Defining Art

My friend and fellow rookie art therapist Aimee posted this on her facebook and it reminds me of a blog topic I have been sitting on: What is art?

So I've read a few books on art and creativity, because it's part of the art therapy grad school deal, but when I read about how art is defined by the snobbish and experienced with a great deal of anxiety and apprehension by the maker I think something along the lines of "What? Come on! Who thinks that? Why? What's the big deal about Art."

I have a pretty casual relationship with Art. We're so close, I wouldn't even call it Art, because that's too formal for the two of us. I'd call Art something like scooter pumpkin pants or sweetums... you know something intimate and gross due to our long love/like-quite-a-bit relationship.

So, what is Art, eh hem... uh, I mean scooter pumpkin pants to me? It's not a product or a practice. It's an emotion. It's a zone. It's like a sense of mania, without any of the trouble-causing parts. It's high energy and productivity focused on expressing something. How that comes out is based on our histories, skills, needs in the moment, available materials or whatever. That means if you hit that high coloring, you're with scooter pumpkin pants. Refinishing hardwood floors... scooter pumpkin pants. Making paella... scooter pumpkin pants. I'm sure some people who make a living creating Art that sells for thousands might find my Art theory completely offensive, but Art is relative in my mind. It's not so much about doing it well as feeling it well.

Good, bad, on exhibit, in the trash... so what? Just make something. Art or scooter pumpkin pants, it's all just semantics anyway.