Art can be anything: shovels bent into lawn frogs or nuts and bolts fused into fencing figurines. It seemed anyone in the Valley with any "artistic" ability set up shop this weekend at the Tempe Festival for the Arts.
What makes something art? Are there guidelines set by humanity on this? I often ponder this while building beefalos with my mashed potatoes.
To find out if art needs to take a designated amount of time, I talked to one of the creators of the miniature nut-and-bolt people, which perform various activities like playing tennis or boxing.
"How long does it take you to make these figurines?" I asked.
"How long does it take you to do your homework?" he replied.
Using that logic, it is quite evident that art takes no time at all. In fact, no planning or preparation is needed. An artist could even throw together his work seconds before a customer needs it.
Apparently, art does not have to be a physical object. It can also be a service. While receiving a rubdown from a professional psychic masseuse, I learned that because of my yearning to have my head scratched, I must have been a dog in my past life. My next session is scheduled for Thursday.
One unicycle-riding, violin-playing street performer proved that creating art requires no form of degree. This man rebounded from being cut from circus try-outs and is doing something positive with his life.
Webster's Dictionary defines art as "effort to imitate, supplement, alter or counteract the work of nature." It goes on to describe art as "the conscious production or arrangement of sounds, colors, forms, movements or other elements in a manner that affects the sense of beauty."
Through my in-depth research I've decided that all of this is really mumbo-jumbo. What it really means is, yes, my imitation of a beefalo through mashed potatoes is art. Look for my stand at the festival next year.
Reach the reporter at benjamin.honingford@asu.edu.
