Art. Topic for Conversation #7

Art

1. What kind of art do you enjoy most? Why?

Some people claim that the world nowadays is too «materialistic». People sometimes fail to appreciate the beauty which surrounds us everywhere. They are too obsessed with, as they say, «real problems». Unfortunately, if you tell them to stop and look around, they’ll think you’re just laughing at them. «Can’t you see I’m busy? Staring at things can’t give me any money!» — will be the answer.

But all of us shouldn’t forget the human personality is a fivefold constitution (a body, a life, a mind, a psychic and a spiritual being). None of these elements stands disconnected from the others. It’s good to climb a career ladder as fast as possible and become prosperous. But don’t forget about your soul — treat it to some art.

In my opinion art plays a great role in the development of the spiritual world of every human being. Art helps to see things from another point of view, it elevates the mind and soul, it helps to develop a good taste. I think it’s very important that talented artists manage to capture and represent such an intangible thing as the mood. Thus the beholder not only gets information about the subject matter of the canvas but also he is able to understand the artist’s attitude to it. And we should agree that a good painter should involve beholders into his creative process. T mean that while painting the artist just gives us some clues, hints better to understand his message but only a very careful art-lover will understand them completely.

People who would like to call themselves educated ought to know a lot about art. It’s all because art shows a person’s outlook. For instance, there are such genres in fine art as a ceremonial portrait or a historical painting. How can a person understand the artist’s message if he doesn’t even know what’s going on the canvas?

Besides historical paintings and portraits there are other genres of fine art such as a landscape, a genre painting, a still life, a religious painting, etc. Each genre usually has some special features (at least, it used to have, because nowadays modern art is developing and it really knows no bounds).

It’s really impossible to mention all the styles of fine art as there are lots of them, but I’ll say some words about one. It’s Impressionism, one of my favourite.

As you can guess from the name «Impressionism», the main aim of the painters who work in this style is to capture and represent the first impression the scene has made on them. They view the scene broadly and that’s why they don’t tend to depict every detail. So, how do they manage to render volume and perspective?

It’s all because they invented a new technique and adopted a new palette. Firstly, they discovered that every color has a complementary one (e.g. violet for greenish-yellow). They used them together and colors dazzled and dissolved in the eyes of beholders producing a wonderful effect. Then, they didn’t mix colors, instead they put down pure colors which at a distance fused and produced the effect desired. They didn’t use black color — only dark green, indigo or deep violet. Besides, impressionists usually used quick, vigorous brush strokes and rarely outlined the objects.

This technique was revolutionary. None had ever tried to do something like this before. That’s why at first people couldn’t understand Impressionism, their works of art were banned, other artists simply despised them. And now these canvases are the most expensive ones in the world.

In prehistoric times the first people used chalk to draw a bison or a deer in their caves. Little children try to draw everything they see around them. You see, people tend to be creative. It’s a wonderful way to express our own personality, a great way to distract from problems. And though some people will say it’s just a waste of time and it’s completely useless, it isn’t. Yes, probably not everyone is gifted enough to become a brilliant artist, but everyone possesses an ability to contemplate. Don’t let your soul be bored — open the world of Art for yourself, explore its mysteries, ask questions and search for answers, enjoy the masterpieces and, probably, create your own one!

2. Are you a creative person in your everyday life? Why or why not?

3. Ask me some questions about the theatre performance I have lately seen.

1. Which theater have you visited?

2. Have you bought tickets beforehand in the ticket box offices?

3. Have you enjoyed the performance?

4. Did the actors and actresses perform well?

4. Many people don't appreciate modern art. Give me a piece of advice on how I can learn to understand it.

5. People say that creative activities are very good for our mental health. Do you agree with it? Why or why not?