Sunday, November 16, 2008

Governmental Support For The Arts, Yes or No?

Many of the worlds great civilizations have supported the arts and we should be no different. After all, it is a part of us, both as a nation and as individuals. It is important that art be available to everyone for pleasure as well as to advance the arts themselves.

The Greeks, Romans, and many other world civilizations have supported the arts. It is part of what made them great. As time passed, many of the European countries also helped the arts. Great civilizations discover great artists which in turn, makes them even better.

Art can be in many forms, it may be painting, sculpture, or photography. Motion pictures are also considered art but they do have a ratings board that determines what age groups can view the movie. Some regulation is necessary but it should be done by the people involved not the governement.

It also should not be used as an arm of the government, to convince people to believe a certain way. Just as there is separation of church and state, there must separation from the arts. It behooves us to keep art independent and free of government intervention.

Even though we may not interpret something as art, it should be up to the artist and the museum to display things not the government. Support should come in the form of grants and the patrons should decide if it is good art or not. Just like in the free enterprise system, art should stand or fall on its merit.

No comments: