Page 21 - Studio International - June 1974

private household the excellence of the dwelling accomplishments are the accepted measures of Over a longer period of time the arts and
and its painting, sculpture, furniture, food and community achievements, it follows that products that reflect artistic accomplishment
conversation provided a similar test. This was education and other support for these subjects will, for the foregoing reasons, be increasingly
especially true of those communities — Venice, is not only a proper but a highly desirable central to economic development. There is no
Florence, Genoa, Amsterdam, Bruges and employment of public funds. The arts, for reason, a priori, to suppose that scientific and
Antwerp — where the orientation was strongly obvious reasons, have no similar claim. engineering achievements serve the ultimate
to economic achievement. Military and sexual No one will be in doubt as to the source of frontiers in human enjoyment. At some point,
prowess, accomplishment in courtly routines these attitudes. It lies with the technostructure as consumption expands, a transcending
and manners and commitments to gastronomic and the planning system and with their interest in beauty may be expected. This
and alcoholic excess have always been the ability to impose their values on the society and transition will vastly alter both the character
principal rivals to the arts as manifestations of the state. The technostructure embraces and and structure of the economic system.
civilized accomplishment. The commercial uses the engineer and the scientist; it cannot It will first have to contend, however, with
cities, as compared with the courts, were embrace the artist. Engineering and science the social conditioning of the technostructure
generally more resistant to all these forms of serve its purpose; art, at best, is something and the planning system which, as just noted,
display. which it needs but finds troublesome and relegate to a minor social role what cannot be
In modern times the arts, as a measure of puzzling. From these attitudes come those of embraced or used. The transition will have
both community and private achievement, have the community and the government. also to contend with the convenient social
undergone a great relative decline. Scientific Engineering and science are socially necessary; virtue of the artist. This requires a word, for it
and engineering accomplishments have become art is a luxury. is what causes the artist to accept an inferior
overwhelmingly more important and these While artistic accomplishment has ceased to economic and social role both for himself and
have also invaded the esteem that was once be a test of social achievement, the esoteric and for art in general.
associated with military prowess. Few now pretentious apart, it has a continuing and Specifically the artist has been persuaded that
speak of the discipline, parade-ground perhaps increasing importance for the individual the world of economics is one to which, by
virtuosity or bravery of soldiers, sailors or and the household. The everyday standards for nature, he has little relation. It is part of his
aviators. It is the excellence of their tanks, assessing the reputability and general social pride that the number who can appreciate the
nuclear submarines, aircraft or the guidance position of a family do eschew any artistic work of the true artist — who have a valid
systems with which they are equipped that element. They centre, instead, on the supply of response to its meaning — must always be very
excites comment and measures national standard goods. The inhabitants of a three- small. So his market and the resulting
accomplishment. Space exploration is an even bedroom house are thought 'better off' than compensation must be meagre. This
more dramatic example of the use of scientific those of a two-bedroom house; they gain meagreness, in turn, shows his merit. The more
and engineering virtuosity as a measure of further distinction from having a fully deprived his life, the more truly is he an artist.
national achievement. As mediaeval towns once equipped kitchen and being a two- as opposed Only the more modest religious offices share the
compared the magnificence of their cathedrals to a one-car family. The technical character and artist's belief that merit is inversely related to
and the munificence of their decoration, novelty of goods, not their beauty, is stressed in compensation.
modern superpowers parade the number, advertising. To attack the design of a consumer This view of the artist of himself has two
conception and cost of their expeditions, product as banal is often to invite an indignant social advantages. It economizes expenditure on
manned or unmanned, to the moon and the response. It is what the people want. The critic the arts, for, if pecuniary reward does not
planets or their laboratories in orbit around the is an elitist. improve and possibly even damages
earth. The reward, however, continues to be However at higher income levels an artistic performance, it should obviously be kept to the
partly metaphysical and spiritual.3 It is part of sense or pretence in domestic architecture, minimum. And it means that all but a
the normal argument for scientific or interior decoration, furniture, landscape design minority of artists are kept safely in that
engineering expenditure that there is great and even in food and entertainment tends either subordinate and anonymous state that is
ultimate human benefit. In the case of the to be enjoyed for its own sake or is part of the reserved for the indigent or near-indigent.
exploration of the moon it is generally claim to esteem. This, in turn, sustains a They do not in consequence compete with
agreed that there was little or none. That substantial and growing market for the work of managers, scientists or engineers for social
we did not ask for such benefit was, in artists as well as for individuals who provide esteem. Nor do they compete with scientists and
this instance, a measure of our intellectual guidance to those who, often perceptively, lack engineers for public funds to support the arts.
and spiritual maturity. Again we see the confidence in their own taste. As a The claim on public resources is further
influence of the convenient social virtue. consequence an appreciable volume of modern reduced by the belief, also accepted in varying
Scientific and engineering accomplishments economic activity depends not on the technical measure by the artist, that not much can be
are likewise the accepted measure of efficacy of the product or the efficiency with done about education in the arts. Given only the
achievement in other fields — physics, chemistry, which it is produced but on the quality of the money, any number of scientists and engineers
genetics, aviation, computer technology. No one artists associated with the design. Some can be supplied. These can be processed from
would think of according similar importance industries are so based. Danish and Finnish almost any number. The number of artists
to the comparative accomplishments of the furniture owe their modern distinction not to produced cannot, however, exceed the number
Soviet Union and the United States in painting, engineering competence but to artistic worth. of people with intrinsic talent, and the part of
the theatre, the novel or industrial design. At The postwar renaissance of Italian industry had the population with such talent is assumed,
least until recently, in any competitive display of a similar basis. Italian products excel not in although on no known evidence, to be small.
painting, poetry or music, both countries engineering but in appearance. And there is a And it is part of the folk attitude toward the
would have been compelled to delete their best similar if less visible development in the United arts that the truly inspired artist will excel,
or most interesting offering. Americans, States. It is as yet little recognized — no one whatever the barriers to be overcome. The
selecting art for such display, would have had would think of encouraging the artist as convenient social virtue thus minimizes the need
to avoid what numerous congressional critics opposed to the engineer, scientist or business for expenditure on education in the arts.
would condemn as communist-inspired work. manager as the foundation of future industrial It is worth recalling that until about a hundred
The Soviets would have had similarly to development. But its monopoly of artistic and fifty years ago the convenient social virtue
exclude work that reflected bourgeois achievement provides an important assurance of held the scientist to be an unworldly and
decadence. Since engineering and scientific the survival of the small firm. monkish figure, whose support was properly the
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