I’m for art that doesn’t look like private parts…

If I could sum up Claes Oldenberg’s “I Am for an Art” in just a few words, I’d have to say it’s probably the longest metaphor ever written. Essentially all he does throughout the reading is state what type of art he’s “for,” whatever that means. He says some of the most random things too. I think at one point he even says something about art based on someone sitting on a banana. The dude’s either crazy, or the most accepting artist I’ve ever read about, or both. I also like how the majority of the things he says he’s “for” are incredibly easy to visualize. As I was reading, I could essentially picture everything he was saying in my head. Oldenberg is apparently best known for the giant sculptures he makes of everyday objects. These are just a few of his works that I found on Google.

icecreamcone giantbow cherryspoon

Judy Chicago’s “The Dinner Party: A Symbol of Our Heritage” started off pretty normal. It just sounded like someone telling their life story and how they became an artist who painted china plates. As I read further into the section though, I noticed it shift more towards feminism, which quite frankly I find boring to read about. She starts going on about how women haven’t gotten equal treatment in terms of art and blah blah blah. She shifts the subject towards the end to focus more on racism rather than feminism, but it only last for about 2 sentences. Nothing I haven’t heard before. It’s not that I don’t sympathize or understand where she’s coming from. It’s just that hearing the same complaint over and over again gets old after a while, especially considering how far we’ve already come in terms of equal rights. Maybe it’s just my dislike for history in general, but reading about things like feminism tends to shut my brain down pretty quick.  Also, the plates from her Dinner Party piece don’t actually look like plates…

Jonathan Robinson

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