Mimicry

Mimicry in art copies another discipline or established practice. It is a blurry line between art making and appropriation, and can be one of the most controversial forms of art for such reasons. It takes something not usually recognized as art, and puts it in the context of art. It is a "play" or "presentation", to get people to appreciate the subject or idea as a think of inquiry rather than just an everyday object, occurrence or practice.

Intentionality and purpose is the key aspect of mimicry. You can't just take a tree and put it in an art museum and say "this is art." Well, you probably could (after all, Duchamp did the same with a urinal!), but what makes it meaningful is WHY the artist wants to present it at art. What point is the artist trying to make? What can we learn from this? It is about the concepts of the object idea, more than just the physical form or procedure.

As a whole, mimicry is a lot more open-ended to the viewer than most other forms of art. It is an art practice that begs the viewer to wonder and ask questions, rather than tell the viewers answers. Basically, it asks rather than tells or answers.