In what ways do the arts of today use the arts of the past?

What social and

technological factors have given particular directions to development of the arts?
Have there been remarkable turning points or changes in direction punctuating the
development of this field?
To begin with, we should know the definition of art not just visual art or The Arts
(art and music), but in an overall aspect. Art is related to creativity; art is
communication; art is ones individual independent idea; art is ones expression
and/or opinion. My definition of art is a communicative tool through ones actions
and skills, revealing and expressing his/her message, character, opinion and
aesthetic values.
Looking back in history, Leonardo da Vinci, known by a lot of people as a man with
a vision, was a painter, scientist, mathematician, engineer and inventor. He uses
art to advance science and technology, such as the creation of models of flying
machines from studies of the flight of birds due to his fascination by the
phenomenon of flight itself. Till this day, we live in a world operated by mathematics
and science, where discoveries befitted in that
category, is sound.
Art is being used as propaganda, and propaganda is
frequently and vigorously used by governments in
different countries during World War I and World War II
in the early 20th century. One example of propaganda is
the American recruiting poster in WWI. The poster
depicts Uncle Sam, the personification of the United
States, through the colors of the clothing that are
elemental to the American flag, thus showing
patriotism. The uses of propaganda during the wars
are to shape citizens thoughts that war is good, war is
important, you are fighting for your country and
family. However, when they are in the battlefield,
they are looking and experiencing at an entirely
opposite perspective war is considered bloodshed,
terror, and chaos by most people. And we have come to realize, through the wordof-mouth from the survivors, that propaganda is betraying our ideals, thus we shape
our own perspectives to view that propaganda is usually a bad thing, and/or a lie.

Today, there are still uses of propaganda, some of them

meant for the good. One example is a Chinese soldier
named Lei Feng (). He is known as being selfless
and modest, and he is the subject of nationwide
propaganda campaign. The caption in the poster says
Follow Lei Fengs example; love the Party; love
Socialism; love the people. Till this day, the Chinese
are reminded and talked about the Chinese soldier by
remembering the Chinese phrase .
If we are looking at a music aspect, which is widely
considered art, it has been developed throughout the
centuries. From the Middle Ages to Classical to 20 th
Century music, new instruments have been created
such as piano, which everyone is declaring it the king
of instruments; orchestra has become larger from
Baroque to Romantic period to onwards; newer genres
have been created from Fugue to Symphony to
Expressionism. Due to technology evolving over the decades, new genres were born
to succeed their predecessor. According to Rickey Vincents book called Funk: The
Music, The People, And The Rhythm Of The One, with the creation of synthesizers
and keyboards, these machines can replicate the musical features of funk. This thus
create the typical pop music, and 21st century artists such as Lady Gaga and Maroon
5 use these machines to create their songs, and later on, electronic dance music
has been created as well.
Visual arts have also been revolutionized with the continuous evolvement of
technology, such as photography in the digital art, the invention in color spectrum,
etc.. This thus created changes in art such as computer-manipulated photography.
Technology brings many benefits to art, making it easier in the future than in the
past. For example, props in drama play. In the past, artists have to manufacture
masks and clothing with the correct pigment and measurement by hand. With
technology, machinery exists, which will minimize time consumption on making the
props with the demanded quantity. Moreover, art can be used with science and
technology on modern architecture. With technology redirecting art, a new type of
art called graphics design has been increased reliance, and thus open new career
opportunities such as film making, video games development, and advertising.
To conclude, there are remarkable turning points in direction of the development of
art itself. Technology has become a huge impact on the world, and creativity, as it
opens to a whole new perspective. However, the huge reliance on technology
creates the loss of the art in the past, which defines the origins of legendary artists
creativity, so we need to be reminded of what we learnt from the previous artists as
well.