The Self-Claimed Artists? ⋆ The Lalteen

The Self Claimed Artists

The self-claimed artists?

In continuation to the introductory essay, this article discusses another dimension of the question delineated in detail. In the backdrop of an already broached wider framework, the essay brings into question more angles and facets of the problem in the specific framework as deemed fit. The current article deals with new tools and methods of artistic creation and dissemination, thereby posing new challenges to the already existing complications in understanding the concept of ‘art’.

With the advent of technology, the idea of ‘art’ and an ‘artist’ is witnessing a structural and theoretical shift. Gone are the days when artists were rare to be. However, now, things have changed to the extent that one would find thousands of them around. In light of the historical facts, the questions which stare in the face are; is art becoming more and common now? Is everyone an artist?

Though deemed simple, however, these questions demand a more comprehensive account analyzing the contexts to understand the underpinnings of this shift. Therefore, this article is a humble attempt to discuss the range of possibilities in which art and artists could be seen.

The Self Claimed Artists

To put it in a simple way, art is a highly diverse range of human activities engaged in creating visual, auditory, or performed artifacts (artworks). Expressing the creator’s imaginative or creative skills, art is always intended to be appreciated for its beauty or emotional power.

As mentioned above, the role of art has been changing over time as there remains to be a disagreement between philosophers, art historians, and artists on its definition. For example; Plato while defining art says that it “imitates the objects and events of ordinary life,” further adding that it is “a work of art is a copy of a copy of a form.”

In the Republic, he goes on to say that “It is even more of an illusion than is ordinary experience. On this theory, works of art are at best entertainment, and at worst, a dangerous delusion.” Meanwhile, Aristotle alludes that “art is an attempt to grasp universal truths in individual happenstances.”

However, adding few new layers to it, Leo Tolstoy writes that “art cannot be defined as an activity that produces beauty. We cannot define beauty objectively, and therefore cannot be used as a criterion to define what is or is not art.”

Tolstoy divulges that “The aim of art is not merely to produce beauty or to provide pleasure, enjoyment, or entertainment,” further adding that “Art is a means of communication and is an important means of expression of any experience or any aspect of the human condition.”

In view of the above-expressed opinions, it is evident that art is a very difficult term to define. Albeit, it wouldn’t be inappropriate to state that understanding art becomes comparatively simple once the idea of creativity is expressed. Therefore, it becomes cardinal to define creativity in order to make ‘art’ an understandable term.

The Self Claimed Artists

It is important to note that creativity is the ability to use our imagination to create and solve uniquely. Needless to say that when creativity is used to craft a physical or abstract expression, in visual, verbal, audible, or performance, it can be an artwork. Pertinent to mention that it cannot be termed as art without creativity and pure imagination.

To apprehend the art in the times of social media, using the theoretical framework delineated above, the current section examines a shift of ‘art’ and ‘artists.’ Marked with an overflow of information and content, this new form of media –social media – seems to be more volatile, according to ample space to diverse ideas and opinions, thereby propagating them to the roots of the society.

Beneficial in many ways, the platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube, enable users specifically kids to come across a bulk of creative ideas. Aimed to create a deep impression on imagination and creative skills, these ideas are disseminated in a variety of creative forms including fascinating visuals, cinematic and dramatic expressions, technical ideas, and much more.

The story of the process of production and dissemination of these new (or for that matter revived) art forms through new platforms tell-tale a new story of their structural changes. Not only this, but it is also worth mentioning that after exploring such work online (digital works), there is always a subconscious inspiration driving one to create something similar or better.

This trend seems to be different from the traditional art forms as the purity of imagination or idea reflected in earlier artworks is quite peculiar. However, with the digital growth of these artworks, the quality, nature, and purity of ideas, imagination, and eventually creations are nondescript comparatively.

The argument holds water in the context of the fact that most of these ideas and artworks seem borrowed, copied, or manipulated. In light of the aforementioned peculiarities of the art, it is also difficult to fathom that in such situations when social media users religiously follow trends of creating artworks, would it be appropriate to even count these digital works as artistic creations.

The problem has intensified in view of the fact that many social media content creators have started introducing themselves as artists, but they actually do a grave injustice with the field. Of course, being a writer, painter, sculptor, craftsman, or any other skilled person, one shouldn’t be dubbed as an artist until something is creatively unique about his work.

Likewise, few among them practice a particular art for some time, and in the case doesn’t gain popularity change their profession as a whole. It remains to be uncontested that social media have put youth in an undefined mythical race to create content or get a greater response to extent that even some make careers out of the race.

The Self Claimed Artists

However, pretending to be artists, a great deal of them – who actually aim to achieve something else using this ladder – just waste the time of their followers, and mislead them. In the context of the other premise of this problem, it may be stated that since everyone is a self-claimed artist in the digital era, the traditional definitions – as submitted above – of an artist remain to be irrelevant.

No doubt, social media enables everyone opportunities to express their opinions and ideas in the public domain. Owing to this digital space, diversity and plurality of views, opinions, ideas, etc. have been witnessed, thereby providing the audience a diverse choice of values and definitions falling in line with their ideology. Therefore, it is in this chaotic media space, people do whatever they find easy and catchy.

With new applications and advanced software setups, content creation has become much easier with fewer efforts or self-generated ideas. This type of content production is possible with the apps like TikTok, DubSmash, Instagram, Facebook, and so on. Before claiming to be an artist, one must evaluate his work uniquely and abstain from findings shortcuts to achieve the pinnacles of popularity diluting the concept and nature of the real art.

The problem with this digitally customized content creation is that it is blurring the line between a real artist and a pseudo-artist. The worst is that such application-based content created is being represented as serious art, which in no way deems suitable. Similarly, much other online stuff usually inspired by others’ work and created by software or advanced tools are also wrongly attributed as artworks. Thus, the meaning of art remains distorted digitally.

The Self Claimed Artists

The need of the hour is to make people aware of the art and its nature in light of this structural and technological shift. It is important to identify that this is the reason the artistic value of real art forms, artworks, and artists is diminishing every now and then.