With immense effort dedicated to the creation of musical pieces, the writing of the script, acting, blocking, and singing, it is without doubt an expression of human creative skill. For example, the songs in the musical have irrefutably been given much thought to — songs such as Look Down set a dreary and dark tone for the musical, while others such as I Dreamed A Dream invoke pity for Fantine and her tragic life story. Even smaller components of the musical, such as the props and costumes used have been conceptualised with the aim of effectively portraying a character, or accurately reflecting the time period the musical was set in. 

As the longest running show on Broadway, Les Miserables  has the ability to provide artistic enjoyment and stir up emotions within its viewers, or the production would arguably have closed years ago. It manages to make the audience care about two stories - the life of Jean Valjean, against the backdrop of the French Revolution. Through effective characterisation, apt blocking and poignant songs, it has manage to engage generations of audiences on an emotional and psychological level. 

Lastly, Les Miserables is art because audience members can draw meaning from it. While not everyone may be able to appreciate it, and different individuals will have contrasting opinions or interpretations of the show, it can give each and every viewer a unique, personal experience. 

Secondly, the artwork is able to convey the artist’s emotions and thoughts to the audience. Despite not having a deep meaning or message, I believe that this piece of artwork is considered art. Higby mentioned that through the artwork, he hoped to bring to the audience a sense of quiet coherence, a way to slow things down and bring peace to their lives. I believe that not all artwork has to have a deep meaning or a strong impact on the audience, and that art can also be a means to slow down the pace of life and bring to the audience peace and enjoyment.

Thirdly, this artwork represents a reflection of reality. Through portraying panoramic landscape vistas, a connection can be established between nature and mankind. As can be seen in the piece of art, the valley, a crack in the surface of the Earth, although a flaw, is seen as something beautiful and magnificent by mankind. Valleys are commonly used to illustrate life’s low points. Similar to the crack in the surface of the Earth, we face many difficulties in our lives, but we should always view these struggles positively and treat them as learning experiences. 

Firstly, the art piece is a dreamy interpretation of the night sky outside Van Gogh’s asylum room. He painted it after observing the scenery outside his window countless of times. Since the art piece was painted from Van Gogh’s memory during the day, it inevitably embodies certain aspects of his interpretation of the outside scenery, and this is a form of art. Art allows one to, after interactions with our surroundings, form our own opinions and interpretations about them and express them through various mediums. In this case, Van Gogh did so through his art piece. 

Art can also be a conduit for our emotions, and can allow us to express our feelings subtly. While painting The Starry Night, Van Gogh was going through emotional and mental turmoil, as he battled his mental illness throughout his stay in the asylum. His thoughts then can be reflected and interpreted in his art piece, Starry Night. For instance, in the art piece, the powerful sky sits above the quiet town, and it may seem Van Gogh was contrasting life and death with luminous stars and a gloomy peaceful village.

Art should also be open to interpretation, because art, by nature, is subjective, and allowing it to be open to interpretation, allows one to appreciate the true beauty in art through forming one’s personal opinions on it. The artist intention should not be used to trump the audience’s opinions, but rather to stimulate a discussion. For instance, some may view Starry Night as a pessimistic view on life that Van Gogh harboured during his stay in the asylum, due to his use of dark colours and contours. However, others may argue that Van Gogh was making a hopeful statement, as seen from his use of Cypress tree in the background, which symbolises immortality. 

[ARTIST FACTORS]

EMOTION is, true to its name, an album which tells of Jepsen’s many emotions, especially in regards to the pursuit of romance. In songs like “Run Away with Me” and “I Really Like You”, Jepsen presents a hopeful, almost naive look at love. In the former, an intersection between a “bop” (or, more formally, a song characterised by its high energy) and a “ballad” (one that is characterised by its deep emotional tones), Jepsen sings of the hope that comes with a new relationship. In the latter, Jepsen uses the saccharinely catchy hook, defined by the line “I really, really, really, really, really, really like you”, to convey her positive outlook towards love. 

