...What do you think is the purpose of art?

General Forums Off-topic Chat
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This is a question I’ve been asking myself for a while now

What is the practical purpose of art?
Why have we evolved(or created) to have a skill that’s technically not very useful for survival
How does my, or anyone else in this forum’s skill, help anyone in the real world in any significant way

Sure looking at amazing works of art like this might inspire me and give me some goosebumps

but can the same be said about the average Joe?

Especially when the world always seems to favor functionality over how good something looks(see any piece of modern architecture and compare it to old architecture, that’ll clue you in)

I’ve heard the argument that it’s a way to express one’s self but…

How does this amazing render of anAK 47 express the authors feelings?

Is that not art?

I’ve also heard the argument that it’s a way to communicate something to a load of people from different cultures

This one makes more sense to me but my last retort still applies

For now what makes the most sense to me is the “preservation of culture” argument

egyptian-pyramids-hero-H.jpeg1389×454 536 KB

I mean we would have not known anything about say… the Pharaohs if they didn’t decorate their architecture, paint their walls in very specific ways.

But that isn’t as important as engineering,agriculture and defense? Is it now?

so what do you guys think? am I missing something?

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Life doesn’t make any sence anyway so don’t ask to much questions and do whatever makes sence to you or whatever makes you happy! :wink:

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There are several purposes of art that I can think of right now:

  • to communicate something profoundly important, like truth about the nature of existence
  • social commentary about the state of affairs
  • propaganda to influence others way of thinking
  • to create something beautiful and uplifting, or shocking, or ugly, etc
  • to record an experience, like an event, or personal insight
  • pure enjoyment that the creative process brings
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Personal opinion.

I think we developed creativity to find new ways to hunt and survive, basically thinking outside the box. Humans are one of the few if only animals that can guess the complicated thought process of another human (what someone else might do in certain circumstances), art may have developed from creativity as a way to seek approval from fellow humans via expressing oneself in a way that words can not.

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(sorry for my English when I say something not related to IT)

In my opinion each act of art is a message from one human to many humans about something that:

  • is important
  • is not completely known
  • also such message doesn’t require specific action from the receiver
  • and finally such message doesn’t say the important thing explicitly. Instead each receiver should find the important thing by themselves.
    To get attention of multiple people such message often sent via some kind of entertainment.

So, useful purpose of art in my opinion is sending message from one people to multiple ones about something important and not completely known.

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:slight_smile: :eyebrowlift:

Now you are a reflection of the creation within itself.
You don’t need a purpose, you are (a purpose also).

(another version)

& when you finally realize that you are a unique detail of the great work itself, you’ll get a chance to understand art a bit more.
Although, there still is possibility that nothing exists. :evilgrin:

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In my view the purpose of art is very simple. It is merely the expression of an idea.
Whether that idea is profound or not is irrelevant. Whether the art itself is beautiful or not (see most modern abstract art) is irrelevant. Sometimes the art is as simple as “look at what I can do” other times it can be soul-searching and a profound statement of belief.

There is no practical purpose.

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Now this is a interesting thread. To me it’s fascinating that when life was all about survival humans started scratching on cave walls. And you know they were dragging people off the street in to view their work because that is what we do. : ) We might not like it but we have to have some feedback. So maybe that also links us to the first artist. Interesting thread and interesting responses I might add.

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Art has no practical purpose? It certainly has for me. When I’m tired or in bad mood I start listening to my favorite music and look at my favorite artwork. It both relaxes and energizes me, and makes me feel good. By being in good mood I’m more friendly, creative, open minded, curious, and optimistic. I perceive the world around me in a more positive way. Thus exposure to the right type of art has the capacity to be life affirming. That’s a very practical purpose.

Of course, somebody else may prefer to read a good book instead, or watch a movie, or play a favorite game, etc.

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Damn thread got me to thinking and it’s only 10:51 A.M. here. I have a childhood friend who is a recognized fine arts painter and has taught art. And I’m reasonably sure if shown a picture of a single photo-realistic model he would say; ‘Interesting study in technical expertise but it’s not art’

And yes we all realize the rather lofty and changing opinions in the Fine Arts World as to what is even art. For years they wouldn’t recognize photography much less illustration or comic art. Or, that is my understanding since I don’t proclaim to be a expert on Fine Art or even art itself.

Now without e-mailing him I have to wonder what he would call three realistic models arranged in a composition. And, of course this is off topic since this thread is a invitation of sorts to do that. He might say yes but he’s still a slave attempting to mimic a camera and art is filtered through a mind.

And, in some cases he might be right I suppose. But, we have some really amazing pieces on this forum with realistic models in a composition. Stills where the composition itself takes it from a exercise in technical expertise to art in my mind. And, also animations.

The Blender Guru, Andrew, did an animated firing range years ago that I would call art without reservations. Well, this old man has rambled on far to long. I guess the composition, overall lighting, key, and conveyed feeling play into what is art to me. From editorial cartoons to photographic prints. Oh wait somebody already said that. Damn it!

