Word of the Lourd: A Contemporary Art?

     Word of the Lourd is a Filipino self named show of Lourd De Veyra, hence "..Lourd". It is a short teleivision segment that formerly aired daily on TV5, and now on its news channel, Aksyon TV. The host's show delivers his social and political commentaries in deadpan humor fashion. Most Filipinos dislike the topics, though, as political issues, despite how widespread it is, is still a very touchy subject.

     But, today, we are not going to talk about the show nor the host. Today's question is: Is it a contemporary art?

Kelly Richman-Abdou

    To answer this question, we'd need to know what contemporary art is. According to  Kelly Richman-Abdou on an article posted on https://mymodernmet.com, contemporary art, in its most basic sense, "refers to art—namely, painting, sculpture, photography, installation, performance, and video art—produced today." She added that as simple as it seemed, "the details surrounding this definition are often a bit fuzzy, as different individuals’ interpretations of “today” may widely and wildly vary. Therefore, the exact starting point of the genre is still debated; however, many art historians consider the late 1960s (the end of modern art, or modernism) to be an adequate estimate."

All shapes and sizes:
Dammit by Greely Myatt,

     We also need to remember that contemporary arts come in all shapes and sizes. It can also be playful or have a more serious tone, like Kathleen Holder's serious piece, Okeanos XXVII and Leslie Holt's playful Sprinkled - both visual arts on paper and canvas, respectively. Contemporary art also reflects the present time, addressing issues relevant to our daily lives. It could also be a representation of the artist's personal experiences and often a study of pure shape and form. (Christian Owen, https://styleblueprint.com/memphis/everyday/5-tips-exploring-contemporary-art/)

     Putting these in mind, let us now answer the question through these and the four general characteristics of contemporary art, which are being process-based, site-specific, collaborative, and interactive.

     Being process-based means focusing on the fact that the artist did it, instead of what the end result is. Word of the Lourd has this characteristic. His short interviews with the Filipino public focuses on the fact that he did it – he asked for the people's opinions – and not to just prove a point or to make  his short segment just a little longer.

     A contemporary art is also site-specific, which means that the art's location has a direct relationship with the art itself. Changing the location would call for a change of meaning of the art. I think it is quite obvious how Word of the Lourd is site-specific. If we change the setting of the show, perhaps it would talk about the issues of Switzerland while being in the Philippines, then the show's relevance would change completely. If we change where the show is, perhaps it Lourd lived in Mexico and conducted the interviews there while still talking about the issues in the Philippines, then the show's meaning would change completely, as well. It would still be art, but the meaning/relevance/interpretations of it would be different.

     Perhaps you’re thinking now about collaborative and trying to blend it with Word of the Lourd, saying, “its collaborative, because there are cameramen and editors and writers and so many producers!!”. I can say to you that while that is right, it is not a contemporary art because of that. Collaborative contemporary arts focus more on multiple perceptions, factored with spontaneous results, and, well, having multiple artists. While not everyone in the Philippines (and his interviews on the show) are artists, their multiple perceptions, creating spontaneous results, fits the show well with the definition of the characteristic.

     A contemporary art can also be characterized through its interactive-ness. The show recognizes that an opinion of an interviewee can change or add to its meaning. Lourd de Veyra created the show thinking that it would trigger thought among the audience, and interact with it. This is what being 'interactive' means.

     With these reasons, Word of the Lourd is a contemporary art. It may come in the form a short segment, may be serious in dead humour, may be just about the issues today, and a presentation of Lourd's thoughts, but those are exactly what contemporary arts can be.