huitième art

08:17 Nov 5, 2010 

I'm rather surprised there was so little input on this one.

07:49 Nov 5, 2010 

since "8e art" in my text was simply a "keyword" introducing a short article about an amateur photographer, I avoided the issue and left out a number, saying simply "Art form XX speaks of his love of photography ..."

17:52 Oct 25, 2010 

Your order makes sense. I agree with Woody about TV.

13:22 Oct 25, 2010 

Photography is sometimes put in the 6th (to make chronological sense as it was invented before cinema and just after Hegel wrote his original five). But I think it took time to develop into a modern "artform", whilst cinema is really THE modern artform of the early 20th century. In that sense, to me photography makes more sense in the 8th and cinema 7th, theatre 6th. Personally, I consider photography as a 'métier', like cooking and not an artform per se, tho both a photographer and a chef would argue against that and John Cassavetes would say love is an art. TV? I agree with Woody Allen "It's an appliance, not an artform".

11:19 Oct 25, 2010 

There seems to be a fairly solid concensus on photography before cinema in (for argument's sake) high-brow circles. Amongst those at the more - I'm going to risk stirring up a hornet's nest here - low-brow/popular end of the arts, it seems to be television or even video games, leaving out photography, at least according to the great Gogol. The arts have long been a favourite battle ground for the class war, and as photography has been so universally embraced, available to all levels of society, kicking it into the long grass seems an odd and ungrateful thing to do. Is this a rejection of "arty-farty" photography as elitist or what? As one of the "arty-farty-photo" crowd, my vote's firmly for photography. The French list is interestingly argued, but without photography, there would be no cinema or television and only the French would think of putting the bande dessinée. Cinema is worth of inclusion, but only if theatre is in there too.<p>I'm writing this quickly because my brioche dough is nearly risen, so please don't ask me to give 3 reasons and draw a map!<p>Maybe the real eighth art is that of diplomatic translation!<p>
Provocatively yours,
Alison