Abstract
This paper examines how the Grece-Roman concept of sublimity became related to ancient and modern aesthetics and art criticism, focusing on Longinus’ Peri Hypsous (Περὶ ὕψους). In the phases of modern reception, Longinus’ treatise became grafted to the abstract concept on the sublime and the matter of cognition. However, Longinus’ main concern is not revealing the fundamental nature of the objects, but teaching of grandeur style to manifest the sublime, providing guidelines on verbal and visual expression. He insists that we employ art in a fitting way to assist nature in order to ensure perfection. For Longinus, Plato and classical Greek writers are the ideal examples of such a task. By comparisons of visual arts and literature, he pursues transcendence grandeur over technical accuracy. Modern ideas on the ancient concept of the sublime is bound to the fragmentary state of written sources. And we also heavily rely on the texts of ancient authors to detect how the concept of the sublime was materialized and evaluated in visual arts at that time, as most of the original artworks were lost. Paradoxically, such facts tell us that the ancient texts of literary criticism took crucial part in the development of art practice and criticism. Written texts of ancient authors were educational media, providing a paradigm of judgment for contemporary and later critics. The ‘technologia’ of Longinus requires careful inspection not only for the ancient concept of the sublime but also for the relationship between ancient rhetoric and visual art criticism.
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2024 Special Focus—-Art for Sustenance
KEYWORDS
Longinus’ Concept, Grece-Roman concept, Art Assisting Nature
