As we collapse into the vac, so we come to the end of our foray into the modern definition of art. We began with Naomi Gee’s ruthless analysis of ‘the selfie’ and then, in the following weeks, turned our attention to carpets, Kardashians, and The X Factor. We have scrutinised various aspects of modern life and considered their position on the contemporary artistic landscape.
In many ways, our feature ‘Is This Art?’ could itself be an example of art in today’s society. On a weekly basis, we have taken a particular aspect of modern life and considered its position on the contemporary artistic landscape. We have uncovered artistic meaning and profundity hidden within many aspects of today’s world. Through this process of uncovering, questioning and analysing, we have felt something of what it means to be an artist. We have stared into the void and found truth.
But what is art without an audience? We have shared our weekly findings with the Cherwell readership in a bid to make known the artistic truth we have dredged from the deep oceans of modern life. We have published these findings in the hope that our readers will take up our artistic mission; there is still plenty to discover. Cherwell Art and Books believe that the artistic scene is crying out in desperation for originality, for democratisation. We say the time has come for the artistic conversation to flow into the public sphere. In this way our feature, ‘Is This Art?’ is a beacon of encouragement; do you think this is art? What is art? Are you art? Thus, ‘Is This Art?’ represents the pressing need for artistic inclusion and democratic involvement.
I personally have become aware of a fundamental truth during this process of artistic consideration: anything at all can be art if you want it to be. There is meaning and beauty in every household object, television series and social media outlet. I say it is time that we step forward into a new era of postmodernism, and give the artistic power to the people.
