3 ms·
> So more "branding" than meme. Agreed, but it's worth examining how branding is itself memetic. Why is Rembrandt associated with value? Because of a perpetuat
by kibwen 3y ago
> So more "branding" than meme.
Agreed, but it's worth examining how branding is itself memetic. Why is Rembrandt associated with value? Because of a perpetuating idea that Rembrandt was highly skilled, and thus his paintings are higher quality. But why do we say that Rembrandt was highly skilled? Because of a perpetuating idea that tells us what skill at classical painting should look like, and then a perpetuating idea that tells us that Rembrandt was an exemplar of that artificially-defined category.
- cubefox 3y agoIt seems more likely that Rembrandt defied some of the standard art style at the time and is remembered for his innovation. For example, his paintings look quite realistic but tend to exhibit unusually dramatic lighting. Perhaps nobody did that before him, or not with the same quality, or only in a small number of artworks.