Art as an Entertainment and a Form of Expression

Art as a form of entertainment is a “hot” topic of discussion within society today. The purpose of art mostly depends on one’s perspective and view. Some people may think of art as a hobby and something to do during their free time, as a form of stress relief or for pleasure purposes. I believe the more common perspectives of the view on art is that art can be used to express one’s emotions or to make political statements.

Other than entertainment, art can be used to convey one’s emotions. Through the many art forms, there will always be a purpose behind these artworks to either communicate an idea or express an emotion, such as fear, happiness or sorrow etc. This suggests that whatever the artist intends to mean, that meaning is shaped by materials and various techniques he uses, as well as by the ideas and feelings he creates in his audience. In the early 20th century, an art movement known as “Expressionism” was developed. This enabled many artists of the different forms of art to gain more interest in expressing an emotional experience of their own, such as Pablo Picasso, Martha Graham and Howard Pyle. Martha Graham, for example, was a famous dancer who used expressionism as part of her dance style. One of her pieces, Lamentation, shows “not the sorrow of a specific person, time or place but the personification of grief itself “. She also said that after a performance of this work, she was visited by a woman from the audience whose child was recently killed in an accident. This woman was crying as she was speaking to Graham as she could relate to this piece. Watching Lamentation also made her realize that “grief was a dignified and valid emotion and that I could yield to it without shame”. Another example is Howard Pyle, who once quoted “ Art is not a transcript nor a copy. Art is the expression of those beauties and emotions that stir the human soul. “ Therefore, this suggests that art may not be a form of entertainment, but a platform to express one’s emotions. This also refers to the fact that through expressing different emotions, it does not provide one with enjoyment or pleasure. Thus, this shows that the sole purpose of art is not for entertainment.

In addition to entertainment purposes, art can also be used to make political statements. Activism in the arts and protest art can act as an important tool to form social consciousness. Such art is frequently used as acts of civil disobedience or part of demonstrations. It can also be frequently entertaining as there can be many ways of presenting art as a political statement, such as protesting using a banner, paintings or poetry to present such political ideas. Art as a political statement can also be considered as a means of communication, to inform and persuade the citizens of a certain idea. When an artwork of a political statement is more entertaining, the idea is more likely to be discussed as it draws the attention of more people. This may increase climate tension as it may arouse the feelings of the audience. For example, Norman Rockwell is a famous American painter, illustrator and author. One of his paintings - “The Problem We All Live With from 1964”, directly addresses the issue of racism in America and the people being affected with this politics. In the 1960s, racism, freedom of movement and racial segregation at schools were the reality in the South America. Therefore, Norman Rockwell decided to raise a voice against it. Another example is a political poem - “White Petals” written by Tim Dlugos. This poem writes about democracy, freedom, wonder and the other ideals that have survived centuries. Therefore, this elucidates the impression that art can be used to communicate political ideas and opinions, by making political statements through posters and banners etc. Thus, showing art is not only present for entertainment.

However, to some, it may seem that the sole purpose of art is to entertain us. This is because by carrying out the different forms of art, it allows us to relax and it sometimes serves as a form of distraction. Art can always be entertaining, to both artists and viewers, regardless if one is interested in the art or not. Some people can view art as their hobby, or as something aesthetic to see beauty, or something for pleasure. For most people, art entertains them in many ways as it gives them a sense of enjoyment and pleasure. For example, there are entertainment art jobs such as character design and animation between 2-dimension and 3-dimensions. According to the statistics, 54.1% of all films produced in 2017 were action and adventure films, the genre which more people were interested in. Although this may be true, art can also be used for religious purposes. Some people collect paintings of Jesus, Mother Mary and Ram etc, for their religious purposes. These people hang those paintings on the walls of their homes and show their respect to the Gods, as they respect the paintings. By collecting paintings for religious purposes, it may or may not serve a sense of pleasure to one. Thus, showing that art may be a form of entertainment.

However, I still think that the sole purpose of the arts is not for entertainment purposes. This is because one can view art in other ways, such as art as a form of communication of ideas, a form of expressing one’s emotion and even art as a political statement. Other than using art as a form of entertainment, we can also be entertained by other ways such as being using social media and the latest technology trends. Ideally, the purpose of art depends on both the artists’ and viewers’ thoughts and views on it, which is something that we cannot control.