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Because of the discussion about Kinkade’s death, that eternal question of “What is Art?” was touched upon in a thread elsewhere. The question raised was what should Art’s role be in one’s life? Should it provide pleasant bits of softness, well within one’s comfort zone? Or should it challenge us – stretching our perceptions, and pushing us OUT of our comfort zone? Having contemplated this a bit, I have to say that I tend to fall into the latter school of thought. For me, a true piece of “Art” is one where, when I walk by it, I am brought to a halt, and spend some time staring at it. It produces an impression and image in my mind that is strong enough that even years later I can close my eyes and I will see it floating in the darkness in front of me. It is an image that speaks with great emotion and passion about an event, and, so, can become an icon for that aspect of existence. As an example, there is the painting by Goya, titled “The Third of May 1808”<\/a> – which commenorates the massacre of random, innocent civilians by the troops of Napoleon. Another very strong image is Picasso’s famous painting Guernica<\/a> Both of these images evoke the horrors of war, and, remind us of the dangers of allowing the government to have too much power. While both these deal with the old theme of “Man’s inhumanity to Man”, Art can and does celebrate more positive aspects of Mankind’s sojourn on this pla<\/div>\n
![“The Third of May 1808”<\/a> – which commenorates the massacre of random, innocent civilians by the troops of Napoleon. Another very strong image is Picasso’s famous painting](\"http:\/\/eeweems.com\/goya\/_imagery\/3rd_of_may_600.jpg\"){kind=link}
net, As an example, we have George Catlin’s art of the SouthWest<\/a>. His paintings of scenes from America’s South West, and the native peoples that lived there, while somewhat primative are often quite evocative, and, capture the energy of the moment as a real thing, not a romanticised version of how we THOUGHT it should be. <\/div>\n
![](\"http:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/en\/7\/74\/PicassoGuernica.jpg\")
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I would also define many of the flood of images that are coming from NASA’s orbiting telescopes to qualify as “Art”. I say that, because, as with this image, one tends to stop, stare in amazement, and consider one’s place in the universe.<\/p>\n