What does 「社会に向けて作品を問う」 mean?


I am currently translating course descriptions in to English as part of my
job, and I came across this expression in a description for an Art class which
I found completely baffling. As far as I know, 「問う」means to ask, but to ask an
art piece? What does this mean, and why is it said in this way? Thanks in
advance for your answers!

Edit: My apologies, I should have included the original sentence. Here it is!

「芸術家は社会の中で創作活動を行い，社会に向けて作品を問う。」




This 問う is not about asking a question, but about asking for a
reputation/judgement from many people. What artists will get from the society
is not answers but reputations.

According to [a
dictionary](http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/jn/154854/meaning/m0u/), 問う has the
following meanings:

>   * 多くの人に **判断** を求める。
>   * 人の能力や物 **事の価値** などを改めて試す。
>

Perhaps "to test" is the closest single-word equivalent in English.




This 問う is not about asking a question, but about asking for a
reputation/judgement from many people. What artists will get from the society
is not answers but reputations.

According to [a
dictionary](http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/jn/154854/meaning/m0u/), 問う has the
following meanings:

>   * 多くの人に **判断** を求める。
>   * 人の能力や物 **事の価値** などを改めて試す。
>

Perhaps "to test" is the closest single-word equivalent in English.

