Art and Society in the 1960s

Art and Society in the 1960s

Art is an extremely private experience which is meant to be shared with the public. Even we are not aware of its presence, it definitely reflects our life. It is a portrait of history - whether it is the history of the current moment or an event in the past or something of the imagination. Art has captured an event, clarifying its existence and representation to society. At the same time, arts are often an impulse for change, no matter if it is conveyed through music, painting, architecture, performance, entertainment and film. All those types of art can be intended to reveal certain type of phenomenon in the society, express feelings and emotions, and criticize in order to challenge old perspectives and offer different interpretations of familiar ideas. But, how can the social history affect the art and creativity of a certain period of that time? Could we consider that art makes the world a better place, or is it quite useless? A similar question - has art truly had any impacts upon the society? Has it fashioned or molded minds? Has it shaped opinions and altered how people feel or think? Is it practicable in or relevant to society and its individual’s daily lives?

In my point of view, as social history1 influences art and creativity, art does also influence and reflect the way society is in the real world. Art is definitely a mirror of society. Therefore, it can project the way people see their life, their values, their habits and customs as well as the political and economic issues of their country. Furthermore, art has the power to influence people’s mind, maybe at the beginning it shocks and causes a big impact on society. However, it can also influence the social behavior and change people’s attitudes, which can bring positive effects to the society. There are also some artists interested in the freedom to solve special problems of using their unique styles or techniques, by which the others to express their social and political views.

Britain, as well as the entire other parts of the world, endured an era of dramatic social changes in the 60s. Because the second world war and the one decade post-war period totally overwhelmed the globe into a free-will, multicultural, multilateral grid, people started to contemplate what was the meaning of real and what was the point of being existed. This revolutionary decade was described as the “Swinging Sixties”2. Young artists in England, by the influence of United States, made popular culture their subject matter. They started to appropriate images and objects such as common household items, advertisements from consumer products, celebrity icons, fast food, cartoons, and mass-media imagery from television, magazines, and newspapers. These artists also often used forms of mechanical reproduction that downplayed the idea of originality or the individual mark of the artist. The Pop Art