Yes, but is it Art?

[Doug Alan <nessus>]

> From: Jordan Hayes <jordan%ucbarpa@Berkeley>

>>	From nessus@mit-eddie.MIT.EDU Thu Aug 29 08:42:12 1985
	
>>	Art is a study of the human mind.  Thus many artists (the ones
>>	I like the best, in fact) try to tap the subconscious mind and
>>	present its images in a viewable or hearable (etc.) form.

> EEK! And all this time I couldn't figure out *what* ART was. So, ART is
> in fact the study of the human mind... what will all those people with
> psychology degrees *do* ...

Hey!  Let's not get picky.  I never said art was *THE* study of the
human mind -- just a study.  I'm not trying to define art, just explain
why many artist are interested in images from the subconscious mind.

> Doug, man, ART is an EXPRESSION, not a study.

There's more to art than just "expression".  Banging your head against
the wall or bashing in windows may be forms of expression, but they are
not art.  Art is a form of communication, and in order to communicate
with humans, you have to have some understanding (not necessarily
well-defined understanding -- intuitive understanding is good enough --
probably even better) of the human mind.  That doesn't necessarily mean
having any technical theories or anything, but art is an exploration of
how different sensory images affect the mind so that they can be used in
communication so that they can be used in communicative self-expression.

			"Si les grands yeux de mon dieu
			 Ne me gardaient pas
			 Je te volerais"

			 Doug