Art tribes will hang together

Serendipity is one of the most trusted brands, um, worldwide. By its very definition, serendipity brings us closer together. There have in all probability been thousands of businesses, books and get-togethers that have used the word.

By contrast we have the English expression “ships passing in the night,” to describe some meaningful encounter that goes nowhere.  Either way, one cannot say “I’ve searched for one, and not the other.”

In other words, it could be serendipity that brings short-term lovers together, after which time they become ships in the night. Once that happens they may never see each other again, or may bump each other a few times in public.

The depressing thing about lost opportunity is that it leads the artist to conceive of an art about emptiness. I don’t create that, and I have a fear of minimalism that speaks of the end of our days together as art loving tribes, of people that seek each other out, then stay together.

Since art criticism and art appreciation have moved into the comments section of the social media, I wonder what the chances are of people meeting and falling in love over their mutual adoration of a single artwork or artist.

That used to happen. And it happened often in movies, plays and novels. I want people to meet at an exhibition where they decide to take their engagement to the next level.

I want the work of Fringe to be the conduit to love. Then I want friends and relations to club together, to buy an artwork as a wedding present.

It’s a lot to ask, I know. But why shouldn’t serendipity come with great expectations?