As I mentioned in the first day of class, never before have I had any design class in college. That also includes art, art history or any art related subjects. I really did try to take one my sophomore year at UNCG, but the professor was so monotone in talking I couldn’t take it and dropped the class. The point of saying that is that while I have never really considered myself an artist or having any artistic ability, I will say that I have at least a curiosity and awareness. I would look at a piece of art and with some sort of intelligence make a coherent statement about. That is, until I read Why Is That Art?
I now realize that I know nothing and actually know less now that I did any time previously in my life. Or is it that my tastes have changed and I now have definitive feelings about pieces I see and study? I also think it may be that I’m older and set in my ways and introducing new forms of art may not be something that goes over too well for my conscious. But on the other hand, I now also realize that art comes in many forms. It seems I have worked in video forever. It feels natural and normal to have a video camera in my hand. However, I have always done it so it seems like I was doing it just for employment. I now realize, not just from this book but more of recently, that shooting video is definitely art. Shooting good video, anyway. With the advent of the internet, it seems anyone with a video camera thinks that they are video producers. And in the long run, the bad ones get weeded out and those of us that do it professionally will start getting more work. I see that with clients who don’t want to pay my fees, stating that their nephew is a sophomore in film school and can do it for $200. Only to see them come to me 6 months later more than willing to pay my fees because of the quality. And the award winning videos I see are some of the most beautifully done videos that exist. And just like painting on a blank canvas, it’s nothing but a video camera that has the same record button anyone can use. It’s how you use it and the person behind the camera that makes all the difference in the world.
But like Neff said in his post, to study forms of art and the techniques use, one must first study the Masters who came before. And I think that this is the realization that must take place before any sort of appreciation can be done or discussed. And for this reason alone, I will say that the book is a good one and I appreciate most of it.