Take a trip to the modern art museum in New York and you might hear a few skeptics proclaiming "my son could make that!" Well, could he have? Not exactly, and that's partially the point of modern art -- even if a kid could do it, they didn't.
Here are a few more reasons why that just won't do as art criticism.
#5: Modern Artists Can Do Traditional Stuff, Too.
We hear this very frequently -- that modern art is a refuge for those who simply couldn't paint as well as the old classic painters, that they chose other forms of expression that would "question" the meaning of art because they weren't good enough to actually make it in the classic, demanding, difficult way.
But it's not true -- the great majority of all the modernists could really paint extremely well. It was just too difficult to keep going on in that fashion and say anything new or original, hence modernism's noisy introduction.
#4: Modern Artists Are Consistent.
When you're saying that your kid could do a painting just like, say, Mark Rothko, you're likely not taking into account that Rothko was able to do dozens of these paintings, and to respond to the demands of his art and his time with aplomb.
Plus, take someone like Barnett Newman -- it wasn't that he repeated his stripes, over and over, tricking the audience into buying his 'simplistic' paintings -- he kept the art world's focus with his constant production.
#3: Art is Made Out of the Actual Experience, Too.
Look, if your kid can whip out a reasonable imitation of a Jasper Johns, I'd celebrate too. But is he then going to introduce it into a world that's trying to figure out the validity of the artist/art relationship? Is he going to say anything (through art or through his declarations) about modernism itself?
If you're not interested in all of that, that's OK -- there are plenty of galleries full of renaissance painting that can make you happy for the rest of your life. But some people are concerned with evolving the standards, established in the 1400s and before, about what real art actually is. Your kid probably isn't one of these, but many others were.
#2: The Market Makes The Prices.
Most of the time people lose their minds and the more conservative critics emerge when a piece of art is bought with public funds that isn't a universally agreed-upon masterpiece (basically if it's not from the Italian renaissance, people will find problems with it).
Especially when a lot of money is paid, newspaper articles tend to get written with tremendous speed. But hey, the artist didn't set that price, and it's not his or her fault that the market is willing to pay for that.
#1: The Greatest Stuff Has Already Been Done.
It's both impossible and pointless to exist in the shadow of the renaissance, and since most modern and contemporary artists will acknowledge that there's no way they're ever going to sculpt a Michaelangelo or paint a Gioconda, why toil away in useless imitation when there are other forms to explore out there?
Here are a few more reasons why that just won't do as art criticism.
#5: Modern Artists Can Do Traditional Stuff, Too.
We hear this very frequently -- that modern art is a refuge for those who simply couldn't paint as well as the old classic painters, that they chose other forms of expression that would "question" the meaning of art because they weren't good enough to actually make it in the classic, demanding, difficult way.
But it's not true -- the great majority of all the modernists could really paint extremely well. It was just too difficult to keep going on in that fashion and say anything new or original, hence modernism's noisy introduction.
#4: Modern Artists Are Consistent.
When you're saying that your kid could do a painting just like, say, Mark Rothko, you're likely not taking into account that Rothko was able to do dozens of these paintings, and to respond to the demands of his art and his time with aplomb.
Plus, take someone like Barnett Newman -- it wasn't that he repeated his stripes, over and over, tricking the audience into buying his 'simplistic' paintings -- he kept the art world's focus with his constant production.
#3: Art is Made Out of the Actual Experience, Too.
Look, if your kid can whip out a reasonable imitation of a Jasper Johns, I'd celebrate too. But is he then going to introduce it into a world that's trying to figure out the validity of the artist/art relationship? Is he going to say anything (through art or through his declarations) about modernism itself?
If you're not interested in all of that, that's OK -- there are plenty of galleries full of renaissance painting that can make you happy for the rest of your life. But some people are concerned with evolving the standards, established in the 1400s and before, about what real art actually is. Your kid probably isn't one of these, but many others were.
#2: The Market Makes The Prices.
Most of the time people lose their minds and the more conservative critics emerge when a piece of art is bought with public funds that isn't a universally agreed-upon masterpiece (basically if it's not from the Italian renaissance, people will find problems with it).
Especially when a lot of money is paid, newspaper articles tend to get written with tremendous speed. But hey, the artist didn't set that price, and it's not his or her fault that the market is willing to pay for that.
#1: The Greatest Stuff Has Already Been Done.
It's both impossible and pointless to exist in the shadow of the renaissance, and since most modern and contemporary artists will acknowledge that there's no way they're ever going to sculpt a Michaelangelo or paint a Gioconda, why toil away in useless imitation when there are other forms to explore out there?
About the Author:
A clean and professional website can mean a lot to your artistic career, but it also costs a fortune. This is why ArtDealers website allows artists and photographers to create their own art websites with all the essential tools and features for a very reasonable price.
Post a Comment