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The LOOPcast
Why Is Modern Art So Ugly?! | The Deep
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Watch the short film "In the Space Between Ages" on Zeale: https://zeale.co/video/in-the-space-between-ages
After Notre Dame unveiled its new, modernist stained-glass windows and reignited an old debate, Erika sat down with sculptor Dony MacManus to ask why modern art is so ugly – and what sacred beauty still demands of us. A bracing conversation on art, suffering, freedom, and faith.
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro: Why is modern art so ugly?
1:45 - Sculpting a monument for the U.S. Navy
3:25 - Becoming an artist, turning towards the light
6:24 - Creativity and freedom is found within constraints
9:39 - Drawing is contemplating reality visually
12:50 - How smartphones kill creativity
14:32 - AI art = anti incarnational
15:07 - Art history: how did we get to modern art that’s so ugly?
18:54 - Ugly art comes from ugly thought (truth leads to beauty)
23:31 - Why are we not allowed to criticize modern art?
28:00 - Western tradition created beautiful art because it was centered on Jesus Christ (the mass)
30:38 - Childlike delight in God’s creation
37:28 - Conclusion: watch the film on Zeale!
Links:
Short film “In the Space Between Ages”: https://zeale.co/video/in-the-space-between-ages
Dony’s show on Zeale.co: https://zeale.co/shows/clash-of-the-masters
Roger Scruton’s “Why Beauty Matters”: https://vimeo.com/549715999
Want more Deep? Check out our new home! https://zeale.co/podcasts/the-deep
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