What is art? Where can we find it? Is it hiding? If so, where? Is art an illusion of the mind? Is it a living organism? If not, is it a non-living organism? Is it a portrait drawn with a collection of crayon? Perhaps a smiley face made inside your soggy Cheerios on a Saturday morning? Is it maybe even a statue of GRF Antonio made out of Play-Doh? Questions abound, though answers are few. That said, if my grandma is correct, then art is in the eye of the beholder.

In my opinion, art is everywhere. It’s in the air we breathe, it’s in the nature that surrounds us, and it’s in the problem sets that keep us awake every night. Art is everywhere and we should cherish it with our entire being every hour on the hour until we can cherish no more.

This last Thursday, the Rose Scholars had an amazing opportunity to contribute more to the world of art through linoleum printing. What is linoleum printing? Why had I never heard of it prior to this experience? Was it hiding from me all these years? If so, why? Why am I asking so many questions?  Perhaps it is because I am on my third cup of coffee and am feeling super jittery. Anyway, back to linoleum printing.

Linoleum printing is a multi-step process that requires diligence, vision, stamina, and band-aids (for sharp blades are involved). The various steps of linoleum printing include carving designs in the linoleum with specialized carving blades, applying a layer of printing ink with a brayer, and then pressing the linoleum against a thinly sliced sheet of tree matter (i.e. paper). Once I had finished this last step, I was able to finally see the fruit of my labor and, I’ll tell you, it was as if I had temporarily channeled the creative capacity of both Vincent van Gogh and Leonardo da Vinci. When I asked a Johnson official if it could be placed on display in the museum, however, I was to my surprise told “no.” It was at that point that I realized that my linoleum print was not as impressive as I had initially thought and could definitely use some work. Nevertheless, I held my head high and ran straight home to put my linoleum print on my wall.

To this day, it hangs proudly on my wall amidst my impressive collection of paintings that I have purchased over the years from various distributors like Target, Walmart, and Amazon.com. There are rumors floating around that I may host an art appreciation night at my apartment soon to showcase my art to the art lovers of Ithaca. If the rumors are true, there may or may not be wine and cheese.

That is all.