Why Do We Need Art
Why do we need art may seem a simple question to answer, but in reality, it is far from being simple as it reflects and represents people’s lives in many aspects. It is not possible to imagine life without art. We are surrounded by art all the time. But the question remains why do we need art?
What is Art Definition
I always prefer to start by defining the subject and make sure that our understanding is clear at the initial stage. I looked up many dictionaries to learn the exact definition of the word art and here are some of what I found:
- Cambridge Dictionary
- “the making of objects, images, music, etc. that are beautiful or that express feeling”,
- “the activity of painting, drawing and making sculpture”,
- “paintings, drawings and sculptures”
- Merriam-Webster
- “something that is created with imagination and skill and that is beautiful or that expresses important ideas or feelings”,
- “works created by artists: paintings, sculptures, etc. that are created to be beautiful or to express important ideas or feelings”,
- “the methods and skills used for painting, sculpturing, drawing, etc.”
These are some of the common definitions you will find about art. But, in my opinion, art is more than a beautiful piece of work. The true definition of art is still debatable and so broad. Art is a diverse range of human activities that involve the creation of visual, auditory or performed artefacts that expresses and reflects cultural thoughts, ideas, beliefs and imaginations at a given period. These activities are normally specific to each culture, but at the same time can be shared among other cultures to become universally recognised.
Visual arts are considered the oldest documented form of art, e.g. painting, printmaking, photography, sculpture and several other visual media. Despite the diversity of art definition, art has always been judged and analysed based on its aesthetics visual appeal without any reference to content or context.
Art is often evaluated through the relationship between the main principles and elements of art. The principles of art include balance, harmony, contrast, unity, proportion and variety. The elements of art include colour, line, space, form, texture and value. Skilful artists can use these components individually and collectively to create meaningful expressive artwork that can evoke different emotions. This is what separates good artists from great artists.
The Purpose of Art
Art is an expressive communication language that may not necessarily use words. The main purpose of art is to allow people to express their life experiences at any given time. We use painting, drawing, sculpture, music, dance, etc. to express our thoughts, beliefs, imaginations and even political, economic views.
Art provides the opportunity to learn about different cultures across the world without the need to learn different languages. It communicates with our feelings. Humans are different in many aspects, e.g. language, beliefs, views and cultures but the most common factor among people is sharing similar feelings. Feelings are probably the most universal element among people.
Art is a historical record that can tell us a great deal about people at any given time. One of the best examples to illustrate this fact is the Prehistoric Cave Paintings. Some of those paintings are over 40,000 years old and can tell us a lot more than just being beautiful colours.
Cave Paintings demonstrate one of the human basic needs and that is to communicate. To leave a mark to record history and culture. The paintings tell us about the people and their lives at that time, e.g. dancing and drinking, childbirth, burials and animals. The exact meanings of the paintings remain unknown.
In a nutshell, the purpose of art is to communicate our life experiences and we use the different genres of art as vehicles to communicate and share life experiences.
Art has been a part of human history since ancient times, from ancient civilizations of ancient Greece, Rome, Mesopotamia, China and Egypt, to the modern age of the twentieth century. Without the arts they had created and were discovered, our knowledge of those ancient times would be completely different.
The Values of Arts to Society
Many studies have illustrated the influence of art on our mood, for example, looking at paintings or other works of art in nursing homes and hospitals has positive effects on patients. Similarly, children seem to achieve better grades in schoolwork when they are also involved in art activities, e.g. music, painting and drama.
Art can give us a clear understanding of a society/culture that may otherwise be hard to relate to since it reaches people on a basic emotional level that does not necessarily require words. Art is a universal form of communication – everyone can understand it.
Although art can also vary greatly between societies, it can at the same time be that bridge between societies.
Artists are among those who contribute to recording that identity through their artworks, which can be a true reflection and representation of that time.
Art is uniquely positioned to move people—inspiring us, inciting new questions and provoking curiosity, excitement, and outrage.
Art has the power to:
- educate people,
- promote cultural appreciation,
- break cultural, social and economic barriers,
- access higher levels of thinking
The truth is that art is more than just a practice – it is a way of life. Art is more than just a skill – it is a passion. Art is more than just an image – each one tells a story.
I have come across several statistics estimating how much art generates for the world economy. It could be more than US$2.25 trillion in revenue per year, creating about 30 million jobs (a global report by Ernst & Young – 2017).
These are extraordinary figures but can give us a clear understanding of the global economic value of art. So, I hope that these figures alone can provide some answers to the questions – what is art, what is the relationship between art and economy and why do we need art?
The answers to those questions would provide a comprehensive view of the meaning of artworks for a society’s economic and cultural development.
Here are some of the benefits of art for artists and non-artists:
- Art is fantastic stress relief as art activities can reduce levels of cortisol (the stress hormone). It forces our minds to slow down, to focus on the details and it helps to block out the mind’s distractions, resulting in people feeling noticeably calmer and less anxious.
