Like many art styles, Conceptual art is not always well or consistently defined among art historians. Here are some the ideas behind Conceptual Art.
According to the The Thames & Hudson Dictionary of Art Terms (© 1984 Thames & Hudson Ltd), conceptual art can de defined as follows:
1. That art consists in the basic idea, which does not have to be embodied in a physical form.
2. That language becomes the basic material of art, and the barrier between art and art theory is breached.
3. That artistic activity becomes an inquiry into the nature of art itself, and any result or embodiment must be regarded simply as an interim demonstration of the general conclusion reached by the artist. Among the artists associated with Conceptual Art are Lawrence Weiner, Sol LeWitt, Joseph Kosuth, and Bruce Nauman, though some of these are also categorized as minimalists.
During the 80s, artists most associated with conceptual art include Richard Artschwager, John Baldessari, Hans Haacke, Douglas Huebler, General Idea, and Les Levine, among others—certainly, many of these artists had been working throughout the 70s, and even 60s, in some cases.
The artist Sol LeWitt wrote: "In conceptual art the idea or concept is the most important aspect of the work. When an artist uses a conceptual form of art, it means that all of the planning and decisions are made beforehand and the execution is a perfunctory affair. The idea becomes a machine that makes the art." (This quote was taken from Art Since 1960 by Michael Archer, Thames & Hudson Ltd.)
Tony Godfrey in Conceptual Art (Phaidon Press Ltd) states: "Conceptual art is concerned both with intellectual speculation and with the everyday... It draws the viewer's attention to themselves, making them self-conscious..."
In my personal works, I seek to use Conceptual art to express a concept through elegant and hopefully not enigmatic presentation of images and/or words. Thus, I view my art as speaking to the viewer almost as a person. Now many artworks "speak" or seek to communicate to the user. My current works, though, are meant to speak more directly and not in the riddle-bound or ambiguous manner of the Oracle of Delphi.
This page was last updated April 2, 2003