Introductions
How can you capture everything about the world of art in a single book? The answer is simple: You can’t. Art is an incredibly broad and ever-changing field, and it would be silly for us to think we could fit it all into one little book. The definition of art itself is so elusive that people have been arguing about it for thousands of years with no consensus in sight. (See page 19 for more on “what is art?” It’s okay—you can skip around a bit if you like.)
With respect for the art world’s enormous scope, we’ve slimmed down our subject matter to touch mainly on the visual arts, highlighting ideas, events, and personalities that we feel are important to understanding the big picture of art and its fluid boundaries. Whether your goal is to build on a previously under-nurtured interest in art, freshen up your existing knowledge, or gain inspiration to create your own artwork, you’re sure to find value in the pages that follow.
We’ve organized the content of this book into ten categories that span the range of art: Art 101, Philosophy of Art, Art Through the Ages, Profiles in Art, A Picture’s Worth 1000 200 Words, Art from the Inside Out, Art Around the World, Unexpected Art Forms, Artistic Oddities, and Step-by-Step Exercises. In that order, the ten categories will rotate throughout the year, bringing you a variety of unique voices to guide you on your journey. If all goes well, you’ll receive a full year’s worth of education and entertainment! But, before you jump ahead to Day 1, read the following pages to get a sense of the year to come as the author of each category states his or her intentions.
ART 101 WITH ELIZABETH T. GILBERT
For some people, art is a luxury to be enjoyed as decoration or pursued as a hobby. For others, art is essential, quenching a thirst for expression in a way no other outlet can. Regardless of the function art serves for us, we could all use a little more of it in our lives than we usually allow.
Art 101 isn’t just for readers whose intention is to become an artist. Many of the terms and theories in this category are also significant for art lovers desiring a framework from which they can view and discuss art. Interpreting, savoring, and sharing thoughts about art are all made easiest when equipped with the fundamental knowledge and pertinent vocabulary that follows.
But to satisfy those who do want to try their hand at art, I also cover the basics of drawing and painting, introducing you to a handful of media and techniques. My goal is not to load you with intimidating details or instructions, but rather to provide a springboard for artistic experimentation. You never know—with the help of these readings, some of you might just make the leap from art lover to artist. —ETG
PHILOSOPHY OF ART WITH COLIN GILBERT
The universe of art is nebulous in nature, occupying an unruly landscape where passionate revolution is always blurring the boundaries of what is tasteful and acceptable. Ever since humankind first became aware of its predicament and naturally overwhelmed by it, people have needed an outlet for their thoughts and emotions. Thus, art exists as a vehicle for expression. The branches of its evolution have continued to blossom in unexpected ways, dividing exponentially over time and reaching across every continent.
Analyzing art as an abstract concept is one of the most intriguing of all philosophical pursuits, but also one of the most maddening. You know the people who can’t decide whether falling trees make sounds? Well, imagine the same people trying to agree on the value of art or the essence of beauty. It’s not going to be a pretty picture... Or maybe it will be pretty to some but not others. Perhaps the perception of beauty is different for each individual... Are you starting to get a sense of what you’re in for?
Our focus in these pages will be on breadth rather than depth, touching on many different topics and thereby giving you a chance to see what naturally engages your curiosity. Ideally, you will discover new areas of interest and explore them independently in the future. Since these philosophers’ ideas have a timeless relevance to our world, worthy of modern interpretation, we’ll speak of them in the present tense. —CKG
ART THROUGH THE AGES WITH AMY RUNYEN
Why read about art history? What do we gain from knowing when and how a movement, “-ism,” or era came about, and why it is important? Well, beyond its entertainment value, art history informs us about human history—not just about what fashions people used to sport, but how people used to think. Art history can be the compass that guides us on artistic journeys. Understanding what came before helps prevent us from walking in circles (although that could technically be considered performance art). Art is more than a record of events and lives past; it is an existential cry and a testament to the creative human spirit. Each time new art is created, another spoke is added in the ever-turning wheel of art history.
