The arts Illuminating the human condition
Aims Art and knowledge Comparisons between the arts and science
What is art? Visual arts Performance arts Literature Aesthetic urge is one of the things that distinguishes us from other animals
What is art? Manmade 3 possible criteria: intentions of the artist, the quality of the work, the response of the spectators
Intentions of the artist Intended to evoke an aesthetic response - to please or provoke Sunset
Intentions of the artist Tracey Emin - My bed Exhibited at Turner Prize Exhibition London Sold to C. Saatchi for 150,000 P.
Quality of the work Skill, talent, training Beauty with respect to the form and content –Content: what it depicts –Form: unity, order, rhythm, balance, proportion, harmony, symmetry com/watch?v=aZD9 nt_wsY0
Quality of the work Lack of originality - Kitsch, clichéd art: USA’s most popular painting Forgeries: Van Meegeren, the Disciples at Emmaus Picasso’s Bull’s head
Response of spectators The general public: Stravinsky’s Rite of springs, Picasso’s Expert opinions
Aesthetics and likes/dislikes Aesthetic judgments should be disinterested Its is a great work of art but I don’t like it (Pele) Universal standards in art? Cultural differences
Art and knowledge Art as an imitation: ‘art does not reproduce the visible; rather, it makes it visible’. (P. Klee) Art affects the way we perceive reality (photo)
Art and knowledge Art as communication: breadth and depth of human experience song
Art and knowledge Art as education: moral provocation (role models)