Art's relevance is regularly questioned and it is usually one of the first areas to suffer budget cuts. Art — whether it’s photography, painting, performance, installation or sculpture — is nonetheless significant in its examination of past and contemporary issues. It does not only inform us about stylistic movements, but also about society — allowing us to better understand social, political, historical, cultural and economic matters. According to art history professor John O’Brian, art might not change anything directly, but “art keeps open a conversation … a space that permits discussion and often debate that allows us to rethink things and change our minds.”

The rigours of making good art

The art scene is growing as well as its curators and audiences. Not only are there more art galleries and museums compared even to several years ago, but there is also a constant growth in artists. The art world might seem like a small circle, only accessible to insiders and somewhat self-fulfilling, but it has more of an impact than many think. Throughout the ages, artists have critiqued issues in society, making a stance when others were too afraid of the political consequences that might follow.

O’Brian quotes Marshall McLuhan, who said that “art at its most significant is a distant early warning system that can always be relied on to tell the old culture what is beginning to happen to it.” Art’s relevance can be seen in the message or meaning of an artwork in question. 

This unfortunately in turn puts into doubt the role that aesthetics can play in a work. The result is that some artists are currently overlooked or outright rejected. Though in that case, O’Brian said that “it may be that aesthetically the work hasn’t reached a level of execution that attracts audiences — it still has to be compelling work for anyone to be paying attention to the message.” 

This doesn’t mean that the art currently being made is irrelevant — recognition can come at a later stage, as was the case with Van Gogh. O’Brian says that some artists can be considered more relevant than others, not because their art is modern or contemporary, but because some art “is just more rigorous in the way that it is produced, the kind of thinking that has gone behind it, how it engages audiences and the way it opens up discussion.”

A figure who O’Brian considers relevant is Allen Sekula, whose focus is on global marine life. “His work is entirely relevant in that he is thinking about global exchange, capitalist exchange, movement of goods, the movement of people, migration, immigration, resistance to that and giving us a representation of that [through] photographs, language, articles and books,” he said.

Quoting from his upcoming book Breathless Days — co-authored with Serge Guilbaut — O’Brian reads, “Works of art are always submerged in the political and social-antagonisms of their time. They emerge from a cauldron of disagreement on high boil and are capable of crystallizing historical issues while addressing the culture that produced them.” 

The complications of commercialism

Commercial aspects of art institutions seem to be coming more into play nowadays, especially when dealing with funding. Currently, there is an increased focus on local artists, which likely stems from concerns about receiving funding from art councils. On the one hand, it could be argued that this has made local art more relevant, but on the other hand, it limits the freedom of art galleries and museums to extend their scope particularly far. 

“If you’re funding local artists around a particular topic that’s of interest to a minuscule arts council, then you’re bringing that to people’s attention. So yes, it’s getting more relevance, but maybe it’s not what should get more relevance — maybe it’s not where the most interesting and rigorous work is happening,” said O'Brian.  

Current financial situations might certainly be affecting the relevance of art. Though O’Brian said that perhaps one can say it is exactly the commercial commodity that has made art more relevant, as it raises attention and interest, even if that is just to get people to invest in art. 

“We live in an era that revolves around business plans — maybe it’s more relevant in that sense. It’s an unfortunate turn, but I don’t see that it’s any less relevant.” 

Commercialism's affect on the art world can be witnessed first hand, both at art exhibitions and festivals which are often organized as a marketing tools for tourism or consumer opportunities. Blockbuster exhibitions are popular as a way to receive funding and attract a larger audience group in order for art galleries and museums to survive in times of budget cuts. But then whether or not artworks are displayed in an innovative manner in their exhibitions can certainly be called into question. O’Brian said that blockbuster exhibits could be considered relevant as they bring more people into a museum, but he questions to what end. 

“If an audience is not really encouraged to think about some of the issues regarding the artworks, then the relevance is short-lived.”