Tag: Art

“Life is short, art is long”

“Life is short, but art is long” is one of those old Roman sayings that seem to make sense until we think about it. Up to a few hundred years ago, people conceived of time much differently than we do. Aboriginal tribes existed in a perpetual present, surrounded by “dreamtime” past and future. Civilized folks considered the past as a few hundred or thousand years – back to the Egyptians or some mythical beginning. Deep philosophers assumed the world to always have been as it is, possibly cycling through various stages .

More than that – in direct opposition to current ideas of progress – that past was always better, golden, inhabited by gods or semi-gods. Ancient art was always to be copied or imitated since the degenerate present could not compete. Thus “art is long”.

Now we laugh at a few thousand years. We know the world goes back a few billion, amazing creatures hundreds of millions, people like us over 100,000. And the world keeps changing. And “new improved” is demonstrably better than the old junk .

As for art … well it’s really as “short” as life. Useful for a generation or so at most. Like any legacy, soon gone with the wind, without even the solace of a grave marker .

As for other ” wise”, “golden”, sayings, ideas, and ideals of classic ancient cultures – don’t get me started .

Decoration

Anything added to an artifact that does not affect its functionality can be regarded as decoration. Such can be seen as one of the most enduring aspects of human creative spirit, serving no purpose but to make something more interesting or attractive .

In any craft, the first approximation of decoration is elegance. At a certain level, we truly regard a craft masterpiece as art. Whether it is ” fine art” or not is a question best left to those who care about such trivia .

People’s ingenuity has been able to replicate (often in mass quantity with machines) any fine original creation. Today we are surrounded by beautiful (at least to some) elegant and often functional objects. Created once by the glory of the craftperson’s spirit and training, now available to all .

For a few of us, a majestic extreme of decoration is a flat-bounded surface on a wall, drawn and colored in a pleasing or informative way. We visit museums to be entranced and amazed by these pictures. Nobody is quite sure why. Photographs usually do not provide the same kick. Children’s work may do so. It’s mysterious .

These days, for the craftsman or artist, the final production must be an end in itself. Only a few friends will notice. There is a glut of decoration – good and otherwise – in the world .

Yet craft, art, even appreciation of decoration, remains a joy of our spiritual life .