Phil Chan on Art, Civilization & Empathy

"It is no accident that all civilizations possess art. This is so because art is not simply a by-product of civilization; art is its necessary precondition. Without art mankind would less likely have developed the capacity for empathy, and without the capacity for empathy, individual lives would remain brutish. A collection of brutes cannot possibly come together to lay the groundwork for a civil society." In a time when civil society has entered a period of profound uncertainty, Phil Chan's words in this piece emphasize the imperatives of art.

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