When it comes to acknowledging the impact and benefits various art forms have on society, many people have ranging opinions. Students in particular find that art is notably influential in their everyday lives. Art serves as an entertainer for most students, from listening to music on their way to class, to watching Netflix after class. However, people don’t often stop and think about the actual influence the art forms surrounding them have.
“[Art] can change the way people view certain subjects or people,” Geoffroy Beauchemin, freshman at the University of Rhode Island, said. “It can transform what a generation thinks about something or views of a certain group or person. It can also bring new issues to light.”
This new era of technology and social media is causing a lot of things to evolve, including art. Sophomore Joy Andres thinks art forms are constantly developing and changing with culture. She believes what is seen on social media is a representation of today’s culture, and that digital media is transitioning traditional art forms into digital forms.
Along with Andres, freshman Caitlyn Martin thinks art is representative of real life. “I think in a way art mimics real life and real life mimics art,” Martin said. “Any thought, feeling, or struggle artists had you can feel in their work and that feeling translates and never goes away no matter how old it is.”
A lot of people don’t notice how prevalent art is in our daily lives. Some people may think art only impacts them if they are taking an art class or regularly draw or paint, but the impact of art can be in something as simple as listening to your favorite song.
“My favorite [form of art] is probably music just because it’s so easily accessible and you can listen to it whenever you want,” Beauchemin said.
Art influences people differently and varies from person to person, so everyone has different ideas about which forms of art have the biggest impact. Beauchemin believes that music is the most impactful because of the artist’s capability to voice clear messages to large groups of people in a polarizing manner. Andres on the other hand thinks movies are the most impactful.
“I think movies [have the biggest impact to society] because they’re like a little snapshot into our lives that has the culture of the time and other people of different cultures can see that and get an idea of what’s going on with us,” Andres said.
Given the various opinions expressed among students, there doesn’t appear to be a clear answer when it comes to defining which form of art has the greatest impact on society. Believing impact has to do with the message Martin thinks there isn’t one specific art form that can be labeled as the most impactful.
“I think the kinds of art that bring people together the most is art that people can relate to,” Martin said. “I think that usually the art that is more specific and not everyone can relate to is where the divide starts, but I also think that that kind of art is the most powerful art because it invokes change in people that shows how they’re different.”