According to Alex, “anything can be considered art as long as it promotes thought” (Beckett, “What is Art?”). In Sketching House’s first blog, I said that “everything is art,” in a very broad and general way without really elaborating on what I meant by that; that was back in October (Dominguez “Everything is Art!”). However, I’m an academic and a stickler for details and the “why” factor, so I feel rather foolish now for saying “everything is art,” when, in fact, there are cases where things done in the “name of art” is drawing the line between creating and doing something abnormal and citing art as the reason. After analyzing Alex’s post (I’m a Bachelor’s in English, analyzing is what I do), I shall now reply to what his thoughts of what art is with my rebuttal on what I now think should be considered art.

As Alex mentioned in his post, many people have used death as an excuse to create art. Observe:

a effigy of Sarah Palin hanging from someone’s house, with McCain burning in the chimney…When interviewed, the homeowner not only said that it was part of their Halloween display, but that the display was created for “art” reasons. Hmm, he didn’t really explain why it was meant to be artistic. Does that mean that politics=art? Could you submit a “support McCain” bumper sticker to an art show?

A less light-hearted example of art [was] taken to the extreme. Aliza Shvarts attempted to make an art statement about the human body by getting pregnant and inducing as many miscarriages as possible. She then videotapped her miscarriages and collected the blood from the miscarriages. (Beckett “What is Art?”)

Now, I don’t necessary believe that lynching someone is artistic. What is artistic about hanging a person or burning someone? Nothing. Even though the Palin/McCain effigies were plastic, they were still symbolic of someone’s desire to want them to die horrible deaths. The plastic figures represented the evil that exists in America today–or anywhere else for that matter–because death and destruction is glamorized and considered “cool.” Seriously? I never found someone dying artistic; I find it sad and horrible knowing that the person who is dying or dead was somebody’s mom, dad, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, child, cousin, etc. For me, if it’s something that causes someone else pain, it’s not art, but a reflection of the cruel nature of society.

Moving on to Aliza Shvarts, the college student who had SEVERAL abortions (from what Yale University knows, she has had at least 20) in the name of art. How is the abortion of a potential life art? For anyone who has lived through and had to have an abortion at any time, those people know what abortions to do the body. Not to get graphic, but there’s cramps, heavy bleeding, potential for internal bleeding if the doctor misjudges with the chosen abortion instrument, periods of sickness, destruction of the uterus in some cases, and sometimes, the inability to ever have children. So why, I ask, would anyone in her right mind do this for art’s sake? Then to videotape the process is just sick and Miss Shvarts should consider mental evaluation. Any person with a heart would not kill a child–fetus or otherwise–for “art’s sake.” Murder is wrong, wrong, WRONG! There is no art in a murder. No art in death. Do you think any murder victim considered their deaths art?

Furthermore, and within a different line of thinking, I find the human body to be incredibly beautiful. The lines and curves of the body are gorgeous no matter what shape a person is in. However, I don’t consider porn art. Porn is a degrading fantasy designed to create a false fantasy of what a sexual experience “should be,” not what it really is. Sex is an art form between lovers who truly care about each other, not a sweaty disgusting orgy of sexualized and filthy slurs and wildly fake orgasms. Porn is degrading to women, too, which is why it is not art to me. Sure, there are many women involved in the porn industry, but there have been studies performed stating that women involved in porn have low self-esteem. A friend of mine told me once that even though he watches porn, he doesn’t do so because of how women are treated. He told me that women in porn are often forced to perform those sexual acts and that some of the rough porn is a result of forced rape. Additionally, my friend told me that there’s a lot of abusive scenes in some porn videos because of abuse fetishes that some viewers may have. So abuse and rape is art? Not in my book, so in my opinion, porn is not art.

Another art form I enjoy very much is music. Music is my soul, much like baseball is my life. However, there are some forms of music that I do not consider art. Some raps songs, for  instance, I do not consider art. Some metal songs are not art. Why? because of the demeaning nature of some of the songs’ lyrics. My brother likes rap and metal, but he only likes the songs that discuss torture of women, murder, and the degrading of women. Calling women “hoes” and “B*itches” is not art.

