A few years ago, I picked up the book Pictures and Tears: A History of People Who Have Cried in Front of Paintings by James Elkins. It is an exploration into why some people are moved to tears by paintings.
What makes a painting move someone? What is it a bout a still painting that we get so emotionally involved with? What draws us to a piece?
I have found these questions interesting for many years. After all, as an artist I do my best to put my thoughts and emotions down on canvas, and hope that others will be moved by it. Through the exploration of personal feelings I hope to find the universal feelings of others. I have something I wish to share with the world, and want others to be open to feeling it, too.
One of my art school teachers mentioned she was so moved by a van Gogh that she was brought to tears. I have never been so emotionally moved by a painting that I cried in front of it. But paintings have moved me in other ways. And I certainly find myself continually being attracted to certain pieces. One of my favorites is Toby Rosenthal's "Elaine". Every time I go to the Art Institute of Chicago I make sure I see this painting. Why? Because it does move me. Maybe not to tears, but it stirs something inside of me every time I view it. And I want to get closer to understanding that feeling inside of me.
It doesn't seem to be just the technical aspects of a painting, it's what we bring to it. If it was strictly technical, then certainly a Bouguereau And that's fine. Others may actually cry in front of his work.
But from what I can tell, it seems that people bring their own ideas, memories and feelings to a piece. What I painted as sorrow or solemnity, someone else finds peace and hope in. That's okay. It's what makes art so fascinating to me. For instance, a close friend of mine had recently gone through some very difficult times in his life. While I can sympathize with him, I can't empathize with him as I have never been through the exact same situations. But what was going on was effecting me, too because we are such good friends. So I painted my feelings about the struggle he was having and sorrow I was feeling. I couldn't get words to describe my personal thoughts and feelings, but I found I could put them on canvas. And so I did. And I think I captured it. But other people may bring some other feelings or thoughts to the piece. Knowing that, how do I tell a collector who is interested in this painting that I was feeling these deeply sorrowful and melancholy things, when they see it as calm, peaceful and possibly uplifting? And so I don't, because I understand that their thoughts and feelings about the painting may not match mine. And I am just as interested to hear their viewpoint of it, for then I get to learn about them as human beings. And after the creation of the work, their viewpoint is as valid as mine. Though, only I will know if I captured what it is I set out to achieve.
As an experiment, find an image you like and write down your feelings about it. Have someone you know do the same. It's interesting to see how similar or different the viewpoints are. The painting hasn't changed, only the viewer.
I hope this gets you thinking. And if anyone is interested in the piece I was describing about my friend, email me at mark@vandervinnestudio.com and I'll let you know which piece it is on my website, then you can make the decision about it for yourself.
p.s. I just noticed today that James Gurney has recently posted a similar discussion. Check it out, if you get the chance at his blog: http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2009/01/transmitting-emotion.html
Norman Rockwell, The Connoisseur
Toby Edward Rosenthal, Elaine, http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/72320
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4 comments:
Rosenthal's Elaine, constantly leaves me a pile of mush. I don't know if it's the best painting ever, but no other work has ever had quite an affect on me as this one. I wish I could figure out the reason. Great post by a great artist and even better friend.
I think some of us art teachers get emotional because we have looked at these images by way of imperfect reproductions for so long, and we have dedicated our lives to helping others understand and appreciate these pieces -- and because we may be seeing a work of art that is our one chance in a lifetime to see it -- that moves us to tears.
Great thoughts, Mark. I don't know how you are able to even think these thoughts with three daughters, two dogs and two cats at home. My kids are grown and I still can't focus - but love reading in the quiet of the night about emotional responses to art. Thank you! Will try to keep up!
Brian and Kathie, thanks for the kind words.
Andrew, that's an interesting thought on it. I never considered viewing the idea from a teacher's perspective. I do agree that the reproductions are imperfect. In fact, I have a postcard given to me of the "Elaine" painting and it does nothing for me, but viewing the piece itself still draws me in after all these years of visiting it. Which does beg the question, "Why is that so?" I suppose it's the poor reproduction qualities, inaccurate color and the loss of subtleties. Amazing how just a few things like that can distort our attachment to a piece. And yet, looking through magazines, some paintings do jump out at me.
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