SCHOLAR'S JOURNAL
The Classical Heritage Foundation
| Listing of Papers |
Humanities and Arts Vol. 1 No. 1
The Nature of Art
T
rying to decide what is or is not “art” in never a
straightforward task - as any art can mean all things to all people. That being
said, it is possible to come to terms with some underlying concepts regarding
the nature of art and in particular, certain “types” of art. To that end, let us
consider what constitutes “true art” and “great art”.
There are four primary components to “true art”: artistic yearning, artistic spirit, artistic skill, and artistic intellect. When a fifth component - artistic talent - is combined with these other four components, then “great art” emerges.
All art begins when the aspiring artist observes or experiences “something” that entices him and is perceived in his mind to be “artistic”. Once so engaged, the aspiring artist intimates what he has observed by bringing his own interpretation to said art. When this takes places, the aspiring artist alters his soul. This primordial intimation is artistic yearning. It requires no skill or intellect, but only a desire to embrace an artistic concept. Beating on a log to evoke the spirit world is artistic yearning; so is getting drunk and fooling around with a guitar. Thus, the greatest of human behavior, and the most disgraceful of human behavior, have a single, common point of origin. This is why art is so powerful emotionally, so spiritual in its construct, and appeals to all people, of all cultures, around the world. Much of so-called “modern” art has a preponderance of artistic yearning – resulting in an expression that is high in emotion but lacking in sophistication. Such art is raw, immature and powerful, but its primeval appeal is quite strong.
If artistic yearning is fueled with a pure, innocent passion, then artistic spirit may emerge. This is the most personal attribute of art and requires a commitment of the soul to the purpose of art. Society can create environments that foster artistic spirit but eventually, only the artist himself, through a personal, irrevocable commitment (driven by an overwhelming passion for embracing his art with all his soul), can achieve artistic spirit. Indeed, true artistic spirit can only emerge from a blind love coupled with a pure sincerity. Thus it becomes the passion-based fuel that drives the artist to develop his artistic abilities (and obtain artistic skill and artistic intellect). But, more significantly, artistic spirit defines the covenant between and artist and his soul and is thus the requisite consideration for the accomplishment of “true art”.
However, if the love that ignites artistic spirit is not pure, or if it is degraded to being self serving, true art will never fully emerge. Typically, such pure love emerges at a young and innocent age, is all consuming, defines the artist’s purpose in mind and spirit, and engages the artist for life. Indeed, without a sheltered childhood that protects pure innocence, art cannot emerge. Thus, a (quasi-stable) civilization of some sort is required for art to emerge. There may not be art on the battlefield, but without the sacrifice of the solider, and the stability he brings, there can be no art at all.
The third attribute of art is artistic skill (i.e., technical competence) which arises by rigorous application of methodology. This is taught by “teachers” to the “student” and requires great discipline but more importantly – commitment. Indeed, coupled with artistic spirit, such extended commitment, discipline, and sacrifice, enhance the artistic spirit further and build character (from which substantive artistic expression may emerge). Thus, one attribute of art empowers another. However, great skill may be had with very little artistic spirit or creativity or imagination. Thus, a brilliant musician may emerge with great technical skill, but his performances may be very dry. In any case, great artistic skill is the dominant (and a required) attribute of “substantive art”- art that has a sophisticated “structure” underlying its “expression”.
The forth attribute of art is artistic intellect. Like artistic skill, for the most part, artistic intellect is something that is taught and is obtained by demanding, disciplined effort. True art is never a mere expression (emotional or otherwise), as it requires a conscious thought process resulting in a transformation - by passing concept through the human mind (tempered by human experience), thus instilling humanity to said concept. And yet, there is a definite innate aspect to artistic intellect. In this regard, artistic intellect may well be established by the application of skill and discipline, but to fully empower artistic intellect, a heartfelt, spiritual agreement between the artist and his own mind and soul must be reached. Artistic intellect is not so much learned as it is built up through trail and error, success and failure, and constantly striving to grasp a goal that cannot be reached. It is the Zen ideal of the artistic experience. Thus, impressive artistic intellect is a dominant attribute of “spiritual art” – art that has a sophisticated “concept” underlying its expression. As artistic skill gives art sophistication and elegance, artistic intellect gives art substance and depth.
Thus, an emotional (but unskilled) hippie guitarist or dull (but skillful) classical harpsichordist may have a grasp of one or more of the three components of yearning, skill, and intellect, but without artistic spirit, “true art” will never be produced. Conversely, a person may have great artistic spirit, but little skill or intellect. Such a person could be a good inspiration (e.g., Yoko Ono) but produce little art of “substance” on their own. Moreover, what makes the components of artistic skill and artistic intellect so distinctive is that they require support of the community and involve a person to person (student to teacher) interaction. This is the source of “humanity” in “true art”. Indeed, art with a preponderance of artistic skill and intellect exudes a humanistic quality that defines “classical” (e.g., works of “classics” masters like Bach, Michelangelo, and Shakespeare).
In summary, it is only when the three attributes of artistic yearning, artistic skill, and artistic intellect are ignited by artistic spirit - that “true art” may emerge. Stated otherwise, it is the submission to a deep yearning for expression - tempered by the striving to better this expression through personal discipline and sacrifice - focused by a sharp and concise intellectual grasp of purpose and scope - ignited by a pure devotion to a spirit greater than oneself – that gives birth to “true art”. As a result, “true art” brings about a state of humanity that transcends mere survival, empowers the intellect, ordains the soul, and defines humankind. Such a state also enables the concept of the divine to be grasped and thereby generates spirituality. Thus, it is the personal, human journey into the realm of “true art” that has produced the philosophical undertones of religion and ethics around the globe. Conversely, should “true art” dissipate from religion, spirituality dies, and God will be lost.
The four attributes (yearning, spirit, skill, intellect) of “true art” are all properties of mankind. Thus, “true art” defines and preserves the humanity of the human experience. In contrast, the fifth and final attribute - artistic talent - comes not from mankind - but from the Muses. Like the mythological power of Siegfried’s sword, this “divine” attribute operates in conjunction with yet collateral to the “humanistic” attributes. Moreover, these four “humanistic” attributes of “true art” are usually experienced in a quasi-serial fashion as a journey by the artist as she matures. In contrast, although it may be nourished, talent is simply “there” – or not – at any age, or at any stage of the artist’s technical growth.
This is because talent is a means of empowering and creating art that is loaned to the artist from God. Unlike all the other attributes of art, talent cannot be learned or mastered. It is passed down to the artist from the Muses, and the artist is but the curator of said talent. Once artistic spirit is obtained, if even a small amount of talent is parceled out, then artistic expression explodes and such expression is no longer a choice of the artist. He is compelled to express his art; he has no choice. Moreover, if he abuses, suppresses, or degrades his art, he will be punished accordingly. To this end, the artist eventually will forfeit some portion of his soul in exchange for being a vehicle of God. And the greater the extent to which the artist inhales such talent, the more of his soul must he parcel out. Such an artist may have little life of his own, but as God’s messenger, he is given great vision into the soul of mankind. Consequently, a “talented” artist is a Shaman of his society.
When all five attributes of art are in place, and “true art” is coupled with talent, then an avalanche of creativity ensues, and “great art” is produced. In short, “great art” is the coupling of divine talent with artistic yearning, spirit, skill and intellect. Great art is so overwhelming because it couples the accomplishments and failures of mankind, with the purity of an innocent love, and the sublimity of God. This results in a truth so intense and pure, it pierces the soul of mankind and extends beyond the boundaries of his imagination. Thus, great art not only represents mankind at the deepest level, it portrays what mankind might imagine at any level.