Being a tourist - Part 3

Today's post is continuing the tourist theme - this time being a tourist in our home town!

I didn't get much time to relax and do nothing when I returned home last weekend - we'd already booked a Bill Bailey gig and I wasn't going to miss it for the world, despite being heavily jet lagged.  (I love that man!  His humour had me laughing until I had tears rolling down my cheeks).  His jokes and musical talents woke me up briefly before returning to our hotel and blessed sleep :) 

Classic Andy Warhol screenprint pop-art - with our own added touch

Now, hubby had arranged a stay in one of the Perth hotels who are offering tickets to the current exhibition at the Perth art gallery as part of their special deals - so on Monday we tootled off to take a look at the modern masters - "Picasso to Warhol".  Fascinating viewing, although I must say I'm not really a fan of the abstract/cubist/surrealist movement.  I left with a huge question I'm still pondering - "what IS art?"  Confused.  What do you think?  Do we have to understand something for it to be art?  Does something have to be technically perfect to be art?  (As opposed to something that looks as if your dog could do it blindfold, and there was some of that type there!  Although that is only my opinion)  Is it all dependent on the perspective of the viewer?  Is beauty indeed in the eye of the beholder? 

Monochrome work by Mark Tansey (The Brothers, 1989) - with more 'artyness' on our part, lucky I was wearing a matching top

And where does craft fit into all this?  Craft is often seen as the lesser cousin of art, but often just as much work goes into the finished article.  It's a mystery I'm going to keep returning to as I continue my creative journey.  For now I've decided I'm an artisan, which sounds a lot more exotic than artist anyway :)

Detail of Mark Tansey painting - I really loved this painting.

The exhibition continues until 3rd December 2012.