Art 108 Questions for Conceptual Art assignment

1: The viewer is an important element to conceptual art because conceptual art means different things to different viewers. Some people are able to see art when presented with an ordinary object while others only see the ordinary object. If and artist presents an ordinary object as art it is up to the viewer to see the meaning behind that piece and decide if it means something artistic to them.

2: It is difficult for people to accept "Fountain" as art because its an ordinary object that anybody could have easily taken and put into a gallery. What people don't understand about it is that its not that the piece is art its the message behind the piece. The message that art is everywhere and that anything can become art if it inspires or means something to someone.

3: The question posed by Duchamp's readymades is what makes and ordinary object into art. What makes a tree or a piece of paper into art if the artist does nothing to it. The answer to this question is that an object becomes art when people look for the meaning behind it. Weather that meaning is in the actual piece or is a reflection of their own lives.


4: It is hard to categorize conceptual art as traditional art because its non traditional. Up until only recently the only art produced and kept was art that embodied certain artistic values or ideas. This is why most of the art produced in Europe during the 14-16 centuries all looked the same and followed the same artistic style but with minor variations. Conceptual art brook away with suggesting that anything can be art as long as it means something to some one. It is the idea that art does not have to be created on in a certain way but that anything can be art.

5: "Conceptual art is not about forms or materials, but about ideas and meanings" (page 1) This single sentence describes conceptual art fully. That its not about how a piece is created but if there is meaning behind the piece. That anything can be art as long as some one gives it meaning.