Does Art Still Matter?

Art is more important that most folks realiz,. speaking of art in a broader format. Ofcourse it reriches the lives of the Artist involved. Bur it is so much more. Without the arts the world as we know it probaly would not exist. It brings people together, by crosses all ethnic and cultural bounderies. The mind is challenged to THINK, while helping us solve our personl dilemmas, while dealing world issues. What would it be like if we couldn;t take a trip to the Theater, watch a show on TV. or go to a nice venue and spend a relaxed evening listening to a nice musical group. Better still play our own music that some artist created! And for the young art stimulates and developes that part of the Brain more profoundly than any other means. Besides it's been here since the begining of time. Even the Cave Man participated thru their ancient inscriptions, in clay and stone. Yes, we all should care what happems with the arts!!

Art comes in many forms and to me it express the eyes of the world whether it is a performance by an actor or actress, a stroke of the brush by a painter, a writer painting a picture with words, a vocalist who relaxes a depressing mind with a moving song, playwright who works motivate an audience. Art will never go away and somehow and someway kindreds souls will keep it from falling too far! We need art in our society to keep us intact with the universe. I knew a kindred soul who collected art for years and now her own collection is a museum. There are more like her in this country.

Also as a warning for future artists, don't go into accounting or a job that you're not truly interested in simply because the economy is catering to it at this moment. You'll most likely be stuck with an average shitty job once the recession is over. Also, a lack of encouragement and entrance to the field of art is not at all going to help revive it. Economics is half about money and numbers and the other half is psychological factors. Have more faith in the arts and it will recover.

With all that said, I admit that my greatest fear is that we have all ready reached the peak of American arts and culture during the 20th century. In fact as a student artist I am utterly paranoid about it.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/11/17/arts/design17.php
^This is a great article explaining how art and design prosper during hard times and the arts revolutionize during political and economic strife.
I also agree that this is a great time for artists to stop making art for the sake of art and focus towards developing art as an extension of journalism, expressing new ideas and spreading information. The US is becoming more focused on efficiency, productivity, technology, and knowledge and artists should take more advantage of this in order to keep their careers alive.
Also just because the average citizen or politician don't recognize art's importance does not at all mean it isn't affecting them, most people just aren't conscious of art's impact because it tends to be subtle and subconscious.

We have been blasted with stupidity pellets non-stop since the stolen election of 2000. As badly as I hate to admit it, the mentality that seeps out of the White House often bends and shapes the daily social lives of the masses.

Now that we have President Obama, perhaps art will again become important as a stable of American life, rather than being treated as something superfluous.

At the very least art will survive as a part of the human soul. Inseparable.

it is important for us to keep art of al types alive.

go Delia!
A world without art is too sad to consider, therefore do not allow it to happen!

The only painter that I really admire is Salvador Dali.
By the way nobody has a definition of art .

Art is ever-evolving. Paintings and orchestras may be dwindling in practice, which is a shame, but they won't disappear. As our civilization progresses, we're finding new forms of expression, such as digital art, movies, videogames, and eventually virtual worlds. Imagine the awe of immersing yourself in a world as real as this one, conceptualized by someone's own personal creativity.

cheer up, it probably won't happen

great article. art will survive us all; it's the only thing that ever has and so its importance cannot be under-appreciated.

I love art too.

But degree in accounting or some other business field IS more profitable than a degree in the arts. (yes, I know there are some exceptions.)

And right now, America needs business analysts more than it needs painters.

Will investing in the arts improve Americas economy? Can art make us competative with other countries?

I'd be grateful if someone could convince me otherwise.

i want to do art, but will not finance my lifestyle. which sucks!

WE NEED A MOVEMENT!!!

mabye..
a new style
for dreams.
sleeping dreams
can u remember urs?

I'll bet Salvador Dali got his inspiration for the melting clocks from this painting.

He had a tendency to do paint new things in the shapes of classics.

Art is great, but, why should we pump tax dollars into it? What jobs does it create? Get a piece of chalk and draw some squares on some concrete for the next couple of months. Wait, when the roads start getting repaired the artists could paint the lines on the road. The artist could feel all artisty and what not.

