Attention artist!

[Chancey289]

Do artist have a social responsibility? Should good art be made or art that is "good for you"?

Discuss.

 

[V]

As an artist, I make whatever I damn well want. Self expression, innit.

And frankly, I used to belive that artists should have a modicum of social responsibility, that is until I realized the heaving hordes of idiots out there and saw that if I were to cater to pleasing only a certain level of intelligence or tolerance, I would not enjoy this 'art'. I would be stunted, stifled... because there are other people out there who are not on the same page as me, or cannot 'handle' what I might wish to create. That is society's problem as I see it, not mine.

So no. Other people can bang forever on that art should be 'beautiful, not ugly', or that art should have 'purpose' and educate, remain within the boundaries of society's 'taste'; but I say screw all of that. Art has no meaning other that what you put into it or read into it. And that's exactly how I like it. It's a human outlet for whatever purpose and has been since the first caveman graffiti'd all over a pristine cave wall just because he could, or maybe 'cause he just really liked drawing antelopes.

Censorship and self-limitation in this matter is not the way to expand and enhance one's experience and understanding, and the censorship of art reeks of fear.

 

[Loopy]

People should do what they want. Art is about freedom to express the self. Not all art has to be colourful or have a cheery subject matter. Some of the best art for me are the ones that show how depressing or dark life can be...there's a certain beauty in that I find appealing.
And sometimes art that is seen as controversial can open people up to discuss serious issues. That's why some political activists use art to get their message across. Art makes people think, even if they agree or disagree with the message that the art conveys.

Besides, people have different aesthetic tastes. What is appealing to one person might be horrific for another.

 

[Chancey289]

I also practice my freedom of expression and feel as though that no one should tell me what I "should" do. I dabble in many different mediums of art and when it comes especially to music. I do it for me as an artist.

Critics who judge things based on personal beliefs or whatever are poor critics. I get annoyed by that.

That being said, art CAN be good or bad. You get what I'm saying?

 

[V]

No, I don't get what you're saying. Good or bad from a technical standpoint? A stylistic standpoint? In the context of a technical or stylistic etc. arena, yes, but at the end of the day anything can be art if a person wants to see it as. The subjective nature of the subject makes it difficult to define as good or bad except in the confines or your own particular personal taste, or a particular goal or endeavor.

A drawing of a human being with technically poor anatomy would be 'poor' in the context of a drawing class catering to classical or normative depictions of human anatomy. But in a class where a person closes their eyes and draws a person they imagine in a single stroke, Zen-like, it is not.

 

[Chancey289]

No, I don't get what you're saying. Good or bad from a technical standpoint? A stylistic standpoint? In the context of a technical or stylistic etc. arena, yes, but at the end of the day anything can be art if a person wants to see it as. The subjective nature of the subject makes it difficult to define as good or bad except in the confines or your own particular, personal taste, or a particular goal or endeavor.

A drawing of a human being with technically poor anatomy is 'poor' in the context of a drawing class catering to classical and normative depictions of anatomy. But in a class where a person closes their eyes and draws whatever they imagine in a single stroke, Zen-like, it is not.

I don't think I can get it across without using very extreme examples. However I ask you this and for you to use your imagination, you yourself don't think everything is good. There's no shame in admitting that. Just think about it.

 

[Chancey289]

What is art? The only definite answer is probably that it's subjective. That's why I just put emphasis on can.

 

[V]

I don't think everything is good, but I also recognize that my opinion or taste is merely mine. My opinion doesn't color the rest of the world's reality.

So when you say "should good art be made", what are you saying: that do I think only art that I think is good should be made? Well, that's sort of redundant, isn't it... I do believe art that I don't like should be made, but even if I didn't, such a stance is hopeless. Or do you mean that one should only make the best art one possibly can, technically? If you want my opinion personally, I think it's better to shoot for greatness than not. But otherwise I am still not sure what you are getting at.

And "art that is good for you"? Good for me personally? Or... uplifting to human beings in general? Or educational, positive, etc.?

If you clarify what you mean, I can discuss.

 

[Chancey289]

I don't think everything is good, but I also recognize that my opinion or taste is merely mine. My opinion doesn't color the rest of the world's reality.

