Will Bassing - Plato and Art

In the first chapter of The Nature of Art, Plato discusses his view that art is imitation.  He has this view that there is a world of “forms,” which is a realm of perfection.  In this realm is the Truth of everything.  Everything that is in the physical world, according to Plato, is an imitation of the forms.  He explains that all forms of art are imitations that appeal to the bad parts of our soul.  Instead of paying attention to art, we should achieve knowledge of the world of the forms through contemplation and deeper intellectual thought.  I think this is an extremely controversial and radical view of art.  He claims that all forms of art are bad, and that they are distractions.  Art is a great way of expression for the artist and is also a great way of inspiring intellectual thought for the viewer.  I wonder what famous artists such as Van Gogh, Picasso, Da Vinci and Michelangleo would say to Plato.  Plato fascinates me because he had such extreme theories that are still relevant and considered controversial today, and he wrote them thousands of years ago.