What is and isn't art?

At the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco, two teenage visitors were impressed by many of the sophisticated and occasionally shocking works of art on display there. However, they found some of the pieces to be more puzzling than inventive, and others to be the sort of thing they could probably do themselves.

And that's what they did. When nobody was looking, one of them placed their glasses on the floor below an official-looking piece of paper. Within minutes, people began to stop in front of the 'unique' exhibit to discuss and photograph it. At the same time, the two teenagers photographed the people and posted the images on social media, where they quickly went viral.

This story raises a familiar question 'What is and isn't art?' Most would agree that Gaudí's spectacular paintings, sculptures and architecture, the expressive face of Da Vinci's Mona Lisa and the atmospheric paintings of Claude Monet are examples of the world's favourite works of art. Such works demonstrate great skill, express the artists' emotions, and often tell a story.

When it comes to more modern and abstract art, however, opinions are divided. For example, what is there to say about paintings of dots of different colours and sizes, or coloured stripes on a white canvas? Are abstract artists revealing their inner thoughts and connecting with others, or are they making huge amounts of money from exploiting the audience? If their work gets you talking, does that make it art? If the artist, the critics and the experts say a work of art is meaningful, should we simply agree?

This article has asked far more questions than it has answered, so drawing conclusions is difficult. Presumably you weren't expecting a definitive answer to the question 'What is and isn't art?' in a short article like this, anyway. Perhaps it's safer to simply say that it is for the individual to decide. Some modern art is breathtaking, skilful and profound, and some classical art lacks exactly those qualities. Or not – depending on how you look at it!