From Paleolithic cave painting to contemporary electronic media, these selected writings are an overview of some of the most influential eras in art history primarily from the Western world, along with a few often overlooked but relevant movements. It is my sincere hope that you will enjoy them and build a deeper appreciation for this wondrous and living entity we call “art.” —ARR
PROFILES IN ART WITH REBECCA J. RAZO
The closest I’ve ever come to being an artist was in the first grade when my painting won third place in a school contest. My “masterpiece” depicted a young girl and a brown dog standing next to a red-apple tree in the front yard of a two-story house. Although the scene wasn’t an exact representation of my life—my family lived in a one-story, the green apple tree was in the backyard, and we had a black dog—my circumstances obviously provided some artistic inspiration.
To what extent does an artist’s background influence his or her art? Van Gogh’s later works reflected his deeply distressed state of mind. Picasso’s many women surfaced in his work repeatedly. Michelangelo depicted a papal chamberlain, whom he disliked, in hell in The Last Judgment. Clearly, in these cases, art imitated life.
While it’s impossible to know all of the driving forces behind an artist’s inspiration, possessing even rudimentary knowledge about his or her life provides just one of many enriching lenses through which to view a work. It widens perspective and deepens understanding; it enables us to connect with an artist’s vulnerability and resolve; it invites us to sway to the energy of the art like we would an evocative melody. An artist’s story is as much a gift as the artwork itself. —RJR
A PICTURE’S WORTH 1000 200 WORDS WITH DYLAN GILBERT
A picture’s worth 1000 words...we’ve heard the cliché a million times. This expression is a convenient way to say that pages of information can be communicated by a simple picture. But have you ever noticed that most people have very little to say when asked to talk about a painting? In just about every case, we can count on the average response telling us that a picture’s worth more like 10 words (maybe 20 if we’re lucky).
So what are we missing? Often it’s one fancy little word: context. Behind every great work of art, there is a great story. The art in this book didn’t just randomly spring into existence; each piece was painted by an artist who occupies a unique place in the world. The majority of people reading this book can recognize at least a few of the works featured in the following pages. However, many people may not know anything about the stories these paintings tell or the impact these paintings had—and continue to have—on the art world.
In touching on the significance of each painting, I hope to give you a new appreciation and perspective on both the artist and his or her creation—an insight or kernal of knowledge that might inspire you to learn more. Although (as our cliché suggests) there is much to say about each painting, my editor has informed me that I have only about 200 words to work with. So as long as we’re reading this book, let’s just have the saying go like this: A picture’s worth 200 words. —DDG
ART FROM THE INSIDE OUT WITH SHARON ROBINSON
For the major players in the “art world”—from artists and critics to collectors and museum directors—the definition of art is in constant flux, often shifting from one exhibition or trend to the next. Art from the Inside Out will take you on a journey to explore the origins of museums in 18th century Europe to the frenetic pace of New York City during Armory Week. You will find yourself front and center at an art auction, breathing in the salty air of Miami Beach during Miami Art Basel, and then traveling to Paris to marvel at the vast collections of art at the Louvre Museum. By the end of your expedition through these pages, you may find multiple answers to the age-old question, “what is art?”—some that may completely contradict each other! —SBR
ART AROUND THE WORLD WITH SHARON ROBINSON
Are you the kind of person who looks past the crowds gathered in front of Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa at the Louvre Museum, searching for the often overlooked work of art? Do you find beauty in unexpected places and objects? Like an amuse-bouche for the traveling soul, the many objects, sites, and histories presented in Art Around the World offer a little taste of adventure to inspire future flights of fancy. Many of the works, such as the Greenlandic tupilak sculptures or Japanese sumi-e paintings, are collectible and relatively accessible in galleries, museums, gift shops, and even on the Internet, while many others can only be experienced on location. For armchair travelers and true road warriors alike, these pages provide voyages to the farthest reaches of the globe—Africa, China, New York City, Madrid, even the volcanic shores of Easter Island. The thousand-year-old Buddhist statues in Luoyang, China, and the carved sacred city of Lalibela in Ethopia do not hang quietly on the walls or sit stoically on a granite pedestal; these sites are, in and of themselves, works of art. Many of the objects, such as Russian pysanka, hand-decorated Easter eggs, or the popular Dalecarlian horses from Sweden, can be found in the homes of those who make and admire them. Whether your travels take you around the world or across the street to your local bookstore, only one question remains: Where do you want to go today? —SBR
UNEXPECTED ART FORMS WITH DAVID J. SCHMIDT
“... Loud laughter is the mirth of the mob, who are only pleased with silly things...”
