True Art (Appreciation)

True art takes note not merely of form but also of what lies behind.
::: Mahatma Gandhi :::

What a fantastic and thoughtful quote by Gandhi (would you expect anything else from him, really?)

"True art." This eludes that there is untrue art or false art out there in the world. That makes you think, huh...

Gandhi says it's what behind the art that makes the art truly great art. Often when I see a painting or drawing or sculpture, I'm drawn to it because it's visually stimulating or it "speaks" to me on some unexplainable level in my heart. But, more often than not, I see a piece and think, "well, that's nice" and there is no real emotional connection. However, a human created that piece of work. A human with a life story. If I can understand the artist's life - their struggles, joys, what inspired their work - I can appreciate their work more deeply. This goes especially if a particular art piece makes NO SENSE to me at all - hearing or reading about the artist helps me enter their world and then their work has more meaning to my soul.

As a child, I was beyond bored in art galleries and museums. It was complete torture - you couldn't touch anything, you had to speak with a whisper and come on! What is this stuff anyways? But rarely was I "introduced" to the artist. This made the art seem lifeless and rather flat - where's the story? I need the story behind the art - I want to enter the heart behind the art. I'm still this way today. But now it's an epidemic.

The visual aspects of a piece of work is only half the experience for me. That's not true, I'd say the visual aspects are only one-third the experience for me. The remaining two-thirds are understanding the artist's life and heart. Then I go back to their work with that framework in mind. Wow - now that is a strong way to appreciate art and the one who created it.

For me, that is true art appreciation.

Grace & peace on the journey ~ deAnn