After I got into the art gallery business for the first time (in 1985!) one of the earliest truisms I remember hearing was:
"When it comes to art, there's no accounting for taste!"
Those words were spoken by Eric — who was proprietor of the gallery next to mine — reflecting on the fact that he had always tried extremely hard to only put really good art in his gallery, not just what seemed like the "pop culture trends of the moment."
He said what he said as a reflection of the fact that following what amounted to his perception of doing things "right" had succeeded in accomplishing little more than make the gallery's income statement run red with negative numbers.
But not so fast!
Let us keep in mind that we are working with Eric's perception of what constituted "good art," and that didn't happen to be a globally shared opinion.
Whereas there definitely were some people — including myself — who thought the art in Eric's gallery was terrific, part of the point he was trying to make was that the vast majority of people who came through his front door really weren't that interested in the meaning of the art, they typically were carrying a fabric sample from their curtains or sofa and were looking for art to "match their decor."
Of course, that's where most gallery operators start banging their heads against the wall in frustration... but on a broader level, it's also where we get to make an honest appraisal of the level of art awareness of the general public... at least as it stands, here in the US of A.
Having grown up in a fairly large city in Europe, one of my observations has been that art has a far smaller cultural importance in the USA than it does in Europe. Conversely, entertainment has a far greater relevance in the US than it does in most parts of Europe.
How is that relevant?
Well, I remember being somewhat baffled by some of the early questions I found myself fielding after we opened the gallery.
Such as "What do you DO with it?"
DO?
My original head-shaking has gradually given way to resignation over the years... part of the nature of an entertainment based culture is that what we engage with at a recreational level often demands action. Most art is pretty static, and doesn't really "do" anything, other than perhaps appeal to some deeper part of your emotions and your psyche. '
A few months ago, I went to a Banksy exhibit in Seattle, WA and a comment by one of the "guides" at the exhibit was that the art stopped people and made them think.
From Banksy exhibit, Seattle, WA, June 2022; Author photo
So getting back to the question of "good art" and my colleague Eric's dilemma... the people who walked through his gallery front door in Austin, Texas didn't relate much to thought provoking cutting edge art, but rather were looking for photo-realistic paintings of cowboys roping cattle.
Not saying there's anything wrong with that, but it does serve as a fairly clear illustration of what the reality that it can be very difficult to determine what "good" art looks like...
Thanks for stopping by, and do please leave a comment if you feel so inspired!
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All images are our own, unless otherwise attributed