—Phillip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield
In the widely published letters directed to his son, Lord Chesterfield severely hedges the definition of propriety regarding practically every social interaction. The English nobleman would likely have disapproved of art drawn on a person’s footwear or fashioned from household fruits and vegetables, not to mention the more belligerently informal media of graffiti and caricature.
Unexpected art forms, however, are not always the visual equivalent of “loud laughter”—they are sometimes deeply inspiring. When talent is honed more sharply as a result of disability, or breaks through astounding physical adversity, creativity proves itself impossible to suppress.
Sometimes, art shatters the boundaries of convention so resoundingly as to be shocking. The 1998 film The Big Lebowski presents a telling parody of unorthodox artistic technique. When the title character becomes startled by Maude’s practice of haphazardly painting while suspended from the ceiling, he becomes the Everyman of the medieval morality play. Every one of us runs the risk of fleeing from, and thus dismissing the significance of, art that appears outside of its expected borders. All are in danger of joining Lord Chesterfield in what Jeffrey Lebowski would describe as “the square community.”
It can be tempting to reject the unexpected, spontaneous, and unpolished forms of art for the warm, assuring embrace of narrowly circumscribed definitions. I invite the reader, nonetheless, to continue forward into the uncharted depths ahead.
Come, let us cross through the looking-glass together. —DJS
ARTISTIC ODDITIES WITH GABRIEL GUZMAN
odd·ity (äd' t ): noun
1. the state or quality of being odd; queerness; peculiarity; strangeness
2. pl. oddities –·ties an odd person or thing*
* “oddities.” Webster’s New World College Dictionary. 2009
While the topics in this category may not squeeze into that definition perfectly, I feel they are all members of the same class of information. Artistic Oddities covers stories about art that might not be in the “mainstream” but that exist on the fringes—the bleeding edge, in some cases—the fuzzy boundaries of the art world. Talented pioneers of art, tales of art-meets-technology, the largest, and the smallest have all made their way into this category. While much of this book takes itself more seriously, I was given license not to. And so I’ve done my best to collect tidbits of information about the “oddities,” if you will, of art.
On the days of the year that fall in this category, I hope you will smile or raise an eyebrow at something you might not have known. From the annals of history to the modern day, from the just plain odd to the incredibly interesting, Artistic Oddities strives to redefine what it is we think when we hear the word “odd.” —GRG
STEP-BY-STEP EXERCISES
Every ten days, you’ll get a chance to really get your artistic juices flowing. This interactive category asks you to grab some paper and a pencil (or colored pencils) and see what you can do. Artists Ed Tadem and Eileen Sorg offer a wide range of easy, cute, retro, funky, and fun subjects to re-create step by step. And the materials needed are easy to find, dry, and portable, so you can do them practically anywhere.
You can complete Ed’s graphite drawings with any pencils you have in the house, but you may have to purchase a set of colored pencils to complete Eileen’s exercises. Take a look at the list below of recommended colors for the projects in this book.
blush pink • bright pink • bright purple • bright yellow • brown • brownish orange • dark blue • dark blue-violet • dark brown • dark gray • dark green • dark pink • dark purple • dark warm gray • dark yellow • green • light blue • light blue-violet • light brown • light cool gray • light gray • light green • light orange • light purple • medium cool gray • medium warm gray • olive green • orange • orange-pink • orange-red • red • red-orange • reddish brown • teal • violet • yellow ochre • yellow-green • yellow-orange
(Note: Each of Eileen’s exercises builds on a line drawing, which is always shown at the start of the project. If you don’t feel that you can replicate the line drawing, consider making an enlarged photocopy of it and transferring it to your paper.)