There has been some confusion about whom I write. Yes, I write about you. And, let me tell you why. In an advanced art history course at Colorado State University, a professor led us through an intense week-long discussion on how to look at art. What does art mean? Why is it created? What does a viewer see? There are two levels of the viewing of art. First there is the intuitive emotional level. A viewer walks by a piece and loves it, hates, wants to look at it longer, feels angry, feels impassioned....
The second level comes mostly to those who have studied art and critique. Standing long enough in front of a piece and knowing at least a basic foundation of the elements and principles of art, a critic viewer can begin to define why the art piece creates the first level of reaction. The combination of the elements and principles are intertwined both intuitively and purposely by the artist to evoke the emotive values. One of the most obvious elements of an artwork that creates an emotive response is color. A dark piece makes the viewer feel one way while a lighter value creates another. Red evokes passion and anger. Blue evokes calm.
The artist creates art about you in that he is evoking what you bring to the piece through the collective use of design. A few nights ago, I went to a lecture by Carol Shin at the Front Range Contemporary Quilters Guild. She is a free-motion embroidery artist who creates photo realistic images with millions of tiny thread stitches. She jokes, "I took up embroidery on my machine because it was quicker then mixing paint." Of course, as a painter, I have to chuckle imagining changing all those threads as being quicker then mixing a dash of a color of paint. What was interesting about her talk through her life story in textile images is her use of chairs. Throughout her artist life span, she has made images of chairs. Some are symmetrical, some sit diagonal in the composition looking as if they will fall over, some are turned away, and others are facing you in a very confrontational manner. No, the viewer doesn't suspect the purposefully placed chair in the composition is evoking an emotional response of the artist's choosing. Shin explains that a chair is a way of putting a person in your work without limiting the image to someone specific. The viewer places themselves in the chair or they place someone they know in the chair. Therefore, Carol Shin create images about you.
Now, think also about the other arts. Music. Surely the songs are written specifically about one person and one experience. Or are they? Is Taylor Swift really having a Romeo and Juliet romance at the same time she is a nerdy teen sitting on the bleachers dreaming of Mr. So-and-So who is dating some hot cheerleader? Maybe. But, I bet you a dollar every teen listens to these songs and puts themselves right there in the picture the words create. Heck, my six year old daughter knows all the words to Love Story and can tell you her interpretation of Aura and Prince Philip seeing each other at the dance and secretly meeting on the steps. Or was that Cinderella? And, when I listen to the song I hear it differently having studied the original literary Romeo and Juliet inspiration by Shakespeare in several formats of live play, text, and Moonlighting episode with Bruce Willis and Cybil Shepard (wait, that was Taming of the Shrew.) And, I bet my daughter's dad, trying to pretend he isn't really listening to this feminine teen Pop idol of course, hears quite a different interpretation. He may even be projecting in the future what it will be like to have a love sick 15 year old daughter because goodness knows she is definitely one for the drama at age six.
Whether it is a visual art piece, music or text, it is all about you. You, the audience, project yourself into the art piece whether you know it or not. Yes, maybe I type in response to an actual conversation. Maybe I am just thinking about a movie I just saw or having a memory from my youth. Maybe I am really mad at someone or maybe I just had a conversation with a friend who was really mad at someone. Maybe it was you who hurt my feelings. Or, Maybe not. Does it really matter? As an author (I can't believe I just said that) I toss out thoughts and images. It is up to you to decide if I am writing about you. Chances are I am if you think I am. But, do keep in mind, I am also writing about that gal over there, my friend from ten years ago, a boyfriend I had in college, and the childhood cat who scarred my knee with her tiny claws. Please feel free to sit in my chairs. But, I do warn you that sometimes they might be a little uncomforable.
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