Take a load off
Laval, QC, August 2010
I used to think that art existed exclusively in museums. If it carried a hefty price tag, was hung on a wall and then discussed at great and often exasperating length by ascot-wearing retirees with fake British accents, it was art. Anything else didn't even need to apply.
Then it hit me that I don't get to museums as often as I'd like. Sure, in the ideal world I'd wander their hallowed halls for a couple of hours every morning after dropping the kids off at school. The world would wait while I filled up on my daily dose of impressionism, cubism and neo-classical expression. But the real world compels us to spend more time, you know, working and creating value. So I won't be wearing ascots and holding a fake pipe anytime soon. Artsy bummer, indeed.
Which means I need to get my art elsewhere. Which means the old museum-only definition is out. It doesn't need to be framed, mounted or spotlit. It doesn't need to carry a name like Renoir or Rembrandt. If it isn't from a Group of Seven painter, it'll still count. Heck, it doesn't even have to be an actual , deliberately created work of art. It could be incidental, accidental art.
Like these deck chairs. The kids liked their curvy, wavy shape, and I noticed when they lined up next to each other that they looked rather unique - worlds better than the weather-stained off-white resin excuse for furniture that used to be here. So as I said a silent thank-you to the condo board folks who decided these chairs represented a worthwhile investment, I decided the moment needed to be remembered somehow. And I decided the result qualified as art. Unconventional, to be sure, but still just the kind of thing that gets you thinking about the things that make this world a nicer place to be.
Your turn: Look around you. What art do you see?
One more thing: I'll post the new Thematic Photographic theme, "letters and numbers" at 7:00 Eastern tonight. Which gives you some time to mull over how you'll tackle this one. I can't wait to see what you come up with.
