A fascinating commentary, “Beauty and the Best,” by Theodore Dalrymple.

I’m sure many (not just artists) will take offense to the following, but I really thought Dalrymple nailed our times:

The successful modern artist’s subject is himself, not in any genuinely self-examining way that would tell us something about the human condition, but as an ego to distinguish himself from other egos, as distinctly and noisily as he can. Like Oscar Wilde at the New York customs, he has nothing to declare but his genius: which, if he is lucky, will lead to fame and fortune. Of all the artistic disciplines nowadays, self-advertisement is by far the most important.

Seems too many have forgotten, “The empty vessel makes the greatest sound.”