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What is the role of artists in shaping culture and a healthy society?
Live TED Conversation: Join TED Fellow Meklit Hadero to discuss the question "What is the role of artists in shaping culture and a healthy society?"
Meklit is an Ethiopian-born, San Francisco based singer, musician, and 2009 TED Global Fellow. Equally cultural activist and practicing artist, Meklit has been an NYU artist-in-residence, toured extensively throughout North America, and founded a collective of Ethiopian Diaspora artists called the Arba Minch Collective.
This conversation will open at 10 am EST.
This conversation will open at 10 am on Friday, July 8th.
Topics:
Live Conversation
Matt Lane
My proposal has been stated. Create art — massive amounts of it. Compare what you perceive so that other people will perceive it more or less the same way. Art is seduction or at least a form of it. We cannot lead others to us with a gun. So a proposal can only be based on that which is pure and subversive art. On a more fundamental level, all acts of perception is a form of art — hence the good and true becoming the beautiful, as Plato suggest.
As long as we hold true to a social organization as valued in a meritocracy artists will always struggle and hopelessly dwindle. I do not think culture, or at least schlockmeister culture, helps shape culture for the better. Arts task is to create culture, not to consume it!
:-)
Jaime Lubin 10+
Matt Lane
But lets us not forget how easy it is for every mode of thinking to become corrupted by the ambitions of capitalism; in fact, most everything sacred has been consumed by this ideological model.
:-)
Jaime Lubin 10+
The sacred things are the real things, and all sacred remain untouched and hide while any model corrupts the profane things. We dont forget the absurd of the "arts" in China during Mao, or in USSR while Stalin kills more than 60 million people. In the absurd model from "western culture" Disney corrupt almost every mind, and Hollywood do the same. So if you said "to save our souls" what is your proposal.?
Salim Solaiman 50+
Well it seems to me when "ART" become part of system it gets polluted. Though many ART can mirror the system, project the system but it shouldn't be part of it to remain pure.
Real ARTISTs are rebelious to current system. They are soul of future to which society should move. They challenge the status quo, they stand against establishment with their art......
Result is that time lag as mentioned by Debra..... result is pain to artist being reblious..
So my proposals seems ARTIST to remain in self excile , embracing pain in serach of greater beauty and wellness of mankind....
Jaime Lubin 10+
Matt Lane
1 hour ago: Matt , all the human existence in any possible form is to create culture. Not just the arts (in plural). Plumbers and presidents create culture as the same astronauts and TED commenters as you and me and others here. Culture means "what is to be cured to grown up and enrich the human existence"....arts of course enhance the very existence and being human. The circumstances from the enviroment, natural or economic, techological or cultural are just ephimeral things. As you and me.
Oh yes sure. What I was inferring to is that art can dissolve boundaries that culture puts up. It can be as much of a paradigm shifter as say science and technology. That is all.
But like I said, all acts of perception are in some sense the very intimation of the artistic impulse.
Meklit Hadero 200+
Anna Anderson 50+
Meklit Hadero 200+
In Ethiopia, there is a type of artist called Azmari's. They are poets and musicians who know thousands of traditional songs and poems, and are superb musical and lyrical improvisors. When you go to an Azmari-beit (the name of the place you go to see them), they sing for you, often a mixture of praise songs and songs that outright make fun of you. And it is hilarious and fun. But they tell the truth about what they see. At the same time, they are generally on the margins of society, almost outcast. Yet, they are the ones who can tell the truth in public. I feel that this is almost the mythological artist..... It makes me think of Cassandra in Greek mythology. She has the gift of sight, but she will never be believed or taken seriously. People go to Azmari's to hear the truth, but then wont be respect them in the light of day. There's a tragedy about it.
There are of course artists who are made famous and become enormously wealthy. But those are such a small percentage, and the fame comes with different pressures about what can and cannot be said easily.
Thoughts?
Roger Williams
If someone likes a person's "art", they should offer them something in exchange for it. If the artist accepts the offer, then that is commerce.
Commerce is good for healthy societies.
