Analysis of a Difficult Art

Analysis of a Difficult Art

Critical Response to a Difficult Art
Many critics believe that good art is that which makes one think about the work itself; that which makes the audience to think about the processes of interacting with the art (Dewey 41). What ‘counts’ for a novel piece of modern art, in particular, is the extent to which the masterpiece- which may appear obtuse or facile- invokes interest in the viewer. If given due diligence, a piece of art should reinvigorate how the audience come to art and how it represents the world around. Interestingly, a new form of art- called difficult art- may not offer these conventional interpretation channels. In Chapter 4 of Art with a Difference, Diepeveen and Van Laar revisit the concept of difficult art (93-121). Therein are highlighted several aspects of difficult art, as a manifestation of post-modern Western art. Using the main concepts from the chapter, I review one such piece of art considered difficult- The Ice Storm, 2014 by Douglas Coupland. I particularly write about my encounter with the art and how it invokes the elements of difficult art discussed in the chapter.
The Ice Storm, 2014 is an installation art by Douglas Coupland first exhibited at the Daniel Faria Gallery courtesy of the artist (Shepherd par 4). The art is welded steel sculpture measuring 548.7 cm wide by 304 high by 304 cm depth. It is an eccentric but elegant biomorphic form of a transmission tower, that was a victim of a massive ice storm that struck parts of the US and Eastern Canada in January 1998. The ice storm caused massive damage to electrical installations and infrastructure, and widespread outages. The massive crumpling of towers- constituting an essential network of infrastructure that held the vast nation together-was a statement of the crushing force of nature, a recreation that Coupland presents by The Ice Storm, 2014. The sculpture, exhibited in an ample, well-lit room, painted in enamel paint stand precariously balanced on its four bases, while...

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