The essence of art

Lately, we've been discussing with Croissant whether there exists an essence in art, for instance in cinema, our closest ally. For essence I mean something essential that remains somewhere in the work of art, and that no matter at what time in history, makes us thrive. Croissant is a cultural relativist: for him, there's no essence, for art is a social construction. As for me, being a little bit more romantic as I am (though everyday less), I still think there's something in Casablanca that will touch my children and the children of my children the same way. The eyes of Ingrid Bergman as time goes by, you know, aren't they inmortal? Are they only a product of their time, or there's something religiously eternal in them? That's my reflection for today.