is there objective criteria that justifies why valuable art is valuable or is such art just valuable because the art world decides it is?

Question

is there objective criteria that justifies why valuable art is valuable or is such art just valuable because the art world decides it is?

In: 8

Answer 1

Objective means a fact that is independent of what people think. The value of art is absolutely based on what people think of it, so it can’t really be objective.

But there’s another word people don’t use as much “intersubjective”. When we say something is subjective, a lot of people think of it as arbitrary. But with intersubjectivity, we understand evaluations shared between minds.

So while art doesn’t have a singular objective value, there are intersubjective evaluations that are going to be shared widely within communities of people who buy art and who enjoy art.

Here are a few of the top intersubjective values that tend to factor into art values

1) A piece of art is (generally) a physical object. We can start with a formal analysis. When I say formal, I don’t mean you wear a tuxedo. In art evaluation “formal” means we’re talking about the form of the thing., The physical qualities. Is it big or small? Oil paint, cast bronze, silk tapestry? Is it damaged or whole?

All other things being equal, a whole large work made of expensive materials will be valued more than a small fragment of cheap material piece unless some other difference trumps the formal factors.

2) A piece of art is a piece of history. A baseball signed by Babe Ruth or a desk used by George Washington are valued more than a modern desk or new baseball that otherwise look the same. In the same way, a painting by someone who became famous and innovated the art form or a sculpture that was the first of it’s kind and set a new standard will be valued more than if an unknown artist made an identical object. People like to rag on art for attaching value to who made something, but art is not unique in this. Watch antiques roadshow.

3) Rarity. This is simple. All markets respond to supply levels. If an artist made a print edition of 5000 copies it would likely be worth less than the same print if only 5 were made (As always, all things being equal). And again this isn’t unique to art. The fewer of most things of value, the more the price goes up.

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