The Wonders of The Artists

My last post for my personal aesthetic practice “Childhood Wonder”.

One of my favourite things to do is look at art. Ever since I was little I loved to leaf through books that had images. One of the genres, or subjects, I enjoyed most as a child was dragons and monsters. Seems a little cliche for a young boy to think dragons were cool. I just loved the incredible detail, and the wonder that filled me when looking drawings of mythical creatures. I like to think that as I have grown up my taste for art has expanded. I also enjoy beautiful flowers, still life’s, and a good portrait. But I will never get over my liking for the macabre.

I was always intrigued by how artists were able to depict and make things so rich and detailed. I was baffled at their ability to make an image that they perceive come to existence on the canvas and paper.

This is an image of my good friend, Barid, a very talented artist. When taking this picture of him, I just asked him to look straight ahead. I wanted to capture the essence of thought and contemplation with this profile picture. Because I know for myself, when I draw and paint, a vision comes before the artwork. 

Below is an image of an art work he made. Besides the subject matter being somewhat grotesque, I think that it is incredibly beautiful. Not just because I can appreciate his talent shown through the detail, but also because of the sense of wonder that fills me when I look at it.

When at a loss of words, an image can be made to try and supplement for the feelings inside. Thats what I think art is. A deep and sincere form of expression. This is one of the reasons I want to be an art teacher -to try and show students that art can be a deep and meaningful way to express themselves. The other reasons I chose visual art as my major is because it is through the arts that I realized my potential, and I want to help other kids realize what they are capable of.

Artists and the work they make have always, and will continue to, fill me with wonder.