The arts bring out the best of what our world can be.
The last few years have been extra crazy.
Between the pandemic, increasing political partisanship, the growing lack of kindness, compassion, and empathy among our so-called leaders, and markets gone haywire – the world has felt more and more oppressive.
Through it all, however, lights continue to turn on and offer more options and opportunities. And many of those lights are centered around the arts.
There have been some good and fun TV and movies to come out in the last few years. Maybe not the most high-end and intellectually stimulating stuff – but fun, nonetheless. Between all the Star Wars, Star Trek, Marvel shows and movies, and numerous other sci-fi and fantasy stuff like The Expanse and Shadow & Bone – I, for one, am enjoying glorious geekdom.
Though none of these are considered high art, they are part of the arts. As such, they’re all part of the beauty of our world.
This is not the only place to find the arts beautifying our world. I read daily, and there are so, so, so many books. Fiction and nonfiction alike – lots to read. Music is being constantly made and shaped. And other arts are being produced regularly that don’t just show the beauty of our world – but help to enhance it.
In all the craziness of the last few years – it feels hard to see the beauty of our world. But the arts are one of the best ways to see it – for everyone.
The arts make our history
Ancient history is largely remembered via the arts they left behind.
Greek, Roman, and Egyptian architecture and sculpture. The paintings, sculptures, and architecture across medieval times. Plays, stories, and books telling fantastic myths and legends.
In college, I minored in art history. Part of why was because it spoke to me in a way that basic history classes didn’t. Granted, I love history in general. But history through the arts is so much more incredible. The arts and artists tell us a lot about when and where they come from overall.
Apart from this – our world is a work of art in and of itself. I’m talking about this planet we all occupy.
Have you ever just looked at the profound blueness of the sky? The green-blue of a clear body of water? The browns and greys of stones and rocks? The inherent beauty of our world is artfully astounding.
The striation of the stone of the Grand Canyon is art that tells the history of our world. Not in the same way the paintings of Van Gogh, the poetry of Shakespeare, or the architecture of the Guggenheim Museum do. But it is a natural work of art.
Further evidence that the beauty of our world lives in the arts. And history is just a part of that.
The arts remind us that our world is shared
The Earth is a relatively small planet. At least in the grand, cosmic scheme of things.
But as far as we know, it’s the only planet that human beings live on. And there are nearly 8 billion of us living together in our world.
It’s good to remember that it’s our world, and it belongs to none of us but all of us at the same time. Despite 7 continents, 195 countries, and thousands of different religions, multiple genders, and billions of unique individuals – it’s all our world.
Why does this matter? Because each culture, each division we perceive – all of which are artificial – produces their own arts. Whether it’s Māori, Japanese, Hindi, Inuit, English, or what-have-you – the arts they create are all part of the beauty of our world and how its expressed.
Yet it’s easy to forget the beauty of the world in the face of so much ugliness and craziness. Terrible people, destructive businesses, and selfish governments tearing our world asunder at every opportunity make beauty seem fleeting.
But the beauty of our world is always visible in the arts – and has incredible staying power.
The arts matter to our world – a lot
In the face of a fear-based society and increasingly loud fundamentalists, we need the arts of the past and the present to help us to keep moving forward.
It’s too easy in the here and now to lose sight of the beauty of our world. Unfortunately, the scornful, unkind, and uncompassionate tend to be the loudest.
But the truth is – they aren’t the majority. They’re just bloody loud.
The arts bring out the best of what our world can be. And that’s probably why most artists are liberal.
Steven Pressfield – in his brilliant The War of Art, explains why fundamentalists ban books and fight funding for the arts. I think this explains rather too well our present world. In many ways.
“Fundamentalism and art are mutually exclusive. There is no such thing as fundamentalist art. This does not mean that the fundamentalist is not creative. Rather, his creativity is inverted. He creates destruction. Even the structures he builds, his schools and networks of organization, are dedicated to annihilation, of his enemies and of himself.”
This, right here, to me is why and how the arts bring out the beauty and the best in our world. They are constructive rather than destructive. They don’t annihilate – they develop and contribute to the world.
That is ultimately empowering.
The beauty in our world lives in the arts and their inherent creativity. That’s why now, more than ever, we need to support and encourage all the arts and artists we know – both mainstream and independent.
Because the arts bring out the best of what our world is – and how it can be even greater and more beautiful for everyone around it.
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