Finally, A Book That Explains Contemporary Art!

     I have a habit of collecting books, historical often but am addicted also to art books. Famous artists, works of art, history of art ... you get the picture. I am not exactly sure how I stumbled on WHO'S AFRAID OF CONTEMPORARY ART by Kyung An and Jessica Cerasi, probably something I read in the Sunday paper, and ordered on Amazon or found in the Barnes & Noble in Palm Desert. 

     While I don't know where I found it, I read it and am glad I did.

     To be honest, much of contemporary art eludes me. I never really had a deep appreciation for the Expressionist period, though I did love the art of Vincent Van Gogh, until I went to the Los Angeles County Art Museum with a tour of their exhibition by the curator of the exhibit. Walking through the show with no visitors, she was able to explain much of the motivations of the artists in a way that was, well, in plain English. Explaining and standing among this amazing collection, I could finally understand the world as seen through the many artist's eyes.

     All art is a form of reflection, be it of beauty, history, rebellion, and probably much, much more. With an image of one kind or another it tries, much like a writer with words,  to tell a story.

MONA LISA by Da Vinci

   The irony of art today is that a realist image of the MONA LISA is the best known and recognized painting in the world, the entire world. While the enigmatic smile befuddles us even today, there is a form of peace and quiet that haunts. Few would consider this contemporary art today, but it was quite modern in its day. It is an image that haunts and often made fun of today. Maybe that is a token of appreciation to its amazing and haunting image. Often we mock what we do not understand.

STARRY NIGHY by Vincent Van Gogh

   The second most recognized painting in the world is Van Gogh's STARRY NIGHT that resides at Museum of Modern Art in New York City. 

     Now this is art that is starting to enter the realm of contemporary art. What makes it so amazing is how this early contemporary art piece has captured the hearts and minds of art critics and viewers. When he painted, Van Gogh's art caused consternation of fellow artists and much has been made of his mental state. Was he crazy as so many allege? Or did he lead the way for fellow artists to paint what they felt, not necessarily what they saw. 

     WHOSE AFRAID goes a long way towards explaining modern, contemporary art. To me art was painting, but increasingly we are seeing film, video, people acting out or machines doing things that are also called art. Warhol famously made everyday objects "art." Probably since the end of the Second World War, though there were movements in Europe from the time of Van Gogh, that art became increasingly abstracted. Duchamp's NUDE DESCENDING A STAIRCASE was all color and lines; there was no figure per se. German artists came on board quickly having missed the French Salon Era but were temporarily halted by Hitler who hated contemporary art and put a stop to it. Both sides of the Atlantic exploded after the war. While we may not be as familiar with it Latin and South America fell in line. Looking at a volume of Latin artists you realize they also painted all genre's.

An index of explaining contemporary art

    An, a curator at the Guggenheim in New York City and Cerasi, an Exhibitions Manager go a long way toward making the puzzling, puzzle solved. Going from A - Z, with some quirky uses of the letters, explain what artist are trying to show, to depict, how a gallery works, the amount of work it takes to mount a show, how artists are merchandised  both in a gallery and what have become increasingly, worldwide shows. 

    One chapter especially tickled me. They went head on and in their way chastised the verbiage of art. They ask, "Why is it so difficult to find plain English in the art world?" They go on to cite a study of this form of "Artspeak" using press releases from the Internet for 13 years. What were the defining features? International Art English (IAE) loves to invent nouns: 'potential' becomes 'potentiality," ' experience becomes experiencability. In IAE the longer the word the better. This reminds me of an English class I took in college. We had to take so many English credits and one of my teachers more or less liked my writing until he found out I was a Journalism major. In short Journalists are taught to use as few words as necessary. He felt that "more" description was better. He finally relented and gave me a "B." Maybe this same professor was hired by the art professionals.

    That said, and I am glad they said it,  I know the next time I see a gallery show and stare at some abstract of whatever it may be, or abstraction of something familiar, I will try to understand what the artist is trying to depict. Though I still feel that if it's that obscure, maybe it needs some refinement. If you can talk to the artist, that makes it all the better. Artists really are visualizes, societal mirrors if you will, and as anyone knows after reading a book then seeing the movie, the vision of the author is often not what the director sees and creates.

     

Thank you for reading my blog. I invite you to take the time to read earlier blogs where my emphasis is to explore the ways art and design affects our daily lives ... and always has. I share with you what inspires me with the hope that it will inspire you as well. Comments are always welcomed! 

Be sure to check my ETSY store ... KrugsStudio.etsy.com. I am adding many new and exciting, collectible birdhouses and craft items. Many of the items talked about here will be for sale there!