Is art a valid source of knowledge?

I am not always that sure that we aren't walking on thin ice when we talk of knowledge constructed by the arts. Artists, of course, would be outraged if we questioned this. Personally, as an artist, I would feel demeaned and invalidated. However, that should not stop one from wondering, deeply I should add, about what knowledge, if any, is constructed by the arts.

These two videos were sent to me on whatsapp by friends. I found both rather powerful. Have a look and then read on:

 

Honestly, rather chilling. There is obvious sexual tension created by a combination of the music, the voiceover and the camera shots and angles used - the slow tilt up to where the woman stands at the top of the stairs, the point-of-view shots of the woman and the people below - all combine to make a powerful impact. Taken together, with the quick cuts, the audience would be riveted, ensuring that our expectations of some quick action would be raised. However, the quick action we expect is very far from what happens next with the woman tripping and rolling down the stairs. There is a quick cut to a ceiling shot, reducing the woman and her guests to little creatures without much consequence. The next shot shows four men walking in time to the music - a midshot that only shows us part of the picture, again piquing interest. This cuts to a close up of the bag itself - with the brand itself in half-light, half-shadow, in a sort of coy "I'm not here" register. The husky female voice continues its narration as the four men lift and zip the woman into the bag, talking about "everlasting elegance", with heavy use of irony between the action and the words.

The un-brand-loving person that I am, I couldn't figure out whether Prada was advertising its products, the brand, or telling women to stay away from stilettos. Could, of course, be all three. I am not even thinking about Prada's general branding-advertising style - simply looking at the video in isolation. The brand does leave a rather heavy impact. A non-brand-loving person would feel, "Ha, I told you so!" However, what impact would it have on someone who loves branded products, especially those who need to show that brand off, not just use it? This requires some thought.

Here's the next one:

This one was moving beyond words. The gentle music, the white-grey-blue-green tones in the backdrop creating a "cold" atmosphere, sharply contrasted by the sheer black of the piano and the composer's clothes - stark, real, and also chilling. The film opens with a black screen and a roaring sound, the composer looks sharply around at the glacier before beginning to play, both create tension in the viewer's mind. The glacier continues to melt in the background intermittently. I found myself wondering whether the composer would be swept away by a tidal wave caused by this. So, tension was created each time the glacier melted and fell into the water. One hoped that the composer-pianist would survive this, that in case of an avalanche or tidal wave someone would airlift the man and the piano swiftly out of the disaster zone. There were midshots of ice ridges, crane or aerial shots slowly moving away from jagged ice peaks, and long shots establishing the surrounding areas. Each shot was powerfully calculated to not just cause concern on behalf of the composer-pianist but by extension to the melting ice behind him.

One did not need to know the background to the video at all, unless one has lived in Crusoe-like fashion since very early childhood and never read the papers. There really was little need for the slogan at the end with the appeal to Save the Arctic. 

Here's the question, though: those who believe that climate change is upon us, did not need convincing in the first place; what impact did the video have on those who are, still, in denial that climate change is "human-made", or that human actions can help to arrest, if not reverse, the phenomenon? 

Both the videos above are powerful and moving. They are brilliant examples of what art can illustrate. They reinforce beliefs in the "believers". What is the impact, however, that they have on those who don't?