The Art of Seeing

“Any fool can learn how to paint. The trick is learning to see.” ~ Dorothy McCarthy

In class, we discussed what it means to really “see” art. The responses indicated that many people in the class felt that a person should have an understanding of the art or artist in order to “see” the art. I began to question that assumption, though. Do I need to know the difference between cubism and impressionism in order to “see” a painting?

I think it is important to understand what we mean when we say we are “really seeing” art. To me, “seeing” art is to look at it through my own filter of human experience, and forming a reaction to it. Anna shared with us her own response to artist Richard Serra, explaining that her response to his art is so deep that it is not just emotional or intellectual, but also physical, as she feels a sense of calm as she views his work. It seems to me that this response has nothing to do with what she “knows” about the art or the artist, and everything to do with her own reaction to it.

As humans, we feel the need to create. When we look at art, we are reacting to another’s creation with our own recognition of the creativity within ourselves. When we look at a piece of artwork, we are projecting ourselves onto that piece of work in order to interpret how it fits into the scaffolding we have in place which forms what we know.

The practice of seeing art, for most people, is separate from knowing about the artist, or about an artistic movement, or an artist’s motivation for creation. Understanding an artist, and having a reaction to his or her artwork are two entirely separate things. With this in mind then, what does visual literacy mean? Does a person need to understand techniques of art creation, or perhaps art history to be visually literate?

This is something I have thought about a great deal. I have a confession to make: I don’t “get” most modern art. When I lived in London, I worked five minutes away from the Tate Modern. After several visits and hearing both intellectual and emotional arguments for many of the “installations”, I was left scratching my head. What was I missing? As a smart woman, why didn’t I have any reaction to this art beyond bemusement? The refrain in my head when I walked through installations or stood in front of sculptures was, “why?” Why is this art? What makes the person who created this an artist?

This is in strict opposition to my reaction to the art of the old masters, which, to me, are indicative of a clear talent, the ability to render, with paint, an emotionally evocative, relatable picture that “says a thousand words”. I personally need to admire an artist’s talent, and I have a hard time recognizing talent in much of the modern art I have experienced. I can recognize the value in modern art. I can learn the influences and motivation behind any given modern artist’s work. But can I really “see” it? When I don’t have an emotional reaction to it, I can say I’ve seen it, but perhaps I have missed the essential connection. Art seems to me to be about a connection between the eye, mind and heart. If one of those is missing, have we really “seen” the art? I can have the connection between eye and mind, but the connection to my heart is missing.

On the other hand, the works of the Pre-Raphaelite brotherhood, on the other hand, stir my soul, providing the calm that Anna described, completing the eye-mind-heart connection. After one “sees” art, and establishes one’s reaction to it, it would seem that it is the critical analysis of that reaction which comprises visual literacy.

Though there are technical underpinnings and a media-specific body of knowledge accompanying not just visual art, but each of the media we discuss, I question whether one needs this technical knowledge to be literate in the consumption of that media. When viewing film, or listening to music, in order to teach youth to become more literate in these media, we must encourage the awareness of each individual’s response to the media. Is it critical thinking that forms the basis of media literacy, as the opposite of mindless media consumption? As librarians and educators, we can illustrate to our youth that in analyzing the “why” behind their reactions to media, they are analyzing both the media and their own identity – both of which are key in youth development and education.