@Sen WHAT THE HELL WHY IS OUR ESSAY TOPIC FOR ART ON IWAKU????
Might as well get some practice done -flex hands-
Is it entirely subjective, entirely objective, or somewhere in the middle?
Mostly subjective. With the introduction of contemporary and modern art, it has allowed artworks to have very open ended interpretations, unlike back in the renaissance and earlier eras. The reason why I say it is 'mostly subjective' is because back in good olden days and shit, drawings and paintings were limited to the monarchy, biblical stuff and other very significant events. The details of those paintings were very fine-tuned and realistic, too, so many that viewed those kinds of artworks would have a very objective opinion on it because their interpretations are very closed and standard. Now thanks to modern art values, there are now tons of different types of techniques, materials and styles that we can use to create art, and as a result, art began to have subjective opinions being raised, as the artist's intention is often very vague. Of course, fan art and commission art (any art got to do with design tbh) are often viewed objectively because they are often there to look aesthetically pleasing and not really provoke any kind of thought. And thus, this is why I say art is 'mostly subjective'.
Does art deserve any government funding? If so, in what ways is it most appropriate?
I personally think art should have government funding. It is way for people to communicate and showcase their heritage, culture, opinions, etc. It also allows the preservation of history too if you think about it. How else would we have known about the stone ages and shit without the cave drawings (well, besides digging for bones and the likes).
What is defined as art to you?
For me there are two definitions of art. One of which is displaying aesthetically pleasing drawings, paintings etc. In other words, where most of the fan art and the likes fall under. It may not necessarily provoke deep thought. but it is still considered art because it demonstrates very superior artistic skills and techniques. However, the other definition of art is "a picture/sculpture/the likes that focuses on the idea/concept of the artwork to provokes thought and reaction". For example, remember the bullshit with this painting?
[spoili]
(for those that don't know, this painting above was sold for nearly $44 million)
[/spoili]
Naturally, since it doesn't appear to have many amazing technical skill and so simple that even a child can do it, many people were outraged at the fact that artwork was sold for so much money because it didn't seem to ave much skills involved. Many people also expressed their shock by saying that "lol does that mean I can paint a canvas in blue and red and sell for millions too?" and began to wonder and debate if modern art has begun to turn to shit.
And already, we are provoked into a debate because of this artwork. Has art become too technically simple? Does art really have any meaning or none at all? Can everyone create art that can end up in a gallery nowadays? Do we value the process of making the artwork more than the concept/idea of the artwork? And so on...
So in actual fact, at least for that particular painting, there is still meaning behind it because we question our art values, and questioning leads to different interpretations of the artwork :D
Does art deserve to be exempt from censorship laws concerning hate speech or other sensitive subject matter?
While I don't believe art should be censored since it should be a way for us to freely express ourselves, censorship would actually make the artwork much more interesting. For example, Ai Weiwei, a Chinese contemporary artist, is constantly subjected to censorship by the Chinese government because his artworks are considered to be very 'provocative' and 'obscene.' Because of the censorship, people and art critics alike begin to question whether the censorship of Ai Weiwei's artwork is necessary or too harsh. And already we are thrown into a debate about censorship along with the discussion of the meanings and messages of his artwork. Hence, censorship can also add another layer of interpretation to an artwork too.
