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Greek Art Culture

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Within In our society today it’s a common assumption that art is something of an elitist subject that cannot or should not be interpreted by those from the working classes. However how true is this? Some suggest that this is no longer the case, whilst others insist this was never the case at all. Writers such as Jones (2014) suggests that particularly within political art, and in terms of the Turner prize, there still remains faux intellectualism and that ‘Political art used to be real and urgent. Now it is an art world fashion.’ And ‘to put it bluntly, radical art has to have some human warmth and passion. Otherwise it is elitist masturbation.’ While many argue that art is for everyone and something that we all experience in …show more content…
An objects does not possess the power to control the norms and values within our culture. However the structures within art culture are in fact controlled by elitist ideology and the ruling class. It is those who control the galleries and exhibitions, such as museum directors, collectors, critics and curators that possess the power to exclude groups and make art an elitist subject. When looking at the arts and art history it’s clear that in the past, particularly during the renaissance period, art was dominated by white wealthy men. This was due to the wealthier having easier access to art materials, schooling and better access to museums and other art establishments. However when looking at other historical periods, for example ancient Greece, the arts where more widely available to everyone because of the open theatres and stadiums, meaning that most people could participate in the arts. It could be argued that the introduction of the critics and curator as well as the other positions of power have created the elitist ideology so often associated with the arts. Visual artist Rozendaal (no date) argues that many people in these positions of power use ‘intimidation to achieve authority’ as a way to keep art an elitist subject. So very few people control what we do or do not see as artwork and rather than being seen as something that reflects our culture, art has become more of an investment and a ‘playthings for the bourgeoisie’. Kurtis (no date) However it could be argued that the concept of elitism is changing, due to the advances in technology and the internet becoming more widely available for all. This has enabled art to become much more available to the masses rather than just the select few also enabling audiences to view the work of famous artists as well as allowing people to create and share their own work. Not only has advances in technology

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