Why Should Anyone Bother Making Art?

By: Brandon Luhring (May 4, 1999)

        In order to answer the question, “Why should anyone bother making art,” one must realize the role that art has played throughout history. Humans have been producing artistic works for as long as we can trace human activity. Early sculptures and cave paintings are the main source of our knowledge about early civilizations.

       Looking back at the ancient works of art and all the way through to present day, six main categories stand out. These “reasons” for making art are mystic/religion, expression, visual appeal, awareness, sales, and relaxation.

       The mystic purpose of art has, by far, been the most utilized form of art. Early man's beliefs are shown through their preserved artwork. The Venus of Willendorf (Austria c. 28,000-23,000 BC) is a fertility statue that was used to mystically make a couple fertile. Later cave paintings such as the Hall of the Bulls (Lascaux c. 15,000-13,000 BC) are an attempt by early man to magically help the people during their hunting expeditions. The animal style is a common theme throughout history. This style shows that early civilizations thought that association with a strong animal could make a person or ruler stronger and allow him to gain the powers of that animal.

       The Greek and Roman gods brought a very strong interest to the religious purpose of art. The artists were interested in telling the stories of the gods and bringing awareness of the lessons they taught. The artists of the time paved the way that led to the most popular religious art of all time: Christian art. Christians have brought an abundance of religious art into the spotlight. Even today Christianity is a subject matter that is common in many museums.

       Visually appealing art is another extremely important type. People have never wanted a plain walking stick or a bare wall; instead they carve things into the stick and paint motifs on the wall. The Neo-Babylonian Ishtar Gate (Babylon c. 575 BC) is a good example, having motifs all over the gates and using visually appealing colors. Modern art is also largely about visually appealing compositional studies and color schemes as shown in Piet Mondrian's “Composition in Blue, Yellow, and Black” (Switzerland 1936).

       Advertising has been increasingly becoming more and more important. People have used this for a long time, but now that there are more businesses, TV, radio, and the Internet, companies have hit a peak for needing design to make their product “special.” Consumers have admitted to choosing one product over another because it looked better than another. They need a way to capture the consumer's eye, and the artist knows exactly how to do it.

       Many artists like to make the viewer think. They want to express an issue and bring awareness to it. This can relate to bringing awareness to religious matters, a product, or a social issue. Many of the pieces in the gallery talk “Type as Image” (Ball State University Museum of Art, Jan. 24, 1999) at Ball State University were focused on a social issue such as domestic abuse.

       Artists tend to make their art very personal. They like to express their feelings visually. Varying brush strokes, color schemes, and styles allow an artist to adequately portray any emotion. Oskar Kokoschka's “The Bride of the Wind” (Basel 1914) is a wonderful example of using color and broad-brush strokes to capture the artist's reaction to a certain subject.

       Finally, artists have used their art for relaxation. Either for the artist or for the viewer, certain works of art are innately relaxing. Many artists only produce their works for themselves or loved ones, not wanting to bring much attention to themselves. They primarily use art as a way to get away from the “rat race.” Hospitals and similar institutions carefully pick artwork that will relax people while they are in the building.

       Art has always been an important part of civilization. The only thing that changes is its usage and application. As history has shown us, there are several different reasons to make art, it's up to the artist to decide the reason that is right for him/her.

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