Most instructors who teach introductory courses in aesthetics or the philosophy of arts use the visual arts as their implicit reference for "art" in general, yet until now there has been no aesthetics anthology specifically orientated to the visual arts. This text stresses conceptual and theoretical issues, first examining the very notion of "the visual arts" and then investigating philosophical questions raised by various forms, from painting, the paradigmatic form, to sculpture, photography, film, dance, kitsch, and other forms on the borders of the visual arts. The selections represent both classical and contemporary views and include sections by artists, art historians, and critics as well as philosophers. A singularly important text for courses in the philosophy of arts or aesthetics, this anthology is designed to enrich the philosophical and critical examination of our beliefs about the visual arts.
Industry Reviews
"There is much in this book which is valuable to a student of art....Alperson has done a remarkable job gathering together material from diverse sources. The book's strength is that it contains many essays which, having gone out of print or being inaccessible, are now generally unavailable to either student or academic....[Alperson's] efforts have produced a valuable reference source."--Scott Koterbay, University of St. Andrews
"Some interesting articles in this reader."--H. Phillips Hamlin, University of Tennessee
"A fine selection of essays."--Robert M. Johnson, Castieton State College
"I appreciate the breadth and variety in the readings....A fine balance of the traditional and the contemporary. The chapter introductions are 'reader-friendly.'!"--Walter J. Stohrer, Marquette University
"A good mix of classics and contemporary pieces....First-rate."--Winston A. Wilkinson, Michigan State University
"Magnificent reference, spanning historical and contemporary reflections on the nature and contextual relationships of art and how we define art."--William Prioil, Ramapo College of New Jersey
"A unique, comprehensive anthology on the visual arts....Interesting essays on topics often neglected in texts."--J. Whitman Hoff, Lockhaven University of Pennsylvania
"Excellent source for the finest ideas, historic and current, on the nature of art."--Alan Maetaggart, Landers College
"One of the best books on the topic that I have seen. Very complete and suitable for both graduate and undergraduate courses in art or art education."--H.S. Nyuhinnie, University of Maryland
"Excellent choice of articles."--Tom Franks, Eastern Michigan University
"An interesting and different anthology that provides a broad range of perspectives--highly desirable in a field that itself takes inspiration from diverse quarters."--Timothy Binkley, Institute for Computers in the Arts, School of Visual Arts
"A scholarly, well-organized anthology--in fact the only one to provide a systematic introduction to the philosophical foundations of the visual arts--that will be equally useful to students and to scholars. There is a great sense of unity and systematic development among the themes, introductory questions, and readings, especially in the original sections on photography and film, sculpture, architecture, and hand-crafted objects, and the borders of the visual
arts."--Lydia Goehr, Wesleyan University
"This collection is comprehensive, up to date and well illustrated. The essays (taken collectively) strike a nice balance between historical and contemporary sources."--Thomas Fryc, University of Massachusetts
"Terrific book for upper level undergraduate/graduate courses--systematic treatment of the visual arts."--Lynn Comerford, State University of New York, Albany
"Excellent support material."--Diane Merchant, Cedarville College
"A very useful collection of essays focusing on the visual arts, and a book easily adaptable to undergraduate and graduate courses in aesthetics."--The Journal of Aesthetics and Art and Criticism
