Abstract
The question “What is art?” is a commonplace of basic discussions – and courses - of art and aesthetics. A less common – but more interesting – formulation inquires what it means when we ask what it is that an artist (broadly understood) creates when they create a work of art. Instead, such inquiries have frequently defaulted since the time of Plato to discussions involving mimesis, the relation of art to reality, what constitutes beauty and how it is to be evaluated, or aspects of psychology or cultural significance. To be sure, all such aspects are (in fact) relevant – but is that what an artist sets out to accomplish, and is that what the viewer, reader, or listener seeks? Although a brilliant and entertaining writer, one wonders if Plato ever gave genuine concerted – non-polemical – thought to the mechanics and purposes of that craft; investigations that might have better colored his aesthetics. As the Middle Ages began to wane, Giovanni Boccaccio (1313–1375) - a practicing writer and under-recognized theoretician – brought a poet’s consideration to such matters. Scattered amongst his writings, Boccaccio’s brief observations on the crafting of poems and paintings help shed light upon the creative endeavor, its products, and their meaning(s). Leveraging thoughts from Boccaccio, plus modern theorists and semioticians, the author presents a portrait of the purpose, mechanics, atmospherics, and importance of artistic creation that challenges conventional aesthetic principles rooted (still) in essentially Platonistic and Albertian sources.
Presenters
James CallaghanSenior International Officer, Assistant Vice-President for International Education, Academic Affairs, Georgia College & State University (Georgia College), Georgia, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Communications and Linguistic Studies
KEYWORDS
Aesthetics, Art, Art History, Creativity, Semiotics
