As my revised thesis topic focuses on encouraging the practice of hobbies and learning of new skills for personal and recreational reasons, I thought I would complete the “What is this?” exercise in relation to one of my own hobbies, painting, and namely on the above painting.
What is this?
- A painting
- Oil paint on canvas paper
- An image
- A drawing
- An imagined depiction
- An expression
How did it get here?
- I created it, then took a picture of it and uploaded it
- The paints and paper came from my hometown in Canada, I brought them with me last Christmas from Winnipeg to Montreal to Vienna and then to Graz. Before that, the paints came from an online supplier that ships from Ontario to Winnipeg. The paper came from my local art store. Before that it came from a paper supplier, before that a paper mill, and before that it was trees.
Who uses it?
- Art doesn’t have a particular “use” but you could say that everyone who views it “uses” it, in a way. Everyone who looks at it will have some reaction, from indifference to enjoyment. As the artist, I also “use” it when I look at it and consider if I achieved the expression I wanted to, and how it makes me approach future paintings.
What does it do?
- It’s purpose is just to exist
- It expresses something – a feeling, a moment in time, etc.
- It can (hopefully) inspire, cause someone to think and reflect
When is it used?
- It’s used whenever someone is looking at it or thinking about it
What is it made of?
- Paint, paper, brush hairs that get lost, water, painting solvents & creativity (;
Who made it?
- I did!
- I used a reference photo that I took of flowers I got from the farmer’s market at Kaiser-Josef-Platz in Graz
Why does it exist?
- It exists because I created it, for myself, to express something
- It exists to communicate a moment, a feeling, a message
- It exists just because
- It exists because art is important and humans have an innate need to express ourselves
