Tuesday, March 6, 2007

....but is it art?

I went to the Springville art museum last night and I was AMAZED at #1 just how amazingly huge that space is (for such a small looking building) and #2 how much fantastic (and diverse!) art was hanging in there. Funny because when I moved here I was told by a close source that it wasn't worth bothering with. I can understand the fact that this person has been to Europe, etc and has seen REAL ART (their phrase not mine) but what a waste to discount such an amazing local resource.

So if they don't have a Picasso or Rembrandt its not a museum? Because some person isn't famous like Van Gogh or Matisse their work is crap? I never would have pictured this person as a snob but I was shocked to find out how wrong they were....apparently we have COMPLETELY different ideas about what we consider art. I can see why they call this town "Art City" and I am proud to call myself an artist (well I consider myself one anyway but I can truly call myself one since I live here!!!!!)

Frankly we all have different things we consider art--for some its photography, computer editing (or a mesh of the two), charcoal/paints/pastels, mixed media (my fave!)... heck I even consider my poetry as an art form! It never fails to amaze me how unless it fits someone's molded, pre-fab idea it gets discounted. Who can put a label on what moves and speaks to another person? Who gets to decide just what is and what isn't art?

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