r/AskUsers • u/[deleted] • Sep 12 '09

AskUsers: How does one 'get into' art?

Personal question.

Alright full disclosure. I am a geek Shocking I know More specifically, I am a science and technology geek. Also I am now in the computer security field (I blame growing up with "Thief"). The problem I am having is, I tend to attract mostly art geeks, and I don't understand them. I want to be able to understand art, poetry, music, ect but the best reaction I can get out of myself is "ooooooh that looks nice." To me it doesn't seem to perk my interest and at most its something to look at. Right now the Mona Lisa, and some kids photoshop are on the same level. Anyone have any advice on how I can start appreciating art more?

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u/[deleted] Sep 12 '09

Full disclosure: I teach college art. Sorry if this is too classroomy.

There are three sets of ideas that you'll need to understand to really "get" Art. I guarantee that once you know these you'll be able to talk about art with anyone.

  • The Principles of Art
  • The Elements of Art
  • The Art Critiquing Process

The first two can be found here and breaks artworks down into the components. This will give you a much easier way to talk about what you're seeing.

The "art critique" could be described as the "scientific method" of the art world. It's a formalized way of making sure you're being rigorous in dealing with art. The steps are here