Unit 3
Unit 3 Goals:
- Consider the origins of art
- Explore a brief history of Western Art
- Examine multiple perspectives for evaluating art
“As paintings became less and less like mirrors held up to nature, so that viewers could no longer decipher or naively admire them, critics as mediators increasingly had to explain to the public what made an artwork good or bad and even what a work ‘meant’” (p. 18).
Reflection
I think that the quote above says so much about what art is or was or can become. I love that the author brings up the idea of paintings as mirrors held up to nature because, in my opinion, that is exactly what art is. In most of our comments on our classmate’s work we have said that art is subjective and it’s up to the person viewing the work to decide what it means to them. I think it’s up to the artist to decide what the world means to them as they interpret it in their desired medium.
For me, I think that this is the most interesting when you look at artwork by little kids because it says so much about society. How their little minds interpret and see what is around them is often times much more colorful than what adults see. This is so great because even at a time when there are a lot of bad things happening in our world you know that there is a Kindergarten class somewhere in the world making art and showing us that there is still some color in the world.
Dissanayake, E. (1991). What is art for? In K. C. Caroll (Ed.). Keynote adresses 1991 (NAEA Convention), (pp.15-26). Reston, VA: National Art Education Association.