If someone looks at a "work of art" and it inspires that person to think or do something new or different that is good.
Inspiration is good for healthy societies.
Alison Loerke
Meklit Hadero 200+
Meklit Hadero 200+
http://www.urban.org/publications/411311.html
Martha Desta
Debra Smith 200+
Jaime Lubin 10+
Salim Solaiman 50+
In my culture there is a saying pointing out this attitude of culture that " we only know someone was great once s/he dies and then we start honouring him / her". In my early age I use to feel sick about that attitude of my culture later could understand it's more of global.
One of our poets in his early poetic life wrote .....being poet means
walking barefoot
striving for mere food,
cheapest cheap wine
night with prostitute
once in a while
Fortunately he could shine with honour and money in his lifetime (wishing long life for him), but to have that money he had to write scripts for low taste commercial films , thats the irony.
But I am happy with that as that's what society looks for so got it what it deserves. Atleast that gave him the opportunity to live a decent life and write more great poetries, dramas and other literary works while also being in forefront of fight against any tyranny in the country all the time.
Jaime Lubin 10+
Jaime Lubin 10+
Debra Smith 200+
There is the vulgarization of art and yet I would not want to be elitist in this matter. Sometimes what you might consider the vulgarization has, at least in the past made that art or at least its sensibilites available to all segments of society in many places at once rather than remaining captive to the owner or museum reserved for the elites.
Jaime Lubin 10+
If some person wants to be touched by arts (any form) wellcome. But artist work is not for social response. The society believes that arts as a pretext to said this or that, almost allways with a wrong focus and false positions. I never believe in public opinion about arts.
Debra Smith 200+
Jaime Lubin 10+
Meklit Hadero 200+
There was a planning and implementation phase. Let me see if I can find any results from that!
Jade Blair
It is within these settings which I wonder how responsibly we create...
For my university dissertation, I propose to research the exact role and effects designers/artists have within contemporary society. Whilst fulfilling our human instincts to admire, explore and play, how can/do designers/artists represent the natural world and directly relate to it whilst addressing our social needs?
Surely there needs to be an equal balance and concentration on the world we live in and maintaining/improving its current state through design.
How is this gone about with current works and what does the future hold for design and creating a 'healthy society? What provisions are and must be taken?
Just some thoughts for you all... if anyone has any links or further comments on these ideas and questions that would be great :)
Jaime Lubin 10+
Jade Blair
Everything within society is shaped and originated from nature (or a natural process) in one way or another. Within everything created there is a cause and effect. I do not agree that an artists role is to focus purely upon aesthetics... everything has its purpose and place, there is a meaning behind everything. Yes, we require things to be 'pretty', but this is not what maintains our attention on the piece.
It is a designers role to guide us in engaging with the world, to remind us the environment is still there outside our hectic lives and for us to treat it respectfully. Creating things blindly for aesthetics is irresponsible... I believe these innovative technological designs will be the future for design...
Jaime Lubin 10+
Debra Smith 200+
Sometimes guys like Banksy mirror our society and confront us with our own craziness.
Meklit Hadero 200+
Jaime Lubin 10+
Not allways the "society" knows or want to receive the artwork. And for artists is not a worry to be received. The society role (if theres some one clear) really doesn't matter to the artist. Maybe for designers is an argument with some consideration, but design is very different task than acomplish the society tastes or claims. Designers work is just for needs.
Meklit Hadero 200+
Also, it can often be hard to fully understand how exactly the exchange is happening. So many artists are unknown in their lifetime, but become extremely socially and culturally influential after they pass away. So they are received, but they are not there to engage in the public part of the conversation.
Debra Smith 200+
I think design is an integrated and practical form of art. Useful things can be very beautiful and functional.
Debra Smith 200+
Recently I saw a rendering of some of the statues of ancient Rome suggesting what they might have looked like in their colourful orignal forms based on scientific analysis of their surfaces. I was jarred and it took me some time to wrap my brain around the idea that they were originally quite garish in comparison to the pristine white surfaces we have become used to. It was, however, good for me to realize that my mental version of them was not what the artist intended.
