There is no commission out there that declares which objects are and aren’t considered works of art. There is no panel of intellectuals or individuals who make this declaration. There is no scientific test, no sociological study, put in motion to create a set of rules by which we can define exactly what art is.
And so, over time, the definition of art has changed. It will always change – that’s part of the very essence of art: It is what we say it is. Today, in the 21st century, pretty much anything can be art. Films can be art. Photographs can be art. Video games can be art. Even selfies can be art (no, seriously). And, I would argue, theme park attractions can be art – particularly the ones you’d find at Disney parks around the world or Universal’s parks in Orlando and Hollywood.
No, maybe they aren’t on the same level as the Mona Lisa or the Sistine Chapel, but they’re a bit closer than you may think. Here are just a few reasons why:
1. Because they tell stories
This is the signature truth of all Disney attractions: Story is the most important aspect of any ride or show. As I’ve argued before, story doesn’t necessarily mean plot or action, but rather, a fully inhabitable world for you – the guest – to explore.
All works of art tell stories. Some do it explicitly, like a novel or a film. Some do it more subtly, like a wonderfully designed building or a deep and personal painting, but all of them are sharing something with their audience. If all forms of art are really just different ways of telling a story, then theme park attractions are arguably the most effective of them all, as they use nearly all other forms of art in telling their stories.
Think about it: An attraction like the Haunted Mansion utilizes architectural design, music, writing, painting, sculpting, costume design, photography, and a host of other media to tell its story. That it does so to such great effect speaks volumes about the seriousness with which Disney takes its own medium as a method of telling stories. That seriousness shows that Disney treats its own work as legitimate art, in which case, so should we.
2. Because they generate an emotional response from the audience
Everyone has a favorite painting or a favorite piece of music. You love it not only because of the technical ability of its creator – the technique of the brush strokes, the precision of the guitar solo – but also because it elicits an emotional reaction from within you. Perhaps you hear work by Tchaikovsky and you weep. Or maybe you see work by Banksy and laugh. Both of those are honest emotional responses, and both were generated by something as simple as a few vibrating strings or some ink on plaster.
And, if you think that theme park attractions don’t generate an emotional response, you’re reading the wrong website.
In its simplest terms, the smile (or terrified grimace) on your face when you disembark The Incredible Hulk at Universal’s Islands of Adventure is absolutely an emotional response. Any time you leave an attraction shouting, “we HAVE to ride that again!” or “that was the worst ride in this park!”, you’ve likely experienced something on a personal level. And, of course, that is the same kind of response you have after reading a book or hearing an album.
But the emotions of theme park attractions extend even deeper than that. You needn’t look any further than the outrage directed at Disney when it decides to close an attraction like Maelstrom at Epcot. People feel ownership of these attractions and genuine love for them. That’s more than just a commodified ride – anything that can inspire that level of devotion and love is art.
3. Because they are inherently subjective
I think Space Mountain is the best attraction at Walt Disney World – yes, even better than the Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean. I think Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is immensely overrated (I love Harry Potter, but come on — what actually happens on that ride?). You may disagree with me, but that’s OK – we’re both right. And we’re both wrong.
There is no best and worst. There is no “good” and “bad.” There are the attractions and there are our responses to them, but no one has the right to claim their response it the “right” one. The fact that I can claim Space Mountain is the best attraction at Walt Disney World and you can say I’m being patently ridiculous is only possible if the rides are artistic in nature. They speak differently to different people with different backgrounds, just as the Mona Lisa says something different to an American tourist today than it did to an Italian art connoisseur in the 1500s.
If theme park attractions were simply there as physical objects and you were asked to evaluate which is, say, worth more money for scrap metal, you likely wouldn’t face much significant debate. However, they aren’t. And, instead, we all discuss which one’s are our favorites and which ones are the most fun. We do this, of course, because they connect with us on that emotional level, thereby making any real analysis of them subjective – which is a calling card of art.
4. Because they are created by artists
Above all else, theme park attractions are art because they are created, designed, and constructed by artists.
OK, yes, I understand that this sounds like circular logic, but bear with me for a second.
The people who created theme park attractions as we understand them today were Walt Disney’s imagineers – a group of people who were largely made up of animators, writers, and designers who originally worked for Walt’s studio. They took the knowledge they gained from Walt’s first animated films and applied it to his new idea for a family-friendly theme park. Those ideas eventually coalesced into the iconic Disneyland, complete with its dark rides and its omnimovers and its background music.
Now, you’d be hard pressed to find someone who doesn’t think Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a work of art. In fact, in 1989, it was added to the U.S. National Film Registry to be preserved in the Library of Congress. So, it would follow, the folks who created that work of art are artists – and, continuing down the line, if they used those skills and techniques to create something similar, like a theme park attraction, that ought to be a work of art too.
That’s the logical argument. The emotional one is more fun.
Countless people have devoted their lives to creating attractions like these. They put their hearts and their souls into these rides and shows for no reason other than to give you and I an escape from our daily lives. They make these things so that we can have fun together, laugh together, and spend time together. And, for them, the only result that matters is nothing more than a smile on your face. They don’t create these rides out of any technological or societal need. They aren’t utilitarian. Just as Starry Night or The Scream has no real purpose, a theme park attraction has no purpose other than to be fun.
Sure, the theme parks themselves are in this business for money, but that doesn’t preclude these attractions from being art – have you seen the prices for a Picasso? They make seven nights in the Vacation Kingdom seem like a bargain.
