Preview

Can a Work of Art Have Value Regardless of Who Creates It? Can, and Should, We Look Past the Character of the Artist - However Immoral We Consider Them to Be - and Simply Experience and Esteem the Work Itself?

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2015 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Can a Work of Art Have Value Regardless of Who Creates It? Can, and Should, We Look Past the Character of the Artist - However Immoral We Consider Them to Be - and Simply Experience and Esteem the Work Itself?
Can a work of art have value regardless of who creates it? Can, and should, we look past the character of the artist - however immoral we consider them to be - and simply experience and esteem the work itself?

Art is such a simple word, consisting of just three letters, and yet it takes ceaseless flows of discussions, arguments, debates and theories just on the very definition of it. So what is just so important about this creative field? We have to acknowledge that life would be infinitely dull without art and that we would possibly live solely on cerebral methods. Therefore, art is something that develops us to be more thoughtful and well-rounded humans. The value of an art is difficult to be determined. A mother may see the doodles and drawings of her little son as art of very high value, but a stranger who has no connections with the family might view them as mere childish scribbles with a value equivalent to rubbish. Therefore, can a work of art have value regardless of who creates it? Possibly, but the values vary. We can see from the situation mentioned earlier that emotion plays a role in determining a work of art. The mother thinks that the 'artworks ' by her child are of great value and treasures them since there are sentimental attachments in them. And so if a work of art is to be judged by its sentimental value, the emotion that one feels toward the creator of the artwork would influence how valuable it is.

There are several criteria which determines the value of an artwork. Apart from sentimental value, there is also the monetary value as well. There are cases where an artwork, although not that sentimentally or aesthetically valuable nor is it original, has been sold for huge sums of money, sometimes to an incredulous amount. Tracey Emmin 's work, My Bed, is one of these cases. Her artwork which consists of an unmade bed with packets of condoms and a bottle of vodka next to it was



Bibliography: Shelly Esaak, What Is Art?, <http://arthistory.about.com/> Wikipedia, Aesthetic judgement, 2003, <http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/aesthetic-judgment/> Julian Manriquez, Guide to determining the value of a work of art <http://www.helium.com/channels/935-Buying-Selling-Art/knowledge/1341-guide-determining-value> Robert Bear, Introduction to Determining the Value of Art, December 06 2006, <http://searchwarp.com/Category447.htm> Richard van de Lagemaat, Theory of Knowledge for the IB Diploma, 2005

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Religion and Dance

    • 392 Words
    • 2 Pages

    How might one's moral, religious and ethical values influence their thoughts and opinions on art? Discuss specific examples in relation to the question.…

    • 392 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I believe that everyone can respond differently to the same artwork because, our life experiences are different. We perceive things based upon what we see in our environment on a daily basis. With that being said, our feelings and values will vary when seeing a piece of art.…

    • 386 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Max Nordau creates an well written and interesting essay asking the question: what makes art appealing? What is considered beautiful, and what is considered heinous?…

    • 506 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Art Quiz 1

    • 875 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The author suggest that we ask ourselves: “What is the purpose of this work of art (and what is the purpose of art in general)? What does it mean? What is my reaction to the work and why do I feel this way? How do the formal qualities of the work-such as color, its organization, its size and scale-affect my reaction? What do I value in works of art?”…

    • 875 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Having said that I think that every piece of art could have been more enjoyed and admired in its own primal place. And I don’t mean just the country where it’s from, but when possible, even the building where it had been placed.…

    • 700 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ap Synthesis Essay Museum

    • 900 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The people(s) who are securing a new work of art or an artifact must first think if that piece of art or artifact will make a customer come back to the museum or even attract new customers. Source A conveys that, “Some trustees strongly advocated continuing to collect the work of emerging contemporary artists while carefully culling the collection its less outstanding holdings to finance new acquisitions.” Separation of good and bad art must come in the trustees mind because customers who come into the museum pay to see the art they like or have an interest in. The trustees believe that carefully choosing a piece of history is important; they could consider the new emergences of artists might even make better art than artists decades ago. Perhaps old art cost more than contemporary art , however there could be art that is worth more than…