- Boosts confidence. Seeing the result of your artwork stimulates the release of dopamine (the feel-good hormone) into our bodies, which lowers feelings of depression and increases feelings of confidence. Creating art makes us feel better about ourselves.
- Many people don’t realise that creating art can help us to learn better about problem-solving. The creating process forces you to use your imagination, to think through how you are going to convey your image or message through art. And the habit of thinking creatively helps you to learn new, resourceful ways of solving problems in your art, but also in life.
- Art can also help to improve the quality of life for those with illnesses. Creating art can help to reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression that are commonly experienced by those suffering from chronic illness. It can be very beneficial to older adults, particularly those suffering from Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease. The process of creative expression can foster healing and mental well-being.
Just to show how important art is to people. In 2020 during Covid-19 lockdowns and government-imposed restrictions, the National Gallery London reported a 2000% increase of visits to its virtual tour pages compared to the same time the year before.
Art is everywhere around us and not just present in the museums and galleries. Art fills the creator as well as the admirer with joy, as it provides us with inner calmness and happiness. Art doesn’t discriminate between people and is equally special for its admirers.
Art and Self-expression
“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life” – Pablo Picasso
I’m sure many artists and art lovers will agree with the above quote from Pablo Picasso, I certainly do. The activity of creating my paintings is hard to explain in words alone, but I know every painting I make is a new journey into another dimension.
And it starts way before actually beginning the painting process. It starts the minute I begin to think about painting. Exciting feelings begin the whole journey, not knowing where it starts, where it leads and where it ends. But I always know that it will be a great rewarding journey full of joy, happiness and contentment. Nothing else could match this experience.
The narrative of art is not simply about beauty or utilitarianism, something is not lost when the viewer ceases to be emotionally involved with the art object.
In the words of Leo Tolstoy:
“The activity of art is based on the capacity of people to infect others with their own emotions and to be infected by the emotions of others. Strong emotions, weak emotions, important emotions or irrelevant emotions, good emotions or bad emotions – if they contaminate the reader, the spectator, or the listener – it attains the function of art.”
Art is very powerful as it touches us emotionally. It can potentially influence our society, politics and even the economy. When we see a powerful work of art, we feel it touching deep within our core, giving us the power to make real-life changes.
Our emotions and feelings hold great information about us individually and about how we individually see the world. Particularly how we interpret our world and how it fits (or doesn’t) in the bigger world. To truly understand that fact can reveal fascinating and creative solutions to almost any situation.
Emotions and feelings, positive or negative, hold a tremendous amount of energy. We all have been in situations when we repress or blindly express them. The feeling of fear, anger, jealousy, grief, etc, produces great amounts of negative charges in the mind, which in turn can reflect on the health of the body, as well. The same would apply to the feeling of joy, happiness fulfilment – these are the positive changes that we all seek to achieve and maintain at all times.
Art is one of the direct ways that can allow us to directly access and touch our innermost deepest parts of ourselves that directly influence the creation of our emotions and feelings.
This journey of discovery of your inner emotions and feelings is half the battle. This is the journey of self-understanding. The other important half is how you deal with it? The journey to ultimate freedom…
Professional art therapists are well aware of the powers of the language of emotions and feelings through art and art activities. Throughout our life, most of us are not taught how to deal with difficult emotions and feelings. It isn’t easy.
Despite the fantastic achievements humans have made, most of us are emotionally underdeveloped and we need art as it makes people optimistic about their future.
Art and Art Therapy
Art plays a major role in art therapy to help people with mental health issues. I have written a separate article, How Can Art Therapy Help Mental Health, which goes into more details about art therapy.
Many people around the world suffer from mental health issues in one form or another. Mental illnesses can seriously affect people’s wellbeing and impact their health condition and life. There are many causes of mental illnesses and one of the main causes could be just our modern life.
We are constantly surrounded by many technologies, e.g. mobile phones, social media, etc. which somehow managed to invade our lives in so many different ways. Today’s technology can and do take up a great deal of our time and attention leaving us very little time for our own space.
I have recently come across this article (thanks to Virginia) which highlights the potential stress caused by emails. “How Email Can Negatively Impact Your Mental Health (and What To Do About It)”. The article is well written by Tom Read and provides great details with a fantastic history and background of emails and the potential consequences of creating stress. But, more importantly, the article also explains possible ways to reduce and perhaps overcome stress created by emails.
Conclusion
This is only a small glimpse to attempting to answer the question why do we need art. Art is one of the many human needs as it is much more than an aesthetically pleasing image or a performing act. We use art to communicate and share our life experiences, to find out more about living on this planet and to find out more about ourselves.
As I mentioned throughout this article, art is another way for people to communicate but not necessarily using words. So, if we re-phrase the question why do we need art to why do we need to communicate, it would perhaps give us a better understanding of art in our lives.
Your views are most welcome.
