Art itself has the most complex understanding, that’s what makes it beautiful and mystical to some. Some forms of it can range from impressionism to minimalist, or anything in between, and they all have separate and unique meanings behind them. Pieces of art are meant to represent something, to allude to a bigger image from the artist’s perspective, and maybe even possibly “wow” some people. The most difficult thing about art is understanding it and grasping the strange reality of it all.

Finding a work of art by a professional artist is not hard to decipher, it’s all there for you to see. Take abstract art, for example. The avant-garde approach combines colorful or even monochromatic color and pieces them together in tactical methods. Piet Mondrian, a Dutch painter from the 1800’s, devised brilliant works of post-impressionist inspired artworks, as well as abstract pieces concerning geometrical shapes through primary colors. His works can easily be used to represent the mindset and thought that goes into abstract art because even though the most simple design through funky shapes and candid colors, there is almost always a purpose and idea behind the simplicity of it all. The motive behind one of his famous works of abstract art is associated with the Style, a Dutch movement that brought a modern and simplistic take on art, something that people would have never guessed by just looking at it. All of this, of course, can be found through an easy Google search and skim through a Wikipedia page, but what about the younger generation, what goes on in the head of middle schoolers?

Though, a majority of middle school students are not a Picasso, as some may say, they are artists. Some people can disagree, saying that you are not truly an artist until you are “professional” and “well-known.” But you don’t have to be famous to be an artist, it’s all about the effort and dedication one puts into their art and how much it truly means to them. Kimberly Williams, an avid artist who attends the school’s art class says,  “Art is a form of communication in the way that I think of it as, and it’s a stress relief and it can also be a way to form bonds with friends.“ Many students that are intimate about art consider it a way to form connections with others, as Kimberly has brilliantly said, and some may even consider it to be the most important subject in their life. With students so immersed in the captivating subject, it is no surprise the art class is something extraordinary. Art classes usually encourage creativity and they teach you to experiment with your work, in which Mr. Faller, the art teacher at Travis Ranch, teaches exactly that. He explains the importance of the subject as he says, “Art is life. Art is anything creative that you want to develop or create, and the beauty is that it’s anything that comes from your heart or from your soul, anything that is just 100% you.”

As mentioned before, art is anything that you want to make it be. Styles, techniques, and inspirations range heavily and differentiating the many aspects of it is tricky. But there is one thing learned through all of this, and that is that art students are most adamant about creating significant and true works of art that will stay for years to come.