Through watching both of these videos and viewing the article I was able to obtain a better understanding of aesthetics. It’s one thing reading it through the text but seeing other examples makes it even easier to understand and is ultimately helpful. From watching Aesthetics: Philosophy of the Arts, I found that the concepts on Aesthetics were constantly changing. Not all philosophers agreed on the same core concepts and as time changed so did ideas. As aesthetics means beauty, it is hard to create a guideline what is really beautiful. What I may find is beautiful some may disagree with me, as I may disagree with someone else. That being said I liked what Morris Weitz had said, “Art is whatever we may call art, no matter what the object may be.” I liked this statement because art is really about being different. The art world is creative and a place to explore our own thoughts and idea. Some pieces may disturb us or even bore us but the fact is, is it is art, and no one should tell you otherwise. There is no true definition of what art can or can’t be. That coming from a philosophers stand point I couldn’t agree more. In CARTA: Neurobiology Neurology and Art and Aesthetics, Changeux had said Art is constantly evolving. I find that to be very true. When you look at past art history and look at today’s current art it has completely evolved. It makes me excited to see what the future brings in the art world. A concept that really stuck with me in the article What the Brain draws from: Art and Neuroscience was what Picasso said, "We all know that Art is not truth. Art is a lie that makes us realize truth, at least the truth that is given us to understand. The artist must know the manner whereby to convince others of the truthfulness of his lies." The fact is that certain objects in art are not realistic at all but our mind allows it to become realistic/plays a trick on us with how certain artists portray their art work. Art and our how we think/our brain are intertwined.
2. Which philosopher's theory on aesthetics do you feel is most important? Be sure to mention the philosophers name, era (time in history), and contribution to the aesthetic theory in your response.
The philosopher that I feel is the most important when it comes to the theory on aesthetics is John Dewey who is from the 1900’s. Dewey had said “Art is connected to society.” I more than agree with this statement. I feel that society definitely has a big influence on art. Most artists express themselves through their artwork. When an artist is influenced by something that is happening on in their world they tend to reflect it within their artwork. Whether it is clear within an artist’s piece or just the colors that are used to express something, the influence is very much there. Without a doubt someone who is educated enough in analyzing artwork can tell the time period in which the art is from by just looking at it. I find this very interesting.
3. What do you think about Changeux and Ramachandran scientific view of aesthetics and art? What was the most interesting fact you discovered from each speakers lecture?
I find both Changeux and Ramachandrans scientific view of aesthetics and art to be interesting. Changeux talks about evolution and how evolution has influenced people’s view on art. As time goes on the world around us changes, evolution takes its course and influences every aspect of our lives. A lot of us don’t think of evolution having to do with art when it undoubtedly does. Changeux’s main belief which I thought was interesting is that he thinks that aesthetics comes from how people see things. He believes it’s our view on how things move and our ability to remember and recognize things. These turn on something in our brain which releases our thoughts and feelings. I found it interesting how appreciating art has so much more depth than just looking at it and liking it, our brain plays a so much bigger role in why we feel the way we do. Ramachandran’s view on aesthetics also talks about the human brain. What I found especially interesting in his lecture is that he referred to art as visual aesthetics. He was definitely easier to understand than Changeux. Ramachandran had an easygoing vibe that made it easier to understand and follow him. I believe he used the term visual aesthetics to help those that aren’t well educated in art to follow along. In all, it does mean the same thing. Visual Aesthetics and art go hand in hand, as art is visually beautiful. What really got and held my attention the most was when he gave the two examples of a naked woman and a naked woman behind a shower curtain. The woman behind the shower curtain you couldn’t see her actual features but just her silhouette. The point he made was that when there is something left to the brain to imagine it becomes more aesthetically pleasing.
4. How do the videos and article relate
to the readings in the text?
For the video Aesthetics: Philosophy of Art, I thought
it related to the text because it went into depth what Aesthetics means in the
Art world. When I read about it in the
text I was so confused. The video really
added to the text which was very helpful.
I have a harder time relating the video Neuroscience to the text since
it focused more on the science aspect.
The people in the videos did make connections that could be carried over
in the art world, which is where I would say it relates to the text. The article relates to the text as it made
connections of how we view things and find things visually pleasant.
5.
What
is your opinion of the films and article? How do they add depth to
understanding of the topics in your reading in the text?
My opinions on the
films were that they were quiet helpful in the sense of introducing a different
way to look at Aesthetics. Of course the
text talked about Aesthetics in art but the videos made a connection to
aesthetics that wasn’t art based that I thought was helpful. I can appreciate art but I have a hard time
doing so because a lot of the times I get lost in its meaning.
No comments:
Post a Comment