Any activity and/or object becomes ordinary after repeated experiencing. It is familiarity that leads to the loss of perceived uniqueness. By presenting what has become familiar in a new way it's extraordinary characteristics can be relocated, and, in the case of art, called to the viewer's attention.
We necessarily need to consign things to the ordinary to make room for new experiences; our mind is constantly reassessing activities and objects so as to move them from the category of the unique to that of the norm, thus making room for new events.
Art can call attention to the extraordinary within the ordinary by presenting it with the unique vision of the particular artist; calling attention to that which we no longer see because it is so familiar or reminding us of the unique quality of something we used to celebrate but have consigned to the usual.
When an artist stretches this point the work challenges the viewer and creates a dialogue between viewer and the work. To group these dialogues into styles is the work of art historians and not necessarily a productive way of identifying the work. To look at a work and seek characteristics attributed to a specific style does the work and artist a disservice......... effectively dismissing the very unique qualities that makes the work NEW.
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