Art Hum: it rules.

I am in the middle of writing my second Art Hum essay and am getting sick but I just had to say: I really, really like Art History.  And I actually don’t like it because it’s easy, although compared to many things it is.  I like it because I spent a good 5 hours this afternoon looking at Monet’s Water Lilies, trying to figure out how the hell I was going to get 5-7 pages out a of a picture of flowers.  I kept looking at it and looking at it.  They’re just freakin’ flowers.  What the hell is there to say about these?  All there is is flowers, like seriously– that’s it.  OMGWTFBBQHOWCANITALKABOUTFLOWERSFORFIVEPAGESMINIMUM.  Not only that, I have to figure out how this picture (OF JUST FLOWERS) “entrenches painting more firmly in its area of competence.”  No clue.  But I start writing anyway, just making methodological observations and trying to take it apart as slowly as I can, because come on, five pages.  And then suddenly it clicks exactly what is going on in the painting– yes, there are things going on– and exactly how it “entrenches painting more firmly in its area of competence.” And it’s just magical, you guys.  I went my whole life flipping through art books, like, great, these are pretty.  But there’s always a lot more to every picture than at first glance.  And I just love it.