Economics of Aesthetics
 Rasa, (“essence,” “taste,” or “flavour,” literally, “sap” or “juice”)
in Sanskrit Literature means, the concept of aesthetic flavour, or an
essential element of any work of art that can only be suggested, not
described. It is a kind of contemplative abstraction in which the
inwardness of human feelings suffuses the surrounding world of embodied
forms. (Encyclopedia Britannica)
The creation and the appreciation of the Arts, Aesthetics or Rasa, is
moving beyond the reach of man, in the face of economic realities of the
modern world, leaving behind a sense of frustration and anger in the
mind of Homo aestheticus.
The Colombo International Book Fair held from Sep. 17th to 25th at
the BMICH, reminds us of this sad situation. This year, the over one
million visitors created a new record for CIBF, with the number of book
stalls has passing the 400 mark. We can be proud of this, as the Mega
cultural event of the year, and yet we have to be ashamed of our own
humanity, drowned in a commercial rat race.
We find visitors thirsty for knowledge, or eager to sooth their
insatiable urge for reading, or with the desire to provide all the books
their children need. Through the happiness on their faces at seeing all
the books, the pain and frustration emerge, because they cannot afford
all the books that they need or would like to read. One major problem
faced by readers is that they have to select only a limited number of
books, within their affordable budget.
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Admirers browsing the books. Picture
by Nissanka Wijerathne |
Across the 450 book stalls there would have been a few million books.
The number of published books keep on increasing and the problem is
picking the grain from the chaff, chaff which consists of unprofessional
translations, (there are more translations into Sinhala than Sinhala
original works), books written with the sole aim of earning a quick
profit, books which can be considered only as FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer
Goods), to be glanced through and thrown away.
The other frustrated group are the writers. Published authors who
cannot afford to promote their books. They cannot afford the so-called
‘book launches’ in our country, because the cost could exceed the
royalty payment he would receive, and because they do not have the right
influence and the right contacts to get media publicity, or to get rave
reviews. The others are the unpublished authors, because they do not
have contacts with the publishers, and even if their manuscripts are
accepted, these manuscripts could lie in a corner gathering dust for
several years, because there will always be ‘recognized’ writers who get
priority. These writers cannot afford to self-publish, and even if they
do, they cannot find a distributor who would make payments without undue
delay.
The book fair is the most glaring example, where we see how economics
affect aesthetics. Another pathetic example is the Farce that is called
the Galle Literary Festival, which is beyond the means of most Sri
Lankan readers. Even those who attend this, with what they have to spend
at the GLF, they could buy enough books at the Colombo Book Fair for
reading for a whole year. That is if they attend the GLF mistaking it
for a Literary event.
Economics affect other fields of creativity too. We find artists
having to display their paintings under the sun and rain, on the fence
of the Viharamahadevi park, because they cannot afford to hold an
exhibition in a gallery, even though the Art Gallery is just across the
road. If the artist could afford to rent a gallery and pay for the
promotion then he would have to price his works far beyond what most
people could afford to pay.
We also find lyricists who are ignored by the ‘popular’ singers. The
unknown singers would never get an opportunity through the electronic
media, unless it is through the ‘reality shows’, and then they have to
buy the votes. If they produce a CD of their own, they can’t find a
distributor, and sometimes as a way of promoting their songs, they have
to pay the private bus drivers to play the CD in their buses.
Play-writers are in a worse situation. For our talented youth,
writing a good play could be the easiest of the tasks. Their real
challenges are in finding a cast who could attend rehearsals regularly,
without expecting any monetary benefits, find a place to have the
rehearsals, and then selling the tickets, if they succeed in producing
their play. Sometimes even for drama festivals, the dramatist has to
stage the play at his own cost.
If a dramatist could afford to produce the play, or find an investor
to promote the play, then he has to price his tickets far beyond what
the real theatre lovers could afford.
The only opportunity today for our traditional dancer is in a temple
procession, a wedding or state function, where it becomes just a
mechanical performance. The other opportunity is to sell his talent to
the tourist industry and perform his dance to cater to the needs of the
tourist.
The filmmaker is in a still worse position. He has to find an
investor to produce the film, and he will have to dance to the tune of
the investor, who only wants to earn a good profit out of it.
Often aesthetics is not a word in the vocabulary of the businessman
who funds the cultural projects.
If fertilizer could be subsidized because it nourishes the food
crops, shouldn’t books be subsidized because they nourish the minds of
our young generation? Shouldn’t at least a small portion of filthy lucre
earned by way of taxing alcohol and tobacco be used to support the arts,
to appease the hunger of man the aesthete? Shouldn’t the banks and
credit card companies offer easy payment terms for book lovers, and
credit facilities for aspiring dramatists?
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