Fuzzy Thinking

I like to go to exhibits and galleries and museums, not just because I enjoy looking at the art, but because of the way it inspires me to do better in my own work and gives me a shot of that creative energy that you need to do a job like writing every day.

I went to an art exhibit opening recently. I’m not going to say where or when. But just so you know, this wasn’t a Rotary Club show. Photographers like me enter Rotary Club shows (and lose to photographers who take pictures of baby seals and hot air baloons). This was at an art association. With professional members. The artists were juried in. That means they had to show their work to people who know something about art and they had to be accepted even while others were rejected. And there were some good pieces of work, some that I personally did not care for, and some that were so God-awful you really just had to wonder what the people were thinking. Seriously.

And then there were these photographs. Well, one in particular. It was a close-up of a white shell surrounded by rocks on the beach. I knew what bothered me about it right away. It was not just that the subject was not very interesting. Or that the composition was boring. Or that the colors, lighting, and shading were unremarkable.

The photograph was not in focus.

And I don’t mean that it was out of focus in an artsy, enigmatic way. I don’t mean that there was one spot that was in sharp focus and the rest was blurred out. The lack of focus didn’t indicate motion—we’re talking about rocks on a beach, here. I mean it was just kind of blurry.

Am I missing something, here?