Art confidence or making yourself comfortable in the art world

Are you comfortable about art: Do you understand it, know what is all about, can you discuss it with some sort of confidence? Don’t worry – but you have to put down some work: being there, watching, listening, talking (should be more of that), reading, writing, disagreeing and vice versa, demonstrating, enjoying, laughing – it is all there.

Art is wider, more open and experimental than ever. It is exciting.

An educated mind full of knowledge and experiences from thousands of exhibitions and installations is not enough to make you safe, comfortable, sound and able to think and talk sensibly about the art you observe or take part in. The human mind often balks at new uses and ideas, being  a closed and conditioned system that must be touched, disturbed, shaken from time to time to function well.

So what is new: Technology is there, but so immature, design is now converging with art and forming a symbiosis in the new era of of networks, cooperation, interconnectedness, art is about capturing the moment and developing new techniques to do this, art is coming into design and with it better use and value of products, new forms of music and presentations are coming up, new arenas and settings. Performance artists are crowding in as well – drawing attention to their art form that is rapidly developing. And street art? Watch it, it will grow and become accepted – one day.

Paintings and drawings are in constant flux, but new formats and content can always be found. The obvious and the inexplicable, violent expressions versus stillness and calm is there. You can see special, or say deviant, ways of looking at or describing everyday activity.  The clinically scientific and analytical way of observance or viewing is found. The old themes of loneliness and togetherness are often seen, and hyperactivity is a recent theme. Clever and cunning art is always there.

The human mind is again shown as a roaming device full of unknown twists and turns. This constant outpouring  of new ways, solutions and combinations will continue forever. In art you will see sculpture, installations, political issues interwoven, controversies of many kinds presented as art, breaking convention personal and societal. It is called art, and it is converging with many things.

This is good, you should accept it and take part in it. Doing this will improve your self-confidence as well as your enjoyment of the presentations and activate your brain.

You will see new forms, new combinations, art as creation, find that your mind opens up, and you will be rewarded. True art has intelligence, it touches you too, often deeply, but sometimes just irritates you.

System thinking will also enter art: ecological principles, systems science, networks, symbiosis et al. It all ties together – you will find it rewarding!

Art quality is often measured by its ability to make a lasting impression – difficult to tell when first seen – but worth looking for: Maybe you can say you saw it when it first was shown!

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