by Laurie Freeman

Created on: July 24, 2008

Art Appreciation

What is Art? The unanswerable question. I've always preferred "What is good Art?" Still a question that is difficult to develop a concrete definition but one where a discussion is open to a subjective starting point, whatever your opinion is. A remedial answer may be "art is whatever you like" or "when the artist declares it art", but art's scope is broad and some work can leave many in the masses miffed when they enter a gallery and view work that they cannot connect with and therefore cannot make an informed decision whether they do like it or not. Their ignorance is not their fault; they simply lack the skills and confidence to engage art. There is however, some tips and an almost formulaic approach to looking at art that anyone can practice and be able to discuss artwork from an informed perspective and develop art appreciation, something that many in the art world think is only reserved for those educated in the field.

There is certainly a fear of art that everyone experiences at some point. A fear that what you feel or experience about a work is incorrect. A fear that you like something when you shouldn't or vice versa. A fear of voicing your opinion to individuals that are educated in the said field. The foremost thing one needs to convince themselves is that art is a true and subjective experience, regardless of your background or the artists intent.

A great first step in understanding art, particularly contemporary art (art made in the last 15 years because it still possess' current cultural relevance and reference to the viewer), is reading the artist's statement or gallery's/curator's exhibition intent upon arriving at the gallery. Usually only a couple of paragraphs, you can get a description of the theme for the show or on individual works. These articles can be full of flamboyant art jargon with run-on sentences, but don't despair. For some reason, and to the detriment of art in that this language creates an air of elitism, this is the norm and does nothing but creates intimidation and frustration for some, if not most, audiences. If you can, speak to the artist, curator or invigilator and ask questions. You will find the explanation is much simpler than it appears in writing. Every question you pose pushes you to a better understanding of the work which is beneficial to you and the artist/curator/gallerist. Just because the message of the work is not blatantly evident to you, you should not feel any question you ask is stupid.

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