You can say that art is different today than it was in the 1900’s. “Has art lost its meaning?” is a commonly asked questions today in 2023. But the main question we should be asking is does that prove that art has failed? Should art be considered no longer important?

The only answer to that question is ‘no.’ because art has always been important. Art is no less important than it was in the 1980’s. However the degree and nature of that importance varies from culture to period.

Art in classical Greece was very different from, for example, what it was in 9th century China. Art’s role in the renaissance can hardly be compared to the way that it was in 20th century America. You can also say that art is different now.

The definition of the arts, according to Merriam-Webster dictionary, is a painting, sculpture, music, theater, literature, etc., considered as a group of activities done by people with skill and imagination

Art is a long-term investment, and while the art market can be stable or show large returns on investment during boom times, it is one asset that can easily plummet in value during seasons of recession.

Raphael, Michelangelo, and Leonardo embodied emotion into their art. The self-assertiveness and individuality that they brought into their work was, in the end, of less significance to them than they way that they could advance and enhance the tradition to which they were so wholeheartedly committed to.

Both independent and modernist art represent neither a religion nor tradition. It is predicated on the belief that creativity has to always be unrestricted and unfettered. That absolute freedom of expression the inalienable right of even the most humble of artists.

Art is so much more than just an investment. It is and does so much more than people think. Art points to a greater harmony and grace. It projects different visions and actuates a desire for peace and quality. Art is known to celebrate the laws of life, translate insight, and feeling, ideas and turn them into delightful colors and shapes. 

It’s an interpretive question, “has art lost its meaning?” It depends on the way that people decide to look at it. Are people looking at it from a different time period, or are the looking at it now, in the present. Do people look at art the same way that Leonardo da Vinci looked at his art, or to the interpret art in their own way?