativity = the use of the imagination or original ideas
✧ Skill = a particular ability
✧ Sentient = intelligent consciousness capable of feeling, sensing, or experiencing perceptions subjectively
Okay…here we go:
Art is creativity perceived by human beings to be purposefully applied by sentient life with skill in an expressive, representational, and/or functional manner to explore, commemorate, process, enhance, celebrate, and/or connect with the intricacies of existence.
And I feel the need to note that the level of skill required is nowhere to be found in that stance - for good reason.
So many more thoughts…SO, so many. But I’ll end this here. :] The goal has been met. I’ll talk more about AI at a later date.
Best wishes on your journey…✧
~Ashleigh
