Free Essay About Cynthia Freeland, But Is It Art?

In Cynthia Vreeland’s essay “Blood and Beauty” in her book What is Art?, the central question motivating her to write is “Why has blood been used in so much art?” (1). The author’s answer to that is a mixture of things, tying blood with its own aesthetic beauty, its connection to life, its associations with both good and evil, and the transition from childhood to adulthood, offering “a host of expressive and symbolic associations” that can arise from this simple symbol (1). Vreeland’s explanations are detailed and valid, linking blood to ritual as it is given “symbolic significance through incorporation into a shared belief system” (1). Vreeland runs down the way blood has been used in a variety of cultures throughout history, from the Judeo-Christian reference of the blood of Christ to the historical practice of sacrificing animals’ blood in many different cultures, from the Romans to the Mayans. In this case, art throughout the centuries, from historical paintings to the shock value of modern art, is demonstrated to have deep roots in the collective unconscious.
One potential issue I would take with Vreeland’s point of view is her first doubt about the theory of art as communal ritual and its inability to apply to contemporary art. I would ask more about what exactly makes this different from other instances of communal ritual, as Vreeland seems to take an arbitrary negative stance of the art-gallery setting as opposed to tribal gatherings. To me, the distinction seems a bit elementary and rooted in anti-bourgeois snobbery, so I would like more clarification.