Uses of the Real

Originality, Conditional Objects, Action/Documentation, and Contemplation

January 1, 2008 - April 30, 2011

Contemporary art can be baffling. Artists sometimes take objects from the everyday world and transform them into art. But what makes an object art? Is it originality, genuineness, authorship, or is it context? USU museum staff and guest curators select works from the museum’s permanent collection that provoke the question "What makes it art?" Panel discussions and viewer participation projects will be sponsored during the exhibition through 2009. The museum’s major works of art will remain on display throughout the exhibition, but you won’t want to miss seeing the changes that will be occurring in the galleries as the museum explores with viewers the questions associated with what makes art "real" art!