Transcript Are there Ethical Limitations to Art?

Are there Ethical Limitations
in Art?
Example: Bodies Exhibition
 Bodies exhibition in London
displays 20 preserved human
corpses, often dissected and
placed in different poses.
 250 other body parts and
organs also on show.
 Educational art form?
or
 Unnecessarily distasteful?
Morally wrong? money
spinning? illegal?
Knowledge Issues
What is the role of moral values in Art?
and
To what extent there should there be
ethical limitations in what artist can
produce?
What is Art?
 In finding a definition, it is important to question the
boundaries to Art.
 What should we label as art?
 Painting, poetry, music etc but where do we stop?
 No universal standards.
 ‘Freedom’ of subject matter.
 Therefore what is art trying to do?
Is This Art?
The Intentions of Art
 It is often suggested the arts are a way of expressing emotion.
 The full purpose of art?
 Art can imitate nature. (mimetic theory)
 Morality in Art- ‘art can teach us what is right’
 If Art can heighten our moral awareness does this mean there
should be no restrictions in the methods used to prove a moral
point?
Ethics
 Ethics is the study of what is right and what is wrong.
 Like art, it can be product of personal choice.
 But we have to remember we are part of a society, to
which we tend to have a collective ethical beliefs.
 Despite this debate does still exist.
 Moral belief in art form?
 When do ethical values become an issue in art?
La Nona Ora
 ‘The ninth hour’ by
Maurizio Cattelan,
shows the Pope
being struck by a
meteorite.
 Provoked anger
from the Christian
Community.
The Holy Virgin Mary
 Chris Ofili created an
image of the virgin Mary
out of Elephant Dung
and pornographic
images.
 The dung is supposed
to represent fertility as it
fertilizes the soil.
 The nude images are
also supposed to
represent fertility.
Hanging Children
 Maurizio Cattalan
hangs lifelike dummies
of children from a tree
in Milan.
 He says the work is a
protest against violence
to children.
 It has caused outrage
amongst public.
Example: Bodies Exhibition
 Bodies exhibition in London
displays 20 preserved human
corpses, often dissected and
placed in different poses.
 250 other body parts and
organs also on show.
 Educational art form?
or
 Unnecessarily distasteful?
Morally wrong? money
spinning? illegal?
Conclusion
We have seen examples of art which has
shocked the world. Although many of
them are addressing a valid moral point,
it is important for the artist to consider
the consequences of his/her work and
the sensitivity of the audience.
Conclusion
 The way that artists put their message across
is key to deciding whether or not the piece is
ethically correct. Like the ‘hanging children’
example; the artist is trying to convey the
message that violence towards children is
wrong. The nature of his work suggests there
are no real limits to art, the only limits are the
ones that we decide upon.