Why Is Art Hard To Understand?

Art is what makes us human, what sets us apart from our animal friends. If you don’t know what I’m talking about read:

this article on traits of being human
or this article on Europe’s oldest art
or this article on what makes us human

It follows to say that art is integral to our very being-ness.

I personally go to the arts to counter the sense that we are a numbed out culture that feels very little, or because we’ve been violently divorced from the feminine spirit that enlivens all things and art can be a counterbalance. But despite these pervasive ills, it seems to me that fewer and fewer people are really engaging with art in a meaningful way. Why?

We’re consumers before we’re citizens which leaves so much meaningless, so shouldn’t we be lurching towards art which contains so much meaning?

A steady decline in religion ought to drive up interest in art. It certainly did for me. I mean, without god or church or spiritual study, but with the same persistent questions that have plagued human nature throughout history, we all must be looking for answers somewhere, and what better place than art?

Yet, I don’t think we’ve seen a big spike in arts appreciation. So what gives?

Without being initiated, art is hard to understand.

It’s my personal theory that we need arts literacy, arts education, to appreciate art. As one studies a bible with a youth group and a spiritual leader, so we need groups and teachers to study art.

Culturally, we aren’t given this. We may take an art class in school, at least until sixth grade. But we’re taught how to put salt in watercolors and make other mediocre art. We’re not taught how to appreciate, how to read art. Not like we’re taught how to read writing.

Writing is a form of art too. And it has entire master programs dedicated to the study of reading, interpreting and making meaning of it. There are master programs for art too, sort of, except they fall under classifications like art history and museum curatorship. So, very much not the same. Very much not accessible to most people who aren’t interested in a career change just to appreciate some art.

Art is a complex, context-specific discipline that shakes us out of our every day existence. In a sense, its purpose is to disrupt, to stop us, to move us. But we have no idea how to allow this to happen to us. We are not sure what the steps are, what the practice of arts appreciation looks like.

Why is art hard to understand? Because we haven’t had the opportunity to learn it. It’s that simple, that obvious. Arts appreciation needs to be taught.

No one is incapable of understanding art. Yes it can be hard to interpret and become fluent in. But, if arts appreciation were only to be treated as a discipline to be learned, and then interpretation would come readily, joyfully forward.

So, treat it as a discipline to be learned. Be patient with yourself. Take time. Build the skills.