WHERE IS ART?

Where art exists influences value, rejection and acceptance

MUSEUMS offer a broad range of art that reflects the ideas of artists from many places and time eras. 

The art can be controversial or boring, ugly or beautiful, startling or comforting, but tends to be valued for its originality, its craftsmanship, or its role in representing ideas within a societal context. Curators find and purchase art from around the world that is deemed important to share with the public or to enhance the role of the public museum as a community asset. 

GALLERIES tend to focus attention on a chosen set of artists, a specific medium, a place, or a time period. 

The art featured in a gallery, as an example, could be drawings made by Native Americans during the late 1800's, or it could be blown glass made in Poland during the 1930’s, or weavings and fabrics made in Ghana, West Africa during the 1960’s through today. The art could focus on local and regional art and craft persons regardless of when the art was made. Sometimes, the art is of extremely high quality. Other times, because art is for sale, the quality of what is offered is compromised in an attempt to please the public. Keep this idea in mind as you visit private galleries or art fairs. Ask yourself who might purchase what you see. 

STUDIOS offer a way for people to get close to the struggles of creativity and how art is made. 

The creative process is different for each person and it can stimulate our senses while at the same time satisfy our curiosity. Artists derive ideas from dreams, life experience and more. They decide on a medium to use and develop a challenging relationship with the medium. The process of translating an abstract idea within one’s mind into touchable material that does not always cooperate can cause joy and frustration. Therefore, within an artist’s studio, one can find works in progress that reflect the idea-into-substance struggle. Seeing a set of attempts by an artist gives a glimpse into the ongoing conflicts and resolutions that are part of an artist’s everyday existence. 

STREETS, fields, deserts, gardens, highways… any of these may be places for art, craft or the creative stroke of a human being.

Because our existence does not only happen behind closed doors, windows, or walls, then art, too, can exist in the wide open spaces. The ground on which we walk can become a canvas as the sand becomes the pigment. The buildings in cities and towns can take on new life as artists envision and follow through with invigorating the old surfaces or or forgotten spaces. Some street art contains strong messages within words in recent graffiti, while other outdoor art can be infused with cultural symbolism evolved throughout centuries.

KITCHENS can be a place for the gathering of highly skilled community members to create something delicious or intriguing.

As we continue to open our minds to the possibilities of creating, we can include many ventures that use spoons, forks, knives and temporary materials to invent or revere traditions. Carving, forming, tasting, melting, freezing or molding are techniques that can be refined by artisans in the kitchen. Some methods are continually improved upon while others result in time-honored traditional works. Other culinary forms can be used for experiments that will become models for larger sculptural activities.

GARAGES, outbuildings, a shed, a lean-to, or any structure that allows one to work outside one’s living space helps an artist use rough materials, powered machines or dangerous chemicals, working at a large scale with corroded found objects. Constructing a situation where one can experiment cannot be underestimated. To know that a space can accommodate wood shavings, broken shards of glass, frayed fibers, odd pieces found by the roadside, or giant tabletops to sketch out a drama in clay… this allows an artisan to push through the limits of the materials and express ideas without compromise.

COMMON OR SHARED AREAS

ART EXISTS IN MANY MORE PLACES that are not behind closed doors...

As you become attuned to creativity, you may discover unexpected places and contexts where art, craft and artisans may be found. Artists can combine resources of space, time and materials to form cooperative situations for creation and exhibitions. Large groups of people can convene to celebrate cultural values and create dynamic, colorful celebrations in the town center or across the countryside. Layered performances of light, color and texture can become exponentially enjoyed as viewers become participants by capturing video of fleeting action and visual stirrings - then posting images of the excitement online.

%%% Signed/anonymous, solo/group