Tyler Cowen & Patrick Collison's Quest for 21st Century Aesthetics

The Billionaire Art Initiative

• 💡 Tyler Cowen, an economist and experimental philanthropist, connects billionaires with artists to foster interesting and beautiful art.
• 🎯 His latest collaboration involves Patrick Collison (Stripe founder), whom Cowen considers one of the five smartest people he knows.
• 💰 They are offering $250,000 to artists who can define the "aesthetic of the 21st century," identify important secessionist movements, and new great works.

Conflicting Views on Aesthetics

• 🧠 Tyler Cowen believes beauty can violate expectations and arises from understanding fundamental changes in the world.
• 💬 Patrick Collison, quoting Ortega y Gasset, suggests modern art is unpopular and anti-popular, with modern buildings less favored than traditional designs.
• ⚖️ This creates a contrast, with Patrick leaning towards a "Scrutonian" perspective and Tyler being more "open-minded" but potentially "blind."

Critiquing the Approach to Art

• ⚠️ The initiative's focus on Bauhaus as a successful example is questioned, as they admit differing views on its artistic merits, prioritizing success over aesthetic quality.
• 🔍 The speaker argues their approach avoids a deep discussion of ethics and aesthetics, instead using a "networking" facade.
• 🚫 The "enabling portraiture manifesto" was sent to highlight the need for a structural understanding of art creation and the patron's role, which the initiative lacks.

The Patron's Dilemma

• 🎭 Tyler Cowen's "moderacy" is seen as a seductive tactic for billionaires, allowing him to act as an intermediary and funnel money without deep qualitative engagement.
• 💸 Billionaires like Patrick Collison, feeling the "vertigo" of immense wealth, may be drawn to ideas that offer a direction for their money to create beauty, often opposing modernism.
• 📉 Cowen's admission that he would "probably not recognize the next Shakespeare" is viewed as a legitimizing "hedge" that undermines the very purpose of an art fund.

The Outcome and Impact

• 📈 Cowen is an optimist, linking rising wealth, technology, and markets to expanded artistic possibilities, as detailed in his book "In Praise of Commercial Culture."
• 🎭 Ultimately, the speaker concludes that Cowen's endeavor, despite its claims of moderacy and optimism, is "boring, ugly, meaningless, useless, and unsuccessful" in producing genuine artistic impact.
• 💰 It's suggested that if Patrick Collison spent just 1% of his net worth ($100 million), he could make a significant impact, akin to historical patrons like the Medici.