Friday, March 03, 2006

Is This Life Imitating Art or Art Imitating Life?

You may or may not know that my lovely wife teaches an introductory art history course at the local community college. One thing she requires her students to do is keep an art journal that has 3 specific questions for each journal entry. So today Jessie sends me what she describes as "weird and worrisome" journal entries from one particular student. These journal entries are below, with absolutely no changes to spelling, punctutation, capitalization, or overal craziness.

Question #1: "What role does art play in your daily life?"
Response: "I had never recognized art being all around me, I have been a semi-sleepwalker, I have Had a creative awakening, the car I drive is a form of art, the way in which the world Is incorporated around art and me, my daily perceptions of images my own visual fields The art that I chose to surround me are my daily life chooses."

This woman apparently didn't answer questions 2 and 3, but instead gave a daily play-by-play of her "encounters in the art world." Jessie encourages the students to write about art in current events, exhibits they may attend, etc., but I guess this lady took the "art journal" concept quite literally. As Jessie said, "no one else seemed to be confused about this, they just answered the 3 questions." Here is an excerpt from the woman's daily entries (again, punctuation, spelling, etc. are her own):
2-14-06: "My sister had surgery, the hospital is building a new wing, I had to walk thru an area of starving artists portraits they stood out, I'm motivated!"
2-15-2006: "I'm driving thru the county die to the city, the country side is in it self is creation of art. I've been sleep walking."
2-16-2006: "Watch art creations on PBS"
2-23-06: "I went down to the convention center and studid the large sculpture installation, it's a traffic hazzard, a waste of tax payers money!"

Sometimes crazy is the best kind of funny.

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