How Does Art Help The World, Really?
Many years ago in the throws of heartbreak, I walked into the Art Gallery Of NSW and sat in front of Vive l'Empereur!
It is a painting by French artist Édouard Detaille created in 1891, depicting a cavalry charge into battle. On face value, I would argue that none of the context of this painting was particularly relevant to me. I am not French. I was not going off to war. And I would never wear a silly hat like that if I were riding a horse. But as a freshly broken up with sad girl, it was very randomly this piece of art that seemed to help me the most. See the guy in the image wearing the silly hat surely knows he’s about to die. His teeth are probably rotten and I bet he never got to go to the cinema or sit in an art gallery. So seeing that made me realise instantly how lucky I was to be born into this life, country and decade, however heartbroken I felt at the time. Gratitude is always welcome, especially when you’re sad.
Simultaneously and without sounding overly melodramatic, there was an absolute war going on inside my mind as anyone who has ever endured a breakup would understand. And while I was still not wearing a silly hat, nor a French man, in some loose way, I could relate to the guy going into battle. Who would have thought a painting created some 130 years prior by an artist I would never get to meet or thank would be context to remind me that struggle is an innate part of being a human and in doing so make me feel a little less alone? The power of art hey.
In trying times, I think it is art that we turn to the most. And it is art that transcends cultures and centuries, unlike anything else. You don’t have to necessarily understand why something moves you, just that it does. And maybe from that it makes you more grateful, feel less alone, curious about other cultures and stories. So going along with that notion, I decided to some of our favourite artists, gallery owners and curators within the Monster Children world - how does art help the world?
Vive l'Empereur! by Edouard Detaille at the art gallery of NSW
Arabic American Artist Tala Worrell
Art helps but not in the literal way. There’s a scale of time that’s different. If we think that change is solving a literal problem I don’t think that’s what art can do. But maybe with abstraction, looking at a painting you’re having this visual experience and then you can start to put language to it. And you might start using words you didn’t think before and then that might allow you to see the world differently. Those are when changes happen. It’s change from the inside out.’
First Nation Art Curator Miah Madden
I think that art helps the world because it transcends language. Usually, that is the thing that divides us and doesn’t allow us to communicate. But you can go to an art gallery and see a French artist or someone from a foreign country and even though you don’t speak the same language, you still might be able to understand the message that they are trying to convey, appreciate it and maybe even learn something about their culture. Art helps to bridge the cultural gap that exists between humanity.
Sunday Salon Founder Lila Mora
Art inspires people to look beyond themselves, out into the world. It allows us to imagine different ways of being. We need more of that.
Didi Director Sean Wang
Art helps us understand the world around us and ourselves more, whether we're making it or experiencing it. It helps make sense of our fears, anxieties, joys, sadness, and more. It can help us feel less alone, and I think all of that, in turn, helps the world.
LA Tattoist Nathan Kostechko
If art is creation, there is no world without it.
California Artist Ford Archbold
Art is it’s own language that transcends grammar and vocabulary, making it instantly available to any culture no translation needed. It helps the humans of this world understand each other and ourselves since ancient times.
New York Curator Nakai Falcon
I don't think that it directly changes things but I do think it's vital in terms of being the catalyst for folks that can do change. For example the art syndicate IRAK NYC with Kunle Martins from the 90s, where there was this group of artists hanging out and expressing themselves catalyzes the next generation to think differently. Things to learn that can sometimes be carried over for better or for worse. I think art has that function.
Australian Artist Minna Leunig
Not in some neat, idealistic ‘art will save the world’ kind of way. Art shifts culture. It influences people, shapes how we see things, and documents lived realities. It shows where we’re at socially, politically, emotionally in a particular moment in time. Sometimes it’s quiet, sometimes it’s loud. It’s been central to social movements, to revolutions. It’s also how stories have been carried across generations, especially in cultures without written language. I think it’s an essential part of being human. Every culture has had its own forms of art, music and dance. So yes, it changes the world but more than that, it’s part of what builds worlds.