I found the Rockwell reading on modern art to be very amusing. His recounting of the fictitious Hitler jail cell filled with Modernist and Surrealist paintings was hysterical. One can only imagine (and perhaps secretly take morbid pleasure in) the agony the great Kaiser would of endured had such a prison really existed. The truth of the matter is, however, sometimes art really is ugly…and looking at ugly, disturbing, even, nonsensical art can be a bit torturous to the unsuspecting viewer who innocently happens upon it.
At the same token, however, there are no official rules that say art has to be beautiful or, for that matter, even make sense in order for it to be. Art just is. What is deemed beautiful by one person may be hideous to another…that’s just the nature of the beast. When speaking of ugly disturbing creations, these too, resonate with someone…somewhere…even if it’s just with its creator. Sometimes within the ugly and nonsensical execution lies a sublime eloquence that only the artist is supposed to understand. Sometimes the viewer is completely removed from the process and this ugly disturbing torturous piece is a gift the artist gives to him or herself. Not as a form of punishment but, rather, a purging of sorts…an exorcism of all the “ugly” demons that would, otherwise, keep the beautiful creations in bondage…which, in the end, turns into a gift for the observer.
So, the next you happen upon piece that makes you want to gouge your eyes out, just remember, that it may be the precursor to a breathtaking masterpiece that may never of seen the light of day had the artist not purged his soul. Look at art with new eyes and learn to appreciate the ugly, the beautiful and everything in between.
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