Consumers, connecting through social media, are rediscovering their shared concerns, hopes, and dreams.

This article delves further into the changes that Rapid elearning has made to artistic concept development influenced by collective intelligence through feedback.  When we see this little kitten, do we just see something cute or is there more to it that that?

Let Us Compare……..

Boy Bitten on Finger by Lizard is a painting by Caravaggio that stands out as one of the most expressive “captured moments” paintings of all times.

“I personally enjoy these earlier works of Caravaggio’s. They are playful and have that intoxicating mixture of antiquity and the contemporary world they were created for. Considering the heavier, spiritual and morbid themes of Caravaggio’s later life and work, I am glad some of these earlier works survive.” (Niyazi 2010)

What Is the Purpose of Modern Day Art?

When we delve into the complex area of concept development in the arts things can become quite heated.  There seems to be factions who believe that ART has to be some kind of expression in particular.  For quite some time there have been notions of High Art and Pop Art or common mass produced.

Once craft was a highly respected subsidiary of fine art and guilds acted as a kind of creative commons, protecting and nourishing thriving networks that provided support training and feedback for the arts as a professional body.

It seems that between the two world wars, and thereafter, art lost its connection to community. Craft was relegated to a status of “mere” art, whilst illustration once the province of woodcuts and later printing processes fell down to being “just” illustration.

At some stage within this tragic inward naval gazing turn of events, elitist art lost its real connection to people.   High Art became just one more corporate con.  The prices of particular paintings skyrocketed to millions and people were told what to appreciate if they were to be seen as educated.

Are people losing their faith in the established art structures in the same way they have now lost faith in the corporate world?

Has the Purpose of Art Changed in the 21st Century?

Does the consumer now have much more say in concept development because of a capacity to participate in instant and ready (and often anonymous) influence on the artist?

Is the art world now in transition from what was once a self-sacrificing, martyred introspective even morbid aspect to a more co contributory, co creational community minded event based emergent, hybrid, synergistic genre?

Is this some kind of hyper phenomena or are we simply returning to a more empathetic and community minded purpose driven art?   Has art turned full circle and gone back to the community base of co participatory origin as we guess the arts would have been in cave man days?

What Was the Original Purpose of Art?

Positive Psychology would tell us that if you focus on a problem you will get more of that problem.  Is this what the abstract expressionists were unwittingly doing when they painted their angst?  Was the world in a backward spiral of angst begetting more angst?

I ask these questions because in We First (2011) Mainwaring says “connected technologies are teaching us to be human again. Consumers, connecting through social media, are rediscovering their shared concerns, hopes, and dreams.”  People have had their fill of voyeuristic purveyance of the agonies of the artist in the attic.   What now catches our attention is the capturing of ‘that moment in time’ whereby we as human beings can reach out and say – this is worth valuing.

Melisa Nichols, who creates work like the sculpture Bitsy and is featured in these articles, Influence of Internet Interaction on the Concept Development of Melisa Nichols and  Development of an Artistic Concept by Melisa Nichols, could be one example of a modern day sculptor who can capture that moment.

To capture these animal sculptures in such high realistic detail takes a lot of skill, and focused attention.  But it is the subject matter itself that matters in the context of this argument.  An argument about what makes art.  In the book We First (2011) Mainwaring has shown quite clearly that International consumer behaviour is saying ……WE want to save the world!   We can only save the world by valuing all that is in it. Rather than annihilate species after species by denuding forests and fishing out the seas – our global family must stop and look at what we have and say – this is worth saving.  Critiqued in this context these sculptures do just that.

Concept Development Empowered by a Commitment to Purpose

In the articles Sustainable and Viable Business Approaches to Arts Based Practice and Building Art Based Practice on Solid Ethical Foundations; a case has been made for artistic practice to be powered by a commitment to sustainability and safety.  It is thought that an arts based practice that focuses on and is strategized around these principles will be respectful in an integrated way.

So far in this series of articles, I have explored with you the way that concepts evolve and emerge in relation to others and the earth.   This doesn’t sound like a new concept – perhaps it is not.  Maybe art has turned full circle and returned to its original life giving purpose.

Resources:

• Nichols,M. (2012) Melisa’s Bears
• Niyazi,H.  (Sept 22,2010) Revisiting Caravaggio’s ‘Boy bitten by a lizard‘ 3rdPipe
• Mainwaring, Simon (2011-06-07).We First: How Brands and Consumers Use Social Media to Build a Better World.  Palgrave Macmillan. Kindle Edition.