IELTS Academic Essay 19th Sept 2020

ESSAY NUMBER 398 FROM OUR BOOK

Museums and art galleries should concentrate on local works, not showing the cultures or artworks from other countries. To what extent do you agree?

Today many local artists and painters are not finding patrons and the recognition they deserve. In this context, it is considered that museums and art galleries should focus only on indigenous art and culture instead of foreign art. While I do feel local artists need support, I cannot agree that museums should restrict themselves to just local artwork.

The main reason why local art and painting needs more stimulus is that it is very hard for local artists to compete with global artists, who have already established their names and have a huge following. Moreover, art is a field, which is not very lucrative unless the artist is famous. Many artists with incredible talent are forced to leave their passions and dreams just because of financial reasons.

However, I believe that museums only showcasing local culture would be much more detrimental. If museums and art galleries were only limited to local artwork then local people would lose a reason to visit such places. Local people get a chance to know about foreign cultures, history, and foreign artwork by visiting museums and art galleries, which promote global artwork.

My second argument for promoting global art is that if there were not enough local art, museums might be forced to also show some lackluster work, which might fail to attract visitors. Finally, the fears about local artists not finding platforms can be addressed in other ways, as in my opinion if the art is good, it would definitely find patronage and recognition. Rather than forcing museums to showcase only indigenous artwork, governments can organize special competitions and have awards for new and upcoming artists with special skill and talent.

In conclusion, although I do agree that there is a need to support new and upcoming local artists,I also believe that museums and artwork should showcase all art, local as well as global.