Art For the People!

There are many forms of art. Some are appreciated more than others. Probably illustration art is more widely seen – such as ads in magazines and illustrations of stories – to me, Norman Rockwell is probably on most people’s list as a superb artist. A few years ago the High Museum in Atlanta had for a limited time a collection of Norman Rockwell’s. We spent hours there one day.

Art is art in the eyes of the beholder. Some of us appreciate comic book art and can look at a glance at a comic book drawing and tell you who drew it. I have certain artists I watch for and let the others slide on by… well, you can easily tell my taste in comic book art if you just surf in the archives of my blog.

There are many forms of art on the canvas. I have always liked Salvador Dali and some of Picasso…… some I don’t like… when both eyes are on the same side of the face… ugghh! But, I do like his Blue Period and others.

Folk Art is nice. Howard Finster comes to mind when I think of folk art. I think of folk art as someone who has not been formally trained as an artist enough to be aware or unaware of dos and don’ts of art. I think, in the case of folk art, the breaking of guide lines and rules is what makes their art stand out… but I think it should still represent something… symbolism or a mood or a blip moment in a story that leaves it to you to fill in the details or something.

A good example of primitive folk art is below. For instance, there is no doubt that the figure is a cow – right? And the belly button in a “in-ny” What do you think the “inny” belly button represents? And I must admit, at first look of the picture I thought the little things in mid-air were fumes to represent the stench that comes with “breaking wind”. But, on a closer look I see they represent flies. Of course, that is probably a likely place for flies to hang around. And notice the smirk on the cow’s face… just like she just shot you with a good methane gas blast. Also notice the sedate color. Most of all, notice the canvas the art is on. They say the human body is a work of art… such as a perfect physique as this – well, it is beyond words. It is like praising the frame holding the picture as much as praising the picture itself.

See how much one can look for details and appreciate good art?