Art (Un)Appreciation: The Most Under-appreciated Art Forms

In the commercial world, not all art is created equal.  Action films may not be the first thing one thinks of when one thinks of “Art” with a capital ‘A’, but they rake in enough money and have lasted through time long enough to have earned a spot as a filmic genre that isn’t leaving the mainstream any time soon.

On the other hand, other forms of art, such as slam poetry, may be older in form, but rake in little value as commercial commodities.  So for this week, I want to highlight a few areas of art that I think are underappreciated, under attended, and in many cases, underfunded.

Slam Poetry

Poetry is often viewed as a nebulous and exclusive art only created by people who speak a different language from the everyday.  But after viewing my first slam performance, my own perception of poetry changed.  Instead of viewing it as something flowery, abstract, and confusing, I saw it as something gritty and tangible and as close to the everyday as spoken words can be.  Ann Arbor and the University have loads of slam poetry competitions and many English Ph D students who would be happy to hear that someone is curious about their work.  If you have never considered slam poetry as something entertaining or even as something within your reach as a non-English major, watch this classic slam poetry performance by Taylor Mali on why he teaches.

Opera

Once praised as the highest form of theatrical and musical entertainment, opera is now only frequently by the old and classically trained set.  When a new book or movie comes out, wordsmiths are not flocking to turn it into an opera.  A musical, maybe, but never opera.  It’s understandable that opera falls into the same foreign language category as foreign films, but if you ever get a chance to experience opera in any language, I recommend that you take it.

For one, you will never hear live vocals that have the same range, control, and variation as opera singers.  To be classically trained means that a singer has definite musical chops.  With their arduous hours of classical training, opera singers are like the Navy SEALs of singing.  They have lived through hell week and they are constantly stretching the limits of human abilities on a daily basis.

If you think opera is a stuffy art form that doesn’t interest you, I recommend at least checking out some of the great arias (even if it’s just a sample on Youtube…like this one).  And FYI, an aria is any piece of operatic scoring with a vocalist who can be either accompanied or unaccompanied by instruments. Aria is melodic and sounds like music, while recitative is closer to spoken word.

Architecture

Granted, architecture is a very broad category and encompasses many artistic movements and geographic influences.  But people are affected by architects and architectural choices every day.  If you live in a house, you are affected by architecture.  If you go to work in any building, then you are guided through the building by architectural intentions. Luckily, Ann Arbor is full of architectural gems. From the Oxfordian Law School to the imposing Power Center, there are loads of revival styles that mesh together to create the world of the University of Michigan. Not to mention the Big House, which is not merely a sports beacon of the ‘leaders and best’ but is also a solid feat of architectural engineering.

Graffiti

An art that is centuries older than oil painting, cinema, and dub-step, graffiti is not only under-appreciated, in many cases it is condemned.

My question is: have city planners ever considered the thought ‘If you can’t beat ‘em, hire ‘em’? What a collaboration that would be.  Imagine if cities picked their best Graffiti artists to do rotating coverage of certain city surfaces.  Or even temporary coverage of places deemed for destruction. If you want to experience some great graffiti in A2, then check out Graffiti Alley.

Garden/Landscape Art

I wanted to take a Chinese Landscape class this semester, but it didn’t pan out.  I will be the first to say that I don’t know the first thing about landscape art or design, whether it be English, French, or Chinese.  However, the older I get and the more digitally involved I get, the more I want to disconnect from my electronics and reconnect with the outdoors.  Garden and landscape art is like wild woods that have been ordered and beautiful flowers that have been classically trained in ballet to look like a choreographed ensemble of color.

My mom has always been more of a gardener than me and I have been known to be an orchid killer.  But in terms of touchable, tangible, and accessible art, I think landscape and garden art has the most potential for public outreach and awareness.

Around Ann Arbor there are three spots that I love: the Matthei Botanical Gardens, Fairy Woods (a whimsical makeshift art installation created by those ages 3+), and the Wave Field.