Art will always matter. Sure the prices a Sotherby's are down but it will go on. Just need the rich to bankroll you like tthe deMedici's in Florence. Art is here to stay. We won't let it die.

This article was heartbreaking. It makes me think people just don't want to delve any deeper anymore. It hurts to think that a superficial world has been prevailing lately, but I tell myself it is only because things have been so horrible that to look any deeper would be to heavy a weight to bear. As an artist, I wished to not make art for other artists, but art for everyone. I guess no one but artists really want anything to do with it anymore do they?

Man yeah thats crushing

When Art ceases to matter, so will we.

What is art anyway?

art clearly does and will always matter. painting isn't the only form of art. film/television, music, fashion and architecture are still very much thriving.

other endeavors not generally classified as art are also flourishing. advertising and marketing, video game design, make up, and even food design can all be considered art and are doing great at the moment.

just about any creative endeavor can be described art its just a matter of what commodities and skills are valued by a given society at a given time. its just that in our society not all art forms are usually considered art, and the ones that have traditionally thought of as such in the past are not currently seen as practical or profitable endeavors. but that's just the way of the world, remember when just about everybody had a horse??

art will never go away because creativity is a natural human tendency. but it will always evolve and change forms to fit the time and place in which it exists. as it has since cave drawings way back when.

Art comes from someone's own inguinity that only they can create. No one else can duplicate the creativity that came from someone else (unless traced obviously). More and more humans are becoming less appreciative of art, and what one human can create. They're losing their touch with nature as the generations come and go.

isn't art suposed to be an expression from its creator? wh care's if the media doesn't promote it... remember who you're talking about, they promote reality TV for crying out loud. that's about as uncreative as anything can possibly get.

i really hope it still matters, cause its the only thing keeping me sane as well!

I think this is a good thing. Art has suffered tremendously since the works created became a status symbol. Art became a commodity, and the artists shills. This may mean less art is produced overall, but it means the good artists won't be obscured by the successful commercial artists. Just look at what the internet did for music.

Art will always matter. But art is changing. When we post and respond here on Current are we not in some small way artists?
Art is becoming participatory. Rather than a bunch of voyeurs contemplating the master's work; we will all (or at least many) become artists - indeed, life in the western world is largely about self construction, and usually this construction is done with some attention given to aesthetic concerns.

Shoulda majored in accounting.

I have been making art and selling my art for over 20 years and I can tell you it still matters to LOTS of people. Money is slowing up in every corner. But that is just money.

Just a hunch....but I think we are about to see a creative explosion in America and globally. Art is much more than self expression. It is expression of society as well. Look at Andy Warhol . Our Society is ready to express itself in ways that American idol and "reality" TV don't come close to doing.

Time to start faking it and get real. We are about to do that in a big way.

Art will never die or become irrelevant. People need expression and entertainment, artists can't help themselves but create.

As far as funding, while I'd love to see more funding for the arts, I understand that it regretably takes a backseat. However, money will NEVER stop an artist from making art. This Charles Bukowski poem sums it up:

air and light and time and space

"–you know, I’ve either had a family, a job,

something has always been in the

way

but now

I’ve sold my house, I’ve found this

place, a large studio, you should see the space and

the light.

for the first time in my life I’m going to have

a place and the time to

create."

no baby, if you’re going to create

you’re going to create whether you work

16 hours a day in a coal mine

or

you’re going to create in a small room with 3 children

while you’re on

welfare,

you’re going to create with part of your mind and your body blown

away,

you’re going to create blind

crippled

demented,

you’re going to create with a cat crawling up your

back while

the whole city trembles in earthquake, bombardment,

flood and fire.

baby, air and light and time and space

have nothing to do with it

and don’t create anything

except maybe a longer life to find

new excuses

for.

In a world of function and efficiency, it would make sense for art to get the boot.

While I tend to disagree with art for art's sake, I do see great value in the way art intellectually challenges society and expresses identity about one's self.

I think the answer to your question is yes, but I feel art is something that is important and not incredibly urgent. Thus, our flailing American minds turn to that which is more urgent.

Thanks for identifying the painting. To answer your question, of course, we should care. Art enriches our world, helps us see things in new ways and brings beauty into our lives.

The painting is, "James Barry, "King Lear Weeping Over the Death of Cordelia" (1786-87)"