Summing Up

Portrait of an Artist
(with apologies to James Joyce for the title)

There is one question that has almost become a mantra for the digital art class. “Is it art”?
I’ve tried to think through various definitions of “art”. The only definition that seems fairly clear is “a nickname for Arthur”. Most others involve the words “skill” and “esthetics” –but don’t reveal who or what determines what’s esthetic or skillful. While I’m not really any closer to the meaning of “art” – I have some ideas about what an “artist” is.
I know this will sound like one if those jokes where a man is seeking the meaning of life. His search leads him on an arduous journey to a high Himalayan peak to find a Guru who has pondered the meaning of life for 90 years and is said to have the answer. Half dead from the hardship of the journey, the man finally finds the Guru and asks, “What’s the meaning of life?” The Guru says, “Life is a bowl”. The man says, “After all this you tell me life is a bowl – that’s crazy.” The Guru shrugs and says, “OK, so maybe it’s not a bowl”.
“What’s an artist?” To save you the arduous journey (and the airfare to Katmandu) I’ll tell you – (after 90 minutes of thinking about it) I’ve come to the conclusion that an artist is a prism. Ideas pass through society the way light passes through space and the atmosphere. Artists capture these ideas, bend them so other people can see them, and express them in some tangible way. The artist is telling a story, informed by a point of view and expressed with materials available.
As for the materials - if we only had rocks and cave walls we would still have art. If we could paint with electrons on LCD monitors we’d still have art.
As for an artist telling an informed story - maybe “Guernica” illustrates this point. In 1937 the Nazi Air Force bombed the Spanish town of Guernica. Almost immediately Picasso began work on a large abstract mural depicting the tragic carnage. During World War II Picasso was living in Nazi occupied Paris. He was subject to harassment and searches. A Nazi officer, on finding a photo of Guernica in Picasso’s apartment asked, “Did you do that?” Picasso answered, “No, you did.”
OK, so maybe an artist is not a prism but I still think an artist bends the light so other people can see it.