Sunday, May 01, 2011

Curious about Art: It Is Art that Plays a Huge Part in Our Surroundings and Environment. There Is an Artist in Each of Us and Our Lives

Definition of Art: A system of rules serving to facilitate the performance of certain actions; a system of principles and rules for attaining a desired end; method of doing well some special work; -- often contradistinguished from science or speculative principles; as, the art of building or engraving; the art of war; the art of navigation. The application of skill to the production of the beautiful by imitation or design, or an occupation in which skill is so employed, as in painting and sculpture; one of the fine arts; as, he prefers art to literature. Skill, dexterity, or the power of performing certain actions, acquired by experience, study, or observation; knack; as, a man has the art of managing his business to advantage.

It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.” - Albert Einstein, German physicist

I chose art for this week’s blog because yesterday I did what I love doing – visiting an art museum. Akron, Ohio was one of only two North American museums chosen for the M. C. Escher exhibit of his original work – and, I was there. It was a terrific show, and the Akron Art Museum is a tribute to art itself. It has been remodeled, is incredibly modern, beautiful and spacious.

The whole experience was so special, I realized how much I miss doing art (it was my major field of study when I went back to college in 1971).

The quotations are varied, fun and inspiring. Let’s share some:





  • The art of acceptance is the art of making someone who has just done you a small favor wish that he might have done you a greater one.” - Martin Luther King, Jr., American leader


  • Without tradition, art is a flock of sheep without a shepherd. Without innovation, it is a corpse.” – Winston Churchill, British statesman


  • Life doesn't imitate art, it imitates bad television.” - Woody Allen, American actor


  • Life imitates art far more than art imitates Life.” - Oscar Wilde, Irish dramatist


  • If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.” - John F. Kennedy, American President


  • Art is a step from what is obvious and well-known toward what is arcane and concealed.” - Khalil Gibran, Lebanese American poet


  • Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring two pence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it.” - C. S. Lewis, British author


  • Winners have the ability to step back from the canvas of their lives like an artist gaining perspective. They make their lives a work of art - an individual masterpiece.- Denis Waitley, American writer


And, a few more:





  • Photography is more than a medium for factual communication of ideas. It is a creative art.” - Ansel Adams, American photographer


  • The great art of life is sensation, to feel that we exist, even in pain.” - Lord Byron, British poet


  • The excellency of every art is its intensity, capable of making all disagreeable evaporate.” - John Keats, English poet


  • Space is the breath of art.” - Frank Lloyd Wright, American architect


  • Art is making something out of nothing and selling it.” - Frank Zappa, American musician


  • The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.” - Erich Fromm, American psychologist


  • Art is not a thing; it is a way.” - Elbert Hubbard, American writer


  • Being an artist is dragging your innermost feelings out, giving a piece of yourself, no matter in which art form, in which medium.” - Henry Rollins, American musician


  • An art which isn't based on feeling isn't an art at all.” - Paul Cezanne, French artist


  • The art of love is largely the art of persistence.” - Albert Ellis, American psychologist


How much are you affected by art? What are your favorite styles? I would love to hear from you.