Driving down the highway I can't help myself but to look at all the billboards. These towering images of tv broadcasting, beer ads, Geico rate quotes, and even controversial statements seem to have a presence that can't be ignored. But can these images be considered art? Although not all seem to answer yes to this question, these larger-than-life advertisements grab your attention even if for just a fleeting second. It has always amazed me how the mind can comprehend all of these images even when you only concentrate on them for sometimes less than a second as you speed by.
The billboards in Time Square, New York City create an atmospheric presence that administer the feeling of being so small surrounded by a huge city of people and images, neon lights and colors. I remember when we would travel to South Carolina for Spring Break in mi
ddle school all through North Carolina billboards for South of the Border littered the side of the road, counting down the miles. I would get excited whenever I could see the next billboard emerging in the distance, growing bigger and bigger as we drove closer.
These billboards have such a presence that they have even become famous.
On-line I came across one image of a billboard that took on aspects of a three-dimensional sculpture rather than just an ad, possessing a pres
ence much more closely related to art. Although most billboards may not be viewed as a form of art, I feel that often times they demand as much attention from their audience as a painting or a sculpture.
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