Art for Arts Sake

A study of John Ruskin and Oscar Wilde’s Views on Art In the late nineteenth century a movement known as â€Å"Art for Art’s Sake† occurred, which consists of the appreciation of art for what it truly is; just art. At that time many critics tried to find moral and intellectual meanings within works of art. Many artists united to defend art, two authors who defend the concept of art are John Ruskin and Oscar Wilde. In his work From The Stones of Venice, John Ruskin exults and admires gothic architecture because its gives the artist the freedom of creativity and self-expression. In his preface to The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde alike Ruskin defends the concept that art is â€Å"useless† and that it must be admired for what it is, which is just simply art. The following goes into more detail on the ideas Ruskin and Wilde have on art. In From the Stones of Venice [The Savageness of Gothic Architecture], John Ruskin presents his fondness for Gothic architecture because of the freedom it gives to man, he also points out that he finds southern Europe more appealing than Northern Europe because it is darker. In the following, Ruskin presents the system of architectural ornaments; in which he particularly prefers revolutionary ornaments because there is no difference between the architect and the workers and so they are all equal. The following passage presents each system: The systems of architectural ornament, properly so called, might be divided into three:1. Servile ornament, in which the execution or power of the inferior workman is entirely subjected to the intellect of the higher; 2. Constitutional ornament, in which the executive inferior power is, to a certain point, emancipated and independent, having a will of its own, yet confessing its inferiority and rendering obedience to higher powers; and 3. Revolutionary ornament, in which no executive inferiority is admitted at all. (Ruskin, 1326) John Ruskin goes on to elaborate his favoritism of imperfection. For Ruskin something that is perfect does not mean that is good and that the search for perfection is weakness and that passion for perfection will lead to the slavery of the mind. Ruskin believes that mental slavery is far worse than physical slavery; for Ruskin gothic ornaments such as gargoyles and goblins are signs of liberty and gives the worker a certain level of independence. Ruskin elaborates â€Å"accurately speaking, no good work whatever can be perfect and the demand for perfection is always a sign of a misunderstanding of the ends of art† (Ruskin, 1333). For him, imperfection is far more superior to the quest of perfection. In the eyes or Ruskin, art must be imperfect and it must be noble; he points out â€Å"A most important truth, that no architecture can be truly noble which is not imperfect† (Ruskin, 1333). His reasons for loving imperfection, is because nothing in nature or in life is perfect and so art must reflect that. John Ruskin ends his work by expressing his thoughts on art in the following passage â€Å"Accept this then, for a universal law, that neither architecture nor any other noble work of man can be good unless it be imperfect†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Ruskin, 1334). In Preface to The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde alike Ruskin defends art for what it is. Wilde commences by pointing or that â€Å"The artist is a creator of beautiful things†¦. Those who find ugly meanings in beautiful things are corrupt without being charming† (Wilde, 1697). Wilde embodies the â€Å"Art for Art sake† movement with this passage because he elaborates that artist create beautiful things for the enjoyment and that those who try to find a more intellectual meaning behind it are corrupt. Wilde goes on to defend imperfection just as John Ruskin, he presents his thoughts of morality and imperfection in the following â€Å" The moral life of man forms part of the subject matter of the artist, but the morality of art consists in the perfect use of an imperfect medium†(Wilde, 1698). In this passage, Wilde points out that morality and art are two separate things and they both form a part of the life of the artist; there is no connection between art and moral. Oscar Wilde believes that the artificial is better than nature because unlike nature that changes and withers, art captures a moment and preserves it. For him, the form is only important and the content does not matter. The most important part of his work is at the very end in which Wilde elaborates the following â€Å"The only excuse for making a useless thing is that one admires it intensely. All art is quite useless† (Wilde, 1698). Oscar Wilde does not literally mean that art is useless but rather that art is made for admiration and so it must be enjoyed for what it is and not be used to find a deeper meaning. John Ruskin and Oscar Wilde embody the â€Å"Art for Art’s sake† movement because they enjoy art for what it is, which is simply art. They both rejected the concept that art has to be studied because it holds a deeper moral lesson. For them, true beauty lies in the imperfection, because in life nothing is truly perfect. Wilde and Ruskin believe that art is a form of liberation and freedom; for them art is created to be admired and enjoyed.