Art Truly for Art’s Sake

Posted by Meg Nola Jul 25, 2008

A friend of mine loathes John Singer Sargent’s 1884 The Misses Vickers because the girl on the left looks uncannily like her sister/sworn enemy since birth. She hates that particular Miss Vickers’ image and sees all kinds of manipulative insincerity in her – and what’s worse is that she also hates Sargent and all his other works, simply because he came up with The Misses Vickers in the first place.

Another friend had Miro issues, because a Miro print hung over her computer at a terrible temp job. After a period of healing, however, she began to view that Miro as a symbol of triumph because she’d managed to survive the hellacious assignment. She even bought a smaller version of the print for her apartment and regards it quite fondly.

In my case, Winslow Homer’s The Herring Net once made me queasy. Not because of fear of the sea, but because my ex-Marine high school Vice Principal had a copy in his office, and that was what I focused on during a troubled teen time which had me visiting him frequently. The painting is full of choppy waves, snared fish, and a murky sky. All metaphoric then, but now I just admire brushstrokes and how Homer conveyed such intensity.

So how to get over bad painting vibes? Try learning about the artist or true context of the work and lessen your own negative connection (i.e., it’s not really your sister); declare inner victory and claim a copy; or look at things detachedly in terms of technique and skill. Because everyone has the right to dislike art just as it is, but it’s not fair to condemn a painting or painter simply because of personal – or impersonal – circumstance.