85. Advertising is dearly the most influential art form in this century. It is therefore
u$ U/ v1 T3 O; ?tempting to think it is also the most important. However, great artistic achievement is
0 l& l7 S; z; F! g; k7 Gdetermined by criteria beyond mere influence. And when examined against these + Z1 E0 z+ ~( ~7 h, R1 N2 Z
criteria, the genre of advertising does not measure up as truly important.$ M; g+ E8 ^9 r% H% [) F
To begin with, great art inspires us to look at the human situation from new
, F* z9 R5 K; i9 R: j0 Lperspectives. For example, early impressionist paintings challenge our thinking about # s! v1 o; z" V* K1 p1 S
visual perception and about the nature of the reality we assume we see. Other works, 6 _+ `# z s/ l) d8 Y& `. X
like Rodin's "The Thinker," capture for our reflection the essential value of human
. Z, `( O1 ^( I; q/ @* M4 z( p5 V! Arationality, in stark contrast, advertising encourages people not to think or reflect at all,
& T% F0 p, C" Z5 p8 L% q, G( abut simply to spend.
$ h0 Z- ~6 P) w/ R! i& z( b; Y In addition, the significance of great artistic achievement transcends time, even " C: d3 H6 a: @9 P
when it reflects a particular age. Yet advertising, by its very nature, is transient; in an : n; o4 S: L& k$ q
eye-blink, today's hot image or slogan is yesterday's news. Of course, the timelessness 8 Z7 z! D. p9 r7 T! e
of a work cannot be determined in its own time. Still, it's hard to imagine even the most
' H) v# B1 s) e8 J( hpowerful advertisement living beyond its current ad campaign.
. N6 A% [' M" t4 m# g Admittedly, one ad—Andy Warhol's painting of the Campbell Soup can—has
: F; d q6 k& X X& yachieved timelessness. But notice the irony; the packaging or advertising image was A/ y# \3 ~7 U! \8 U: z4 R
banal until it was elevated above mere graphic design to high art. The lesson here is that
' L, \6 A5 J* u; A5 y1 x+ s* Jadvertising, in itself, probably will not achieve great importance as art. But taken up by
6 K O3 ]2 C- W. S% Cthe artist as content in a larger commentary on society, it can become transcendent.7 @; x+ U2 b& ?. c3 @! x1 Z
In sum, artists will no doubt continue to comment on advertising and on the ( v8 f. O/ D, p: d
materialistic values it reflects and promotes. But the ads themselves, however influential
" W$ B& J- T$ O# M5 ^7 B& |9 M! _in marketing terms, fail to fulfill all the criteria for important art. |