Devin McGinnis: Narcissism in Art

"Part of the reason people aren’t building cathedrals anymore is that we are too lazy and spoiled for the pain and the work they demand from us. This sort of laziness leads to an artistic narcissism that creates art as a mere emotional expression of the ego rather than an intentional and profound re-ordering or re-imagining of the world. Art schools and galleries start filling up with self-indulgent narcissists who think that every fart of theirs is a work of genius because “it came from deep inside me.”
Entitlement is not a friend of art. Work is. Pain is."    -- Michael Gungor


Michael Gungor said this in his book The Crowd The Critic and The Muse.  Narcissism takes away from the art.  When the art becomes a means to an end, it stops becoming art and become trite garbage. When artists begin to use their work as a means to gain popularity or to make money, they are putting the goal above the art and because of this the art suffers.  Too many times we see musicians that are in the industry for the money or the fame.  This is made apparent in their work, in what they sing about, in their stage presence.  From the stage one can clearly tell the difference between an artist that is inviting you to share a cathartic experience with them from the artist that is on stage to make money.