It is thought by many that the money which the government is spending on arts is not very useful and the government should allocate its funds to the betterment of other sectors. I’m afraid I have to disagree with this view. I believe that arts are worth every penny that is spent on them since art is as important as any other field and should receive government support.
There are several reasons why the government should spend money on the arts. One of the dominant reasons is that art reflects the culture of a country and promotes people’s understanding of their culture and architecture. Art is part of a culture that becomes the identity of a nation, and if the culture is strong enough, eventually, it could be a significant source of income. Because of such artists like Charles Aznavour, Martiros Saryan, Ivan Aivazovsky, and others, people worldwide know about Armenia and Armenian culture. Besides, allocating money to the development and sustenance of arts helps boost the economy. Art galleries, theatres of opera and ballet can attract tourists from all over the world, generating revenue in return. Furthermore, art makes a life worth living, and it is like food for our souls. Art is a therapy and helps people to get over their stress.
However, there are some justifications by people who become opponents of spending on the arts. First of all, most art projects are expensive, with no apparent outcomes that directly affect the income of a nation. Some countries face serious problems, for example, hunger, poverty, unemployment, and spiritual food cannot feed hungry people. The money that is invested in art projects could be used to make factories and create job opportunities, which will give a decent income to people. Another reason why so many people think that investing money in art is unnecessary is that there are more important aspects such as science. We live in the era of technologies, and the technological development level shows how much is the country developed, so spending money on scientific discoveries would help the countries to walk in tandem with global development.
Hence, it is clear that spending on arts is beneficial both for an individual and society.
It is for this reason that the government should allocate funds to the promotion of arts while not forgetting about the importance of providing its nation with basic necessities.