Our nation's interest in "Art"

I was recently at the Hoover Dam and I was struck by the construction. It certainly is an amazing feat of engineering but the thing that really charged me up were the beauty of the details. There were all kinds of public art including a galaxy set into the concrete, a bronze bas relief tribute to the men who died during construction, another bas relief honoring Mead and countless other details like gleaming golden doors, all in beautiful Art Deco style. I felt uplifted and somehow connected to the artists who created this aspect of the dam. It made me think that an aesthetic life is a possibility and that artists matter--no small feat for a giant hunk of engineering.