After watching various videos on contemporary artists, I was able to build a better understanding of contemporary art and a larger appreciation regarding its value. In the past, I have felt contemporary art often was similar to “beating a dead horse”. In other words, I have felt many pieces really are just elaborate unnecessary theatrics that use third-level topics as an excuse for their existence. Some of these videos did not change my mind on this, I felt like they were honestly products of poor craftsmanship, and suffered from allowing various components of them to be accepted as “good enough.” However, two videos, in particular, helped change my point of view on the point of contemporary art. The one video opened my eyes to how contemporary art can be used as a way to formulate a group of people in a manner that made it very easy for them to break social barriers and connect and interact as immediately. This usage really impressed me, since creating scenarios like this in the absence of alcohol or drugs is very difficult and it amazed me how well art contended in doing so. The second concept that really increased my appreciation for the value of contemporary art was how the creation of this art can reconstitute an experience that would have otherwise been lost to history. This idea is very powerful to me because I believe it is very important to learn from our past and without a record of our past we have nothing to improve off of.