Going to the CAA Conference this year? Stop by Salon C-6 at 2 PM on February 13th to watch me spend 7 minutes defending beauty within contemporary art. See the abstract and more details below…
A CASE FOR BEAUTY:
A Case for Beauty presents a critique of Arthur C. Danto's 2003 book, The Abuse of Beauty, from the perspective of a working artist and art educator. Danto's argument that a work of art’s meaning can never be fully determined outside its social political context, that “aesthetic attributes do not stand alone,” bears massive relevance today. However, Danto’s implication that artists cannot wield beauty in service of social progress feels short-sighted. The diverse practices of Nick Cave, Kerry James Marshall, and Joan Semmel offer just a few examples of how contemporary artists do employ beauty in works that pointedly address social politics. Beauty’s unique power to compel an audience to see and consider an image carries radical potential. Beauty today may act as a Trojan horse, a lure for transmitting to viewers the messages and questions that can inspire positive action.
