What is Art?

BOB AND ROBERTA SMITH

Bob and Roberta Smith specialize in witty slogans in his work. He uses paint as his main medium to produce his work in the form of signs. His relation to mine is the fact he uses a lot of text to get his messages and ideas across to the public. His messages are mostly humorous about Art, politics ect to support a lot of campaigns. Maybe the element of humor he has developed in his work is a key part and an element he uses on purpose for the viewer to connect with the work?

I really like his work I find it very satisfying and in a sense it is very likable as it is easy on the eye but thought provoking. These are elements my work has but then there is nothing else. How do I give my work that boost? By Bob and Roberta Smith having individual pieces, I feel it makes his work valuable. His work has the same constant theme. It is the Art.

It has just struck me that maybe I need to make my work more valuable. Make it a piece of Art rather then an installation Art. This would give my work a sense of value. But… on the other hand by not having a physical piece of Art it backs my hole idea and concept of What is Art? If I make a physical piece of Art I am stating as an Artist that I think this is Art. By having the idea of my walls covered in text, technically it does not exist until the viewer decides themselves the realty of the work, making the Art what they believe is Art?

How do I get my viewer to understand this? Rather then seeing it as it is?

Am I Making sense?

What I have just written specks for it self? Maybe I need to have this as a statement. How do I make what I am saying into a metaphor that the viewer is going to understand?

“If I make a physical piece of Art I am stating as an Artist that I think this is Art. By having the idea of my walls covered in text, technically it does not exist until the viewer decides themselves the realty of the work, making the Art what they believe is Art?”

GOOD ENOUGH FOR THE DEGREE SHOW??

I am thinking this project is getting serious. Is this good enough for the degree show?

If I decide to present this project in the degree show then I would have a few things that I would need to think about and address.

Redoing it.

The wall behind what is currently there will need to be painted white, as it has marks on. Most probably, I would have to cut the letters out again, if they are damaged when removing what is currently on my wall.

I would also need to make sure all my letters are straight when re applying. A solution to this would be to project lines on to the wall with an overhead projector. Most probably, I would have to cut the letters out again if they are damaged when removing what is currently on my wall.

My presentation of how I place the words on the wall.

Currently I am placing my quotes as a random process. I have adapted to the random process because I do not want to put to much thought into the organization of the words. The only rules I follow is that I make sure my quotes are, spread out individually and clearly. I do not want a rhythm of pattern regarding how the words are placed because I do not want to distract the viewer too much into thinking about the appearance. I believe the colours I have chosen are enough to attract the viewers into my works presence. It is important to remember my work is more about the idea and purpose behind it. Its appearance is just an element.

Size of the work as a hole.

I do want to make it bigger, in the sense of covering as much wall space as I can, with as much quotes as possible. I am imagining three walls. It will be a lot for the eye to take in and people won’t help but have to stop and stand for a moment to be able to take it all in. Yes!! I am forcing the viewer to interact, is my work manipulating the viewers?

Size of individual letters.

I need to experiment a little more into how I present my words. By making the letters different in size, like a contrast it may give my wall a little more of an interesting look.

Lighting.

Lighting did not even cross my mind until recently. Do I want dimmed lighting? Do I want normal light? Or do I want bright lights? I need to start addressing this project as one big installation rather then the project itself.

Floor space and ceiling?

Do I want to address this?

That little something else.

This project needs a little something else to give it that push towards it being a good project. I have the starting point but it needs to be developed into the best it can be.

Do I want or need to be in the installation, as I am the original source of this piece of Art?

ESTABLISHING MY CURRENT PROJECT

Showed my blog pictures to my family yesterday and explained a few things about my Art. It was wired showing them because it is not like talking to the Art world. They did not get it. I felt, as what I do is not worthy of anything. The Art world is such a different world to reality… what is reality?

It is as if you have got inside and out, the Art world is inside and reality is on the outside. Again why do I say reality?? Again, what is reality?

It is like I had a reality check while I was talking about my work, and then I just didn’t want to talk about it anymore I felt a bit alien.

Then it happened again the other day. I was talking to an Art teacher and she asked me what Art I do, of course after she asked if I paint or draw!! I had the same problem again; I did not know what to say or how to explain it? I just said my work is conceptual, Art about Art…

After reading back over my blog and thinking hard about what my work represents this is my conclusion.

