How Art Made the World

watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQWKpKbvc9M

answer: But why did people suddenly decide to start creating images of the world around them?

You must use only evidence from having watched the film to address this question

The discovery of the prehistoric cave paintings of Altamira gave 19th-century experts a clue to this question – they first theorized the obvious, prehistoric humans painted simply to represent the world around them. But that was not a real answer, for these early artists only seemed to paint one thing – animals. And they painted their pictures in dark caves, too, well away from the eyes of admirers.

Scientists who study altered states of consciousness suggest the answer lies in the hard-wiring of the brain. People didn’t just one day decide to invent making pictures. Rather, prehistoric artists were experiencing sensory deprivation deep within their caves – in a sort of trance state – resulting in powerful hallucinations. These hallucinations were of such powerful emotional importance they felt compelled to paint them on the walls. According to this theory, these artists were simply nailing down their visions.