    • 900 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    , had he have the will to burn the painting or relinquish it? Perhaps, he could have burned it for the reason that the painting brought about painful memories. 1942, in Amsterdam German soldier Otto Engelbrecht loots the painting, hides it, and then escapes with it to America; bringing his son painful memories in the future. Although this could be the case, he could have relinquished it or destroyed it; this could be debated further because Cornelius knew that destroying the painting, would be burning a hole in his heart and soul; on the other hand relinquishing it, would bring the forever lasting disdain. In Vreeland, Laurens van Luyken, originally purchased the painting as an anniversary gift for his wife, but is hesitant, "‘No.' ‘ Why not the painting?' ‘Because I gave it to you.' ‘But it would be a touch of our home in theirs.' ‘I wouldn't want to be without it.'" (pg. 65) to give it to his daughter Johanna, who is engaged to the Amsterdamer Fritz. The value doesn't necessarily have to be something that is "rich," it can also be sentimentally valued to the heart and soul.…

    • 1249 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    To argue that this form of art is 'bad' art, one must have a reference…

    • 2430 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Andy Warhol is quite possibly the most famous pop artist known to man. He is best known for his work “100 Cans” which shows numerous Campbell’s Soup cans, which leads to the question, how can something so simple be so captivating? This is a perfect example of what pop art was and still is today. Warhol took something so simple that people see every day and turned it into the most famous art piece of the era. This style is what Andy Warhol was known for, turning simple everyday items into powerful and mesmerizing pieces of art.…

    • 856 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Throughout this research paper the topic is going to be along the lines of the Baroque Art in Europe and North America, which comes from chapter nineteen of our Art History book. The main purpose is to review major ideas and principles in this chapter by writing an analysis of certain points that were highlighted. For example, certain techniques that were used to define the Baroque Art, major sculptures, architectures, and paintings, and also just some general background information about this time period. I decided to write on this subject because when reading the chapters, the Baroque period seemed to catch my attention the most due to the amazing architecture that was built during this time.…

    • 1439 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Art Crime Research Paper

    • 950 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Art theft is happening and no matter the price, there are some with sentimental values that can make them more valuable than a 55 million dollar painting. Art theft is very important to a lot of many and just because it does not happen to you, does not mean that it does not exist. There are many resources such as the Art Loss Register that will help many people recover their painting and help buyers make sure they are not stealing a stolen painting. Art theft is very important and it’s something that we should all try to…

    • 950 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Cindy Sherman Essay

    • 708 Words
    • 3 Pages

    There are different kind of artists that may have or have not meaning to their art work by paint or put some object together that can be created art. However, some work that needed to have meaning that might help people to see to what happen from their outside home or seeing someone pain or emotion. There are one artists that can turn art into vanity issues of the modern world to women is Cindy Sherman.…

    • 708 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Spending Money on Art

    • 486 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Throughout the ages, man has tried to create beauty through painting, music, sculpture and other artistic expression. It seems to be a basic need of humans to surround themselves with art. However some people feel that government money spent on art is wasted, particularly when there are so many other demands on it. This essay will examine the conflict between those who say art is important and those who feel it is a waste of money.…

    • 486 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    However, maybe good art IS only good when it provokes a response. And when one looks back at ones response it is only significant if one notices a change in oneself. Still, these feelings may or may not exist when viewing a piece of art. And if those feelings do not exist it is not because the art is universally bad or good. Instead it is because the piece is bad or good to you.…

    • 606 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    What Is Art for Me?

    • 597 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Art has been created by all people at all times; it lives because it is liked and enjoyed. Art involves personal experiences of an individual accompanied by some intensity of emotion. Art is made of man, no matter how close it is to nature. Although each work of art is evidently the expression of an artists’ personal thoughts and feelings it may be inferred that, like any other individual, he belongs to a million, and he cannot free himself from the influence of his social, economic, political, cultural, geographic, scientific, and technological environment.…

    • 597 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics