Paradigms and Purposes

Something that I think is worth discussing is Plato's philosophy. First of all, I don't think that if life is an imitation of the ideal, that art is imitation of imitation, or a copy of a copy. In fact, I would say the exact opposite, that art is closer to the ultimate idea. I've been taught that Plato philosophized about everything trying to get at its most essential "essence", so to speak. For example, all pens are at different levels of "pen-ness", all attempting to be the "most pen". So! That means that every piece of art is an imagining of something, usually with a twist from the artist who has imagined that thing at its most pure. So if a piece of art is an abstract representation of an imitation, then it could be that art is closer to the truth or the real than the original worldly thing that inspired the art.
Though in some ways I can see his point about a copy of a copy, it bugs me that just because it's not the ideal, it's not worthwhile. Who cares if it's a copy of a copy if we can walk away from it with a point? It's like saying that because someone took the bus to a job interview instead of a cab, that person isn't getting the job. Who cares how he got there if he's qualified? In some ways that leads to the argument about intent, but I don't think that's very applicable in this case.

I always did admire gothic artists' ability to truly elicit the emotions and reactions they were going for, at least at the time--a sense of inferiority in response to a grand cathedral or their use of light to represent the divine light of God. Versailles is another example of personal environmental artwork that I would love to visit. As we discussed in class, apparently there are some spots in the garden that, despite the rigidity of it, are solitary and more overgrown. It makes me think of people finding their own place in the world. I like the physical environmental space form of art because it tends to impact me more and puts some things in perspective.