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2. Make something from nothing

If, following from Duchamp, art can be created out of

anything, then why can’t it be made out of “nothing”?

Indeed, many artists literally make art out of nothing,

or what at first seems like nothing. (Or make art that

seems to come from “nowhere.”) A quintessential

example of this is an artwork created by John Cage

(1912–92).

Cage’s primary medium was sound. Throughout his

art-making life he was known for creating unorthodox

music, or sonic artworks, that incorporated atonality

and cacophony, or what is sometimes called noise.

As part of his art-making methodology Cage often

incorporated chance or unplanned actions. He used

standard instruments, but in non-standard ways—like

the sound of an orchestra tuning up. He also used

non-instruments like hammers and bolts and screws . . .

and radios for random snippets of talk and music

programming, and for the static between stations.