On Art
“Life imitates art far more than art imitates life.” — Oscar Wilde
Art comes in many forms. It may exist as paintings, sculpture, performance, music, and all other things we commonly think of as ‘art’. But art is just as easily found in the swirl of froth in a coffee mug, or the delicate balance of flavours in a pastry, even the layout of a textbook is a form of art. Some art is specifically designed to teach, others to overwhelm the senses with pleasure, others to enhance understanding, and still more to subtly enhance an experience. What is consistent across all art is its function to improve the individual and, consequently, society.
Across all cultures and time, art has been used to educate people. Cave drawings often told stories. In Naghali, the ancient Iranian art of storytelling, myths and epics was narrated and acted out by a single performer. Renaissance European art delivered moral and theistic education, glorifying God and his chosen monarchs. It also imagined the perils of disobeying religious teachings, and in that way was a medium for moral education. Even in modern times, when it does not have to be beautiful, art will often deliver a moral lesson. Photographs of Syrian children covered in dust, their eyes dispossessed of spirit, grimly awaiting medical attention, briefly remind the world of their moral duty to protect refugees. It has long been the job of the artist to reflect on and educate people on the morals of the day.
Yet not all art is meant as a form of moral instruction. Some art is merely meant to be beautiful. Compared to the weighty warnings of war, a painting that is meant only to be beautiful may seem insignificant and superficial. But imagine for a moment standing in front of Van Gogh’s The Starry Night. The dark spires of vegetation, the humble village, and the sky above, so alive with rhythm and movement, twisting in currents around the villagescape. The Starry Night serves no moral lesson, yet it is a feast for the senses. As you regard it, your mind is present, your worries a world away. Being truly present is no simple feat to achieve. What many spend years trying to capture through meditation, what forms the basis of modern spirituality and the teachings of exotic monks and swamis, art can show us in just a moment.
The great playwright Oscar Wilde observed that “life imitates art far more than art imitates life”, which is true at least in the sense that it can provide guidance for how one ought to live their life. But that is not its only important function. In appreciating beauty, whether in being overwhelmed by a masterpiece or simply appreciating the beauty of the every day, art forms a means by which we can transcend our worries, our egos (sense of self) and into the present moment.