Michael M 30+
I totally agree that the artist is and will be a singular voice, until he is heard by the society. But art does reflect and bend society also. It is often not welcomed or understood, but it does happen. The artist says stop and look...whether we stop or look is our decision, but at least he says something to society.
Michael M 30+
Ecaterina Sanalatii 10+
1) to show the world as it is and make people aware of the problems - anything from social problems to environment
2) to show how current problems can be addressed - transporting vision into reality
3) to show what has been achieved - inspiring through change
4) to educate - some people can't read or write, but they can see and remember
Joe Delsen 20+
Michael Norris
Martha Desta
Meklit Hadero 200+
Michael M 30+
Art can reflect the horrid and the harsh. It sometimes makes a society stop and say " wait, no more."
Art reflects beauty, it calls forth that longing in us to experience that beauty.
Artists stop, create, recreate, then show what the society as a whole needs to hear, see, feel, and touch.
A healthy society needs the arts in all forms, written, painted, sculpted, photographed, sung to see and hear itself. It has to make us stop and examine a moment in someone else's life and reflect on our own.
Meklit Hadero 200+
L.A. Hall
Meklit Hadero 200+
Debra Smith 200+
Amily shaw 10+
Artists are innovators and an true artist to me is the one who awakes me to reality and how i become related with it.
Salim Solaiman 50+
In my country Artists were always in forefront to fight back any tyranny many times , through their work and even real partcipation of in mass movement.
George Harrison , Ringo Star, Ravi Sankar did Concert Bangladesh in 1971 against the Genocide going on in my country in London , Newyork please check the link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZZ96J_PVbk
A team of young artists of Bangladesh in 1971, during our freedom of fight against genocide , were relentlessly encouraging people and our fighter through there song front to front sometimes walking miles after miles even, which was captured by US young journalist Lear Lavin , later was transformed in to ducumentary called "Muktir Gaan" ( means songs of Freedom)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpSR4NSgvrw
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4117868652229244669#
Artists are actually Global Soul.
Joe Delsen 20+
Salim Solaiman 50+
Well don't get about "weekly maximum"
Jaime Lubin 10+
Salim Solaiman 50+
As usual amazed with your sense inner meaning of word and using accordingly. Yes I was a bit superficial or broad in using that in case of Beatles, what's ur thought about Ravi Shankar ?
Sure I am you know many times it happened in our history, when contemporary time rejected something not being ART finally over time it got the status of ART..... just example DADAist artists...
With all respect Jaime, the Beatles +Ravi Shankar initiative of 1971 , was a intiative for humanity , when the big powers were supporting merciless Genocide, which definitely has it's politics behind from the super power, but not sure how much politics was from Beatles side to take that initiative.........
Fully agree what you called media confusion.
Have a good day Jaime .
Meklit Hadero 200+
Michael M 30+
Both of those are a part of society, high or low...and both still impact though in disimilar ways. We need both.
Meklit Hadero 200+
Meklit Hadero 200+
I'm always curious to know more about who the artists were that played that role in your lives.
Salim mentioned both a moment (the concert in London), and the people (team of young artists in the film "Muktir Gaan").
Who were those artists for you?
For me there are all kinds of levels of it.... There are personal friends like Marcus Shelby, a West Coast jazzmaster who interprets the lives of Harriet Tubman and MLK through epic librettos, and Quique Cruz, a Chilean multi-instrumentalist and filmmaker who was imprisoned by the Chilean government in the dictatorship times there and has made gorgeous music of healing around that experience. To people I have never met, but who have deeply influenced me, like the sculptor James Turrell, who works with light and lifts everyone who walks into his hall-like open sky pieces.
Salim Solaiman 50+
Giving example of 4 more from my country who became my idol , two is poets , two legendary painters , huge impact they have on our national , cultural life
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zainul_Abedin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quamrul_Hassan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kazi_Nazrul_Islam
http://www.evergreenbangla.com/2008/07/11/helal-hafiz-and-his-poem/
Meklit Hadero 200+
Judge Pau 50+