Ludacris, a rapper, is known for his degrading lyrics and is an example of what I think art is not supposed to be like.  An example of his lyrics, from the song “Pimpin’ All Over the World,” include:

You hear the song so dance, don’t always think I’m tryna get in your pants,cause see me my
Pimpin’s in 3-D, I’m takin you places you only see on T.V., tryna show ya that livin is trife,
How many guys you know that can bring the travel channel to life, one day we on the autobahn
Swervin drivin, next day we in the sun on the Virgin Islands, if you wit me ain’t no time to
Sleep, especially at wet willies on Miami Beach, but I drive you off and pay you no attention if
I make it to Atlantas Brina Brothers convention, then jump in the car and just ride for hours,
Makin sure I don’t miss the homecomin at Howard, Hawaii to D.C. it’s plenty women to see, so if
Yo *ss don’t show up it’s more women for me, Heyy. (”‘Pimpin’ All Over the World’ Lyrics”)

Ludacris, in the aforementioned song, is singing about trying to have sex with several women all over the world without making a commitment, then, since he is singing about being a pimp, he wants to give those women to other men. Women are sex objects and subject to degration in this song, and this is just a small example of what rap includes today.

Another rapper, Eminem, often raps about murdering his ex-wife Kim and mother, his sexual exploits, and suicide.  Take his song “Kill You” for example (explicit content, reader beware):

They said I can’t rap about bein broke no more
They ain’t say I can’t rap about coke no more
(AHHH!) Sl*t, you think I won’t choke no wh*re
til the vocal cords don’t work in her throat no more?!
(AHHH!) These motherf**kers are thinkin I’m playin
Thinkin I’m sayin the s**t cause I’m thinkin it just to be sayin it
(AHHH!) Put your hands down b***h, I ain’t gon’ shoot you
I’ma pull +YOU+ to this bullet, and put it through you
(AHHH!) Shut up sl*t, you’re causin too much chaos
Just bend over and take it like a sl*t, okay Ma?
“Oh, now he’s r*ping his own mother, abusing a wh*re,
snorting coke, and we gave him the Rolling Stone cover?”
You god d**n right B***H, and now it’s too late
I’m triple platinum and tragedies happen in two states
I invented violence, you vile venomous volatile b***hes
vain Vicadin, vrinnn Vrinnn, VRINNN! [*chainsaw revs up*]
Texas Chainsaw, left his brains all
danglin from his neck, while his head barely hangs on
Blood, guts, guns, cuts
Knives, lives, wives, nuns, sl*ts. (”‘Kill You’ Lyrics)

How can anyone call these vile lyrics art? As previously mentioned, murder and death should NEVER be considered an art form. Sure, in Egyptian times and in Native American, Hindu, Buddhist, and Laotian culture, the transition from life to death is poetic and artful, but intentional killing is not. And of course, cosmetologists who focus in post-mortem makeup are artists because they have to make a viewable body presentable. A friend of mine is specializing in post-mortem cosmetology, bless her heart. But again, I reiterate: intentional death is not art.

Like Alex, movies are an art form, but movies featuring dismemberment (I’m talking to you Quentin Tarantino) is not art; those films are just disgusting, not to mention that many of them offer ideas of gruesome ways to murder people which is being copied by teenagers and other sickos today. Look at the Saw franchise and how wildly popular those films are. Why? Because in today’s culture, dismemberment is considered cool. Over the past few years, murder and horror films have dominated theaters. Why?

So, are all of the above considered art? Well, to me, not at all, but people’s opinions differ. What are your thoughts? Comment and email me at sketchinghouseonline@gmail.com.

Mari

Tags: Abortion, Aliza Shvarts, Art, Artforms, Cosmetology, Death, Dying, Eminem, Family, Funeral Rights, Human Body, John McCain, Ludacris, Lyrics, music, Port-Mortem Cosmetology, Post-Mortem Art, Sarah Palin, Saw, Women's Rights, Yale University