Define "Art"

As an occasional student of art history, I strove for years either to discover or to create an acceptable definition of art. Google "art, definition of" and you will learn that I am by no means alone in my quest. And with no more or no less success.

Art is "the class of objects subject to aesthetic criteria" seems to me a cop-out, like saying "philosophy is the totality of topics examined by philosophers." It doesn't say what art is.

Speaking of philosophers, don't go there to find a definition of art lest you find your brain twisted like a pretzel. [See Stanford University.] On the other hand, a less rigorous approach, which took up an entire book, defined art as "making special." Uhh, did I miss something?

Two definitions of art come close to the one I have settled on as my own. Tolstoy defined art as "a use of indirect means to communicate from one person to another." And John Ruskin defined art as "communication by artifice of an essential truth that could only be found in nature." [See Wikipedia.]

My definition: Art is a message to you from your own core which is mediated by someone else. This is true even if you yourself are the artist. And it follows that if a work of art doesn't speak to you, it is for you not art.

And there it is, to be analyzed, categorized, and criticized.

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Update # 11: The recuperative process

I met with Dr. Tyler on Monday, Dec. 12th, and --unfortunately-- again on Monday, Dec. 19th. Though it looked good to me, he was unhappy with the way the incision was healing. It seems an unhealed tunnel had been left under the scar tissue on top, so he called me back into surgery and cut through to the tunnel and rejoined the sides of the incision, which is now covered by a "wound-vac".

My wound-vac is a 6 X 6-inch sheet of plastic with a vacuum pump fitted to its center. The pump works 24/7 to pull the sides of the incision together and remove excess bodily fluids. So... I'm currently attached to a 3-pound portable pump which hangs from a shoulder strap. And will be for the next four weeks.

Sometimes the recuperative process seems endless! But... I'm still trying to be a patient patient. And keep my sense of humor.

Ever thankful for your support, I am...

JR~Rocky~John~Dad~Brother~Son

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