Synopses & Reviews
The analytic philosophers writing here engage with the cluster of philosophical questions raised by conceptual art. They address four broad questions: What kind of art is conceptual art? What follows from the fact that conceptual art does not aim to have aesthetic value? What knowledge or understanding can we gain from conceptual art? How ought we to appreciate conceptual art?
Conceptual art, broadly understood by the contributors as beginning with Marcel Duchamp's ready-mades and as continuing beyond the 1970s to include some of today's contemporary art, is grounded in the notion that the artist's "idea" is central to art, and, contrary to tradition, that the material work is by no means essential to the art as such. To use the words of the conceptual artist Sol LeWitt, "In conceptual art the idea of the concept is the most important aspect of the work . . . and the execution is a perfunctory affair." Given this so-called "dematerialization" of the art object, the emphasis on cognitive value, and the frequent appeal to philosophy by many conceptual artists, there are many questions that are raised by conceptual art that should be of interest to analytic philosophers. Why, then, has so little work been done in this area? This volume is most probably the first collection of papers by analytic philosophers tackling these concerns head-on.
Synopsis
The analytic philosophers writing here engage with the cluster of philosophical questions raised by conceptual art. They address four broad questions: What kind of art is conceptual art? What follows from the fact that conceptual art does not aim to have aesthetic value? What knowledge or understanding can we gain from conceptual art? How ought we to appreciate conceptual art?
Conceptual art, broadly understood by the contributors as beginning with Marcel Duchamp's ready-mades and as continuing beyond the 1970s to include some of today's contemporary art, is grounded in the notion that the artist's "idea" is central to art, and, contrary to tradition, that the material work is by no means essential to the art as such. To use the words of the conceptual artist Sol LeWitt, "In conceptual art the idea of the concept is the most important aspect of the work . . . and the execution is a perfunctory affair." Given this so-called "dematerialization" of the art object, the emphasis on cognitive value, and the frequent appeal to philosophy by many conceptual artists, there are many questions that are raised by conceptual art that should be of interest to analytic philosophers. Why, then, has so little work been done in this area? This volume is most probably the first collection of papers by analytic philosophers tackling these concerns head-on.
About the Author
Peter Goldie is Samuel Hall Chair and Head of Philosophy at Manchester University
Elisabeth Schellekens is Senior Lecturer of Philosophy at the University of Durham
Table of Contents
Introduction
I. Conceptual art as a kind of art
Chapter 1 On perceiving conceptual art, Peter Lamarque (University of York)
Chapter 2 The dematerialization of the art object, Derek Matravers (Open University)
Chapter 3 The ontology of conceptual art, Gregory Currie (University of Nottingham)
Chapter 4 Speaking through silence: conceptual art and conversational implicature, Robert Hopkins (University of Sheffield)
II. Conceptual art and aesthetic value
Chapter 5 The aesthetic value of ideas, Elisabeth Schellekens (Durham University)
Chapter 6 Kant After LeWitt: Towards an aesthetics of conceptual art, Diarmuid Costello (University of Warwick)
III. Conceptual art, knowledge and understanding
Chapter 7 Mind and matter in the work of art: One and Three Chairs, Carolyn Wilde (University of Wales)
Chapter 8 Telling Pictures: the place of narrative in late modern 'visual art', David Davies (McGill University)
Chapter 9 Conceptual art and knowledge, Peter Goldie (University of Manchester)
Chapter 10 Sartre, Wittgenstein, and learning from imagination, Kathleen Stock (University of Sussex)
IV. Appreciating conceptual art
Chapter 11 Artistic character, creativity, and the appreciation of conceptual art, Matthew Kieran (University of Leeds)
Chapter 12 Creativity and conceptual art, Margaret Boden (University of Sussex)
Chapter 13 Conceptual art is not what it seems, Dominic McIver Lopes (University of British Columbia)
Chapter 14 Emergency Conditionals by Art and Language
Introduction
I. Conceptual art as a kind of art
1. On perceiving conceptual art, Peter Lamarque
2. The dematerialization of the art object, Derek Matravers
3. The ontology of conceptual art, Gregory Currie
4. Speaking through silence: conceptual art and conversational implicature, Robert Hopkins
II. Conceptual art and aesthetic value
5. The aesthetic value of ideas, Elisabeth Schellekens
6. Kant After LeWitt: Towards an aesthetics of conceptual art, Diarmuid Costello
III. Conceptual art, knowledge and understanding
7. Mind and matter in the work of art: One and Three Chairs, Carolyn Wilde
8. Telling Pictures: the place of narrative in late modern 'visual art', David Davies
9. Conceptual art and knowledge, Peter Goldie
10. Sartre, Wittgenstein, and learning from imagination, Kathleen Stock
IV. Appreciating conceptual art
11. Artistic character, creativity, and the appreciation of conceptual art, Matthew Kieran
12. Creativity and conceptual art, Margaret Boden
13. Conceptual art is not what it seems, Dominic McIver Lopes
14. Emergency Conditionals, Art and Language