Penguin May 20th, 2008
Last Friday, Ninja and I went to the Guggenheim to see Cai Guo-Qiang. Both Ninja and I were really inspired. As I was coming out of the show, I thought to myself, “This is art”. As I chewed on that statement, I thought about what attributes and qualities led me to say it with such confidence.
These were the qualities I identified.
Unique - There is nothing else quite like it. In this example, we have the use of gunpowder that makes it stand out. Granted, my knowledge of art is pretty limited, but as far as I know, no one else is making art with gunpowder. Now, the uniqueness doesn’t necessarily come from the medium. But there needs to be something uniquely intrinsic to the work.
Difficult - One of the common criticisms of abstract art is that kids can do it. The underlying criticism is that it’s easy and any one can do it. The difficulty can come from various sources. The technique required, the medium itself, the scale, or even just the resources needed.
Story - The work has an underlying concept or idea that it is either exploring or conveying. This isn’t necessarily a message, but it can be. But the art is telling some sort of story or metanarrative that can’t be conveyed in any other way. The story is what changes people and the story is where the power lies.
Extreme - Art lies in the extremes. Extremely big or tiny. Complex or simple. It is at these edges that most people don’t venture to or explore that art happens. The more mainstream or common something becomes, the less it is about art. You look at the street vendors in NYC trying to sell “art”. The majority of these are mass produced at a normal size. It’s so ubiquitous that it is no longer unique.
This may not be an exhaustive list, nor is it meant to be a definition. It’s just what I gleamed based on the exhibit. What do you think?
-Penguin
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Tags: Art, Cai Guo-Qiang, Theory, Thoughts
