The question of what is pure art and what is straight commerce, McCloud says, can be determined by examining the path an artist takes toward his or her art: “‘Pure art is essentially the question of purpose—of the artist deciding what they want out of art.” That path, McCloud says, consistently follows six steps:
What are the creator’s philosophies, purpose, or emotions that shape the content?
How best to convey the idea? Through a song? Writing a poem? Creating a comic?
What will the vocabulary/style be? The creator must select (or create) a genre.
The creator must evaluate the best way to arrange or compose their content.
The construction of the work, the employment of the creator’s specific skills.
The appearance of the finished work, the production values.
Post what you find. What do these texts look like through the lens of Mc Cloud’s six steps?
