What I've Learned from Art

A lot.

We sure have learned a lot over the past four months, everything from paintings to motion pictures. The unit that I found to be most challenging was controversial art, I believe Unit 3. The units that I most enjoyed were our units on painting and the camera arts...a picture really is worth a thousand words and more. The unit I didn't particulary like was the printmaking, Unit 11 (?) The unit that I learned the most from was our unit on sculpture.

What has most impressed me about the world of art are actually two things that I didn't fully understand before. The first would be just how much goes into a work of art, physically. Paintings and sculptures and drawings are always much easier than they appear.

The Sistine Chapel, for example, by no means looks like it was easy to paint, but I didn't realize that it was a piece four full years in the making. And sculptures: looking at them form a distance, especially from out of a book or on the computer, they are very beautiful, but you cannot see the intricate detail. Up close, when looking at a sculpture, you remember what it came from. You can envision that big block of stone and the simplicity of it, and then realize that the sculptor has created something out of nothing. You can see the careful carving of every line and curve, and texture of that piece of work. You can really appreciate it.

Learning about little things such as space and focal points and color and depth in a picture help me to see that piece in a new way. I can understand the effort and thought and labor that goes into the piece. I can really appreciate it all now.

I think that the biggest thing I will take from this class is a greater understand of humanity, something I think that we are all striving for on a subconcious level. I think that I understand people a little bit better now. It has been great being able to read everyone's thoughts in their blogs; which really help to see their view on art. Being able to see things from anothers point of view is a wonderful thing to have.

I have learned that art is personal: all art is personal. Paintings, music, sculptures, artictecture, movies; they all mean something different to each of us. Though we look at the same piece of work, we see two different things. It all has to do with our individual backgrounds, our stories, what we belive and what we have been through in our lives. This is why I love how art is never, ever black and white, and it is always open for interpretation. It is special in a different way to everyone.

Im glad that I took this class because it has broadened my thinking, if that makes sense. Especially with that controversial art, or art that I don't necessarily like. It is all about not so much hating the art itself, but looking deeper: understanding the intentions of the artist, the feeling behind it.

With this, I have become much more open and appreciate, I'm sure my classmates have too. Choosing to take Art 10 was a great descision. This is one of the few classes in college I will be able to apply to life.

Thanks to Michelle for her patience, enthusiasm, and a great semester!