Entry 69: Make It New

Ezra Pound, one of the great modern poets, once said, “Make it new! Art is a joyous thing.” What do you think he meant by “new” art? Why does he emphasize the “joyous” quality of artistic creation? Why do you think that artists continuously break away from previous ways of doing things and traditional forms?

• When Ezra Pound says to "make art new", he is trying to convey the fact that people should be thinking of new ways to create art instead of copying or imitating the old ways of creating art. For example, people should stop following a certain pattern or format for art of literature. In art, people could try different shades of coloring, different themes, or different moods. In literature, people can try different themes, different moods, or even different point of views. For example, people could be writing in first person point of view, second person point of view, or third person point of view. Another way to vary it is whether the point of view is from that of a man, woman, child, or adult. The joyous quality of artistic quality is basically the ability of the visual or literary artist to create an art that is delightful and joyous, even though the topic or theme may be depressing. The joyous feeling still has a way to be expressed and conveyed. Art forms continuously break away from other art forms because artists want to be able to attract people's attention to their work, and sometimes when the work is too repetitive and predictive, then people wouldn't be attracted by it. Therefore, new art forms are created to attract people.