Week 7 — Art Idea Essay — The Art of Place
Place affects lives by expressing culture, identity, values and opportunity for individuals. My life is affected by the idea of Place especially during this challenging pandemic. The idea of Place is unique to each individual. Places like the CSULB campus or the mall have been shifted to virtual places opposed to physical ones. Many students and faculty have been affected by this shift in place around the world. Place expresses culture and identity based on the individuals occupying it. I believe that a given place can not create a culture. A place is only describable based on peoples’ emotions and feelings. The beauty of a place is that it can be tranquil to some while life threatening to others. Values and identities are expressed when a place provides certain opportunities that allow people to be themselves and or step out of their comfort zone to experience something new.
The sense of place is portrayed differently through art. Art allows the audience to imagine themselves as being present in a piece of art. An oil painting by Maynard Dixon, titled A Desert Valley: Panamint, California, reminds me of the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park here in southern California. When I saw this painting, I had an instant flashback of what the mountains looked like while driving near the state park. Another artist, Pier Fabre, strung over 200 red cords from a waterfall in a project called Dripping, expressing the chaotic movements of running water. Before moving to California, I lived in a small community that was home to a variety of waterfalls that people could access from their backyards. Waterfalls have a special meaning to me in terms of sense of place. Whenever I see one, I’m back “home” in Pennsylvania. The third person I’d like to share is any architect that designs buildings that replicate those that were originally built in different countries. I was unable to find a specific architect but I believe this idea speaks enough on its own as a general concept. Replicating buildings or statues that were originally built elsewhere give a sense of place. Seeing a building that seems out of place triggers the audience to imagine themselves and that building in the correct setting. A place can be represented through art as visual or physical.
As a student living at home, my bedroom is the supplement for my classrooms. I now have more time to interact with my friends and family since I’m not living on campus. Life, in general, has shifted to primarily virtual interactions and events. For example, business meetings and parties commonly take place on zoom rather than in person now. As for a new place for work, I haven’t been employed since the beginning of quarantine so I currently have no place to describe. It’s easier for younger people to adapt to this virtual shift of Place because we grew up learning how to use technology and how to adapt to the different upgrades. Baby boomers haven’t had enough experience with the way the media works and how technology is truly expanding every day.
I believe that the idea of place can be mental as well as physical. In the year 2024, I assume technology will control the majority of daily tasks. Apps like Zoom will be more common for meetings and routine doctors appointments because they have proven to be more time efficient. In 2050, politics will be different and the world will be more connected than ever. It won’t matter what country you’re from. This pandemic has enlightened our sense of place as well as self and community. Personally, for the next year I will continue doing the same things that I do currently. I will live at home and participate in virtual classes until at least fall of 2021. I hope to find employment somewhere close to home so I can save money in case I end up living on or closer to campus next year. The idea of place has encouraged me to look more into the career path of traveling nurses. With being stuck at home, unable to travel far, I’ve never been more interested in traveling. The idea of place has certainly expanded my limits as to where I see myself within the next 5–10 years.
