Art for art’s sake, but for people’s health too

The National Art Pass spring 2025 campaign with Henri Matisse’s The Snail ((left) and Johanna Tagada Hoffbeck’s Growing Memories. Photograph: Art Fund

Julian Baggini (The long read, 14 April) is right to remind us that art has intrinsic value and that reducing it to a means to an end diminishes the very experience it offers. We couldn’t agree more that art should be enjoyed for its own sake.

But many people have not yet found their way into the UK’s brilliant museums and galleries. For those who do not see themselves as “art people” – whether for economic, geographical or cultural reasons – the question of art’s intrinsic value has not yet arisen.