World of Harmony in Art

What is harmony?

We live in world full of contrasts: Starting with day and night and not ending with the opposing forces within us, the male and female parts in every human being, regardless wether man or woman. One of the most beautifull examples ist the interaction of Yin and Yang. Everybody knows this picture: Black and white, each containing the other and – in my opinion – each complementing one another in colour, form and space.

(I got this work here seven years ago as a present from my son. Today I know, why he did give it to me – there's also harmony in coincidences/chances.)

In my opinion, we should talk about two different aspects of harmony in art:

First, there's the formal aspect: Composition, size/dimension, colours, materials of pictures and objects. Second, there's the content of the work: The subject and the message of the work.

Both aspects have their roots within the cultural background of the artist and within the place, where the work is developed.

So, how is harmony evolved out of all the contrasts?

Is harmony identical with balance, with a however defined equilibrium of the forces?

Or is harmony something floating, something that comes to live out of interaction of different things?

There are art works, where the two aspects – form and content – are similar to each other, and there are art works, with a big contrast between the formal aspect and the content. When do we feel, there is harmony in it?

Is it possible that there is a tension the work and at the same time there is harmony in it?

I think, if the contrasting forces are flowing together, and if the artist understands the time he is living in, then this is one premise for the developing of harmony in art.

Whatever one person feels about the harmony in an art work, it depends of his or her personal experience and place in space and time. We all have our personal feeling about what is harmony. Sometimes you are hit by the presence of a work and then you say: „Wow, it's great.“ Then harmony is due to the resonance between the artist and the visitor.

23.08.2014 Alireza Javadi