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An interesting quote (and I’m para-quoting here) is that while we do things to survive - we truly only “live” for art.

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art has no function or purpose but to serve itself, true art is rare
majority of stuff considered as an art, is mainly just a visual propaganda

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@gfx
My understanding of art is very simple, but encompasses a lot. Although Art does not, in and of itself, have a practical purpose, it may affect different people in different ways. To some, it is nothing. To others it can be an emotional and intellectual journey.

Art is the expression of thought. This expression can be in any form, such as a painting, CG, statue, written text, dance, music, spoken word, etc.

When I mention this description to people, more often than not I hear the reply that many things are not art (particularly modern art). But even if I do not like it, good art and bad art is still art. Let me explain what differentiates Art from not-Art with the use of some bricks.

If you were to accidentally drop some bricks in the middle of the road, you would probably be cited for littering and causing a road hazard. This is not Art. But if you were to take the same bricks and place them in the middle of the road, then this is art (although you would probably still be cited for littering and causing a road hazard). The difference is intent. If you intend to create something, then it is Art, if you do not, it is not Art. It may look exactly the same, but the price tag is very different.

One of the above is a famous (or infamous) sculpture, or art installation, and the other is a pile of bricks. There are many cases of Modern Art being incomprehensible to the layman (myself included), but just because I do not understand it or think it is rubbish does not stop it being Art. For example:

  • 4’33” by John Cage. A Piece of music consisting of three movements composed of silence (thirty seconds for the first movement, two minutes and twenty-three seconds for the second, and one minute and forty seconds for the third).
  • Equivalent VIII (also known as The Bricks), by Carl Andre, consisting of 120 identical bricks in two uncemented layers, in a six-by-10 rectangle.

The term ‘Art installation’ is used more often as this includes sculpture, images, light, sound, multimedia and any combination thereof. In both of the above cases, and in all Art, the form of the Art itself is secondary to the intentions of the artist.

So what is the purpose of Art? To share an idea. It is worthwhile? Sometimes, depending on the person. One person may see a messy bed (I’m looking at you, Tracey Emin), another may see an award winning art installation. Art is everywhere.

15

The morphology of art explains it a bit further.
Easiest to comprehend what art is, is with a book, a literature… it only exists when and if created within the reader that changes it’s consciousness after experiencing it. A writer is just a messenger. With no one to deliver too, there’s no message, thus there’s no writer & no book (even tho it is materialized).
Since everything is in the constant flux, everything changes all the time, few things stay same. It is kind of a search, an exploration, an exercise and the game of life… to find an essence that makes one identify (find self) within everything.

True art is rare.

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@BiggR
People make art for a reason because it serves some purpose. Otherwise nobody would make art.

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Defining art is an elusive task, you may read Tolstoy’s What is Art if you interested to explore Art more deeply. Although, the purposes, motivations, intentions, and inspirations behind art are endless. Below are just some of the (simple) reasons why we make art

Ø To form part of a ritual, ceremony, or cultural tradition.
We use art to creatively represent practices that have been part of our lives for years. Just look at how beautiful the modern day weddings are - every item is planned to be a work of art! or check out one of those indian festivals where you find interesting outcomes

Ø [B]To practice faith in a more tangible way. Believing in a higher being can be a very unique experience, and art is used to make those beliefs much easier to grasp and feel. Sistine Chapel paintings by Michelangelo is a classic examples where such works can strengthen or renew a person’s faith.

Ø [B]To record history. We use art to capture the most significant scenes in history (from the POV of artist). They spark discussion, commemoration, and appreciation of important historical events. Example Benjamin West’s the Death of Benjamin Wolfe

[/B][/B]Magento 2 dropship

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Didn’t read your entire post (sorry).

But a practical reason for art could be to make reading something more engaging; reading something ain’t as bad as reading nothing, right? I dunno why; I can read fine, but paying attention is the tricky part.

Sure, I consider myself to be decently intelligent.
But that doesn’t make reading the newspaper easy. (lol)

Putting it into manga form, though?
Or picture book?
Now I’m reading it.

e.g. a picture book of Bible Stories. So much easier to read than the actual Bible.
Or a manga about Buddha.
Probably left out a lot of details, but reading something ain’t as bad as reading nothing.

Tho hopefully it’s still accurate.

Another practical reason is: something to do. If you did nothing but stare at the wall, that might be bad for your mind. But doing something constructive, can be healthy. That is, in modern society; probably useless in a hunting / farming-only world.

Another practical reason: entertain others and make money. Tho, again, applies to modern society only. And also pirating could be an obstacle.

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My personal opinion, art is something that i can express my emotion or shows something that i really passionate for. Every human has its own passionate own “liking thing”. Some people can portray what their like in the form of art, but some only can speak about it.