A No-Brainer

Art is an attempt to reconcile stimuli into a coherent, if not complex and evolving, thought.

Just as an infant absorbs information through the senses in order to understand its place and relevance to the universe, an art viewer takes inventory of the elements of an artwork and compares them to previously recorded stimuli throughout the viewer's experience in an attempt to find a place for it within that evolving experience.

The sound of a car coming: the movement of the air carrying the sound, the knowledge of one's place in relation to the sound (whether one is outside or inside, near or far from the sound), the characteristics of the sound of tires on a surface, the frequency of the sound (Doppler Effect), etc. All of this information is catalogued and compared to previous knowledge of a variety of similar experiences resulting in what one would assume to be a similar experience: that of a car approaching.

Now apply this method of thinking to a simple image with two distinctive elements. In this instance, a photograph of a woman's face, presented with a word, "fork." Stay with me here. The mind tries to reconcile these two elements. What does this mean? What is it supposed to mean? Who did this? Is the woman a fork? Is the woman saying fork? Is she labeled as a fork? Is 'fork' a foreign term for woman? And so forth.

The image and the meaning of the text, and the professed relationship of the two become something to ponder, to understand. Some times it is easy but other times, such as this instance, it becomes almost impossible. Yet there is some vague possibility that can be postulated if one is willing. It is at this point when the viewer is able to identify with, on some level, the elements presented. That is art.