I dated an artist

This week's Spin Cycle, brought to you by Gretchen at Second Blooming is on art.  I'm not an art person by any means.  Any creativity that I did have in me was quickly sucked out of me in law school.  I love taking pictures and framing them around our house, yes.  But appreciating art and going to art museums and doing that thing when people look at paintings and just ponder the meaning of them?  Totally not me.


But at one point in time...I, Nain...the cynical, blunt and easily irritated one.  The one who sees the glass as empty...not just half empty...dated an artist.  Like an actual artist.  If you can believe it, of course.  I sometimes think about it and think...really, Nain, really?  But yep, I did. 


And he just wasn't a normal, run of the mill artist.  I mean, he was a great guy and was a really nice boyfriend and always treated me very well.  And I cared for him a whole lot.  So I'm not saying the whole artist thing is a bad thing.  But...he was a little...well...different.  Quirky different.  Like "I'm a free thinking artist" quirky different.  And he was very into art.  And I couldn't have been any less intor art.  I just didn't get it. 


It's not to say I didn't try.  He would take pictures of random inanimate objects, and there was always something that I was supposed to appreciate about them.  A picture of a spoon.  Look at the detail, the shading, the meaning behind it.  What is the spoon trying to tell you?  Can't you see that the spoon stands for man's struggle against the harshness of life?  Don't you hear the spoon speaking to you?  No, it's a spoon.  It's saying "please use me to stir the creamer in your coffee."  Sorry...I don't see anything more than just a damn spoon. 


On one of our first dates was to an art show at Indiana University featuring some Kinsey Institute art.  If you're not familiar with the IU Kinsey Institute...well, to put it bluntly, they study sexuality.  And this exhibit was about pictures made from penis shapes.  Or actual penises.  Seriously, I cannot make this up.  I remember this butterfly thing that had a penis as the middle part of the butterfly.  I had a hard time taking it seriously that night, but I faked it.  Well, the few drinks I had at the exhibit helped, but I think I was convincing. 


I went to another show where it was abstract art...a dress made solely of Band aids, and one of the best ones that I totally didn't get was someone had opened up a few boxes of Jell-o and just dumped it on the floor.  I don't know what it symbolized, and all I wanted to do was get a broom and clean that stuff up.  But it was art. And there were people analyzing the meaning behind it.  So...yeah...


My last story I'll share before you guys think I didn't take this guy seriously at all, which is not the case at all...one of his fellow artist friends did an installation piece and did a big debut for it.  So we went.  So we walked into the room full of dirt, with little piles made up, lined with pink lingerie and worms.  Worms inside these little hole things.  Apparently there was some sexual meaning behind it.  I didn't get it.  We were there for a freaking hour.  Standing there, look at piles of dirt with worms in them.  And it smelled.  And all I could think about is how someone is getting a fine arts degree doing stuff like this and how it's just not fair.  After this we went to dinner, and I don't think my date appreciated it when I took a bottle of Ketchup and placed it in the center of our table and said "Look!  It's art!"  But seriously...worms and dirt?  What? 


I hope I don't insult any of you out there.  I know that some of this art does take a great deal of effort, and I know that this is just my opinion but....it's my blog, right? 


I'm not going to just sit here and crap on my ex though.  He was really into this stuff and followed his passion which is awesome.  It's just not my thing.   We didn't really match up, if you can catch that here.  When we broke up, he went on to pursue his art and now has a successful career and is working and living in Paris, and I went on to pursue my legal degree.  But when I do look back on these memories, I do have to chuckle at my experience with art.


So there's my take on art...stop by Gretchen's and see what other Spinners have to share!