Different ways of understanding art and the artist

By delving into the contemporary scene and the different artistic circuits, we find a series of distinctions of art and artist. We can define three main groups (Frigeri, 2011): scholarly art, mass art and popular art. We must keep in mind that these groups are not produced in their purest form, but are mixed gently.

Scholarly or cultured art tells us that the artist, usually an individual, has one or more particular abilities and a certain genius to produce original works. Within this group, the artist is a cultured person, trained in certain practices, so that the works he makes are exhibited in spaces for this purpose: museums, theaters, auditoriums, etc.

It is an exclusive art, since its objective is to reach a certain audience with the ability and prior knowledge to access it. That is why scholarly art is also called elitist art.

Mass art defines the artist based on the circulation and consumption of artistic products. For the artist, the level of popularity takes priority, ensuring that his work is known and enjoyed by as many people as possible. The main objective of this type of art, in fact - compared to scholarly art - is, precisely, to reach the maximum number of people. For this objective, the media and their function as speakers responsible for the transformation of individuals or groups into artists play a central role.

Popular art is closely related to a specific social and cultural context and the community in which it is developed. It can be said that, in popular art, the artist does not stand out for his originality or genius. The artist is defined by the creation of an artistic product relevant to the community to which he is directed, that is, he artistically expresses a collective idea. The social function of art becomes important, since its production could favor actions to change the situations symbolically described by it. The artist is not an enlightened individual. The creative capacity belongs to a community, to a group with different visions and talents that share the same social context where the same riches and shortcomings live.