1. One of the key concepts that stood out from the article was the reason we like art. Regardless of ones cultural background or where they are from geographically there is are aspects of art that are universally appealing. For instance, symmetry is beauty of the natural world because it symbolizes livings as most living things are usually symmetrical. Another key concept that stood out was with lines. As stated in the article there are obviously no real solid lines outlining the things we may see in our everyday lives. However, the lines in a work of art can tap into our neural processes as the edges of objectives that we see in the real world.
2. Artist create works of art to send messages about a perception in the world,
whether it be theirs or a more popular belief. Self expression is also a reason
why works of art are created. Art is a complex way of getting thoughts out of
the mind productively.
3. Although Changeux was somewhat difficult to understand, he made some very interesting points in his lecture. The very simple matter of artist creation having rules and constraints in itself stood out the most to me. This idea was appealing to me because I never thought of art as anything with rules and if it did then they were obviously groundless or meant to be broken. Chanqeux made a good point in defining the arts. He said that art is a symbolic form of non-verbal communication of emotional states, knowledge, and experiences. I honestly think this should be the universal definition for art because that's essentially what art is.
Ramachandran struck my interest in almost the same way with giving art a structure. He discussed what he calls the 8 laws of art or esthetics. The most interesting law of them all was number 6 which was symmetry. I never would have thought that symmetry was so important in the emotional sense of beauty and that there something biological behind it. As animals we make the connection to symmetry as another living thing, whether it be "prey, predator, or a mate". This creates the emotional appeal in the brain to consider something beautiful which actually helps me understand why I personally take a liking a certain works or art.
4. Within the text, the article, and the video there is a connection between art and the natural world. The biological aspect of art is what helps us admire and appreciate art in itself.
5. I think that each piece of information was essentially helpful in my understanding of why we as people like art or like some art more than others. For instance, the idea of the human experience makes a lot more sense to me seeing that even though all humans are not the same there are things that we all go through, just in different ways. The information present in the readings and videos rounds that Idea out for me.
This posting was a great reminder of our past studies and also brought up some points that I didn't catch the first time around. You discuss the idea of symmetry. My sister often points out that she likes houses that have a symmetrical design. I, on the other hand, prefer a more asymmetrical look. This is why I agree with the definition of art you state from Chanqeux. I, too, feel art is a non-verbal way of expressing emotions. It is also open to each individual's interpretation. Like you, I also like being able to receive information from both the text and the videos. Some things are easier to learn when read while others are solidified, or rounded out as you say, by the video.
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