Xander

-A review of Allan Kaprow's "Art Which Can't be Art" by Xander Kent

Kaprow argues in his article that the act of brushing one's teeth, under examination could be considered art. All the minute processes that go into oral hygiene, if put in the appropriate context (ie: a museum or an art gallery), could be considered art.

This calls into question what can be and what can't be art. Kaprow recognizes the paradox of the ordinary becoming aesthetically labeled as art. In everyday life, the ordinary is just that: ordinary. But once it is contemplated, examined, scrutinized, and analyzed, it can be put on display and called art.

In all honesty, I have a problem with this. I really don't believe that objects or actions such as soup cans, urinals, or brushing one's teeth is art. I don't pretend to be an authorized art critic, and I understand the idea behind putting said objects and actions under an aesthetic eye, but I just don't see it as art.

In all reality though, you don't have to be Van Gough or Picasso to be an artist. But I think it takes more making people think "Is this art?" when they see a stack of boxes in a museum or when they watch themselves brush their teeth.