What Are Found Objects? Definition, Characteristics
In modern art, the term "found object" (a translation of the French phrase "objet trouvé") is used to describe an object, found by an artist, which - with minimal modification - is then presented as a work of art. The idea is, that the artist believes that the discovered object possesses a certain aesthetic quality - stemming from its appearance, social or personal history - and therefore displays it for the appreciation of others. Typical "found objects" include natural materials like sand, earth, stones, shells, curiously shaped pieces of wood, a human skull; or man-made items such as newspaper cuttings, photographs, pieces of glass, fragments of scrap metal, pieces of textile fabric, an unmade bed, a bicycle handlebars, and so on. http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/definitions/found-objects.htm#foundobjects |