Art and The Meaning of Life?

This evening I was eating a quick dinner at my desk and watching some artist videos on YouTube and I came across one that got me to thinking.  It wasn't the art or the artist themselves, but the opening of the video that did it.  It opened with a quote from Antoni Tapies that said, "Art should startle the viewer into thinking about the meaning of life."  I really only had one reaction to that quote and it was just one word.  Why?


First off I guess we would need to ask Mr. Tapies what he considers to be art, because I can think of a ton of art that wouldn't get me to thinking about the meaning of life in any way.  And having stopped by a gallery of some of Mr. Tapies' art I can say without hesitation that his art didn't get me to pondering any deep meanings of life either.


I would never criticize another artist or their art in the negative because I feel that there will always be someone out there that will appreciate it.  I may not, but someone will.  However, I will question an all-encompassing idea that art should be one thing or it should be another, no matter who was making the comment.  Even if Da Vinci had made that same comment I would feel just as negatively towards it.


I have seen incredible paintings of roses that I would consider great art, but they don't evoke a search for the meaning of life in my heart.  Drawings by my children and hung on the refrigerator when they were young were considered by myself to be art, but I don't look for those pieces to be hanging in the Louvre anytime soon.


Sometimes when I see art that looks like the artist was trying too hard to make a statement, I am left with nothing more than a desire to move on to the next piece.  Some artists are born to stir up the hearts of the viewers, causing feelings of deep uncertainty, while others are moved to paint something of beauty that will be pleasurable to look at.  It might just be a simple bowl of fruit or a portait of one's cat.


Some of the great artists of history have created art that evoked such responses and then the next week produced a piece that was just a fine piece of art.  Van Gogh could create a painting like Starry Night that caused people to write songs about it and then turn around and paint a vase full of sunflowers.  A painting of a vase of sunflowers by Van Gogh, while pleasing to the eye won't get me to thinking about my existence.

I think art is whatever the artist decides it is and when their work finds an accepting viewer then the artist has done their job.  If it evokes feelings of the majesty of our lives, then so be it.  If it just gets us to stop for a few minutes and admire the beauty of the artwork and maybe even pull out our wallets to buy it, then the artist has done just as valid a job.

Enjoy art for what it is.  Not for what it isn't.