Art - Is it for real or is it all hype?

Great art does not require hype to thrive.

It is the new artists who are served by such hype. What art requires is a concentrated critical culture. The more noise that art makes, the less it matters.

Artists must first have a vision and with it a plan on how to create that vision on a medium without sacrificing quality. If the artist can do that and produce that as their own work, then that can be classified as art. Of course, there is no compulsion that anyone has to like it, let alone buy it. They also don’t need any brand value or a reputation to give that art its value.

In short, it is just what it is. Actually, art is something that re-creates the soul and the inherent connection with the viewer.

It is the critics and the artists themselves who are responsible for the current hype associated with art. However, to be fair, a large part of this problem is because of the critics who consider themselves as the final say in any form of art. It is these self classified pontificators, who classify a rudimentary finished product into a masterpiece, thus giving the product a brand equity far more than it deserves. It is here where the marketing hype creeps in.

Personally I think that if you are innately driven to create something, re-create something from a different perspective, express yourself, regardless of the medium, the channel of expression (music, dance, painting, etc.), then whatever you create is art. Art and music only sell because someone has an opinion about it that is influenced by emotion, not because it inherently has value.

Some of Picasso’s original works on canvas are just oil on canvas and would be considered junk by someone who doesn’t appreciate art, but just materials. However when a hype was created, the sales of the painting obviously went up. So, the bottom line here is that a true artist is someone who does it because they’re driven to, only because they enjoy it, and for no other reason.

Hence, there is a very small line between what is classified as art and what can be classified as hype. The market is actually art minus all other aspects. The so called aspects that comes with art is what that can be classified as hype.