On processionalism
A modern way to perceive art
I couldn’t help but notice recently, after watching a substantial amount of YouTube videos pivoted around craft, such as forging, woodworking, programming, artwork, even Minecraft gameplay that almost every one of them was 98% being the making process and the other 2% being a finished “piece”, a fruit of that astonishing work. Since that realization struck me, I’ve been wondering — is it a new art style being born?
In this post-modernist era, where we believe that everything that could be, already was, I see a new star in a constellation of artistic movements shining on the everyday life. It’s not about the art piece anymore. It’s about the birth of the art piece, from start to finish, known in the slightest of details.
In present times, when one sees a piece of art, they merely acknowledge its existence. However, let them see the making process, emotions of the artist, their experience stemming from the act of creation, means of reaching the end of their journey and abruptly — it is not just but a piece. It is something more. Something someone has poured their blood, sweat and tears to form, shape and achieve. It is a manifesto of creator’s spirit and time, presented to everybody, a legacy of some sort.
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This is the quintessence of processionalism. The art is being honoured once its history is appreciated. Moreover, it brings more recognition to the author, the craftsman. He is no longer tied to the masterpiece he has created. He becomes an inseparable part of it.
Let us notice the definition of art itself becomes altered. It stops being a noun meaning creations in general and starts being a verb describing the path every art piece came to be. This global shift in perspective unveils itself even when analysing art from past eras. Take as an example Vincent van Gogh and his paintings, most notably the famous “Starry night”. In the past we would hear that his craftsmanship was appreciated post-mortem, whereas nowadays alongside his creations we are presented with his life in poverty, solitude, mental illness and finally — suicide. The aforementioned painting does not depict a starry night anymore; it unveils a testament of a poor, unrecognized artist. It sparks sympathy in us, doesn’t it?
At present, every “I made X” video on YouTube, every showdown on Instagram, each and every documented project is a case of processionalism. We as consumers are more pulled towards the sheer skill and craftsmanship that went into the instantiation of an art piece than to the finished product by itself.
In my personal opinion, that’s the most illustrious, proper and just way of perceiving art. The one that unites the author, the act of creation and the final outcome into one, coherent term known as artwork. It is only fitting to bring now the slang idiom used to appreciate one’s artwork — “This is like watching the Mona Lisa being painted”. I think in the new era of artificial intelligence, this movement is blooming amidst the people sick and tired of AI-generated stuff and not only. Notice the generated “art” is missing the defining characteristics of processional art. It has neither an author, only a sophisticated algorithm reusing human craft, nor a creation process, just a “Thinking…” prompt falsely suggesting a sentient invention.
Processionalism is a way for humans to show they are human. No thing will ever simulate real, genuine emotions, struggles and ingenuity presented in the act of creation. It feels almost… biblical, sacred. Just like the God’s act of creation. If you believe in the Christian God, be tempted to think this is one more thing you’ve inherited after him — the power to create. Processionalism is merely a means of embracing this power.
Writer’s note: I’m not a philosopher, neither am I an artist. I’m just another one from the crowd of consumers of such art. It just happens that I noticed it a while ago and went to write an article about it. I haven’t yet heard about any description of the phenomenon I’ve presented here, so I’ve decided to single it out. Also, I do not intend on offending or undermining someone else’s beliefs by referring to religion — I mentioned it purely because of the similarity I’ve spotted.
