"Art is like baby shoes. When you coat them with gold, they can no longer be worn"

John Updike's quote, "Art resembles infant shoes. When you coat them with gold, they can no longer be used", offers a poignant metaphor that highlights the stress between form and function, intrinsic worth and ostentation, authenticity and artifice. At its core, this analogy suggests that art, like baby shoes, is indicated to serve a fundamental function-- whether that be to convey feeling, provoke thought, or encapsulate appeal. Child shoes, in their original state, are designed for strolling, representing practicality and the unadulterated experience of life's journey.

When these shoes are gilded, they are changed from functional items into decorative artifacts. The act of coating them in gold renders them not practical, emphasizing appearance over utility. Similarly, when art is overly advertised, commodified, or controlled for the sake of status and shallow attraction, it runs the risk of losing its essential purpose and credibility. The 'gold' in this metaphor could be analyzed as the pressures of market forces, social expectations, or even the artist's own goals for fame and recommendation, which can cause the development of art that prioritizes external validation over real expression.

In considering this metaphor, one may likewise assess the concept that art, like life, is often most valuable in its unadorned and honest types. Simply as child shoes are significant due to the fact that they are worn by those taking their first steps, art is poignant when it shows the raw and unfiltered human experience. When gilded, both lose something crucial-- the ability to connect with the human condition straightforwardly and seriously.

In addition, this quote invites a more comprehensive reflection of the method society values things. The pursuit of financial or visual improvement can, paradoxically, detract from a things's real worth, suggesting that the most extensive appeal lies in simplicity and credibility instead of embellishment. Thus, Updike's words encourage a much deeper gratitude for the unembellished and the important, both in art and in life.