Is Art useless? If there seems to be no practical use of art, then why some of it is so expensive?

isnt it nice to see people value art by buying paintings for millions.when a chemical formula or scientific inventions can be brought for millions why not paintings? arts is definately not useless.May be arts has no practical use but it gives mental satisfaction.

Art is i wide spread field . It involves so many things. How can you say that it has no practical use. Now a days animated cartoons and movies are made . the people who create these characters are artists. you see beautiful sites on the net which are made by artists. when we built our house we want to have a huge painting hung behind our bed in the wall ,this has been made by an artist.The interior designers who design our house are artists. So art is required in every field. It is not useless.

Art need not have a specific use to be worth a lot of money, as it is in the eye of the market and its uniqueness that make it a valued item.

Its one of the good way of spending money if you have lots of it. Of late it has also become an investment item as returns are really good.

Art is useless to brutes.

Your question embeds two questions, very separate: 1) Is art useless? and 2) Why is a """great painting""" so expensive? As to the first one, I think it is not useless. But I can't prove it. I don't really think anyone else can either. There have been 1800 pg. series of books written positing the proposition that art is anything but useless. Just take it on faith, is what you must do. If you aren't inclined to do so, fine. But a lot of people disagree with you, just so you know. I think it is agreed that the creation and consumption of art is a universal human desire, as observed in primitive cultures, and the most """modern""" parts of the world. (Note, I said "desire" not need.) As to the second one, supply and demand control """worth""", but that is only a tiny part of the answer. A one of a kind painting will have very high ticket. That's common sense. What gets involved along the way is prestige, the statement about """good taste""" that conspicuous consumption makes. So corporations and billionaires get involved in the vying to own a Van Gogh or a Monet and the ceiling of the """worth""" rises to a truly unrealistic level. Is Van Gogh's Sunflowers worth $60M? That's not the question. --The question is, can Getty outbid Sony who may outbid Toyota who may outbid Bill Gates to own a famous painting? Those guys get to competing, and all bets are off. It gets pretty silly.

Paint is expensive? Very old, and very pretty.

Art is not useless, for its purpose lies not in practicality but in its ability to encourage expression and contemplation. Usually, anything related to the arts is expensive. Painting, writing, cooking, fashion design... I believe that art becomes expensive because of the talent behind the product. You pay for the uniqueness of the art, the talent of the artist and at most cases, the name of the artist.

Art is not useless. It offers the artist an means of expression. It offers the viewer many tangibles. Those who buy pieces of art are the ones who set the cost. It's a matter of supply and demand. My best friend loves to go to an art museum or to galleries to feed her soul. She needs beauty to improve her mental and emotional health. I love the fall and enjoy viewing and owning pictures of fall scenery which includes the changing colors of tree leaves. There are so many different ways of expressing oneself that satisfy a need others have. Art will never be useless. If you don't like to pay for it, then look at the objects on sites on the web, in galleries, and in museums.