THE WONDER OF ART
ideas into substance
Art emanates from human experience and creativity, ongoing for thousands of years.
What is considered to be art, craft, design or nature depends on which aspects of art we consider. Art with a capital A is often tied to aesthetics, the study of feelings and perception, regardless of use, or created as ‘art for its own sake,’ (‘l’art pour l’art’). Craft, from 'kraft' meaning spirit or force, is ironically often studied relative to its role in utility or use. Design is often relegated to its own subcategory as the foundation of utility and function, extending from the philosophy of ‘form follows function’. Natural forms such as a snowflake or seashell may have an integrity that is worth our attention, even though not human made. And all are created or considered within a context, social fabric or circumstance.
and so… we wonder
We wonder, imagine, ponder and dream about what is possible beyond our physical existence.
We wonder about why and how an artist came to create a work of art.
We wonder about how the art was received or rejected by the society in which the artist lived.
And we remain in awe, in wonder, of the intangible mystery of creation.
the media matters…
We begin to realize that the media matters. The physical material - the canvas, the block of wood, the glass or the fibers receive the artist's ideas. Concepts within an artist's mind begin to be transformed without the earth's gravity, without the limits of mortality. An idea begins to take on deeper, larger, broader presence in the mind, and even more as the art emerges.
The process reveals many new tangents from the starting idea while the challenge of working with physical media may curb the original intentions.
And we continue to learn of an artist’s resilience. An artist knows to carry on, to push, to hold the idea above the frustrations of the process. To persist in giving substance and form to one's vision is an artist’s ultimate struggle.