How to Rediscover Art - Part I
About 10 years ago, I used to draw, paint or work on some type of art everyday. Then came college. I grew busy with school work, I got married and I started a career in that field, youth ministry. Along the way, I drew only occasionally… usually in my college notes or on napkins in a restaurant while I waited on my food. I’d go up to the museum when I could and buy sketch books that usually just became a place for storing random notes (such as the Psychology Test drawing here)and doodles rather than a valuable resource they could be. In short, I’ve lost a lot of the aquired abilities over the years that I had gained at one time. I want to get that back.
For me, writing about it is probably the core part of that process as it helps me fulfill that purpose. The passion itself, drives it.
Once asked why he made art, American Painter Barnett Newman responded “To have something to look at.”
I agree with this sentiment as well, but art also does fulfill some purposes that our society needs to function. Chapter 3 of Gilbert’s “Living with Art” one of my wifes old college textbooks, details several functions that art serves.
- The Sacred Realm - Usually to illustrate a religious philosophy or to tell a story of that faith (or absence of it in some cases)
- The Social Order - How we function as a society
- Storytelling - What happened and how
- The Here and Now - What’s going on around us?
- The Human Experience - Live, love, work, play and die
- Invention and Fantasy - The imaginative side of ourselves
- Art and Nature - The woods, the sky, the trees, bees and birds
- Art and Art - Just something to look at, pretty, thought provoking, simple, or functional
While the categories are from the book, the descriptions are my own. Based off of each of these categories, I think my art generally tends to be a bit of a mix of all of them with individual pieces.
How to rediscover art today: Take a moment when you see a piece of art and ask “What purpose does this serve?”
Tags: art, artist, discover, artists, rediscover, how to
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