It was never declared officially but the war on art is really a war on things made by hand. Things that take time and experience and craftsmanship and artfulness to make. Things with patina. Things with tool marks. Things with brushstrokes!
Things that are not born on an assembly line in China. Things that are not obsolete in a month or two years. Things that are not destined for a landfill or floating debris vortexes in the Pacific Ocean.
Perhaps it's a war on spirit more than art. Because true art lifts the spirit and is born from the spirit of an artist. Artists love the process. It's a vehicle for channeling emotions, ideas and values. The result is the shared gift known as dance, poetry, song, painting...
Oddly enough, the war on art is sometimes an inside job. Because art is not really elitist and unaffordable and available only to those with bucks.
Small bucks can make magic!
Make some magic happen at your local art studio. You'll be glad you did and so will the artist.
Nice painting Jay. Love this post. I never think of it as a war against art, but it certainly can be looked at from that perspective. I think in America there hasn't been any real cultural teaching. Each group in the melting pot brought along their own traditions and in some families, those things are still celebrated. But as a society, culture and all things artistic have never been revered nor celebrated here. It's a real shame.
ReplyDeleteI could write a lot about this.
In Russia, they buy art because they awoke one day and their money was worthless. Now they collect things that won't lose their value, incase the government decides to change their currency overnight again. In Ireland, all types of artists are not charged income tax, because it's understood that they are already contributing lots to the country already.
Can you imagine something like that here? I find it impossible to fathom. It puts us in a position to be the creators and the educators at the same time.
Have a good day!
Beautifully stated, Jay. I hadn't thought it about it quite that way before. But I think you're right. I'm going to link to this from my FB page.
ReplyDelete