What Do You See?

Next time you're standing in front of a painting at a museum, ask, "What do I see?"

The world makes art more and more complicated, but the only thing that really matters is what you see. It's a simple question, but an effective one. We bring our worn in lenses and consciousness that effectively communicates to us different realities about one image.

When my mentor at the Springville Museum of Art first showed me the painting above, I hated it. I thought, why on earth is this here and why on earth are we looking at this?

She turned to me and asked, "What do you see?"

And as I started naming off the farmlands and mountains, the shadow the little boy on his bike cast, I noticed the old fashioned gas station, the unpaved roads, and the peaceful setting. I realized this was a scene from the past.

She told me, "This piece is called 'The Gatekeeper', does this change anything?"

We began a discussion about boundaries our parents would set for us, like for this little boy-- he probably couldn't travel past that gas station. That was his gate. We talked about how the mountains are so large relative to the homes, we reasoned that this is a memory, and that that little boy is probably the artist. Suddenly I understood the painting.

I was touched.

There's a lot of art out there, some worth seeing, some not. Different artists create art for different reasons. I think it's worth the time to try and connect with a piece than to try and see everything.

As I've gotten more immersed in the world of art, I've picked up more and more snippets of what people think of art. Typically, people say they just don't understand it. Frankly, I agree. I don't get it. I don't "get" art. But I know how it makes me feel. I know that when looking at a piece different people see different things, and sometimes, people don't see anything at all. The artist may be trying to tell you something, but in all honesty, they have no more authority in your mind than you do. What does the painting say to you, what do you see? That's more important than what the artist is trying to say.

This applies to all paintings. It's like when you have lyrics to a song memorized, then one day you take the time to read the lyrics and realize how much thought and soul is actually in those words. With a painting, you just have to start with what you see, then you can connect.

It's simple. What do you see?

Love \\ Christelle