Arts & International Affairs: Volume 2, Number 2 | Page 16

Theme �:
Highs and Lows
High and low refers to the difference between traditional art, like classical music or
‘national’ art forms, and commercialized art such as television series. Terms such as
highbrow and lowbrow culture are used to distinguish taste in art and participation
in such activities. It is important to recognize how various art forms fit into each
category, but also how they interact or are excluded from one another in cultural
programming and writing.
Highs and lows can equally stand for exclusion and inclusion of any sort – for
example, social, political, sexual – in and through art. In other words, what sorts
of arts and cultural artefacts obtain high versus low standing, and what are the
connections between these highs and lows and society?
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