PLAH 2601-D
Menghan Lin
2017 / 09 / 22
Can Abstraction Enable Normal People to be Artists?
We all know that Abstraction looks really disorganized, some are just like kids’s graffito, but if it is done by an artist, we consider it is art. But I think it is because artists are good at telling nonsenses which are insubstantial. And I insist that normal people would be better than artist in Abstraction area.
It is really common to see artists using Abstract style in present art environment, especially in pop art and minimalism art. Mark Rothko’s oil painting, No. 3 is a great example. Mark used a canvas roughly the height and width of a human standing with outstretched arms, and this work looks like a window or a door filled with two high contrast color, white and red. Edges of two colors are blurry, making the feeling that colors are flowing above the canvas. Through the painting, we can see that his brush stroke is really rough.
Abstraction doesn’t follow painting rules. When people are using Abstraction, it is not about their art skill, such as perspective or structure of objects. It is more about ideas and meaning expressed through artworks. Because of the contrast of the white and red, Mark’s painting can influent viewers’ feeling. Colors were attenuated, looks light and transparent, so that Mark enabled light and shade, feeling of warm and cold to be an integration. The relationship of colors and shapes expresses the existing status of things，reflecting people’s feeling and ways of doing things. Artists pursue creativity and intuition simultaneously they avoids symbolistic expression.
Artists aim to bring some thoughts to public through their works. But it seems this is a little bit ironic. Artists want to teach people who are living in their general life how to live. Even if we talk about No.3 which Mark wanted to express some feeling from, it is nonsense. Because ordinary people’s life is involving more feelings than most artists’ life. Many artists are rich, so that they can’t get the idea of suffering of people. How can they teach people philosophy of thinking or living? Impressionism was created after people invented photography technique, because realism couldn’t against photo. From another perspective, a normal person’s life is more vivid than the meaning which is behind a artwork, just like a photo. And art is originated from life.
Some people are suffering poverty, some are tormented by illness. Except these two obvious hardships, there are more other hardships. These people’s feelings can be so extreme after being tormented. Don’t care about art skill things, their works would be more impressive than artists’. That’s why many autistic patients can be good at painting. The paper is the only tunnel which they can express themselves from.
Many more people are living a ordinary life. Their life is humble and stereo. Different people have different trouble depends on their stratums. It is like in the movie, Her, Theodor says that he can imagine different people’s stories by observing their expression and action. Many artists are working on ideas, which are not material. If a metaphor for people is manufacturing industry, many artists can be treated as financial industry. Former one seems to be vulgar, but it is crucial for a country.
In conclusion, I prefer humble things to fancy, luxury things. Normal people are closer to “humble” meaning. Obviously, comparing with some artists’ nonsense, people’s real feelings towards life would enable them to go further than artists in Abstraction area.