“Art is an experience, not an object.” by Robert Motherwell

“Art is an experience, not an object.” Robert Motherwell

While I was traveling once, I noticed a lot of locks hanging from the railings. On each lock were names, events, and writings that could be left as memories or records. These were mainly sold for business purposes in nearby hotels or stores. Sometimes it is improvised. So are these objects just simple locks? No one would think that this is a lock and that it was made for the purpose of locking something and protecting the things inside. Because of the words written on it, that is, the experiences.

​Every time I see a scene like this, I think of Robert Motherwell’s “Art is an experience, not an object.” The words come to mind. When you think of art, painting is not true art if you think of canvas, brushes, paints or flames, drawings, exhibitions, etc. This is a shape and a form. True art has experience built into it. That is why they say it is the soul of an artist and that the spirit of an artist is necessary. If we recognize that a painting is no longer a two-dimensional plane, but rather a door that opens another dimension or space, art and painting will become even closer and more meaningful. It took me a long time to realize this. 

Now when I look at a canvas, I feel the space beyond the canvas rather than just a flat surface. So in this respect, I like Velázquez's painting Las Meninas, The Maids of Honor. As we look at this painting, we become interested in the artist's experience at the time he painted it. And I wonder. What on earth did he intend to paint this picture? And this painting seems to be inviting the viewer to come into the painting. I think the depth and dimension of the painting are outstanding in all respects. I am enjoying the process of drawing, little by little, learning more about what art is. Will I one day be able to paint the paintings that everyone is curious about, like Velázquez? That's my hope.

Las Meninas is a 1656 painting in the Museo del Prado in Madrid, by Diego Velázquez, the leading artist of the Spanish Golden Age.