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How do you judge a work of art? That may depend on the context
and the philosophy(ies) of aesthetics that are applied. Aesthetics
may vary in different cultures and different time periods.
1. IMITATION – MIMETICISM
2. EMOTIONS – EXPRESSIVISM
4. EXPERIENCE – INSTRUMENTALISM
5. IDEA – CONCEPTUALISM
Found in contemporary art, aesthetics and even technique are
discarded in favor of the idea being the most important.
6. FUNCTION – FUNCTIONALISM
Art for art’s sake has little or no value. Art works are used in
rituals or have a meaningful, useful, practical purpose, other than
pure aesthetic pleasure.
FORMALISM
ART AS EXPRESSION
The expression theory of art virtually replaced the
mimentic. The concept of expression is paired with with
that of emotion, and although connection of art with feeling
cannot consist of a straightforward equation of art with the
communication of emotion, the expression theory of art
seeks to offer a sophisticated and persuasive account of the
central place of emotion in art.
Collingwood
Collingwood regards artistic expression as a special form
of self-expression.
Artistic expression is a process in which the artist begins with
an indefinite emotional state, for which he wishes to find a
uniquely appropriate concrete articulation, and in so
doing transforms his mental state into something definite,
tangible, and intelligible. The work created by the artist does
not describe his state of mind so much as incorporate it,
somewhat in the way that bodily expressions such as smiles
and grimaces embody mental life.
Because expression is not undertaken with any further end
in view - it is, so to speak, its own end - artistic creation
contrasts with instrumental activities, in which means and
ends are distinct, which Collingwood calls craft and opposes
to art proper.
By giving primacy to the perspective of the artist rather than
(as on the mimetic and formalist theories) that of the
audience, the expression theory offers an interpretation of
Hegel's intriguing and attractive claim that the mind
'recognises' itself in works of art: According to the expression
theory, works of art do not merely exhibit mental features,
they, as it were, contain mind.
A natural development of Collingwood's view is to say that
the expression theory regards audience as retracing the
route pursued by the artist: The audience's appreciation re-
enacts the artist's creative process and thereby 'retrieves'
his psychological state.
ART AS MIMESIS
The object of mimesis (imitation, copying, or representation) is usually identified
with nature, by which is meant not only physical nature, and includes human
nature. Although some art appears to be non-representational, the mimetic
theorist may contend otherwise: In antiquity it was thought, for example, that
music imitates the harmony and order of the cosmos and the soul.
The values connected conceptually with representation are cognitive, truth-
orientated values such as accuracy and comprehensiveness. These have an
important role in art - verisimilitude of plot and characterization evidently matter
greatly in literature - but it is hard to see that truth encapsulates the interest
of art.
The question remains: Can the mimetic say what it is about art that enables it to
represent its (ideal, typical) subjects in a way that is aesthetically
rewarding?
http://wwar.com/masters/movements/conceptualism.html