what is (art)?!

I was just watching that 'What is Love?!' YTMND link again, and I ended up thinking about art. I had this conversation with someone last year, actually, as to what 'art' actually is. I ended up just pushing their buttons (again, something I'm good at) and they got irritated with me and dropped the conversation (hehe), but still, I always find myself wondering what different people consider to be art.

First, I think it's valid to at least LOOK at the dictionary definition of 'art', which can be found here. It's interesting to note that it says "...of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance." That's just one of the definitions, but still, it's basically saying art is whatever is beautiful, or more than ordinary. Who is to say, then, just WHAT is beautiful? Isn't there a saying that goes 'Beauty is in the eye of the beholder'? Can't anything be art?

I guess that's why this discussion always intrigued me as much as it does. Pretty much anything, with the proper justification, can be an art, to certain people. For example, I can understand that people like dance. I don't mean people like TO dance, which is also perfectly understandable, but I'm referring to people who simply enjoy watching a good performance, be it the ballet or some weird interpretive crap. As that last bit might imply, I do NOT enjoy dance. I mean, I'll go and watch my friends perform, and THAT I can appreciate, since I know how much they enjoy it, but dance to me is simply not art. There's nothing beautiful about it, nothing out of the ordinary. It's just a bunch of people hopping about on stage, and it fails to hold my attention. I felt a little bad for checking my cell phone during Vic Dance's production at the Bader, but I guess I only spent $5 to get in, so it's not like it was a waste =P

What do I consider art, then? I consider certain movies art. Some of my favourite movies definitely are NOT art, but there are movies that can be considered masterpieces. The Godfather (and The Godfather, Part II), or maybe a better, more recent example can be No Country for Old Men. That movie, while a little boring, was definitely shot and directed with all the artistry of a painter. Art is also used most frequently to describe paintings, and frequently, it's right on the money. Any number of artists can be named, such as Van Gogh, Monet, Picasso, Dali, etc etc, and most people can whip out a piece they've done and say it's art, and be entirely correct in the minds of a lot of people (myself included). What ISN'T art, in my estimation, is the crap like someone throwing paint at a blank canvas, or even worse, someone painting a room entirely white and putting a white chair in the middle of it and saying it's some post-modern crap. That **** isn't art, good lord, it depresses me to think people make money off of that, or even get praise from ANYone for their creativity. THAT stuff just plain annoys me, so we won't even talk about it other than to say it's dumb and is not art.

After saying that, I'll probably get bashed for this next part, but I think video games are art...but only certain ones, because much like not all movies are art, not all video games are art, either. I also think football plays can be considered art, but we'll get to that in a bit. Still, though, certain video games are made with the intention of being almost something you view and not interact with. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots for the PS3...the game had something like 30 minute cutscenes in it which you COULD skip...but why would you? It's more impressive than a movie to me, if only because those aren't real people in the cutscenes; they're animations! I mean, yes, most of these things these days are done with motion-capture technology (the design of which is almost an art in and of itself), but still, it's damn hard to do that for a lot of things, and this game had a crazy amount of it. BioShock, a game I spoke about previously on my blog, had a Rapturous (c wut i did thar?) quality about it; the texture of the water (and blood) running down the walls, the sounds and images of the various guns firing, the way the electricity from your hands flowed through the water to electrocute your enemies...it was awesome. BioShock had many more qualities that I can name, but I don't want to take up TOO much space. Hell, even Silent Hill 2, an older game, good god that game was scary. It made you feel helpless, made you feel as if you didn't know what to do, and yet you, as the gamer, still could progress throughout the story and still feel as if something was constantly chasing you.

But, I digress. My love (and bias) for video games is fairly obvious throughout the blog, if not just this post, so I'll stop there. Football, another love (and therefore bias) is evident as well, but honestly, I won't go into TOO much detail. I just think there's something to be said for a well-executed play. I'm not talking about a crappy halfback draw (you hut the ball, the quarterback holds it for a second as if he's going to throw it, and then stuffs the ball into the arms of the running back, who tries to use the delay to get out past the defense), though. I'm talking about a play-action 80yd touchdown pass. I think a perfect example of this can be found here. I don't particularly like the Eagles, but that was awesome. Look how the entire defense buys into the fake; look how DeSean Jackson, the receiver who caught the touchdown pass, BURNS the guy who was guarding him, and manages to not only get behind him, but also manages to catch the ball in stride, stay on his feet, and saunter into the end zone. Hell, look how Michael Vick managed to throw the ball something like 60-70yds before it even fell into Jackson's hands...that's a monstrous throwing arm, haha. Another good example of a play can be found here, which is actually unscripted...yes, it has to do with Tom Brady. If you look at the play, Brady huts the ball, and instantly the defense is on him; he finds no open receivers, so he scrambles around...at this point, the set play he had called is gone, and he's just improvising. He pump fakes, and circles around to escape the defenders...and sees Brandon Tate streaking down the sideline. A simple throw, and suddenly it's a 65-yd TD pass. So awesome...a work of art by a master artist, the Greatest of All Time himself, Tom Brady.

I left out music and books in terms of what I consider art, and it's not because I don't think they're art...in many cases, I really do. Again, it's just really selective. I don't think some band like 'The Moldy Peaches' makes art, but I mean, I really consider Beethoven, Mozart and others to be artists. And yes, I realize the stupidity of how most (or all, really) musicians are called 'artists', but let's face it, not all of these so-called artists make art...come on now. In terms of books...again, certain writers can make art, but not everyone. God knows Harry Potter isn't art, despite it being obscenely popular (I like the books, mind you, they're just not art), but I would consider some of Margaret Atwood's books to be art (and no, not just because I go to Victoria College...god knows we get the fact that she's an alumni shoved down our throats every second...but I DO love her works, man, they're awesome), or someone like Agatha Christie, or even H.G. Wells.

In the end, whether it's sports or video games or music and books, it's all subjective, I guess. I DID just spend the last who-knows-how-many words deriding others for their tastes, which I've done so many times, but I admit it's crazily subjective. Still, this is my blog, and I'm going to like what I want! I have no tolerance for 'look at this empty room, look how deep the meaning is' crap, I honestly don't. There's no meaning there, buddy, you're just delusional.