Sophisticated Taste or Snobbery
Marjorie 's response to my "the Namesake" post brought up a discussion I have had time and time again. Does having "sophisticated" taste mean you can't accept something that doesn't match your standard of taste. I used to have a similar discussion with a friend who was now has a Ph.D. in Art History. She believed that not all art is meant to be enjoyed by all people. I think this is absolute bullshit or maybe it's just too Euro, where there is "high art" and everything else, for who I am or something. Culturally, I come from a tradition of functional art...you creatively make things that are useful and therefore understandable...you own a table but that table has flourishes and cuts and designs and symmetry that make it aesthetically appealing. On the other hand, I spent a lot of time as a musical snob. Then I grew up. While I was in my blues and jazz periods no one could tell me what was good because I knew. I knew that deep in my being I...