Philosophy Discussion
| What qualifies something to be counted as a work of art? Explain what you understand Arthur Danto’s theory of art to be saying in response to this question and compare and contrast what he says about art with Plato’s conception of art as mimesis (copy, imitation, simulacrum). Be sure to give an account of what Danto means by “the is of artistic identification.” What is your own view about art? If you say that it is all a matter of subjective taste (that “art or beauty is in the eye of the beholder”), then what can be said about the fact that some artworks are worth millions (or hundreds of millions) of dollars, displayed with utmost reverence in museums, galleries and other public venues, while others have little if any monetary value? Why should the opinions of art critics, art historians, philosophers of art, art collectors and art dealers, and even artists themselves matter more than the opinions of those of us who make up the public at large? Maybe you think that they should not matter more, but they do! |
