Unit 4: Chris Burden's Shoot

When watching Chris Burden’s Shoot, there are three possible explanations for his work. The first one is that he wanted to express or show to the world the power and control of the human mind given that he volunteered to be shoot by his friend without showing any restraint, pain or panic when the shooting happened. The second reason is that he wanted to cause controversy and attention in order to get a wider public by showing and doing what almost no one in the world would never accept to do (harm themselves). The third possible reason to explain his work is that he felt the need to get shoot and experience the adrenaline and pain that being shoot inflicts in order to satisfy his artistic or personal demands. I understand that Burden experienced the Hippie, Disco and Rock & Roll movements all at the same time, and that those tendencies influenced him in an artistic way. What I do not understand is the reason why somebody would try to portrait a situation of personal danger. Pain has always been the “lover” of artists, but the concept that he uses to portrait whatever he feels (that for his presentation can be said that it is not pain), is not what art is like. From my perspective, whatever feeling or action portrayed in a work of art has to come from a natural medium, not something that you as an “artist” think and do. It is something that already occurred to you and you need to take out of your body and mind so you can live with a little bit more of peace. And, I do not think that being shoot purposely would give whatever kind of person you are a little bit of piece so you can live. At the end everybody is different in perspective and for matters of feelings and everything is respectable.