Since the early days of humanity, when we were hunting for food to avoid starvation and struggling to survive in general, some took the time to carve and paint simple pictures of animals and people on the walls of caves. These were some of the earliest examples of art by our species. Why, when humans had many other things to worry about, did they decide to spend time and precious resources putting an image on a cave wall?
Art has always been a part of humanity and yet there are some who see art as frivolous and unimportant. When you tell some people that you're a painter, an aspiring actor, or a comic book artist they usually tell you to get a "real job" and to stop wasting your time. To many art is not seen as a profession worth of respect and has to struggle to maintain it's own existence.
Everywhere there are politicians who can't wait to cut government spending on art and public television because, to them, it serves no physical purpose. They see construction and factory work as "real jobs" because they create things that are "necessary" like housing, clothes, and food. While those things are often more important, they should hopefully not come at eliminating art.
Despite what people tell you, art does serve a purpose to humanity. While it doesn't serve a physical purpose like manufacturing and construction do, it does serve an abstract and emotional purpose. Art is precious to us because it's a concept that's uniquely human. Humans are the only creatures, that we know of, that can draw images and interpret meaning and emotion from those images.
When a person watches a movie like "Up" they are basically watching a the flickering light of a rectangle and a bunch of 1s and 0s from a computer. However, it's the images, scenes, and characters that a human artist creates through acting, animating, and composing that stick with us on an emotional level. When people cry while watching "that scene" in "Up" (you know which one I'm talking about) they are expressing feelings and emotions for things that don't really exist, but almost feel like they do.
Art is a part of the human experience. It's how we express emotions and abstract concepts that only we, as a species, can understand, like the Statue of Liberty that embodies the abstract ideas, such as freedom and justice, that represent America (or at least should). Art allows us to express a variety of human cultures thru the patterns and styles unique to each culture, and express the importance and meaning within that culture.
Art allows us to escape into fantasy and tell great stories with lovable heroes. It creates a fun and enjoyable world that gives people the opportunity to briefly escape from the harsh reality of their daily lives. That's why cavemen drew pictures on those caves, to convey a story and briefly enjoy themselves in a life full of danger and death.
While art lacks the importance of food and clothes, it still has importance. A world without art is a very dull and miserable world. We would be surviving yes, but without art and entertainment to derive emotional meaning from are we really living a "human" life? What would drive you to go on living? Art gives humans the means to express our emotions and ideas in a way that makes life fun and interesting. Art, in a way, makes life worth living. Food is essential for survival, but art is essential for living a worth-wild life.
