Meghan Calhoun, Untitled (Cotton balls), 2011via here
What is art? A question that has kept scholars and other people debating for centuries.
To me, 'true' art is what evokes a reaction in me: physical or emotional, pleasant or disturbing. The painting above instantly spoke to me. It brought up the memory of an anecdote my parents are intent on keeping alive. I have heard it so many times, it almost feels like I can actually remember it happening. According to them, I was quite the artist myself when I was 2. I was not hindered by conventions, expectations, fear of failure. Those came later.
The year was 1973 and my mum kept a large bag of pastel-coloured cotton balls in the bathroom. (I clearly remember those. I loved them!) One afternoon, when she came to my room to wake me from my afternoon nap,the bed was empty. The story goes she found me in the bathroom making my finest work of art to date. I had dunked the whole bag of cotton balls in the toilet and stuck them on the wall.
So, what is art to you?