Cover image: a collage of artwork photos from museums with Open Access/CC0 image policies.
During my time in art, I’ve noticed definite patterns in how people enjoy, value, and think about the subject. You could say that there are different types of art lovers. (Actually, that’s exactly what I’m saying.) Based entirely on my own experiences and observations of others, I’ve come up with eight different art lover personas, and you can see which one(s) you identify with most. You may very well associate with multiple types to varying degrees. I know that I’ve been almost every one of these art lovers at various times and in different situations.
Why care?
Beyond the fact that personality quizzes are always fun, why should you care? Each art lover type has its own strengths and weaknesses, but one thing I think all of them share is the desire to keep discovering art, artists, and art styles that make them feel excited, engaged, and fulfilled. To that end, a little introspection and added self awareness about how and why you love art can only ever benefit you, at least in my opinion. (That’s why I also advocate for discovering your artistic taste.) To that end, I’ve included some food for thought at the end of each entry. I hope it will help all art lover types gain new perspectives and think about art slightly differently than they did before.
So, which are lover type are you?
The Aesthete: seeks beauty in art
You love art for one simple reason – it brings beautiful to your life. Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but you don’t want to spend time with art that’s unpleasant to your eye, no matter how interesting or significant it might be. For you, art-viewing is first and foremost a visual experience, so an artwork’s aesthetics are more important than their meanings or histories. For this reason, you may struggle to connect with artworks and even entire styles that you don’t find visually appealing.
Food for thought: It might be tempting to avoid art that don’t fit your criteria of beauty, but don’t deny yourself the opportunity to appreciate new things by spending time only with your favorites.
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The Spiritualist: art connects you to something bigger
Looking at art can be a truly transformative experience for you. The right works of art connect you to something bigger and let you experience things on a deep level. Maybe you even turn to art to further your emotional and psychological well-being. It’s less the aesthetics or ideas you care about than how an artwork makes you feel, so you may return to your favorite artworks again and again. However, not just any art feels deep and meaningful enough to give you the transcendent experience you’re looking for.
Food for thought: Art is rarely meaningless, and some of the artworks with the most powerful messages require having someone point out their stories to you.
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The Historian: enjoys art as a window onto the past
You love art because it connects you to the past in a way that nothing else really can. Going to an art museum or entering an historic building is like stepping into a time machine for you. The past is a foreign country, as they say, and that’s why you love objects that have literally been there and can tell you all about it. You want to learn everything you can how an artwork fits into its historical era, but you can get so caught up in the context that you forget to really look at what’s in front of you. Art that seems divorced from history doesn’t feel worth your time and attention.
Food for thought: It’s very rare that art is completely unrelated to the past. While not all art can teach us about times gone by, that doesn’t mean it can’t teach us something worthwhile about the present and how people today relate to the past.
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The Modernist: loves the fresh and new
You crave art that feels fresh, innovative, and dynamic. You love to be surprised and excited by creative new approaches to art making, whether that’s in style, subject matter, medium, or something else. You feel particularly thrilled when you discover art that seems to capture something essential about modern life. On the other hand, tradition feels boring and stagnant to you, and art that seems too antiquated doesn’t really hold your interest,
Food for thought: What we see as new and different very often includes old ideas used in new ways that challenge our expectations. Plus, much that’s old was once new and innovative.
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The Activist: sees art as a vehicle for change
You believe that art has great power to create justice, chance, and social consciousness, and you prefer it to do exactly that. You admire artists who make big statements, shine light on important issues, and inspire people to take action. You value art for what it can do for society, not for how pleasing it is to look at. You look for art and artists with messages and values you consider important, and you have no patience for art that upholds the status quo.
Food for thought: Artists comment on and challenge the status quo in many ways, not just the obvious ones. Dig a little deeper before deciding an artwork doesn’t have anything bold to say.
An article you may enjoy
This is an off-site link, since I wrote this article for another website, but I think it’s perfect absolutely for the Activist. “Landscape Painters, National Parks, and the American West in Art“, published by DailyArt Magazine.
The Sociologist: finds human connection through art
For you, art is a window onto humanity. It connects you to others, helping you understand their stories and perspectives and literally letting you see the world through their eyes. You’re really aware of how art expresses individual and group creativity, identity, and psychology. You might even look to art to find truths about the human experience. The less that’s known about the artwork’s maker, subject, or context, the more you might struggle to connect to it.
Food for thought: Wanting to attribute deep human significance to everything is great, but it can also encourage you to read too much into things. Step back and try to see the big picture every once in a while.
An article you may enjoy
The Romantic: lives vicariously through art
Art is the ultimate fantasy, with the capacity to conjure all sorts of dramatic stories and situations. You love escaping your daily life through artworks that transport you and heighten your emotions. Like good books and movies, you look for art to take you on great journeys and let you experience things you never would in real life. By contrast, you’re not a fan of art that asks you to confront your own reality rather than visit someone else’s.
Food for thought: Some artworks take you to other worlds, but others can shine magical new light on the ordinary world we’re already living in.
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The Traditionalist: values the time honored
You love the classic and time honored, which you see as representing true standards of artistic excellence like proportion, harmony, and elegance. (Whether classic here means art of ancient Greece and Rome, the Old Masters, or something else is entirely up to you.) After all, these traditions have endured as long as they have for good reason. To you, innovation isn’t necessarily an admirable quality, and you don’t really see the merits of boundary-pushing, convention-breaking art. In fact, you often lack the patience to try to decipher it.
Food for thought: Very few artworks are completely divorced from what came before them. After all, even breaking convention means engaging with it on some level.
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Feel free to comment on this post or tag me on Instagram (@ascholarlyskaterart) and tell me which art lover you are!
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