Dictionary.com gives this definition, which I think is as good as any: “the quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance.” Still, this leaves open what art isn’t. Different people have different aesthetic preferences. What offends one person might seem beautiful to another. We might even think that the artist (or perpetrator) is just pulling our leg for the perverse fun of it.

The vagueness of what art is derives from its very subjectivity. What is captured in art? Human emotion and meaning. In what form is it captured? In a virtually limitless array of ways, from dazzling colours splattered on a canvas to bold scultures to sounds from a guitar. Who gets to be an artist? Anyone, from schoolchildren to grown schizophrenics. What makes a good artist? The consent of high-brow society, the admiration of communities, the originality and even risks run while producing the art. How much is art worth? In a sense, it’s priceless, because it expresses that which cannot be quantified in monetary terms. But certainly the work of a “great” artist (whatever that means) can sometimes fetch millions of dollars.

Is art opposed to science? Not really. Art and science try to capture different domains of human existence. Art is concerned with questions of meaning and emotion, of the anguish of living in an indifferent universe and our eventual return to nothingness. Science is concerned with describing processes and physical interactions in the world, of breaking phenomena down into components that can be understood and measured. Art is not about measuring, it is about sharing feelings and perceptions. But science and art can converge, and they do have something useful and important to say to one another. Science exposes us to many beautiful and elegant truths about the universe and ourselves, and these can be expressed artistically. The human sense that is stimulated and enthralled by beautiful art is likely to be the same sense that is excited and awed by the transcendental realities of the cosmos and of biological evolution. Science can also help explain why we have an artistic instinct in the first place, by placing our cognitive biases and predispositions in an evolutionary framework.

Art is not “wrong”, for it is not actively trying to answer anything. It may be inspired by metaphysical positions taken by the artist, like religious passions and beliefs, or political positions, or a love for rationality and inquiry, or love for a person or community, or hatred for any of these things, but it is an expression, not an answer per se.

Should art ever be censored? I would argue that it shouldn’t be. If we are allowed to express in speech and in print views that are repugnant to many of our contemporaries, and have agreed to live in civility with one another in spite of this, then I see nothing about art that stands out as signifying the righteousness of censorship when offence does take place. To censor art is to act out a totalitarian impulse: “You can express whatever feelings you like, so long as they don’t fall outside of what I find intolerable.”

Someone who claims they are not good at art is saying that they have not yet acquired the dexterity to manipulate something, like a paintbrush or the keys on a piano. But they might really mean, whether they know it or not, that they have not yet tried the multiple avenues open to producing other forms of art. If you’re “bad” at painting, try poetry. If you’re not a good writer, try drawing, or building a sculpture. The beauty of art is that it doesn’t come in one flavour or mode, and many different types of art will surely be invented in the future, some making use of advances in technology. Indeed, technology itself can also be molded into art; a Ferrari, for example, is an exquisitely engineered machine with cutting edge technical features, but according to those who have driven one, it also provides an emotive experience in the realm of sounds and sensations. Certainly is it also an aesthetically pleasing thing to behold.

Art can flourish in conditions of misery or conditions of plenty. It can reveal the anguish of an oppressed people, or the decadence of a ruling class. It can be a status symbol for the rich, or a means of expression for the poor.

So don’t be afraid to try it. It’s open to everyone, there are endless ways of doing it, and it can be used to express whatever you’re feeling (or your confusion as to what you’re feeling). It doesn’t need to be fun, but fun helps.