Letters

Advertising Is Art, But ‘With Few True Artists’

I am so disappointed in Mary Warlick, David Lubars, Chuck McBride and Rich Silverstein for their views expressed in Wendy Melillo’s piece, “Is Advertising Art?” [Creative, Nov. 12].

Let’s assume Mary’s definition of art is a good one: “Art is a visual imagery that is meant to elevate thinking in an aesthetic context.” Sounds an awful lot like what Doyle Dane Bernbach’s VW ads did. Or have my highly esteemed colleagues forgotten the even-more-highly esteemed Bill Bernbach’s deeply held belief that “advertising is about persuasion, and persuasion is an art, not a science.”