--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Art serves to confront that which is…" description: "\"“Art serves to confront that which is outside order, to give form to the obscene. In the process, it opens it to transformations that can not only make..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/841/jennifer-birkett-44120_art_art-serves-to-confront-that-which-is-out_1211335.jpg" --- # Art serves to confront that which is outside order, to… ![“Art serves to confront that which is outside order, to give form to the obscene. In the process, it opens it to transformations that can not only make it safe for public consumption, not a powerful vehicle through which to address the public imagination.” quote by Jennifer Birkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/841/jennifer-birkett-44120_art_art-serves-to-confront-that-which-is-out_1211335.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/841/jennifer-birkett-44120_art_art-serves-to-confront-that-which-is-out_1211335.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/841/jennifer-birkett-44120_art_art-serves-to-confront-that-which-is-out_1211335.jpg) > ““Art serves to confront that which is outside order, to give form to the obscene. In the process, it opens it to transformations that can not only make it safe for public consumption, not a powerful vehicle through which to address the public imagination.”” [Jennifer Birkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-birkett/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art challenges disorder, shapes the taboo, and becomes a catalyst for societal imagination. **In simple terms:** Art confronts chaos and reshapes taboo. Key Takeaway Use art to provoke thought and inspire change. Themes art society transformation Mood provocative inspirational Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - gallery exhibitions - political protest - media campaigns Key Concepts censorship creativity public discourse Questions to Reflect On - How can art balance provocation and accessibility? - What responsibilities do artists have to the public? A Different Perspective Art may be censored or misunderstood. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art Serves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-serves-3672776/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Consumption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consumption/) [Form Obscene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form-obscene-3672775/) [Obscene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obscene/) [Obscene Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obscene-process-3672774/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Public Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-imagination-2473768/) ## Related quotes > [Art for the most part, is about concentration, solitude and determination. It's really not about other people's needs and assumptions. I'm not interested in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-serra/art-for-the-most-part-is-about-concentration-solitude-and/) [Richard Serra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-serra/) > [Art that serves an artist best is an experiment in expanding awareness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-london/art-that-serves-an-artist-best-is-an-experiment-in-expanding-awareness/) [Peter London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-london/) > [Art in its highest form is art that serves and instructs society and human development.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-belafonte/art-in-its-highest-form-is-art-that-serves-and-instructs-society-and/) [Harry Belafonte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-belafonte/) > [Whether as victim, demon, or hero, the industrial worker of the past century filled the public imagination in books, movies, news stories, and even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/whether-as-victim-demon-or-hero-the-industrial-worker-of-the-past/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [None of us can predict when the causes we support will capture the public imagination, and our once-lonely quests become popular crusades.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-rogat-loeb/none-of-us-can-predict-when-the-causes-we-support-will-capture-the/) [Paul Rogat Loeb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-rogat-loeb/) > [I hope to capture the public's imagination, but I can't live in the anxiety of that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-mcdonald/i-hope-to-capture-the-public-s-imagination-but-i-can-t-live-in-the/) [Michael McDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-mcdonald/) > [In terms of being typecast, if you do something like Father Ted that infiltrates the public's imagination to the extent that it did, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/in-terms-of-being-typecast-if-you-do-something-like-father-ted-that/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Clearly, some creative thinking is badly needed if humans are to have a future beyond Earth. Returning to the Moon may be worthy and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-davies/clearly-some-creative-thinking-is-badly-needed-if-humans-are-to-have/) [Paul Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-davies/) > [We are not just scientists, but human beings as well. Like most people we’d like to see the world a better place, which in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-schneider/we-are-not-just-scientists-but-human-beings-as-well-like-most-people/) [Stephen Schneider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-schneider/) > [Ocean plastic in particular has captured the public imagination, and seems to be a jumping-off point for several companies developing plastic alternatives, both in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-schlossberg/ocean-plastic-in-particular-has-captured-the-public-imagination-and/) [Tatiana Schlossberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tatiana-schlossberg/) > [Not everything you hear about yourself can be considered good publicity. And if you have delicate sensibilities, the currycomb of public imagination frequently rubs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corra-may-harris/not-everything-you-hear-about-yourself-can-be-considered-good/) [Corra May Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corra-may-harris/) > [The main hangup in the world today is hypocrisy and insecurity. If people can't face up to the fact of other people being naked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/the-main-hangup-in-the-world-today-is-hypocrisy-and-insecurity-if/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) > ['Nobody goes to jail.' This is the mantra of the financial-crisis era, one that saw virtually every major bank and financial company on Wall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-taibbi/nobody-goes-to-jail-this-is-the-mantra-of-the-financial-crisis-era/) [Matt Taibbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-taibbi/) > [The only thing that is obscene is censorship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-thing-that-is-obscene-is-censorship/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Women should be obscene and not heard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/women-should-be-obscene-and-not-heard/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) ## More by Jennifer Birkett > [“Here, in Lorrain's poisoned little jewel of a tale (“The Man Who Made Wax Heads”) the consummate achievement of decadent art is caught in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-birkett/here-in-lorrain-s-poisoned-little-jewel-of-a-tale-the-man-who-made/) [Jennifer Birkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-birkett/) > [“In this image (watching sensual murder through a peephole) Lorrain embodies the criminal delight of decadent art. The watcher who records the crimes (both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-birkett/in-this-image-watching-sensual-murder-through-a-peephole-lorrain/) [Jennifer Birkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-birkett/) > [“Hidden away behind the closed doors of aristocratic and bourgeois privilege, concealed under those ultra-respectable masks of black frock coat and veil, the green…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-birkett/hidden-away-behind-the-closed-doors-of-aristocratic-and-bourgeois/) [Jennifer Birkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-birkett/) > [“The decadent artist markets other people's pain”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-birkett/the-decadent-artist-markets-other-people-s-pain/) [Jennifer Birkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-birkett/) > [“Art makes murder into the supreme image of Beauty and in doing so sets free the vengeful God. (referring to Jean Lorrain's LE VICE…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-birkett/art-makes-murder-into-the-supreme-image-of-beauty-and-in-doing-so/) [Jennifer Birkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-birkett/) > [“At issue for Peladan is the potency of the visual image: art's ability to construct images for viewing that can mobilize, concentrate and redirect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-birkett/at-issue-for-peladan-is-the-potency-of-the-visual-image-art-s-ability/) [Jennifer Birkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-birkett/) > [“Everyone in a decadent society, Lorrain urges, is guilty. Everyone loves masking murder and everyone takes masochistic pleasure in the risk of discovery and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-birkett/everyone-in-a-decadent-society-lorrain-urges-is-guilty-everyone-loves/) [Jennifer Birkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-birkett/) > [“The mask of art is the means through which corruption is spread. The mask makes vice seem beautiful, turns squalor and nastiness into glamorous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-birkett/the-mask-of-art-is-the-means-through-which-corruption-is-spread-the/) [Jennifer Birkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-birkett/) [Explore all 9 Jennifer Birkett quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-birkett/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Art serves to confront that which is outside order, to give form to the obscene. 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