What Art Does

Legendary artist Brian Eno and writer/visual artist Bette Adriaanse present a major new work exploring the meaning and purpose of art.

Why do we need art?

What Art Does is an invitation to explore this vital question. It is a chance to understand how art is made by all of us. How it creates communities, opens our worlds, and can transform us.

Curious and playful, richly illustrated, full of ideas and life, it is an inspiring call to imagine a different future.

"A lifetime's worth of practical wisdom and reflection. The result is a kind of joyous manifesto." - David Shariatmadari, Guardian

"Growing up in the 1960s and 1970s I wasn't afraid of Art even though my family was poor and undereducated and knew nothing about it. I was excited and wanted to join in, even to be part of contemporary art-making. I lost that confidence along the way. Became scared of Art, felt excluded by it. Reading What Art Does, has helped me regain that confidence by reminding me we're all making art all the time. That Art is for us and by us." - Viv Albertine

"Idea-rich. . .as visually engaging as it is intellectually stimulating." - Kirkus

"A work of art. . .explains the role of art in individual wellbeing and bringing communities together in tumultuous times." - Daily Mirror

"Remarkable for its ability to render sophisticated and sometimes slippery ideas in clear, accessible language. . .The most powerful ideas here present art as conduit to community, as a way to be vulnerable, to surrender. . .This is a beautiful book." - Peter Murphy, Irish Times

Light but never lightweight. . .An upbeat audit of ideas about art's wider purpose and potential, mercifully free of scholarly didacticism or convolution." - David Shepherd, Mojo

Brian Eno is a British artist, musician and activist. He has made music and visual art for five decades as composer, producer, collaborator and individual artist. He is a founding member of EarthPercent, a trustee of Client Earth, and co-founder of HardArt.

Bette A. is a Dutch artist, novelist and art school teacher. Her previous books include Rus Like Everyone Else and What's Mine. She is co-founder of the Heroines! Movement.

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