Who needs a definition?

“Art is the reason I get up in the morning, but the definition ends there. It doesn’t seem fair that I’m living for something I can’t even define.” Ani DiFranco

I read this quote on the sidewalk sign of a lovely art supplies store near my place. I can relate. This lack of definition didn’t stop the artist from writing over 20 music albums, but it has stopped me! I wasn’t raised to express my emotions publicly and extravagantly. On the contrary – I was taught to always examine my feelings, never act on them impulsively. I find it beneficial to this day. It makes me judge my actions and words, makes me more considerate of others, more patient.

Examining, however, demands explanations and definitions. And that’s why the lack of definition for the arts closed me shut to making those words and images that bubble on the inside of me. I mean, if I don’t know what I’m doing, why I’m doing it, and for whom, what’s the point? Why waste energy and time? Yet the bubbling doesn’t stop, it just gets stronger.

This sent me on the quest for the definition of art. And the beginning of it is: Today we have no definition of art.