Art is an interesting thing. The kind of thing that fuels the soul. The kind of thing that every person wants to be apart of and wants to make. Art in its purist form brings out emotion, it forces one to come to a realization. Art is the sort of thing that entire lives and personalities are formed from. With that said, it would appear to be fairly obvious that there should be some degree of respect for it and its place in society. That both art and the artist should be hailed on the same plane as kings and celebrities. But there appears to be a block. A dilemma of sorts. Art, with all of its emotionality and intrinsic beauty has been put secondary. For example: one reads a book. The book is filled with the sort of beauty and ethereal qualities that could force a grown man into tears, but the ending doesn't give the reader a clear resolution. The reader is left to decide on their own what the ending means, both for themselves and in relation to the story itself. Now, that in general would upset audiences. The book doesn't sale. Most wouldn't be pleased with such a situation. The idea of there not being a concrete ending is rather disturbing. Its quite understandable that such open, ambiguous things frustrates the mind, but isn't something lost in that book if we choose to complain about the ending rather than discuss and dissect its position? If art is something that can force and evoke emotion doesn't it at least deserve a thorough examination. Doesn't it deserve to be pondered and dissected? This article really is about finding out the differences in the thoughts on art. Critics wants something emotional and “feel good”, audiences wants to be entertained, and artists just want to create an escape. So with those three perspectives in mind what is art? Is it merely entertainment or is it more?
A college professor was asked a few questions on the subject to more or less gauge a starting point. The professor was in a position to encompass all three perspectives:
What is art?
Truth, but truth is subjective; thus there is a dilemma. No?
What is taste?
Having a preference based on insight not influence.
Is an artist's job to entertain or to create?
There is a difference; to create and communicate is their main purpose, so entertainment is a bonus.
One of the main issues with trying to decide art's placement in society is that taste is such a big yet unreliable factor. Taste is really the singular reason why there is a dilemma. Taste confuses the mind and intake of information that a book, film, etc. gives out; thus truth can and almost always will be eclipsed.
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