Abstract Art: Why it's important to read between the lines

By Maggie McNeill

Throughout the centuries, art has existed within numerous social contexts in which it has held a variety of purposes. It can function as a means to present a religious or political agenda, a call for societal change, and a way to address the current state of the world. Though artistic styles have developed throughout the generations, abstract art is a unique phenomenon, as it separates artistic technique from the piece of art itself. This can be quite jarring for the viewer, as it establishes contradictory definitions of art from what humanity has been accustomed to.

This elicits the question: 
What constitutes ‘abstract art’ to actually be considered ‘art’?

Personally, this question is simultaneously simple and complex. Art is something that evokes emotion; it communicates an idea, and it creates an individual specific feeling within the viewer. In many instances, this message is fairly direct and easy to comprehend. This is exemplified in much of classic art, as pieces from the Renaissance exhibit a direct and fairly concise narrative; many of which depict scenes of Catholic or monarchical imagery. There is no doubt that these works hold great historical significance and are extremely technically impressive. Though, it can also be argued that they do not hold the same amount of communicational depth. Many of these artists commissioned are portraying the message of the wealthy client, rather than one of their own. 

World War I created an immense change in the manner in which art functions. The amount of chaos and violence existing in Europe resulted in an artistic migration to Zurich, Switzerland. Creatives from Europe moved to this WWI-neutral country, resulting in an immense amount of collaboration and numerous artistic movements, known as the “-isms”. WWI resulted in inexplicable tragedy – How does one explain this amount of death and violence? And for what purpose did it actually serve? Artists residing in Zurich wished to present this inexplicability – they were searching for the whys? For so long, it became easier to not search for logical explanations – because there simply are none. Through the use of randomness and sheer absurdity, artists began to present something so meaningless, it became meaningful. This was the birth of abstract art as we know it today.

Photo of the Berlin Dada Fair -

1920

Take note of the Prussian Archangel, a papier-mâché pig’s head, appearing to wear a police uniform, located at the top-centre of the photo.  
Dadaism was taken from Zurich after WWI and commonly used to exhibit politically motivated themes, specifically within Berlin, as protest against the rise to power of the Nazi regime.

Since the 1920s, abstract art has blossomed in complexity, creating countless variations of itself throughout the decades. It ranges in artistic disciplines, but has the main commonality of ambiguous intention and purpose. This begs the question of the relationship between intention and purpose: Is the artist’s intention for the piece more important than a viewer’s interpretation, or vice-versa? My answer would be that they are interdependent. An artist typically holds intentions in mind when in the process of creation – deliberate and direct, though also sometimes subconscious. When an artist completes a piece, it becomes a message in which they wish to express to the world. Visual art is a unique aspect of the human experience. No matter the language one speaks, art is able to propose an idea, portray an experience, and provoke feelings within another individual. It defies the laws of language; it establishes communication without the need for words. The ideologies of Surrealism argue that the use of language may even create inaccuracies in the genuine description of our emotions. The boundaries and rules language provide society can create a separation between the way we feel inside and the way in which those feelings are portrayed by others. 

Félix González-Torres,

Untitled (‘Perfect Lovers’) -

1991

This art piece, like most of the works from Gonzáles-Torres, are a set of instructions (meaning anyone and everyone can replicate it).

It entails two identical clocks with identical batteries, inserted simultaneously. 

One is instructed to let the batteries run, frequently resulting in the clocks losing sync, or in some cases a faulty battery causes one clock to malfunction while the other continues. (I could talk forever about Gonzáles-Torres; however, that might need to be a different article.)

The ambiguous intentions of abstract art establish a liberation of the mind for both artist and viewer. The open-endedness of an art piece provides the viewer with the potential for a blossoming imagination. Every single person on earth has experienced a unique timeline. Each experience undergone affects us in one way or another – it creates the person that we are and establishes a precedent for the way in which we encounter the world. This being said, our unique timelines in combination with an abstract art piece will create a unique experience for every single viewer. These experiences in turn spark emotions within us, all of which are completely valid, as there are no right answers to how one should perceive it. It sparks conversation and opens the mind to contrasting interpretations, those of which are derived from a different timeline on earth. 

So – next time you run into an art piece that doesn’t make any sense, think about it a little more. An explicit, easy to understand narrative should not be equivalent to the definition of good art. Personally, I think art that can invoke emotion within its viewer is way more culturally significant than a still life depicting sheer technical skill. Pay attention to the way art makes you feel, rather than how aesthetically pleasing an image is.