Useful art

pictures for sad children

Here is what I read that prompted this post: 101 and the next three comics after it

Artists have always been looking for ways to make art that will convince people to do better things with their lives.

The inherent problem here is that the "better things" they're doing are usually NOT buying and experiencing more art. 


If the main thing someone does in their life is consume goods and entertainment, is that bad?


Is art at its best only a distraction? Is escapism at a large scale unhealthy for a society? If so what is the cure? 


Bertolt Brecht saw theatre as a tool for social change, and thought that by removing the audience from the story, effectively lessening the audience's escapism, would mean that they would be more likely to act once their minds were changed by watching the play.


Art has so many facets to it, I find it hard to believe that the best art can be is distraction or commentary. Culture helps propagate wisdom, and I believe this is an important task. 


Suddenly I think of the movie Fight Club and the message that I think it carries: as society distances itself from things that have visceral meaning, it puts many people in danger of great unhappiness.