What’s the Difference Between Art and Advertising?

We know Warhol asked (and answered) this question, as did the Pictures Generation. It’s not to say that these two discourse haven’t influenced (and continue to influence) each other. We personally think that art shouldn’t be a corporation’s prostitute (although a good argument could be made that some contemporary artists and artworks serve this function quite well).

Our friend and law professor, Megan Carpenter, tackles this question via Playboy’s Marfa project.

“What is art?” is most often an academic question, debated best either late at night over a glass of wine, or at scholarly conferences.  In the west Texas town of Marfa, however, it has a very practical impact.

What do you think: smart, manipulative, artistic, or all of the above?

Tags: advertising, Art Law, land use, licensing, marfa, permits, Playboy project, sculpture, texas, zoning