As a people, we have a tendency to ignore the old in favor of the new. In many ways, this helps us to drive progress and let us reach new heights. On the other hand, one of the main reasons we’re as advanced as we are today is our capacity to learn from the old. Though we often regard this evolution in terms of technology, our continual path of artistic expression is just as important. Preservation is about infinitely more than just novelty, and we want to explore why, and in what forms this pursuit can take.

Why Preserve Art?
Creating ways to preserve art is neither easy nor cheap. Each museum or storage facility requires investments of millions, and that’s just for the building itself. When factoring in staff costs, security, and fire suppression systems, expenses can easily balloon to the point where government subsidies become a necessity to keep preservation efforts afloat. Yet, all but the most austere of governments still see these as valued efforts, so why is that?

While there are myriad reasons our society puts so much emphasis on artistic preservation, the answers fundamentally center on the way art reflects where we've been, and what it implies about where we're going. Though we might be tempted to look at a painting and just see a picture, this does the true depth of art a disservice.


Source: Pixabay

Art isn't just about being pretty, in fact, it's often not pretty at all. It can be about encouraging introspection and recognizing something within ourselves. It can be about contextualizing specific events, to relay the importance or hope that the artist sees in their subject. It can be about pushing boundaries and challenging the prevailing views of society in a way that makes us ecstatic or uncomfortable. Art is, in its entirety, about broadening our viewpoints by giving us snapshots about who we are and were as a society.

South Africa’s Approach
South Africa is no stranger to the artistic landscape, as home to many nationally and internationally recognizable talents. Like many countries, however, it also struggles with maintaining governmental interest in the arts. Perhaps most illustrative of this push and pull are the developments in the Western Cape, which have cut back funding for museums by as much as 75% in the last few decades. Likely reflecting the realities of global financial crises, recent economic recovery has again contributed to a resurgence of interest.

According to new data from the South African Treasury, annual budgets for culture and the arts have expanded continuously over the last few years. From a budget of 4,617 million R in 2019/2020, the 2021/2022 period is expected to see an investment of 5,160 million R. Aided by mandates from the Heraldry Act (1962), the National Heritage Resources Act (1999), and many more, protection for the moment seems ensured.

Best reflecting this interest in the South African arts are museums like the Zeitz MOCAA and the Pretoria Art Museum. Home to famous names like the Butcher Boys (1985), as discussed by Art Daily, Christ Head (1952), and The Green Lady (1952), South Africa's efforts offer profound insight into our nation's complicated history and the feelings that persist because of where we've been.

Evolving Forms of Art
Just as art itself evolves, so do does the list of expressions that we consider art. Though humans might traditionally believe more passive experiences encompass the majority of artistic enjoyment, the recent arrival of the digital landscape has challenged this preconception. Video games like Kentucky Route Zero have made the most widely acknowledged progress in this new realm, but they’re only a part of the new ecosystem.

Just as important for expression and preservation are newer electronic projects like the websites and games available on Casinos.za. On the surface, these services act as an entertainment enterprise, using bonuses and features like deposit matches, free spins, and themed casino games to open the doors to players. Beneath the surface, however, these websites also work as repositories for artistic expressions in the online age, saving the interactive creations of animators, designers, and digital artists. Leveraging advanced HTML backing, these systems are backward compatible with any newer browsers, effectively guaranteeing games a long-lasting place in the modern extended and electronic zeitgeist. To help curate the experience, sites like this help give guidance on other aspects like player safety, whilst ensuring these platforms are available across all mobile platforms meaning anyone can access them without issue.


Source: Pixabay

Preserving art has always been important, and in an age where we are developing more rapidly than ever, this truth has never been as relevant. Whether looking at the local efforts made by the South African government or more international projects in the electronic world, maintaining an eye on where we’ve been has proven too crucial to ignore. As for whether we’ll always maintain this view, that’s something we’re always going to have to fight for.