In both of these songs, the composition and choice of instrumental tracks inspire similar emotions in their listeners. In “Run Away with Me”, the use of saxophone creates a loud (but never obnoxious) sound that evokes feelings of uplifting energy. In “I Really Like You”, the radio-friendly tone inspires high and an almost sort-of-restless energy, an energy that can be said to be similar to that felt in the early stages of an infatuation.

Yet, there are songs like “Your Type”, which has a more melancholy tone as Jepsen acknowledges (“I’m not the type of girl for you/I’m not going to pretend/I’m the type of girl you call more than a friend”) that she was not the correct fit for her partner. Nonetheless, Jepsen uses an energetic tone that is not dissimilar in “feel” from the one used in “Run Away with Me”, but that is markedly different from the one used in “I Really Like You”. This is an example of how Jepsen conveys the complexities of romance -- even in a sad realisation, she is able to bring positive undertones to her expressions of her (what would at least be considered) negative emotions.

In a similar vein, Jepsen explores relationship drama in songs like “Boy Problems”, where she borrows the perspective of that of a close friend who is getting exhausted by Jepsen’s seemingly petty problems. Once again, Jepsen never resorts to an abjectly negative take on relationship issues, instead using the same poppy backing track and singing tone that had previously been employed in the rest of the examples mentioned. While this consistency in tone could be interpreted as a lack of musical range, I choose to interpret this as a motif that was used to thread (most of) the album together. 

The variation in portrayals of the deceptively simple notion of love makes for a many complex emotions explored under an hour. Jepsen’s ability to portray love and emotion as complicated things, and more importantly, to evoke her own feelings in her listeners makes it a work of art in the same vein as works such as Edvard Munch’s “The Scream” and Lars von Trier’s… works, except instead of conveying fear and horror, Jepsen chooses to convey the feelings of someone that can be considered a hopeless romantic. Art needs to evoke feelings, and EMOTION does just that.

[AUDIENCE FACTORS]

Art is just as much about audience reaction as it is about artist talent. Without an audience to respond to the work, art is nothing. Fortunately, despite being (largely) a commercial failure, EMOTION has found appreciation in a small crowd of pop fans. 

On forums such as the “popheads” subreddit, Jepsen is revered as if it were the second coming of Lisztomania. Fans praise EMOTION for its sound production and its emotional value, while still managing to feature tracks that would be considered “radio-friendly” (which is ironic given the album’s general lack of radio success outside of “I Really Like You”) and suitable for unwinding to.

EMOTION has become a mainstay of Stan Twitter, a subculture of Twitter dominated by “stans” (committed fans of any musical artist), the users of which celebrate the album for the reasons stated above. It has become a meme, seemingly defeating the bad hand it was dealt in terms of publicity and advertisement. 

However, EMOTION’s quality is not reserved only for niche tastes. Having been lauded by mainstream publications such as Rolling Stone and by online music review sites such as Pitchfork, the appreciation received by the album is not unfounded.

With a loyal following and major appreciation, EMOTION can be considered a work of art in that it has received appreciation and success. People care about it. After all, what is art if it fades into obscurity without anyone taking notice?

The mirror barricade can be considered as a work of art as it engages the audience and appeals to their emotions. The mirror medium adopted by the artists compels the Neo nazis to reflect about their actions, literally and figuratively. As they approach the art piece, their mirrored images symbolise the ugliness and innate monstrosity of neo Nazism. The violence that the neo Nazis enact are reflected back upon them, shocking their senses and perhaps, forcing them to contemplate about the repulsive and despicable values of racism and bigotry that they are imbibed with. 

The mirror barricade consists of large, silver inflatable blocks. Inflatables invite the artist to reclaim public space and help to forge communities and promote participation. Their disruptive, ephemeral presence challenges power structures, by reminding us that after all, everything is temporary. In this case, the mirror barricade’s creation fostered closer bonds within the community. The mirror blocks themselves represent just how fragile these community bonds are and how a little push can threaten to damage this "barrier" that stands between peace and violence. It also showcases that the actions of the neo nazis can potentially jeopardise the progress that German society has made in the past 70 years. 

Thus, this mirror barricade engages the audience, appeals to their emotions and is an accurate reflection of the threats society faces.