Ruiz, Brianna
English 115
Professor Linda Overman
September 16, 2012
Eye Spy
I’ve always had a fascination with art. Whether it was in painting, literature, music, etc., I found a common ground where I can appreciate the work and what was being said. Over time I learned that there were reasons as to why an author or artist created a piece. There was a reason, or event that triggered the artist, author etc. into feeling the need to create a message. It was through those messages that I was able to further understand the artist and learn that no matter what, there is emotion in work. There is always a reason as to why a book, painting, poem, etc. is created and there’s a certain feeling the creator is trying to convey to his/her audience. Whether it’s a sense of tragedy or joy, whether you can feel it or not is based on your perceptive ability to read a piece in depth.
It’s true, at least I believe so. As I began writing the summary I noticed my enthusiasm for writing was because of the connection I felt towards Mann’s pieces. Prior to writing I had divulged myself into researching more of her art work, to see if there was anything else I could gather than from the few photos provides in Convergences. Further into my little quest I came to understand her reason for capturing these images and, in some mystical way, I felt the emotion of what I presume to be what she felt looking at her children. I can not fully understand the feeling, not unless I have children of my own. However, I have a dog who’ve I owned since she was a pup and I have worked in the childcare industry. I look at my dog as my little girl, my own little me even though she’s an animal and when I look at how she’s grown I get a feeling I can only imagine a mother looking at her teenage child goes through. That understanding alone I believe has opened me up into letting me experience different pieces that as a young adult I wouldn’t have been able to otherwise.
Thrusting myself into the world of literature as a child helped open my eyes into seeing the emotion behind any kind of work. I was able to comprehend what was trying to be said and actually feel what the author was writing about. In a way, I put myself within the book and understood the purpose of it. After reading a variety of books of different genres and doing this, I came to have an open mind. I was able to connect to a work and slowly but surely vibe with it. In Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe I was able to live with and go through Okonkwo’s struggles as his traditional world turned upside down with modern values. As Spark Notes summarizes, in the story “Okonkwo is a wealthy and respected warrior of the Umuofia clan, a lower Nigerian tribe that is part of a consortium of nine connected villages, including Okonkwo’s village, Iguedo” (par.1) however, as Christian missionaries travel to their land he feels the traditions of his culture become buried alive as the men spread their word on God. As I read along I was able to feel the loss and pressure of being cornered as the customs and values he once held so dear were stripped from him with ease causing him to spiral into an aggressive downward spiral of depression. Being able to comprehend the heartache and feel it ooze out of the pages was something I thought was amazing. Being able to receive the grieving Okwonkwo’s burdens made me feel as though I understood the author and had taken a glimpse inside his mind.
The biggest influence I’ve had to shape the way I think about the idea of emotion behind work is having experienced it first-hand. I sketch and I draw, I’ve created a little book of my own and in the beginning of all these pieces I find the biggest drive is the emotion I feel behind an idea. Anyone who’s written a story, listened to music, written a letter, or painted has experienced the passion within a simple concept. They’re moved by whatever it is that’s happened to them and begin transmitting those feelings into their work. Whether you’re on the receiving end or the one offering, you can sense the intensity in a piece. Most people experience this when they listen to music. When you’re having a bad day, you vibe with a song that explains your situation and are able to feel the true meaning of what is being sung. Some people even have playlists set so they can listen to them when they’re feeling a certain mood. If you’re going through a break up you’d probably lean into listening to some Taylor Swift as she sings of past romances and their not-so private endings such as “Forever & Always” in her album Fearless. Or maybe you’re just having a fantastic day and feel like listening to Ace of Base’s song “The Sign” simply because the beat is something you can dance to joyfully. This is a common yet powerful example demonstrating the ability of feeling emotion through a piece of art because there is not one person who can say they haven’t gone through it.
Having been able to go through different encounters and reading about various events in history at a young age and being able to convey messages of my own, I became open to the idea of emotion behind a work a long time ago. It’s enabled me to see things from different perspectives, and look at things in depth. When I read or look at an art piece I feel the emotion portrayed within it. Being able to capture these emotions is as old as time itself but it doesn’t come naturally to everyone. As I observed through reading the criticism on Sally Mann’s albums I notice this. In my opinion it was almost as if they took a quick glance and began judging. People didn’t take the time to see beyond the photo, to see the meaning that she was trying to convey. They became blind to her purpose and instead saw something society judged as wrong. This showed me and taught me that not everyone is as sensitive to art as much as others are. People are all different and have a variety of talents which isn’t a bad thing.
No matter what, everyone feels it. Whether you’re listening to some Taylor Swift after a bad breakup or painting a meadow because the scenery was beautiful today, you’ve connected to that work. You’ve felt a spark that caused interest within you and personally felt what you saw or heard be it anger, happiness, or sorrow. One way or another you received the message the creator was trying to convey because it is there, it’s in pieces of art, literature, or music in your everyday life.
Work Citied
Morrison, Blake. "Sally Mann: The Naked and the Dead." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 28 May 2010. Web. 16 Sept. 2012.
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2010/may/29/sally-mann-naked-dead>.
"Sally Mann." Sally Mann. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2012.
<http://sallymann.com/selected-works>.
"Things Fall Apart." SparkNotes. SparkNotes, n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2012. <http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/things/section1.rhtml>.
"Fearless (Taylor Swift Album)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Sept. 2012. Web. 25 Sept. 2012.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fearless_(Taylor_Swift_album)>.
"The Sign (song)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Sept. 2012. Web. 25 Sept. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sign_%28song%29>.
No comments:
Post a Comment