Art Thesis
What is art? The age old question has trickled down from the philosophers to you, the art student. If you have not chosen a MFA in Art degree in which your thesis will be a ceramic sculpture of your cat or a collection of paintings which depict the bottom of your sock drawer from various angles, you are faced with a variation of the hoary chestnut — What is an art thesis? In short, the answer to that question is this: an art thesis is to objectively study the creations of those who are compelled to share the contents of their minds in the form of dance choreography, film arts, sculpture, paintings, theatre pieces, and anything else not nailed down.
Some different Art thesis topics include:
Film Art;
Postmodern Art;
Art in Architecture;
European Art;
Bookmaking Arts;
Papermaking Arts;
Costume Making as Art;
Art on the Stage;
Dance as Art;
Theatre as Art;
That’s right. If anything qualifies as art, then anything qualifies as an art thesis topic. But you have to prove your point. For example, garbage art or a smashed gum on the sidewalk exhibition may have passed the preliminary test by getting slapped up on the coffee shop walls, but you have to legitimize it by comparing and contrasting its worth with more established pieces or applying the frameworks of legitimate art theorists. In other words, you have to make to use something of what you’ve learned in your art theory or art history classes and apply it to the modern manifestations of your choice.
Most likely, originality in your art thesis won’t be a problem, but be sure you take on a topic which hasn’t been done before. Don’t waste time re-treading. The art world is big enough that you can find something unique to explore. The old dead Europeans may hold your interest, but unless you’ve stumbled upon Van Gogh’s diary or Gaughin’s love letters, then refrain from making them the subject of your art thesis.
This brings us to the subject of original research. Unless your focus is ancient art or an artist who has been dead and buried in the deserts of the Sudan, then you have a unique position among thesis writers. You can easily create primary or ‘original’ research. Conduct interviews. Do your own exploration. Find the artist and ask him or her all the questions that historians wish they could have asked Georgia O’Keefe. Attend openings, ask to visit the studio and view first and second drafts. If it’s a staged production, go on opening night and closing night and in between to see different incarnations of the show. Try and go back stage and interview the performers.
Check out the faculty of your department for inspiration. Every one of them represents a whole network of contacts, experiences, and resources that may not only inform your art thesis but may provide essay help the thesis question itself.
In the art world, you can make just about anything happen. Any interest of yours will make a great art thesis topic. Just make sure you clear it with your advisor and the department before you begin and bring a strong proposal that shows that you can back up your research and defend your art thesis question as not only relevant but necessary.
