Have you seen videos with the white text, “Modern ‘Art’” over videos of people jumping along a wall with a marker, or throwing their bodies at the side of a giant clay pot, and then cutting to “Real Art” with images of realistic paintings or detailed sculptures? You might think these are harmless videos, but what they’re really showing is that one form of art is “superior” or matters more. However, you might agree with the video, saying that the former art is dumb and useless. At the same time, the second seems beautiful and meaningful; you are actually feeding into an idea that some art can matter less, which, in our current society, devalues all art.
With the rise of AI, the position of artists is already precarious, with many people thinking they can create “art” with just the click of a button. The truth is, the quote-unquote “art” that is being created is actually stolen pieces that hundreds of thousands of real artists have put hundreds of hours into. Though the computer might spit out a pretty picture, that picture silences true hard work and relabels art as simple and easy.
The truth is, that if you actually wanted to make art, there is an extremely easy way to get into it: by practicing and creating with your own hand. Everyone starts off somewhere, and through repetition and hard work, anyone can become an artist. But that is something that you actually need to work towards. Without the process of creating art, there is no meaning to what you create, and you do not actually feel a connection or true sense of accomplishment that comes with finally finishing that charcoal portrait that just wouldn’t blend out right, or that sculpture that needed hundreds of hours to perfect. Art is not just the result, it is a process, and anything that someone wants to put time, effort, and true thought into is art.
The next time when you see a video during your daily doomscroll, think, why are these people trying to compare how much something matters? You might find the true reason that they are bringing someone down is simply because they want to push something towards you, and it might be through a simple, harmless video.
