The following is an editorial in which all views, thoughts or opinions belong solely to the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Drury Mirror.

Art carries the incredible power to influence people in extraordinary ways. No matter the medium, art makes people feel things. That is, after all the purpose of creating art: to express and share emotion. Art is an outlet for emotional turmoil or trauma, just as it is used to proclaim happiness and joy. Art is a vessel to translate feelings and ideas to a new audience, to influence how the people who consume it think and perceive things. This makes art a potent tool – or weapon – for social justice causes.

Causes in art

Social justice has long influenced art in all its many forms. Art allows issues faced by minorities to be illuminated to a wider audience. Sympathy can grow for those who previously suffered without a voice. Representation has an enormous role in fostering diversity, acceptance and empathy. Social issues are identified and addressed through art just as they are identified and addressed in politics or other civil discourse. Art that carries social meaning has an important place in our society.

That said, it is important to keep one thing in mind when watching a film, listening to music, reading a book or poem, looking at art or any other consumption of art that carries a social justice message: no art is safe from criticism.

Too often, people assume that because a work has a social meaning, it can only be viewed inside that context. They ask, “What does this art do for society? What does this art say? Does this art make society better?” These are all important questions to ask, and they have their place. But these questions should not eclipse whether a film or painting or book is technically good.

Considering quality over cause

Art exists for more than just the society or culture that produces it. Art exists for the individual. The individual creating the art, the individual appreciating it. Art’s subjectivity comes from individual response, not its technical elements and the craft with which they are employed to create something new. We get so caught up sometimes focusing on the social ripples art that we ignore the base purpose of art: the emotions it makes us feel, the internal change that occurs as we experience it, the way we view the world after having experienced that piece of art.

Art that illuminates, explores, challenges or documents social issues or struggles of minorities is not safe from criticism. These works are important, and their messages critical to a healthy society and culture of diverse thought. These works should be held to the same standards as any other. A movie should not win best picture simply because it has a black (or any other racial minority) director. A musician should not win song of the year simply because the song was about feminism. If they do, that is fantastic, and the exposure can go a long way for the message or cause that art supports. But social awareness alone should not be enough to grant awards when there exists better, more qualified art.

Removing the message from the critique

It can be difficult for us to remove ourselves from an idea or message conveyed through a work of art and evaluate the work completely unbiased. Once an idea has been planted, virtually any criticism can come off as a criticism of that idea. It is important to realize that a comment on a technical aspect of any art is separate from any comment on the message behind it. I can say that I don’t like a mural of a woman punching a man in the face, but still support the idea of feminism and combatting oppressive patriarchal aspects of society.

My point is this: art can be criticized without criticizing the larger purpose behind it. When we experience art that expresses a social issue, we can and should appreciate that message while still evaluating it for how good it is. Bad art can still have a good message, just as good art can carry bad messages.

Article by Forest Swisher