So when you say "should good art be made", what are you saying: that do I think only art that I think is good should be made? Well, that's sort of redundant, isn't it... I do believe art that I don't like should be made, but even if I didn't, such a stance is hopeless. Or do you mean that one should only make the best art one possibly can, technically? If you want my opinion personally, I think it's better to shoot for greatness than not. But otherwise I am still not sure what you are getting at.

And "art that is good for you"? Good for me personally? Or... uplifting to human beings in general? Or educational, positive, etc.?

If you clarify what you mean, I can discuss.

I can see how I may be getting confusing here and I apologize. I've haven't been getting much sleep as of late so I maybe kinda zoned out in my post. My bad.

I just got in a conversation with a friend of mind and it just brought up the idea of whether or not there is some kind of social responsibility to some degree. Maybe I'm thinking of how we share our artwork. I draw hentai occasionally and out of respect for people out there who may want nothing to do with it I won't show my pictures to them. I however do show them to the people who are able to view my hentai art as actual art and not just saying I'm drawing smut because I put effort in to it that I want to be acknowledged because I like getting compliments lol.

 

[Vergil'sBitch]

I always thought that I made art for myself (until someone posted that I can't make art for myself and post it on the net... i.e. If I made art for myself, then I shouldn't upload it... I make requests for other people, but I do it for myself... if that makes sense)
I don't upload hentai to Deviant art... I won't, not after all of the trolling on there because I see hentai as the best work that I can do. I upload it to a different site (seeing that they have 18 rated tags)

 

[V]

Well, obviously you enter a genre always to some degree and you probably wouldn't show hentai to your grandmother or an underaged kid, or anyone else who probably can't appreciate it. What would be the point of showing 'the wrong crowd' other than to cause offence.

 

[rocketvergil]

A person's art, or choice of art is a representation of his/her mind. It is an expression of oneself, and if you want to express your beauty of things through art, I dont think you are entitled to any sort of social limitations. However, the genre that you have taken up is something different. In your case, you do have to maintain some limitations as to whom you may display your work too. It's not only about showing it to people who are mature, but you also have to keep in mind that people will definitely start to judge you differently after showing them your work. They will appreciate your talent but they will definitely judge you. So in your case, you can only find appreciation among like minded artists. And that can be quite frustrating, when you have a talent, but you cant be appreciated for that. I consider myself to be an amateur artist and I like drawing fictitious creatures with a more sinister tone to them and I have been frequently criticized by my parents for having such cruel tastes. It really bugged me but I kept drawing and found appreciation amongst my friends. I also have an eye for detail so every time I draw masculine figures I emphasize a lot on the muscle tones and body figure, for that a lot of my friends ave said that I have gayish tastes whereas Im actually homophobic ( dont hate me :ermm:. Im not a bad person. ).

So, what Im saying is that society will always be a bitch, but dont give up what you love doing. Find some people with similar tastes and show them your work. That will keep you satisfied.

 

[DemonSlayer6]

Do artist have a social responsibility? Should good art be made or art that is "good for you"?

Discuss.

Difficult questions, my friend, difficult questions.

I would believe that everyone's opinion on 'good' art is a different one. Not everyone would agree that portraying torture/gore in an artwork is 'good'. However, not everyone would agree that portraying flowers and butterflies is 'good' either.
A lot of people (including me) use art as a medium of expression. I usually can't speak my mind. I draw what I want to say instead. My artwork may not always have aesthetic value, and because of this, I'm usually misunderstood. So art, for me, is good in a sense that it serves as a means of therapy.

Having a social responsibility as an artist is also something that I would believe opinions differ in.
For example, a comic artist who allows their caricatures of ruling figures to be portrayed in newspapers and magazines clearly has a social responsibility. However, for artists that do not aim their work at the masses (and without intention to) have no need to feel as if they should have a social responsibility, as their work is personal.

A person's art, or choice of art is a representation of his/her mind. It is an expression of oneself, and if you want to express your beauty of things through art, I dont think you are entitled to any sort of social limitations. I consider myself to be an amateur artist and I like drawing fictitious creatures with a more sinister tone to them and I have been frequently criticized by my parents for having such cruel tastes. It really bugged me but I kept drawing and found appreciation amongst my friends. I also have an eye for detail so every time I draw masculine figures I emphasize a lot on the muscle tones and body figure

So, what Im saying is that society will always be a bitch, but dont give up what you love doing. Find some people with similar tastes and show them your work. That will keep you satisfied.

Big ups to you man. Well put.