What is beauty?

I’m a massive fan of Matthew Collings. He’s a British artist but more well known for his critiques of modern art. I first saw his series ‘This is modern art’ in 2000, it was so good he won a bafta for it. So, I was pleased to see a brief return on BBC2 in a show entitled ‘What is Beauty?’

‘What is Beauty?’ was a look at why we think some things are more beautiful than others. Thinking about beauty isn’t just important for artists its also is fundamental principle of design. Beauty is often subjective, not everyone likes the same colours for example. Stripping opinion away we are all hard wired to find certain things universally beautiful.

Symmetry, pattern, simplicity, and nature are just a few beautiful traits – when you actually stop to think about it these are quite obvious. So why do we need a programme to tell us what is beautiful?

We don’t spend time thinking about beauty, rarely do we stop to think about what makes something beautiful. The show itself was about beauty but it was more of a wake up call to get us to notice it in our everyday lives.

I’d also like to add some things to Colling’s list of beautiful things – light and randomness.

I think any scene can be made beautiful through the use of light, especially dappled low lights. Colour can be added to light which can again give it a different mood. All too often we experience the dreaded strip light that inhabits our offices, and that in itself is a mood indicating ‘its time for work’.

Even though we’re hard wired for patterns I also think randomness is a pleasant relief from our natural need for order. The way leaves fall in a random way drifted by the wind and the seemingly random twinkling of christmas lights can also be quite beautiful.

One of the reasons why I like Matthew Collings is the way he talks about art. He doesn’t think for you but does assist in finding meaning in modern art and how it connects to traditional pieces. Even for the uninitiated Collings approach to art is a very straightforward and logical.

I also recently watched another programme in ‘The Modern Beauty Season’ on the BBC entitled ‘Why Beauty Matters’ presented by Roger Scruton.

Scruton doesn’t hold back when it comes to berating modern life and pointing out how ugly it is. I would be inclined to agree, we’re locked into a consumerist culture bombarded by images. Where we’re encouraged to buy products that ‘add value’ to our lives and yet we are poorer for having bought them.

As a result of how ‘ugly’ life has become Scrunton argues that art too has become a reflection of the world’s ugliness and that we need beauty in our lives to escape the mundane. If modern art was television then it would be something like ‘Life Of Grime’ a contorted reality showing only the nastiest bits.

Despite my agreement with this show I felt it neglected two key points. First off the comparison between art and religious experiences. Back when I was reading John Berger’s ‘Ways Of Seeing’ he describes the reasons why ‘normal’ people don’t go to art galleries. They are too much like libraries or churches. I’ve always believed that art should be for everyone because it prompts us to think.

Second of all I think the show also neglected design as a key facilitator in modern life. We’re bombarded by design images everyday. It creates desire and permeates our lives in a silent way. John Berger covers this topic in his final chapter of ‘Ways Of Seeing’, advertising affects our opinions of ourselves making you wonder is design a force of good or evil?

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