AESTHETICS Key Terms aesthetics The area of philosophy that studies how people perceive and assess the meaning, importance, and purpose of art. Aesthetics is significant because it helps people become more aware of sensory experiences. This leads to heightened perceptions and opens the mind. aesthetic triad The relationship between the artist, the art object, and the perceiver. The aesthetic triad is significant because it was the focus of aesthetics for a long time. personal aesthetic An individual person s principles of taste and appreciation of beauty. A personal aesthetic is significant because it affects the way people experience the world and the choices they make every day. catharsis An emotional purging experienced by artists as an intuitive signal that a work is complete. Catharsis is significant because it helps people understand the process of creating and experiencing art. taste In aesthetics, a term that refers to the ability to recognize the aesthetic features of an object. Taste is significant because it defines for many people what is and is not good art. aesthetic experience The pleasure felt when making a judgment of taste. Aesthetic experience is significant because it helps define for many people what is and is not good art. modernism In aesthetics, a 20th-century movement characterized by attempts to define the nature of the aesthetic experience. Modernists consider works of art successful if they create a sense of unity and are autonomous and pure. Modernism is significant because it provided a definition of art that broke with traditional ideas. post-modernism In aesthetics,a term that often refers to the idea that artists can create works of art without adhering to traditional ideas of what art should be. Post-modernism is significant because it broadened the definition of art. objectivity A term that refers to aesthetic judgments that are based on how well the objective qualities of a work of art adhere to the rules of composition. Objectivity is significant because it represents one side of the debate over how art should be judged. subjectivity A term that refers to aesthetic judgments that are based on the amount of pleasure a work of art arouses in the perceiver. Subjectivity is significant because it represents one side of the debate over how art should be judged.
descriptive In aesthetics,a term that refers to an approach to defining art. A descriptive definition involves observations and experiences that explain what art is. The term descriptive is significant because it is an important element of the debate over what art is. normative In aesthetics,a term that refers to an approach to defining art.a normative definition involves defining art according to specific standards, or norms. The term normative is significant because it is an important element of the debate over what art is. rationalist A supporter of a theory that says that knowledge is a priori. It comes from exercising the human ability to reason. Rationalists are significant because they deny the importance of sense experience as a source of knowledge. empiricist A supporter of a theory that says that knowledge is a posteriori. It comes from experience, or evidence presented by the senses. Empiricists are significant because they believe that sensory experiences are transformed into knowledge by the human ability to reason. mimesis A theory of art that says that art represents, mirrors, or creates an illusion of reality. Mimesis is significant because it says that art is successful when it represents the real world. formalism A theory that says that the most important thing about a work of art is its formal qualities. As a result, art should be judged according to how well it conforms to its form. Formalism is significant because its focus on form suggests that art is autonomous and independent of religion, politics, history, and other human endeavours. expressionist Supporter of a theory that measures the success of a work of art by its impact on the emotions. Expressionists are significant because their focus on emotional responses represented a turning away from notions that art must represent reality or conform to a particular form. phenomenology A theory that says that things in the real world and people s consciousness of things in the real world are the same thing. Phenomenology is significant because it focuses on analyzing art as a conscious activity. representational In aesthetics, a term that refers to art that portrays the world as it is. The term representational is significant because it distinguishes art that represents something in the real world from art that is pure form and may have no recognizable subject matter. abstract In aesthetics, a term used to describe a broad range of art, including works that represent an altered form of reality and works that bear no resemblance to reality. The term abstract is significant because it distinguishes art that may have no recognizable subject matter from art that represents something in the real world.
non-representational In aesthetics, a term used to describe abstract art that bears no resemblance to reality. The term non-representational is significant because its focus on pure form has led some critics to suggest that it is not art at all. eclecticism An artistic practice that involves borrowing from and combining diverse styles. Eclecticism is significant because, in architecture, it represents a contrast to modernist styles. genre A literary term used to identify kinds of prose. Traditional literary genres were defined as epic, tragedy, lyric, comedy, and satire. Today, genres include fiction, non-fiction, essays, epic novels, and short stories. The term genre is significant because it is used to distinguish various kinds of writing. censorship The limiting of the right to express oneself freely. Censorship is significant because it is the focus of debate over whether public authorities have a responsibility to limit the content of creative expression. Confucianist Follower of a philosophy, attributed to Kongfuzi (Confucius), that emphasizes living in harmony with society. Confucianists are significant because their philosophy says that art must represent moral goodness and that the virtue of a work of art is linked to the virtue of the artist. Taoist Follower of a philosophy, attributed to Laozi (Lao-tzu), that emphasizes living in harmony with nature and the rhythms of the universe. Taoists are significant because their philosophy says that art must represent the way by expressing beauty and emotion. arabesque A style of art, often associated with Arab-Islamic art, that uses interlacing lines to create an intricate pattern that often depicts flowers, fruit, or foliage. Arabesque is significant because it represents a style intended to inspire the imagination rather than to give a realistic accounting of objects and events. pluralistic A term used to describe a society in which members of various cultural groups are encouraged to celebrate their heritage. The term pluralistic is significant because it enables people to judge art according to a range of theories rather than to apply one accepted standard. iconology The study of the meaning of the subject matter of art in the context of the culture in which the work was produced. Iconology is significant because knowledge of it promotes understanding of the historical and cultural origins of works of art. popular art A kind of art produced primarily to make money. Popular art is significant because it ensures that the debate over the nature and purpose of art will continue.
