One of the main themes that I have been trying wrapping my head around during this class is the difference between art and advertising. I’ve finally figured out that although advertising can be artful it is intended to sell a product. This was a revelation to me. Advertising is not a corruption of art, it is just a vehicle for it.
In Wadsworth’s Poem “A Psalm for Life” he says Art is long, and Time is fleeting.
I think that quote is more poignant today than in any time in history. Things are being made and created so quickly that there is hardly any time to appreciate the now. The Adobe “Dream On” Commercial was nominated for 2015 Outstanding Commercial. The images are beautiful, couple with the song the commercial absolutely captures what is possible when using Adobe Photoshop (if you have a LOT of skill). It absolutely amazes me that a commercial can be created without having any type of production company. The lines of art and advertising are definitely blurred. Tom Mikulski’s wrote the book Art is Dead after teaching a community college art appreciation course and only 2 or 70 students could name a favorite contemporary artist. In this book different artists weigh in on the question is Art Dead in America? The question remains is art dead because most people can’t name an artist and does it matter if there is still art in the world?
Art was originally created as a language for communication (caveman art) but has evolved. It can create controversies, inspire movements and just make things prettier. When Warhol was producing art in the 1960s top of mind. Today, unless you live in the world of art it is rarely mentioned.
The space between art and advertising has blurred even more when you think about all the beautiful imagery that has become common place in advertising. Consumers watch it because it is beautiful or compelling, advertisers create it to capture the consumer’s attention and hope they purchase the good they are selling.
We have read a lot about social media as a platform for advertising because that is where consumers are spending their time. Consumers are being exposed to greater levels of artful images to grab their attention. So does it matter you don’t know the artists’ names who created the Adobe commercial?
These are philosophical questions. The only concreate answer is that we are being exposed to more art today than we were 10 years ago and isn’t that a beautiful thing?
Eye Candy on Instagram
http://www.complex.com/style/2014/09/artists-to-follow-on-instagram/
Art is Dead
http://www.artisdeadbook.com/index.htm
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