AcaDeca speech

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Michael Wandrey 9/15/06 Period 5

Speech – “A Passing Glance at Art”

Art – this is one of the most abstract and mysterious forces that is able to affect the human mind with almost no effort. It represents all of the aspects of life, from its grandest concepts to the tiniest of nuances. Just as amazing is the response humans have to such art – entire trains of though have been started and entire countries influenced by the well-chosen words of others. Man experiences this creative force within many things – from the sounds of nature, to the cloud in the sky, or in things created by himself or others – a well-composed song, a skillfully painted masterpiece, or a statue made by the hand of an experienced sculptor. There are those who see art only in the man-made world – others can see it in everything from the serene calm of the wind to the chaotic cacophony of the large, bustling city during rush hour. It is also interesting how we can take such an unclear concept as art be able to categorize it cleanly. Whether it is by time period, technique, style, artist – we can determine something that is “Picasso”, “Expressionist”, or “Classical”, even if we cannot define it with simple words. It’s something that we know immediately rather than define through a rigid, inflexible set of conditions. This is all well and good, but who is to truly say what art is? What makes art what it is – is it the end result? Is it the technique used to create it? Is it professional opinion? A work of art can be considered such no matter how it was done, as long as the spirit of the artist is there – as long as the heart and soul is poured into every aspect of it, and as long it is theirs. The end result could quite possibly be a thing of beauty to some, but nothing more than a repulsive lump to others, including even the most seasoned critic. The definition of art is something that cannot be delineated easily. Perhaps an abstract answer would be best to fit the difficulty presented in answering a question that seeks to define a concept that is just as abstract, if not more so – art is. Art is in the mind of those who experience. We decide what this art is for ourselves. Conditions and other factors be damned – even in the noncreative fields such as math and science, art can exist. Art is what it is, no matter what others say. ….and thus ends my own personal piece of art.