Art and Values

August 5, 2019,

140 Summer Street,

Sommerville, Massachusetts 02138

Dear Readers,

My focus of this essay is the argument of Tolstoy about art where he sets certain criteria. I think my thesis would be how art and freedom are so intertwined together that there could be no documented standard of overall work of art. My strong points of the essay would be the destruction of creativity through restrictions and devaluing a hobby which many people possess. I am still confused about the standard process as I have missed a significant portion of contents, I have recycled work from my past papers which would go with this essay and tried to see the artifact through the lenses of the author and then put up a challenge on certain points.

If I were to start revising it today, I would start by looking at the key points I’m making in the essay and elaborate them more also try to make up an outline where I could rearrange the essay contents. Readers might respond by saying art should have a standard and it could have freedom even with the standards put out there by Tolstoy because it has great examples by the author to stand on his point. It could help me to have a broader thought on the text but I cannot see freedom with any standards set on it, at least not for art.

Sincerely,

Yasir

Hamid Yasir

Harvard University

August 03, 2019

Art and Freedom

Art and Freedom are two wheels of the same cart, they cannot be separated. Art is the universal language of the people and it can not be contained, nor could it be put into certain levels of standard which devalues the freedom of the artist and the viewers. In his text “What is Art” Count Lyof N. Tolstoy argues and includes three basic criteria i.e. sincerity, individuality and clarity; to judge art (133-134). Even though my chosen artifact Analogia I; a sculpture created by Victor Grippe created in 1971 fits his criteria of sincerity, individuality and clarity and can be seen as a perfect work of art through his lenses, I would challenge that, Tolstoy’s standards restrict the freedom of artists and even though he gives examples of peasant art over the elites, he himself made an “elite” standard of art via his argument on the text.

In the text “What is Art”, Tolstoy argues that a work of art should fit into three specific criteria to be considered as a work of art, and art should not be for pleasure rather, it should unite people through the feelings that should be transmitted through the work of art. Tolstoy argues that to define art it is necessary to stop considering art a “medium of pleasure” rather, to consider it as one of the “conditions of human life” (40). Tolstoy suggests that art is only art when the interpretation of the people is the same as the original message of the artist (42). Tolstoy states, “such are the three conditions which divide art from its counterfeits, and which also decides the quality of every work of art from its subject matters” (135). Tolstoy argues for the artwork that unite people by the same feeling that has been transmitted through it and he is against any counterfeit; which according to him are the artworks which do not have sincerity, individuality and clearness in the feelings which are supposed to be transmitted through it (133-134).

Analogia I is a sculpture by Victor Grippe created in 1971 using very unusual materials e.g. electric circuits, electric meter, switch, potatoes, ink, paper, paint and wood. The sculpture is a big rectangle divided into three portions having a gap in the middle and twenty boxes in each of the remaining portions. The boxes hold in total of forty potatoes in them. The potatoes have a red wire and a green wire with two opaque caps connected to the potatoes. There is an electric meter in the far-left side of the middle portion. All the wired potatoes are centrally connected to this electric meter giving it the power produced by the potatoes. Forty of the potatoes in the sculpture providing energy to the single electric meter in the center symbolizes the people whose collective power is controlled by the authoritarian state.[1]

Seeing Grippo’s sculpture through Tolstoy’s theory of “ceasing” to use art as a means of pleasure and having a universal transmission of feelings that should unite people, it makes perfect sense that Grippo certainly did not create the sculpture only for pleasure rather, created it to unite people for a common purpose. As it is seen that the potatoes are wired to a single electric meter giving it all the energy gives the viewers a common feeling of being controlled and absorbed by the authority. As Tolstoy argues to keep artworks locked to one interpretation i.e. artists original message, Grippo’s sculpture perfectly illustrates Tolstoy’s argument on how art should be having three specific criteria i.e. sincerity, individuality and clearness.

Even though Analogia I could fit perfectly on the viewpoint of Tolstoy’s lens, Tolstoy’s settings standards for what should be a work of art (133-135) is a bit puzzling. Tolstoy has a great argument however, I think setting criteria for something so delicate as art is a bit too much. Tolstoy did not force anyone to buy his argument, but art comes in so many forms. Tolstoy’s argument puts abstract art totally out of relevance as mentioned that art should have a clear meaning. (134) Tolstoy’s argument on not taking art as a mean of pleasure also seems rough. Art does not always have to be for something serious and it does not always have to unite people in my opinion. People can have different interpretations and that is not necessarily a bad thing. Art could also mean the happiness and joy of the artist and it does not always have to be clear. There are artworks made by depressed individuals which cannot be interpreted the same way by everyone, nor some artwork of joy can be interpreted the same way. People have different perspective and I think its healthy to have different interpretations for some art. I cannot totally disagree to Tolstoy’s argument on keeping the artist's message intact. (133) Sometimes it is necessary to get the artist’s message right through interpretation but putting all sorts of artwork in the same box is not a very good idea overall. Freedom is a key component for a great work of art in my opinion and Tolstoy’s argument restricts freedom of expression from work of art which is debatable.

[1] Gallery text from Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Richard Norton Memorial Fund and gift of Leslie Cheek, Jr.

