Sol LeWitt Conceptual Art Activity

I found the Sol LeWitt activity to be mildly interesting. The idea of art as a collective endeavor, rather than the unique expression of one particular artist, certainly contradicts established conventions about the artistic process. However, while I liked the idea being explored, I found the execution of the idea to be rather dull, and the work produced was not very interesting visually. The parameters set for the "work" (copying randomly selected lines drawn from a hat and posting them in a grid) were such that the final product would look very similar regardless of who was participating in the creation of it. In that way, the project felt as if it would have fit into the methods of the Suprematists or the Constructivists who incorporated the communist ideas of suppressing the individual in favor of the collective and who favored minimalist, geometric forms.

I think exploring the concept of art as a collective process would have been more interesting for me if the project had allowed for some individual creativity and expression, so that the final product would have married the ideas of individual expression and collective expression. I feel like the end product, in that case, would have been more visually engaging and thought provoking.

My reactions to this activity likely reflect my general feelings on conceptual art. For me, the conceptual artworks that are most successful are those that are visually arresting as well as intellectually engaging. Without the visual impact, the viewer is not likely to linger long enough to contemplate the idea being expressed.