By Walid el Masri
Cover picture taken from Artsy.net
Art is one of the many languages of the world. However, it can be argued that it is the most beautiful language of all. It is universal, and it is the language that everyone can understand. It has always existed, and it continues to exist. From “Romanesque” to “Contemporary”, art has morphed into many different multitudes and has united our world. Despite all the differences and dichotomies that exist in the world, art continues being a uniting concept.
It was made for the people and by the people. It has survived through war and destruction and flew high as the Goldfinch. It’s the communicator of emotions because sometimes emotions can be deemed indescribable, so they get to be expressed in a nonverbal way.
Moreover, art has been the longest reigning language of the world. It has travelled, evolved, and spread like wildfire all over the globe. The discoveries of new lands made it grow and flourish in different types and aesthetics. Globalization has been a great asset for its popularity as well.
Aristotle once said, “The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.” And he was correct; art’s aim is to show a person’s inner qualities, no matter their external status. However, romanticism focused on showcasing the rich and bourgeoisie, rather than showcasing the art of pain and poverty. It focused on the perspectives of the upper class only.
Although art was favored in that era, our current art that has risen to a royal level for its realistic, truthful, and diverse works. And what makes it even greater is its relation to the real world and to the emotions of others. Others seek refuge in this art because it manifests their lives, feelings, and world. Additionally, because it evolved, it has broken-free from what we knew before, and what was conventional. Art today has no limitations or restrictions.
For example, the art that has risen as a reaction to the Russian and Ukrainian war has brought to life the feelings of loss, hurt, and destruction. Our art isn’t, narrowed down to technique and rich material, but to everything. Technique has been individualized to each artist, materials are recycled and changed. Artists have broken free from the salone. Each drawing, painting, sculpture into a unique piece, rather than the creation plain works—all the same—subjected to prejudice form the rich and the salone. For now, it has broken the barrier of subjected prejudice because the art we see today manifests everything, each unique to the artists idealism, life, material, setting, style, and even a story behind their art.
Today, the modern contemporary movements have developed towards digital art, which also counts as contemporary. In fact, this revolutionizing aspect of contemporary art has helped its globalization. Artists’ works that have previously failed have now become popular, due to their transmission through the modern internet trends. Artists now conceive their art on their devices, and showcase them around the world, rather than having to have galleries and exhibitions. That’s what makes contemporary art even more special, you don’t have to be of class to experience art or even buy it, you should only have a device and the artistic world is exposed to you.
Art itself is something that has lasted and will last forever, it is what we all speak and communicate with. And no matter what movement it is, it will be always loved and cherished, by whomever might see it. Our current movement is something that has never been seen before, something so unique and vulnerable; it connects to us, as no other movement has. To our contemporary art, we salute you, for you are the shower of our unknown, hidden, and vulnerable emotion.