The Philosopher Café

April 19, 2006 Meeting

 

I.           Book/Media Discussion – 6:00 – 6:10

o      Introducing Aesthetics, Fenner, David, E. W.

An overview of the philosophy of aesthetics, both ideas and history.

o      Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand, Peikoff, Leonard

A single volume summary of the major ideas of Ayn Rand’s philosophy explained by her disciple Leonard Peikoff.

o       Poetics, Aristotle

An ancient classic treatise on the philosophy of art.

o        From Dawn to Decadence, Barzun, Jacques

Reviews history of the philosophic view of art and intellectual development as it relates to development of cultures. The result is not always happy as the recent anti-art culture does not bode well for us.

 

Exercise: Is this art?

II.  Discussion:   What is art?  6:10 – 7:00 PM

 

-        :Art is a selective recreation of reality according to an artist’s metaphysical value judgments.” Ayn Rand

-        From the items presented, some were unanimously voted as art such as the child’s drawing and the bust of Jefferson.  Others received less than half the votes such as the bottle. 

-        Does the artist’s intention matter or does only the viewer’s perception matter?

-         There is a progression from Art to Artisan to Artist.

-        Art is often done for money. Is art that makes more money better?

-        Art objects can also have a function like a chair but a function is not required.

-         Art can be seen as a quality in any object with a range of value.

-        ß-------------------------------------------------------à

-        Low Artfulness                               High Artfulness

-         Art is in the eye of the beholder.

-        Art does not have to be beautiful.

-        There are different types of art; commercial, industrial, etc.

-        Consider the chairs in the room.  They were designed for aesthetics as well as functionality.  Therefore they qualify as art.

-        Is a programmer an artist.  Bryan described how he puts himself into programs he writes.  There reflect much of his character but is it art?  Many felt it was.

-        Everything is art. 

-        But if everything is art, then nothing is art.

-        Art can run the gamut from fine literature to porn.  Is there a difference?

-         Great writes often publish popular books for the masses to make some money so they can do the serious work.  Is the light work art?

-        If it is an expression, it is art.

-        Is the mode of production important?  If it is hand made vs. machine made.  Most thought it did not matter.  But some thought that art must be made by a person.

-        Sometimes artists do a work to offend or get a reaction from the audience such as the crucifix in the urine.  Is it art?  Many thought it was though perhaps not good art.

 

III. Introduction – Theme is the Philosophy of Art (a.ka. Aesthetics)   6:45 – 7:30 PM

 

What is it?

 

o       Skepticism

o      Relativism

 

The Approaches

 

o      Aesthetic Experience as Attitude

o      Aesthetic Experience as Reaction

o      Aesthetic Properties

 

Brief History of Philosophy of Aesthetics

 

Representation

 

• Object must be an artifact.
• Must be an imitation of some object – presumably natural-in the world.
• Judge based on how real it is, i.e. how good an imitation.

 

 

 

• Plato
  • Imitation, so it is not good. Since the real object is a copy of the form, art is a copy of a copy.
  • Detracts from the real beauty of the forms.
  • Art is not truth, i.e. cannot learn from it.

 

• Aristotle
  • Imitation of the Universal in nature.
  • Pleasurable.
  • Art is better than nature because it appeals to the universals, archetypes, in nature.
  • Judge based on:
    • Ordered
    • Symmetrical
    • Definite
    • Beauty is property of the structure of objects.  Beautiful objects must have definite boundaries, i.e. closure.

 

British Empiricism

• David Hume

o       No disputing taste or preferences. There is great variance in tastes.

o      Paradox: If we judge the way we wish, feelings and opinions, how can we assess whether some of the judgments are wrong?

o      Art is designed to serve a purpose and it is good to the extent it serves its end.

 

Universality

• Kant
  • Universality Claim
    • Beauty, we proclaim it and expect others to agree if approached as described below.
    • Judgment is singular, i.e. one specific object.
    • Sensory pleasures are relative to individuals but aesthetic satisfactions have a universal, albeit subjective, ground.
  • The observer
    • Approach with disinterest. Not interested in its existence as an object. Gain pleasure merely by contemplating it.
    • Appreciate object based on free play of the understanding and the imagination.  Free play judging is judging without bringing the object under any concept. Combines characteristics of desire (sentiments) and knowledge.
  • The Object
    • Beauty, purposiveness in design, is observable in the object by itself without relation to any purpose.
    • Object must be regarded on its own and not under any concept.

Ayn Rand – Art as an expression of a metaphysical view.

• Needed by a rational being as it provides a concrete image of his existence in the world. Philosophy can define the ideas but art puts them together in a manner that can be grasped holistically and carried around with us. 
• It is not just for the subconscious as we can call the ideas into focus as will though we may not always do so.
• “Art is a selective recreation of reality according to an artist’s metaphysical value judgments.”
• “This is what counts in life – as, I, the artist, see life.”
• By comparing objects of art, you can gain immense insight into the philosophical differences between peoples in different cultures and/or times.  Consider “The Iliad” vs. “All Quiet on the Western Front”.

 

German Idealism

Romanticism

• Anti Enlightenment – sentiment and artistic expression.
• Art as expression of artist’s personal emotions.
• Art as a sensuous embodiment of spiritual meaning.
• Art for art’s sake.

 

Expressionism – Expression of emotion is the centerpiece.

 

American Naturalism

 

Formalism

• Form of criticism.
• Focus on artist’s intention.
• Interested in the objective properties, particularly the internal formal relations, of aesthetic objects,

 

Antiessentialism

• Cannot provide a definition of art, there are always exceptions.
• Wittgenstein “family resemblances”. Different definition connected by ‘or’, disjunctives.

 

Symbolism

• Nelson Goodman (b 1906) Symbols as standing for other things, give art its meaning.  Need to understand the “language of art”.
• Suzanne Langer (1895 – 1985):  Object to be art, must be a symbol of an emotion the artist sought to express. Done in an organized coherent way.

 

Institutionalists / Artworld Theorists

 

Deconstructionism

• What is the meaning? Many interpretations possible and defendable so none can be asserted. Meaning is not the artist’s intent nor is it something that we can get just by attending closely to it.  Meaning is within each person who observes the object. It is subjective.