Text Reading- Yukinori Yanagi

Yukinori explores the attitude of humans toward other living creatures. He chose to inlist an animal as his equal, his artistic collabortor. I find this idea intriguing. There is a blurred line between who or what is actually creating art. Yanagi chose to create art with an ant. An insect that is normally considered neither beautiful, indiciduated, endearing, nor directly useful to human entrpises. But ants are useful, just not in the modern world. Ants pinchers were comonly usedas seuchers for wounds by some tribes. Also if you took a look at some metropolitan areas from above, like New York, places that have subways, and heirarchy, these places resemble ant like societys. I have to agree though with it is the ant and not the artist who determines the linear configuartion of the resulting drawing. This is only a portion of the ant's perspective. But laying down the steel beams, the ant is closed off and unable to explore fully. There are boundaries. Should there be limits of the resulting drawing. If you really want to give the viewer the ant's perspective then let the ant be free. Trace it's path then.

We human's act like an ant all of the time and we do not know it. The ant is part of a society where he is a team plyer, no individualism. He is a worker, a soldier, etc. He is Bob Ant. There are many Bob Ants. Just as there are many Toms and Bills. That is how our society is.

"Either may assume the role of art catalysts or collaborator." I would have to say that the Artist is the artist. He thought of the idea. An ant would never think to have a crayon follow behind him tracing his steps. There is no need for it. Nor is there a need to show what it's like traveling the path of the ant. It's a confined path. Yanagi states himself that there is a dense concentration of lines and color near the borders of the piece. That's because the ant is not free. He is look for a way to get out. He is limited in performing his duties. He states that An;t are totally different from us even though we function the same. How? How are they different? They seem really similar to me other than physical make up. Maybe they watch our relentless labors and think, are they tired? Are they hungry, Are they forced? We look at other humans and can tell that instaniously sometimes. I don't think ant's have a perfectly functioning society. There is no individualism. And much of humanity is the same way. There are the selct few that are fire ants, and blaze their own path in life. An't don't know national boundaries, but they do know boundaries. They do have enemies. They kill other ants. The difference between ants and humans becomes blurred even more.