What Is Art?
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What Is Art?

Can we define art, or is it what we make of it?

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What Is Art?
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Ever since I was a little kid, I've always liked art. From an early age, I was spreading colors on a piece of paper. Even though I have loved art, I have never really thought about the word "art" and all it defines. So, what is art? Does it have borders or qualifications?

There is a piece of art at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, VMFA, in which I studied and further investigated the question of what art is. I was shown a cube, which the museum guide explained wasn't done by the artist, but his art was rather the blueprint needed to make the cube. She explained how big it was to be, what colors he would want used and the space it needed to be in. Then, she pointed out the flaws in this: how the paint colors differed, the size differed and the rooms differed. Then she asked the big question: is this art? At first, my feelings were quite divided, because how can you call this art if it is just a copy of something else. I came to the conclusion that it is art, just a different kind of art. In my opinion, the art displayed on the wall is a copy, much like ones that are made of famous art all the time; true art is the blueprints themselves.This really opened my eyes more to the thought that anything can be art, it is all in the matter of perspective and the way you choose to look at it.

The great thing about the VMFA is that the art ranges from fine art to modern art and everything else in between. There is also so much art from different cultures. In my opinion, the museum itself is a piece of architectural art, because of its open structure and modern feel. Through the variety of art present at the museum, I favored the stained glass works. In particular, a piece by Georges de Feure of a stain glass window with a woman pictured inside. The piece of art is a part of the "Art Deco" exhibit from my favorite time period, the 1920s. So is it art? Yes, I think the stain glass window piece is art, without a doubt.

There isn't a definite answer to what art is; it's all in the opinion and the eyes of the beholder. In my opinion, art can be anything at all, it just depends on the way one looks at it. For example, in "American Beauty", one of the characters films a bag blowing in the wind and he calls it the most beautiful thing he has ever seen and simply true art. He doesn't see just a bag, but he sees the bag as a careless possession floating at the hands of the world. So while on the outside it may just look like a bag or a simple thing, it is meaningful, touching and it is art in someone's perspective. So the stain glass work to me is art, because stain glass is putting broken things together to make something beautiful. In a lot of ways, life is very similar to that; a lot of broken people coming together to make beautiful things.

On the other hand, there was a section of modern art which greatly contrasts with the stain glass works. In my opinion, it is still art, but just a different kind of art that doesn't use the same technique or craftsmanship. Many people would disagree with this and say modern is not real art, but just because something is different does not mean it should be disregarded. Often times, something being different scares people, but this new art is for a new generation of people. While I may not enjoy the new, modern art as much as I enjoy the older art pieces, this doesn't mean that I can not appreciate it. Art, much like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder and with this in mind, only the viewer can judge what he/she thinks is art and what he/she thinks is not.

So what is art? Art has no borders, except what your perception limits it to. So think, imagine and dream big with art -- it is what you make of it.

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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