Key People Aristotle Fourth-century BCE Greek philosopher who believed that art could be studied and examined scientifically. He is significant because he is considered the first champion of the idea of art for art s sake. Plato Fourth-century BCE Greek philosopher who believed that art should portray reality, though it can never be anything but a pale imitation of reality. He is significant because he believed that art has great power to mislead perceivers and that artists should, there- fore, be controlled or censored. René Descartes Seventeenth-century philosopher who believed that beauty pleases and that anything that pleases in a particular way must therefore be beautiful. He is significant because his theory laid the foundation for the idea that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Alexander Baumgarten Eighteenth-century German philosopher who coined the term aesthetics and distinguished it from other forms of philosophy. He is significant because he said that aesthetics is a science that focuses on understanding people s intuitive, sensuous, and emotional ways of knowing. David Hume Eighteenth-century Scottish philosopher who argued that principles of taste are universal. He is significant because he said that differences in taste arise because not everyone is equipped to make accurate judgments of taste. Immanuel Kant Eighteenth-century German philosopher who said that an aesthetic experience comes from recognizing that the form of an object accommodates a kind of free play of understanding and imagination. He is significant because he said that art should be judged according to how well it represents the appropriate form, not on its subject matter or sense qualities. Georg W.F. Hegel Nineteenth-century German philosopher who argued that everything in the world progresses through three stages: thesis, antithesis, and synthesis. He is significant because he believed that the messages expressed by art become clear only when a work is complete and its message can be expressed in words. Friedrich Nietzsche Nineteenth-century German philosopher and critic who believed that art is the real expression of truth. He is significant because he believed that art transforms life by providing people with a powerful, life-affirming view of the world. John Dewey Nineteenth- and 20th-century philosopher who argued that the arts should be an integral part of everyday life. He is significant because he said that a work becomes meaningful only when it is experienced by an audience.
Arthur Danto Twentieth-century philosopher who said that art is dead. He is significant because he argued that artists have become philosophers and that art is artists attempts to understand themselves. Benedetto Croce Nineteenth- and 20th-century Italian philosopher who argued that it is impossible to separate intuition from expression in the creative process. He is significant because his definition of art was descriptive rather than normative. Clive Bell Twentieth-century philosopher who argued that good art is based on the effective organization of its formal elements. He is significant because he presented a normative definition of art. Leo Tolstoy Nineteenth-century Russian novelist and philosopher who defined art as a work that causes the receiver to enter into a relationship with the producer and others who receive the same artistic impression. He is significant because his definition maintained that art is one of the conditions of human life. R.G. Collingwood Twentieth-century British philosopher and critic who tried to distinguish between art and craft. He is significant because his definition said that a craft is about process and materials, while art focuses on form and content. Edmund Husserl Twentieth-century German philosopher who founded the phenomenology movement. He is significant because his approach assigned equal importance to the roles of reason and sense experience in analyzing art as a conscious activity. Søren Kierkegaard Nineteenth-century Danish philosopher who said that an artist s personal authenticity is embodied in a work of art. He is significant because he laid the groundwork for the existentialist movement. Martin Heidegger Twentieth-century German philosopher who believed that poetry and art are a unique way to present the truth. He is significant because this belief suggested that the truth is embodied in the ordinary things in life, and art can help people focus on these. Jean-Paul Sartre Twentieth-century existentialist French philosopher who said that beauty and art are imaginary. He is significant because his theory suggests that aesthetic responses lead people to look at the world with fresh eyes. Joanna Frueh Contemporary American art historian who identified three phases in the history of feminist art theory. She is significant because she helped change views that regarded works created by women, such as quilts and embroidery, as crafts, while works created by men were elevated to the status of fine art.
Suzi Gablik Contemporary American critic and philosopher who challenges the modernist idea that art is separate from life and the idea of art for art s sake. She is significant because her notion of connective aesthetics suggests that art is essential to society. Friedrich von Schelling Eighteenth- and 19th-century philosopher who argued that representing nature in a realistic way is the primary purpose of the visual arts. He is significant because his ideas about the unity of nature, the importance of art, and the elevated status of artists emphasized imagination and emotion over reason and intellect. Arthur Schopenhauer Nineteenth-century German philosopher who said that art and poetry are the way to truth. He is significant because this belief challenged the idea that science and cognitive philosophy provide the best way to find truth. Jean-François Lyotard Twentieth-century French philosopher who questioned the idea of a fixed concept of beauty. He is significant because he said that the differing interests, desires, and concerns of people in modern society mean that they have differing ideas of beauty. Linda Nochlin Contemporary philosopher who said that women had been systematically excluded by the art world. She is significant because she raised awareness of feminist issues in art and aesthetics. Marilyn French Twentieth-century American author who writes about women s experiences. She is significant because she maintains that physical, economic, and political attacks on women are a deep-rooted part of a male-dominated global society. Kongfuzi (Confucius) Ancient Chinese philosopher who linked art, moral goodness, and enjoyment. He is significant because he argued that the purpose of art is to teach a moral lesson and that the greater the virtue of the artists, the greater the virtue of the art. Laozi (Lao-tzu) Sixth-century BCE Chinese philosopher who founded Taoism. He is significant because he linked aesthetics with nature and the laws of the universe. Jiddu Krishnamurti Twentieth-century Indian philosopher who believed that analytic theory cannot help people discover truth and beauty. He is significant because his emphasis on critical looking challenged western ideas of critical thinking. Michel Foucault Twentieth-century French philosopher and social critic who said that when people rely on a system of thinking or a set or principles, they stop thinking. He is significant because his ideas supported post-modernist thinkers who question the notion of the existence of absolutes, such as truth and beauty. Susanne Langer Twentieth-century American philosopher who said that artworks are symbols of the various forms of feeling. She is significant because she helped broaden traditional definitions of art.