Untitled #4

I have been thinking a lot about contemporary art lately and most importantly why I love it so much when others have such great disdain for it. We went to the High Museum of Art two weekends ago (along with the rest of Atlanta and the surrounding areas apparently) to see the exhibit: The First Emperor: China's Terracotta Army. I have been interested in seeing the Terracotta Army since studying it in 9th Grade World History. I think it's absolutely fascinating and an amazing artistic and historical discovery. Once upon a time I even dreamed of taking a trip to China to see them and the excavation site. So, when the High announced it was going to bring part of the exhibit here I was elated! Of course I would still love to visit China one day, but if it by chance doesn't work out I still got to see the army. The High did a superb job of curating the exhibit. Much better than any I have seen there in the last 3 years (the Impressionist exhibit was installed terribly despite some of the fine pieces as were most segments of the Louvre Atlanta exhibit.) The trip was worth the annoying throng of army-viewers that exploded from OTP like cockroaches running for cover when the lights are turned on. My husband conducted a random sampling while we were waiting and concluded that 75% of the visitors that day were obese. This did not assist in our efforts to view and appreciate the ancient artifacts. They also hovered within the museum etiquettely-correct 18 inches of a piece. It was quite infuriating. Thankfully it did not detract from the exquisite pieces themselves. This is not to say that I did not unwillingly shove my purse into the protruding bellies of several visitors attempting to suffocate me. Oops.

Upon completing our journey through The First Emperor, we decided to see the last Louvre Atlanta exhibit. It was massively disappointing, but at least there were no crowds. We then went to the main building of the High where the permanent collection is held. I was pleased to see the new acquisitions of modern and contemporary pieces. Despite my great appreciation for the classic painters, there is something about the contemporaries especially that I love. The more it looks like a pre-schooler had a tantrum and threw his fingerpaints against the wall, the better I say. I wish I could afford to buy real pieces of art and not the sad poster depictions of them, but unfortunately real art is not a luxury that is in my current budget. Maybe one day...

I was viewing the newly acquired pieces and was on cloud nine. There's nothing like beautiful art to put me in a good mood, although it caused me to think about why so many people not only do not appreciate modern and contemporary art, but actually hate it. The beauty I see in the "randomness" that I know is not random at all completely escapes those who say "Well, I could do that."Maybe you could, but you don't. That is the difference. Maybe we all could be contemporary artists in our own way, but most of us are not. We don't even try.

Now, I don't view myself to be an artist, merely an appreciator of art. I'm honestly not as well versed in art history as I would like, but I try to improve. So, I do not want to paint a giant canvass blue and call it "untitled abyss #7." I certainly appreciate the person who thought that was worthwhile though. And if art is truly a reflection of our age (in the generational/era sense, not actual years), then contemporary art is more telling than most of our mediums accurately reflect. Contemporary art embraces what we are and shows it to us. Maybe we are just blue paint on a square canvas, but what shade of blue? Why has the need to accurately portray people vanished? Are we so similar - or complimentary to one another - that our pixels merely combine to form a solid page? Perhaps. Or perhaps not - which is why the nature of the pieces vary. Or do we simply need a return to the basics to understand who we are and what life is truly about? I think the latter is why it speaks to me on such a profound level.

I'm in the initial planning stages of a possible summer vacation that has anywhere from 2-4 art museum visits scheduled. I can't wait.

A Confession

I hate the movie Citizen Kane. Yes, that Citizen Kane. The one that is typically placed number one on the top 100 lists of movies of all time... or at the very least in the top 10. I figure that I do enough political, societal, and economic ranting and decided to expand my horizons. To those who know me best, there is no surprise when a rant begins about anything that might be conceived as stupid. Stupid books. Stupid restaurants. Stupid people (of course.) Stupid behaviors (of people, businesses, government, animals, etc.) Stupid customs (see, I also don't discriminate based on religious, cultural, or geospatial influences either.) Stupid research. Stupid philosophies. Stupid and inappropriate commercials about medical or personal hygiene products. Stupid uses of resources. You get the idea.

So, why Citizen Kane?

I first watched this film only a few months ago after hearing about it for years. No one could ever describe to me what was so wonderful about it, but I figured it must be good. After all, people for years have heralded it as the greatest film ever made, so, really how could it be bad? And, it's not like I don't appreciate a classic film every now and again. I'm by no means a classic movie aficionado, but I certainly enjoy most standards. I also love Woody Allen films (which aren't classic, but are certainly artistic and provocative in many cases.) Among our collection of over 250 movies, I don't own a Woody Allen film. Probably because I would never turn it off and proceed to become a pompous, head-up-my-ass, miscreant. The same goes for any book by Walker Percy. The intellectual fervor they cultivate is great in the moment, but I believe should only be taken in small doses to prevent oneself from taking on the persona of Socrates in The Clouds.

I was hoping that Citizen Kane would have this same effect... or at least have a good, character-driven plot that wonderfully cultivated intrigue in the resolution of the story. Maybe I would have been less disappointed if I had studied Hearst more beforehand, or read the synopsis online. However, despite being somewhat interested in who Rosebud was, I hated the film. It was coarse and left a bitter taste in my mouth. I can stand watching films that don't end happily, but still were a work of art or probed an important question. After all, there is not comedy without its tragic counterpart. But this was just ugly and below depressing. In ways, it showed the ugliest parts of human nature, society, business, journalism, family relations, and government. Maybe that was its brilliance. Yet, it also showed none of the redeeming qualities. In the end, you were sickened by Kane, and would have felt bad for him never returning to his family and experiencing more good memories of which Rosebud was emblematic, except he had become so despicable it just made his life all the more worthless. With all he had "achieved" in his life including his [unfinished] home and its museum of beautiful possessions, all he ever cared about was his rosebud sled that he hasn't used since he was a boy. Many people experience tragedy and separation from loved ones or their home environments, yet still can love and value their lives. Not Kane.

Maybe I just hated it because Kane's character is an affront to every value I hold dear - in life and art - or maybe because if this film is what critics and the masses have deemed to be the "best" of all time then human nature is more ugly that I care to believe. And, while there certainly are people like Kane in the world, I'd like to think their numbers are few and should not be celebrated.

This does not mean that I think art in any form should be censored or that Orson Welles should not have made Citizen Kane. And, while I still would not personally like the film, I would hesitate to disparage it so greatly if it was not consistently deemed the best.

So, film critics and movie aficionados out there, why am I wrong? What am I missing about this supposedly great film? It could be that the topic was so harsh that I missed something vital, so I would love to learn why my opinion differs so vastly from the masses.