Audience Participation in Art: Neto & Bishop's Perspectives

Audience Participation in Art: Neto & Bishop's Perspectives
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Audience Participation in Art: Neto & Bishop's Perspectives
Introduction
Humans encounter several objects in their everyday lives. Among the overwhelming number of objects that they experience are a variety of works of art. Fine art, commercial art, and performance art among others are examples of works of art that compete for the attention and appreciation of viewers in various societal contexts that make up the worlds of humans. Indeed, art has been a fundamental part of human civilization for centuries. It is through art that people have communicated ideas, expressed emotions, and reflected their culture. Art has been widely used as a tool to rally people behind a certain cause that is of importance to society. Over the years, the way artists create art and how the audience consumes it has been evolving. Artists have continued to find creative ways to ensure their work connects with their audience. This paper explores audience involvement in art and examines how artists form a connection with their audience. The paper majors on the study of Brazilian artist Ernesto Neto and the critical analysis of art historian Claire Bishop to offer more insights into the topic.[Bruder, Kurt A., and Ozum Ucok. "Interactive art interpretation: How viewers make sense of paintings in conversation." Symbolic Interaction 23, no. 4 (2000): 337-358.]
About Ernesto Neto and Claire Bishop
To examine how artists can create a connection with their audience, it is important to understand two major artists; Ernesto Neto and Claire Bishop. Ernesto Neto is a Brazilian contemporary visual artist. He is a sculptor and multimedia and installation artist. Neto is known for the creation of large-scale works that engage the senses of audiences and explore the environment around them. Brazilian heritage has influenced Neto's work, where he draws heavily from Brazilian vanguard movements of the 1960s and 70s. For instance, Neto's installation of "Anthropodino" (2009) was inspired by the work of Brazilian architect Lina Bo Bardi and the city of Salvador, where he was born. Neto makes installations that are made from soft and pliable materials, which allows viewers to touch and intersect with them, creating a physical experience. Neto incorporates organic shapes and materials that engage the five senses of the viewers. That way, the artist manages to create a perception that renegotiates boundaries between artwork and viewer. Such an approach makes Neto's work be seen as "beyond abstract minimalism."[The Solomon R Guggenheim Foundation. 2023. Ernesto Neto. /artwork/artist/ernesto-neto.]
Claire Bishop is an art historian and critic who has researched extensively regarding contemporary art and how it related to its audience. Bioship grew up in Welsh and received a BA in art history from St. John’s College, Cambridge. In 1994, Bishop completed her MA and Ph.D. in art history and theory at Essex University. Bishop is a renowned author in the area of contemporary art having authored several books on the area. One of the popular books under Bishop is titled, “Artificial Hells: Participatory Art and the Politics of Spec...