Monday 14 January 2013

Art is football and football is art. Art has no limits.

To prove that that art is endless and is the broadest raw element, I will give a example of football. For me, football is what provokes the greatest emotions. It is a form of stress release, and the Friday afternoon match is the moment I look forward to the most the whole week. The emotions I feel when doing a nutmeg, lobbing the goalie or finishing a slalom are unparalleled and unequaled. For the same reason that I do not understand Art School, many of you will not understand my feelings, or will attempt to and say you will but really won't. I don't expect to you, but fortunately there are many others that are illuminated in the same way that I have.

I have posted a video that in my opinion corroborates mine and Amir's feelings in the same way. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Stxr8NqpvKo

The movements, the tricks of football, the outcome of it, the passion put in by the fans are all elements that contribute to this art. It is not for no reason that it has been called the beautiful game and that it evokes feelings superior to any other.

Players have said that scoring a goal is even better that having an orgasm, and yes, it is. Sorry for the extreme example.

I say this to prevent the dismissal of more unconventional forms of art, like football for example.

Like in  any other form of art,  absolute truth cannot be reached in football, just a reflection of the superior side, or tactic, or team in the game. Never in history has one team beat another, in direct meetings over 10+ matches and won all of them. Thats over 150 years of matches. Therefore absolute truth cannot be reached even through football. 

9 comments:

  1. I find it admirable that you are able to describe football as an art and what it really means to you. You see, I think there is a sentiment of joyfulness in something for all of us, but I do not think that everyone can find that something. I believe that that something is very closely related to art, because art is a way to express that sentiment :)

    Here:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtRRjyBHiWE
    (By the way, you might not think I do, but I love that song at the beginning)
    "This is ten percent luck,
    Twenty percent skill,
    Fifteen percent concentrated power of will,
    Five percent pleasure,
    Fifty percent pain."

    and:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDvltddd6eQ

    and:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rwlF3ONe-Q
    "You don't need a reason
    Let the day go on and on"

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    1. While I agree that football is certainly a great way to channel one's creativity and induce intense pleasure, I wouldn't go as far as calling it an art form. For one, art has to be premeditated and worked on for an extended period of time, while for example, as I am sure you'd agree, Zidane didn't go into the 2002 CL final against Leverkusen thinking that he was going to score the most memorable goal in the league's history, which fired up RM to win its title (an achievement that this team has yet to reiterate :) What I am trying to say is that the beauty of football lies in its spontaneity, which is the complete opposite of art that can be modified and transformed along the way by the artist. Also, art has to have a material aspect to it (paintings, sculptures, manuscripts...) while football in essence dies with the final whistle, even if there are video recordings of incredible exploits by true geniuses.

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    2. Sure, but I was thinking of dance more than visual arts.

      However, speaking of arts, the questions arise:

      Can a painting of a footballer, for instance, capture the emotions you feel? Is it possible to paint spontaneity? See that's where an artist's skills and abilities come into play...

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  2. I completely agree with Nelson and Amir. I do love art, and I have been taking art for the last seven years. That is a long time and it shifted me to the person I am right now. I love art because it makes me feel relieved and feel that I am getting all my anger and emotions in that white, empty paper. The same way as I like football because it makes me empty the stress of school work. By these two reasons,I can deduct that football is art. Rayane, despite the materials you talked about (which makes up art), football has its materials, which are two goals and a soccer ball. I disagree with Rayane in the fact that football "in essence dies with final whistle." This is because it is the same as saying "art in essence dies with you leaving the museum." Do not tell me Ronaldinho's moves, Neymare's techniques, and Messi's skills is not art. Those moves are pure art because they make you feel the beauty of soccer, the beauty of art. I agree with Nelson because football is pure art.

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  3. I too, agree with Nelson. Art has no limits. In my blog post I have mentioned that I cannot distinguish between salsa and the tango, however just as Nelson loves soccer, I love Bhangra ( a Punjabi folk dance). I believe that art is something that expresses YOU. It paints (not necessarily literally) all your emotions, your feelings, your ambitions and your beliefs. Even though, as Rayane mentioned, the "art dies" when the whistle blows, it does not change the fact that a work of art was created by a soccer player, or even by a Bhangra dancer in that matter(when the music ends). I also do not agree with the point made that art needs to have a tangible, materialistic character to it. After all, there are numerous cases of lost literature, paintings and sculputures that we do not possess but we still regard as art. I think we should look beyond the common perception of art as things hung up on walls. If we look for it, we can indeed find art anywhere-in nature, in sports like soccer and for me,in Bhangra.
    I shall conclude by saying that indeed, art is subjective. And, if I may be allowed to change the common saying, I would even say that ART is in the eye of the beholder. What one person considers art may not be art for another but that doesn't disqualify it as a potential art form. I for example, don't particularly find a few paint blobs on a canvas (abstract art) as works of art at all, but at the same time, I am open to the other people's perceptions of it being consider as art.

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  4. I agree with nelson, because Art as said is what makes us react and soccer creates various reactions in our bodies from frustration to pleasure. Some people reflect themselves through soccer, again I emphasize that soccer triggers emotion. Aren't these all characteristics of Art.
    In addition , Rayane how dare you say that those kicks were premeditated ? I mean do you think it was pure chance ? Of course not these player worked their skills and practiced their whole lives to achieve that one goal. For example I am pretty sure you've hear about Ronaldinho's phenomenal kick while playing against france, the ball changed its trajectory and came in straight to the goal. it wasn't just spontaneous it was worked out, practiced and finally gave a result. It is the same concept as making an Art painting. That one goal is the build up of many practices and efforts it is not just spontaneous. Finally, Art is sometimes about being beautiful, Beauty is subjective and therefore i personally find soccer beautiful as much as some people find ice skating esthetically beautiful.
    As a conclusion, SOCCER IS AN ART, if you do not think so then go watch some videos about and try to look at it from an Art perspective and you will find the Art in it.

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  5. not premeditated*

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  6. Well, this got people fired up... Not being a soccer fan, but sharing a home with two, I can attest to the emotional investment in the spectators, but suspect it has more to do with winning or losing than artistic truth or pleasure! I do think the slow motion shots and photographs of players are like dance or ballet and can be beautiful. It's like Raphaela's links to the films of horses, the medium of film (edited and packaged with music) alerts us to the beauty of the animal or to the human animal (the soccer player). Nelson was looking at it mostly from the perspective of a participant in the game (like the artist who makes the painting) and I think the elation you describe and the pleasure in skill is very similar. I suppose soccer games are also like theatre too - no two shows/games are alike and they are performances.

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