I heard an interesting talk this morning on the radio. It was about why people buy things. People always always always buy because they like the way they feel about the thing they are buying. It is not a logical response. It is 100 percent emotional.
You may think you are buying something because it is a smart buy but you are not. It makes you feel something. You might feel smart, pretty, clever, thrifty, ahead of the curve, wise. or any number of things.
You buy into a belief system that you can relate to.
People showed up to hear Martin Luther King give the “I have a dream speech” not because they heard about it on the radio or television or internet(not invented yet)
The showed up not because they thought Martin Luther King was a great guy. NO they showed up because they felt good about the message and wanted to be a part of that message. They related to it on a gut level.
So what you believe is so important because that is the only thing anyone can hook on to and go with. They don’t care otherwise. Everyone wants to be a part of something bigger than themselves.
I think that is why abstract expressionism took off like it did. Everyone wanted to be the smartest person in the room. They wanted to be sophisticated and get it. It was the newest thing and that is what they wanted.
This idea works on all levels and is very interesting to ponder.