SED Artist

People may think that art has become endangered due to the significant changes in social and political climate, especially with regards to the vaste expansion in the use of AI in our daily lives. I however, strongly disagree, and if I dare to, suggest that in fact, it may be having the reverse effect. Although I am unsure whether this may be due to my age, and therefore the significant progress in awareness of the world around me, or due to a cultural shift, I think there may be no larger inclusion and appreciation for the arts than today.

Although I think our parents’ and our grandparents’ generation were good at this, mainly because political unrest and social change was somewhat more dynamic, and it’s representation in the arts was always significant, the arts’ magnitude today feels more vast, because it is more widespread, more common and more accessible.

Music, like paintings, like film and literature, have all, and forever, grappled with similar stories and contexts, simply changing their approach to topics based off what society at the time needed. That’s the magic about the arts, it is a collective effort, one that truly is by the people and for the people. In sorts, it is its own political movement, its own political party, which makes it the most powerful form of communication. This is why, and is something I actually discussed in my 3rd year dissertation, political movements all around the world, and for centuries, have attempted to conquer art and turn it into their own methods for mass manipulation. Everyone can appreciate the effects of art on a generation and on society in general.

Now, as the world once again seems to be turning to dust in all four corners, the arts are left once more with the responsibility for Joy and Hope, but also Awareness and Change. A shift in mindset creates a shift in pattern, and only when pattern is broken down can a new direction take form. That is the role of art. It breaks down the things we know and the things we thought we knew, it pushes us and challenges us, it scares us and it comforts us. Art is holistic. It always has been, it just knows when to change with time and when to resist its vagaries.

One of the reasons why I suggest that art plays a bigger role today than ever before, ironically, is because of the rise in technology. This also demonstrates its rise in accessibility, and oddly, its value (moral value rather than monetary).

I am going to try and demonstrate these two reasons for you in a simple manner, and although I tried to keep it short, it played out a little longer than I had hoped, but stick to it I beg.

So firstly, accessibility, through the scope of technology.

I think mainly, art has become more accessible thanks to the use of social media. Yes yes, what a horrendous creation which causes far too many problems in todays youth and that your grandparents most likely blame all your negative tendencies and controversial opinions on. Use it in the right way however, and suddenly, you have opened yourself up to an entire universe of beauty and creativity and possibility. The learning opportunities which come with a careful and knowledgeable use of social media is significant, mainly I think when it comes to the arts. The internet can be an inspiring place to be, and I think it has allowed people who never considered themselves to be creative, nor remotely or passionately interested in the arts, to take pleasure and risk in curated areas that appeal to them.

There is a pressure that has been eradicated, notably for those mentioned above, when it comes to creating things of ‘beauty’ or for a ‘purpose’, therefore removing the fear component and opening it up to everyone. It is okay to experiment and to fail now in ways which would typically have been possible before; when art prevailed for specific reasons, persons, and was attained and adopted only by few.

Secondly, the moral and personal value of art, evolved mainly through the recent presence of artificial intelligence.

It is generally assumed that AI = the death of creativity. I challenge that. My metaphor to discuss this is: chains. Restaurant, cafes and bars, but chain ones. A horror story I personally feel; it is a disease which has caught on a spread widely and rapidly, which I have noticed mainly whilst I was still living in the UK (as apposed to France). When I went to visit my sister in Nottingham (North of England), coming from Bath (South of England), I was startled to feel like I had just travelled through time but not space. In the centre of Nottingham, which I had never been to, I felt oddly at home (not in a nice way just in a similar way). It wasn’t the architecture, nor the people, but all the hospitality sectors which filled the spaces. I was surrounded on all sides by the same bars and restaurants which I had been back in Bath. It was a sad moment. I had been hoping to explore a new city, which for me mainly revolves around food (and there is no greater pleasure than finding all the local independent gems) so losing that is really rather heartbreaking.

Those ‘local independent gems’ have become the valuable and sought out option now, and I do have to say that my parents (and their generation, give or take) appreciate those spaces the most; I imagine because chains hadn’t yet taken over until recently, and therefore the independent places were the most frequented. We value and appreciate the art of the homemade and the beauty in the differences and the flaws, which make a space unique, like a person, like art.

We value the character, the story, the person, the energy, the vibe, the ambition behind an artwork way more now. A single painting or piece of music is not enough without its background, without its story. Think about the music you love, and think about how much of that music you tie to the artist themself (sometimes you can love that one single song and you don’t even know who sings it, but this is the exception, not the rule). Mac miller for example, his music which is loved and cherished, is beautified even more by his character and his story. Fanbases are created because of the person creating and the things ‘they’ create. It’s not solely about the creation. With them, it becomes special, emotional, and relatable. In art, like painting, it is the same. AI has the ability to create anything really, something jaw droplingly beautiful that perfectly matches your kitchen, but it will never compare to those pieces of artwork you picked up with that certain person, in that certain place, and that were painted by that specific and kind of weird artist. That is the beauty of art. It is not often simply about the piece itself, but rather all that encompasses it. It is about everything and everyone involved; to that artwork, we attach so much of what goes on behind the scenes.

Liv and I were having a discussion over breakfast, in which she mentioned that although she thinks it’s important for most people to have a separation from their work life, that might not be the case for artists. She is right. When people are involved in mental health discussions, they tend say ‘you are not your job’, ‘you are not your thoughts’ and ‘you are not your emotions’ but actually in art, for an artist, this is not the case. An artist does not need to separate themselves from their work, and most likely cannot, because in fact, that is exactly who and what they are. For an artist, their artwork is an extension of themself, it is their strength, it is their vulnerability, it is their thoughts and it is their feelings. It is in essence a deconstruction of who they are, in a considered manner. Now more than ever, the truth and honesty conveyed in most art forms, are the most needed form of information and communication, rather than the poisoned dishonesties we intake on a daily from our media channels and political leaderships.

Art now is stronger than ever, and valued more than ever, because of the newfound stream of access to it and the new artificial pool, in which true art reveals its value. This way, technology has a way of elevating art and its artists.

For this reason, the artist drowns in a paddling pool, but thrives in a rather large lake crowded by many fish.