An artists creates… The object is… the viewer creates.

I have often thought the difference in writing is much the same. An academic works hard to create a single view, an undisputed message of clarity. A particular view of a singular part of the world.

Conversely, a novel will mean a thousand things to a thousand different people. A a photograph, or any piece of art is much the same.

I am not an artist, would that I was. But for me creation is an act of self expression without a direction. At its heart, art is a message to the world meant for no one and received, one hopes, by many. Like religion, art often provides us with, as you say, expressions of things that can not, or will not, be explained in any other medium. Yet this explanation is tied to the unique position of the artist on the world. In this way, can one argue that outside the artists own world (his head) does there exist a message that is transferable? And if we question this, do we therefore question whether or not are is communication at all? Can you communicate something that is received as something completely different? Or is the fuzzy message of generality, that mood or moment, that emotion or thought, does this represent the message. An inspiration of direction of thought? hmmm….

Finally, if art is expression of a part of the world that has no other medium to describe it(be that part of your head or of a sweet wrapper) is art then a suitable medium to communicate it?

For me, the way an artistic creation is received is just as interesting as why or how it was created. I certainly produce art for myself and my own exploration of the world around me, but equally I find it has a limited personal use if it is not distributed amongst others…hence the creation of this blog and a website to follow. The creation of an image or series of image is my exploration and once it is done it’s done. I rarely go back to my own work to study it or ponder its meanings – that is where the exposure of the piece comes into its own.

I might have a myriad of reasons for taking an image or creating something artistic…but when other people view it and provide their own comments, thoughts or interpretations – that’s when it takes on its new lease of life and gets a second wind if you like. People have made comments about photos I had taken that I never even considered, in some cases, seen things within them that I had never seen. For me, that is why it is essential for my own learning and satisfaction for others to see and contribute to something I have created.

I like the three forms of art idea. I think the artist certainly creates a message, but it maybe a message that is never received by anyone – or if it is, not in the exact form the artist intended. The viewer is always the person who has the ultimate control of creating the message – the artist or creator can only try to guide and direct them by their choice of subject, medium, edit etc etc.

As for the object itself…that’s a whole new can of worms! I am slightly obsessed with inanimate objects and often like to imagine them with some form of personality or characteristics of their own. I suppose it depends on the artefact in question; if it is a man made item that is the focus of discussion, then surely its original designer or creator has placed some message within it? Whether it’s a park bin, chocolate wrapper, sheet of paper – someone has designed and created it and therefore on some level, imbedded a message there in.
If it is a ‘natural’ object we are talking about – then that is a whole debate for theologians as to whether a divine force has created said object. If there is a God who has created or designed everything ‘natural’ then I guess they too would have placed a message within each design.

As a last thought – the viewer placing the meaning on an artistic creation reminds me of the whole debate about an artist’s original intention. It is not uncommon for a critics view of a piece to become the normal manner in which it is interpreted – yet the critics analysis and the meaning they place on it, might be thousands of times deeper and more involved than the artist ever intended. What may have begun as a simple study of a subject ends up being a complex creation laden with different rhetoric and signified meaning.

anyway…

http://blogs.nyu.edu/projects/materialworld/2009/05/pictures_worth_at_least_a_thou_1.html