Art matters, but it doesn’t.

As frustrating as it is to realize that every work of art we’ve ever observed can be spun into being formalism, post-modernism, expressionism, or realism (or anything else, for that matter, even if we want to make up a form of art), I think it’s very important for professionals in creative work to at least be aware of these terms and of the fact that other professionals will associate your work and the work of others with these definitions.

At the end of the day, art is as relative as our DNA. Anything can be art to anyone, and that stinks. At the same time, though, it’s what makes creative work worthwhile. There is a certain freedom that doesn’t exist in other industries. If you’re a scientist or doctor, most problems you’ll encounter come with one right answer, and it’s your job to find the one direct path that leads to the truth. In art and design, if something doesn’t look right, there are an infinite number of ways it can be fixed. Maybe it’s a kerning issue. It could also be the color, stroke, or the font. The case could also be that any one of those factors or any combination of them look great, and it will look better to you than others.

So, I guess the awareness of art principles matters… but it doesn’t. The end goal is to be able to make something beautiful, no matter if you use formalistic composition or if your art evokes emotion or whatever the hell else. It’s just helpful to be able to mention those things and sound competent to other professionals. Really, though, if it looks good, it looks good, for no other reason than it does.

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