Things I Wrote For English Class

Relativist Fallacy Speech: If-By-Contemporary Art

*The following is an imitation speech of If-By-Whiskey that I wrote for my AP English Class*

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Art has been appreciated for centuries. However, with the beginning of the contemporary art era came pieces which challenged the traditional sense of beauty even more than the modern art period did. Due to this derailing, of many people have debated what "true art" is. Due to the subjectiveness of the matter, I've never participated in this discussion until now.

If by contemporary art you mean purposely distasteful subject matter, untamed lines, clashing colors, disorder, art that can be confused with a painter's dirty apron, poorly chosen mediums used to express an idea, something that makes you go "I could've  done something as simple as that"; bland, single color paintings, unaltered rocks, sculptures of random objects, breaking the rules before you even learned them, grotesque images made simply because beauty is over done; effortless pieces that lack much thought and planning, art that fails to convey even a single idea to the audience without a direct explanation; meaningless work that was just made for the sake of creation;  if you mean a battle for attention through the use of increasingly more shocking material; then contemporary art is not art.

But, if by contemporary art you mean intricate designs, fresh ideas, stunning detail, daring choices, learning the rules just to break them, art that doesn't forget its past, unconventional displays of beauty, something that you'll actually pay for, exciting depictions of current matters, stories that are told at a glance, a visual representation of today's current ideas, art that is displayed in a museum, reimagining classics and putting a modern twist on them, boldly breaking social standards, something that inspires emotion, careful planning in order to successfully make a statement, encouraging others to be creators also, something you are willing to use to decorate your everyday life, something that leaves you in awe; then contemporary art is art.

This is my stand. I shall not be moved.