January 2003 - Nr. 1
Art is Communication
Sybille Forster-Rentmeister
That communication is a vital form of expressing our human endeavours is quite clear to most of us. Yet when it comes to art as communication the juries/experts are divided as to what constitutes art, even though the answer to that should be simple.
If art is indeed communication then all one has to ask is if the communication is actually taking place. How well does it accomplish its purpose, convey what the artist/communicator wanted to convey is the only other question that needs to be asked.
It can be observed that often only technical skill appears to be a criterion for the evaluation of art. Certainly it is important for the artist to have had enough technical ability to make good use of the medium he/she is working with or in. But technical expertise can only go so far in telling a story. The real carrier wave of the communication will be the emotion that is being evoked by the looking at the work of art. And if the onlooker feels touched by this communication then the artist has succeeded. If art can be experienced then communication takes place.
In the visual arts this is particularly important when the art does not conform with total realism. In the abstract form of art we need an anchor point from which we can experience the presentation and let the communication penetrate our awareness.
Our official organisations dealing in and presenting art do not always present us with what our choices would be. They claim to have a higher academic calling and lean heavily, if not solely, on government supplementation.
Yet the Canadian art scene is diverse and much richer since a couple of individuals have taken it upon themselves to further the cause of art as a communication bridge between countries, continents and people. An intercultural "Salon" by the name Terra Incognita was established in Toronto by Sylvia Barkhausen Rustige, in her home. The space is ideal for exhibit purposes and a reasonable amount of public traffic. The hostess is a German journalist with strong cultural interests. The Salon wants to be seen as a living arts initiative and follows a classical European example. Creating a venue for exchange and networking is just as important for Sylvia’s partners in the first two endeavours.
Bruce Alexander Pitkin, actor, director, and Susanne Schneider, actress, both have ties in and experience or heritage in Germany and are familiar with the local arts scene as well. They are moving back to Germany now to work there in the rich cultural scene. These initiatives are to be the beginning of a future that includes the building of great international projects.
I
visited the 2nd of these Salons, which featured the art of
painter Noriko Saito, who originally hails from Japan but lived for over 10
years in Berlin. Here she studied, also encouraged by Gerhard Richter, her
art and other fields of human sciences. She prefers the challenges of
abstracts that still explain themselves, rather than realism. Some of her
paintings are inspired by the work of another artist in another field of art
like music; others are botanical interpretations, always relying on the
nature of light and colour and how the two interact. I found the paintings
stunning in their simplicity. If sanity would be interpreted as a trend
towards simplicity one would find it in these paintings. There is nothing
unnecessary in them; there are no intricate significances or ornate
symbolisms. Perhaps it is the artist’s Japanese cultural background that is
shining through as the austere quality presents itself so pleasantly to the
viewer. A few of the paintings could fit into almost any space, would blend
in uncommonly well, almost familiar, like a well loved piece of furniture.
Others are startling in their brilliance and demand a big space all by
themselves.
The
artist wants to encourage the viewer to look at the dualities in life and
hopefully resolve them. Thus painting can become an experience of the
spirit, she says.
If that is so we applaud the artist, who felt spiritually aware and inspired. If the viewer has a similar spiritual experience than we can relate to Friedrich Schiller, who claimed that true art can set us free, not just momentarily, but permanently.
I felt moved thus. In fact there was one painting I only discovered on my way out. It so touched me that I have not been able to put it out of my mind. I would like to see it again and again and again, for its golden light and shapes like rain streaming down in prismatic shades of gold and green haunt me still, make me want to walk through a cleansing rain that washes all soil and stains off my tarnished soul.
The next Salon is due to start in late March. It will feature sculpture by Janis Gillan and some of Noriko Saito’s paintings will be held over.
