PHILOSOPHY OF ART: HISTORY, CHARACTERISTICS AND REPRESENTATIVES - PHILOSOPHY - 2025

The philosophy of art is a branch of philosophy that focuses on the nature of art. It uses interpretation, representation, expression and form for analysis. It is often confused with aesthetics, but the latter focuses only on the study of beauty and aesthetic taste.

This branch of philosophy is applied within any artistic expression such as painting, sculpture and even music. Many of those specialized in the area are in charge of establishing concepts and theories related to art to answer crucial questions such as "What makes something art?" and "Why should art be valued?" Both questions have been a point of discussion for more than 2000 years.

Since ancient times, the concept of art has been debated

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Object of study

The philosophy of art is responsible for generating concepts that approximate the understanding of the nature of art. This in turn opens the doors to understanding artistic expressions. It should be noted that the philosophy of art is not responsible for the evaluation or analysis of art to make judgments, things that have more to do with critical activity.

In this way, the philosophy of art takes care of the constant questioning around an artistic work and tries to determine what factors can really turn it into art. For example, philosophy does not determine the degree of expressiveness a work could have, but rather asks what it is that makes the work expressive.

Philosophers in this area are generators of concepts that help to convey the meaning of art in some way. Then, it is the critics who can use this for their evaluation work on subjects of artistic works.

History

The history of the philosophy of art is related to the origin of the notion of art, whose meaning has varied through time. The word "art" was used in ancient times by the Greeks to refer to handicrafts made for basic needs. Art was also a symbol of man's progress over nature. From here would come the transition of man from creating objects out of necessity to begin creating for knowledge or enjoyment. This thinking about art was influenced by philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle and continued to predominate in the Middle Ages.

During the Renaissance, the conception of art took hold within the humanist philosophy, the symbols, colors, themes and structures had to do with messages oriented towards nature and humanity.

During the industrial age and the beginnings of mass reproduction, new debates began to arise about what art really means, often leaning towards artisan work as the real one, suppressing the copy to a mere object without artistic content.

Many of the questions and concepts within the philosophy of art have been derived from increasing changes and evolutions. The way in which the human being changes his methods and purposes of creation and even the themes and possible meanings, generate the constant questioning and formulation of concepts that are the province of philosophy.

Representatives and characters within the philosophy of art

Aristotle and other characters have helped the concepts for the understanding of art

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Since ancient times, the conception of art has been a constant theme due to the creative quality of the human being. Multiple important characters in history have made various contributions that made it possible to establish concepts and maintain the necessary information for a better understanding of art.

Many of the ideas have changed, however, there are certain principles in effect today. For example, many of Aristotle's conceptions are considered as classical and therefore taken into account in the search for art.

Plato

While he is not known as the greatest defender of the arts, Plato established some classifications for the arts calling them: imitative, representative and mimetic. He spoke of sculpture and painting as arts that differ from reality, producing a kind of deception. He only established music and poetry as moralizing. Part of Plato's work was based on beauty, which he found not in art but in nature.

Aristotle

Within Aristotle's Poetics, his conception of art can be appreciated, which he considers as mimesis, art as imitation. But far from discrediting, Aristotle considered that art went beyond what nature had achieved.

For the philosopher, imitating was an act inherent in man and that allows him to obtain knowledge. Thus, Aristotle establishes a relationship between learning and imitation. On the other hand, referring to beauty, he does not attribute it directly to art but to the act of imitating itself.

Giorgio vasari

He is considered the first art historian. His great work The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors and Architects is a compendium of biographies of artists classified within what he called "the arts of design." This work includes information on the different processes or techniques used within the arts and ranges from Antiquity to the Middle Ages.

Immanuel Kant

Kant speaks of the liberal arts as representations with content and purpose in themselves, but devoid of an end, although with power for the cultivation of communication within society. The arts like music, painting, and sculpture have a purpose in themselves.

Other characters

There have been more attempts within history to establish some kind of art theory. Dante, Boccaccio and Petrarca made great contributions within the literature of art, among which they established their arguments regarding what they defended as art. Boccaccio, moreover, is considered the first to relate the visual arts to imitating nature.

References

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