Works Cited

Grippo, Victor. Analogia I. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Richard Norton Memorial Fund and gift of Leslie Cheek, Jr. Guy Brett, Material and Consciousness: Grippo's Vision (2006), pp. 1-13. Buenos Aires, 1970-1971. electric circuits, electric meter and switch, potatoes, ink, paper, paint and wood.

Tolstoi, Count Lyof N. What is Art? New York: Thomas Y. Crowell & Co, 1899.

Hamid Yasir

Harvard University

August 19, 2019

Art and Values

Art is the universal language of the people and it should fit into certain standards. In his text “What is Art” Count Lyof N. Tolstoy argues about the standard of art and includes three basic criteria to judge art; which are sincerity, individuality and clarity (133-134). Analogia I; a sculpture created by Victor Grippe created in 1971 fits his criteria of sincerity, individuality and clarity and is an example of perfect work of art through his lenses. Tolstoy setting standards for artwork makes sense with the Analogia I because as art is a universal language of the people, it transmits the same meaning to everyone viewing it and it carries out the thoughts of the artist with their unique presentation.

In the text “What is Art”, Tolstoy argues that a work of art should fit into three specific criteria to be considered as a work of art, and art should not be for pleasure rather, it should unite people through the feelings that should be transmitted through the work of art. Tolstoy argues that to define art it is necessary to stop considering art a “medium of pleasure” rather, to consider it as one of the “conditions of human life” (40). Tolstoy suggests that an artwork is only art when the interpretation of the people is the same as the original message of the artist (42). Tolstoy states, “such are the three conditions which divide art from its counterfeits, and which also decides the quality of every work of art from its subject matters” (135). Tolstoy argues for the artwork that unite people by the same feeling that has been transmitted through it and he is against any counterfeit; which according to him are the artworks which do not have sincerity, individuality and clearness in the feelings which are supposed to be transmitted through it to the viewers via clear interpretation (133-134).

Analogia I is a sculpture by Victor Grippe created in 1971 using very unusual materials e.g. electric circuits, electric meter, switch, potatoes, ink, paper, paint and wood. The sculpture is a big rectangle divided into three portions having a gap in the middle and twenty boxes in each of the remaining portions. The boxes hold in total of forty potatoes in them. The potatoes have a red wire and a green wire with two opaque caps connected to the potatoes. There is an electric meter in the far-left side of the middle portion. All the wired potatoes are centrally connected to this electric meter giving it the power produced by the potatoes. Forty of the potatoes in the sculpture providing energy to the single electric meter in the center symbolizes the people whose collective power is controlled by the authoritarian state.[1]

Seeing Grippo’s sculpture through Tolstoy’s theory of “ceasing” to use art as means of pleasure and having a universal transmission of feelings that should unite people, it makes perfect sense that Grippo certainly did not create the sculpture only for pleasure rather, created it to unite people for a common purpose. As it is seen that the potatoes are wired to a single electric meter giving it all the energy gives the viewers a common feeling of being controlled and absorbed by the authority. As Tolstoy argues to keep artworks locked to one interpretation i.e. artists original message, Grippo’s sculpture perfectly illustrates Tolstoy’s argument on how art should be having three specific criteria i.e. sincerity, individuality and clearness.

Grippo’s Analogia I supports Tolstoy’s argument about artworks having individuality in them as the sculpture is one of a kind where the artist uses regular household materials to make it. The sculpture is made using electric circuits, electric meter, switch, potatoes, ink, paper, paint and wood. The potatoes in the sculpture are indigenous to Latin America; where Grippo is from (Grippo).

In the sculpture Grippo uses the everyday household materials not only to make it unique but also to support a cause. To show people how they are being controlled and used. Grippo did not make the sculpture just for pleasure rather he had a unique cause behind it, this detail is important because it fulfils Tolstoy’s second requirement for maintaining the standards. Grippo was being sincere throughout the process of his artwork.

The Analogia I reflects Grippo’s concern with power. It is made easy and clear by his presentation of the elements. The potatoes symbolize the people whose collective power is controlled by the authoritarian state (Grippo). The potatoes are put in a manner to represent a class of humans which is the commoners and the electric meter symbolizes the authoritarian state which is constantly absorbing energy produced by the commoners. The message is made clear by keeping the work aligned with reality. The interpretation is clear, and it unites people with the cause that energy is being produced by a lot of elements and is being consumed by one specific entity.

Art is a delicate topic. Tolstoy wanted to put certain standards on the concept. Even though most of his points could be agreed on as his imposed criteria help to produce quality artworks such as Grippo’s Analogia I which fits into Tolstoy’s lens of what an artwork should look like, but it could have an extension on the part of sincerity where there could be a relief for artwork created solely for pleasure. It is important to put more value into artworks in order to enhance the creative process and Tolstoy’s criteria would boost this process as seen on Grippo’s Analogia I.

[1] Gallery text from Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Richard Norton Memorial Fund and gift of Leslie Cheek, Jr.

Works Cited

Grippo, Victor. Analogia I. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Richard Norton Memorial Fund and gift of Leslie Cheek, Jr. Guy Brett, Material and Consciousness: Grippo's Vision (2006), pp. 1-13. Buenos Aires, 1970-1971. electric circuits, electric meter and switch, potatoes, ink, paper, paint and wood.

Tolstoi, Count Lyof N. What is Art? New York: Thomas Y. Crowell & Co, 1899.