Many an artist has struggled with the question of how to make art in the midst of atrocity - but at the present moment, with atrocity seemingly ubiquitous, that dilemma appears particularly acute.
In an article for the Quietus, Drew Daniel (Matmos/The Soft Pink Truth) has offered his personal thoughts on an old chestnut. As might be expected of a musician who's an English professor by day, it's articulate and reflective, quoting Adorno as well as Swans.
Daniel confronts the question head on: "[W]hat can one person who likes to make records possibly think they can accomplish in the face of an ongoing slide into state murder and authoritarian politics?" Or, put even more bluntly, "why bother making art at all?"
Daniels' response is honest and realistic; rather than suggesting naively and hubristically that he and other artists can somehow make a significant difference in the wider world, he acknowledges the ultimate futility of art in such horrific circumstances. Instead, he focuses on its impact on a micro level, internally and interpersonally. In exploring the unfamiliar territory of "chamber and orchestral arrangements", he has "sought in music something that feels 'other', some kind of temporary escape hatch from the present lifeworld" - and has found "beauty".
Art is more than just a coping mechanism, though. "At its best", Daniels concludes, "art reminds us of the possibility of freedom in this world, and the reality of our connection to each other as the basis and grounding condition of that freedom's expression". To that, I'd add that the creating art is an inherently positive act - an act of generosity that by its very nature stands in opposition to the violence, meanness of spirit and grotesque philistinism of contemporary politics.
No comments:
Post a Comment