My works gets attention in the studio as people walk pass. It appears I have nailed the aesthetically pleasing element, which let’s face it is the original grabber! Once people look at my work that is when the viewer starts to interact with the work. Viewers then start to come to the realization, the work is actually deeper then it first appears. This I am hoping will then stimulate the viewers mind. The viewer then starts reading, (literally because of the content of the words) into the work, as a process of interpretation. This is something I wanted to highlight, as it is an important element in Art. Buy using words naturally the viewer starts to interpret without even realizing. This is when the conceptual elements then start to form in my work. As the viewer is interpreting the words they start to conclude their own reality and relate to the sentences of the words in their mind.

Hopefully my work will not end their and the thoughts of the viewers will then be transformed into conversations and debate. At this point I would label my work a success.

Skill has been another element in my Artistic journey that I have struggled to come to terms with. How can I bring physical skill into something conceptual? Every single letter that is on the wall I have hand cut myself. There is a lot of skill and patience that is present in this piece of work.

Elements my work has and address:

Art about Art

Questioning the Art world

Questioning the viewers

Aesthetic elements

Conceptual elements

Skill – cutting each word out individually

Drawing

The idea – The quotes are used to spark the viewer’s own ideas and interpretations

Debate

Conversations

Stimulating

Existence

Direct

COMMENTS BELOW WELCOME

What I have done in the Week commencing 17^th March 2014

New quotes added to my wall.

“You r the Art”

I feel that the viewers are an important role in making a piece of Art successful. If there were no viewers to interact and interpret their own realities, the Art world would not exist. Surely, you can only judge an Artwork on how it affects you personally.

Think of it this way. If an object is presented in an Art environment or Artistic context, viewers will always find their own justifications for what the object is representing. Regarding the viewers have no pre influences or information feed to them about the “Art”.

“The worst Artist in the world”

I may be the worst Artist in the world. I don’t go to Gallery’s regularly and I don’t do exhibitions. I don’t go out of my way to look at Art, I don’t sell work and I don’t speak the Artist jargon?

What the hell am I?

“Pretentious”

When sitting in the studio or in an artistic environment, Artist’s can be very pretentious. In other words sometimes when an Artist talks about their work, on occasion its a load of shit!! Sometimes it is as if the Artist is just looking for excuses to justify what they have done.

Artistic discussions can also be very pretentious! ART IS NOT FACT!

“Forced Art”

As an Artist, I feel Art is something you feel, something that just flows. Forced Art is something an Artist could experience when they have no ideas or inspirations but have to produce “Art” to meet expectations.

• 
• 
• 
• 

Update for this weeks time in the studio…

“Too much bad Art”

This was inspired from looking at Art that is presented in the Art world such as Martin Creed, lights going on and off Work no.227. The response I get from people out of the studio when I talk to them, is what the hell? How the hell is that Art? As a result Art as simplistic as this could be classed as bad Art. I personally thinks its extremely clever and intellectual. I believe it reflects Art itself. Because of its simplistic state of existence it confuses viewers and makes them think of justifications for it, therefore making it successful, as there is no straight reason for it.

“I wanna impress but protest”

This is from two parts of my mind. I want to make Art, for example my wall, but I want to impress my viewers? I don’t feel my wall impresses viewers. So how do I balance my work to cover all of these elements? I find some viewers are very shallow when viewing Art and take it for its appearance? This is why I choose to use bright colors in my wall work, as its is pleasing to view through the eyes?

“Wtf is Art”

This is the most important one. This is because this was the first thing I said which triggered all my work to start questioning the Art world.

When I was younger I used to paint pictures all the time on my bedroom floor. I thought I was making Art. I had a naive mind, were I just drew what I felt with no motive story or reason behind it.

Then I went to university. We had a summer project to make some Art and I found myself looking for reasons to make Art. This is were the quote “Forced Art” comes from. To make Art work, it should not be forced.

I suppose I am lost in this spiral of the Art World. I find that the work I produce now about questioning Art is my path to find who I am and were I stand in the Art world.

• 
• 
• 
•