This coming week we will be examining several important essays in the history of aesthetic thought. In a general way these readings will center around John Dewey's idea that art and aesthetic experience grow directly out of everyday life experiences. Other essays presented next week in class will relate to Dewey's views so that we will look for instance into writings by Okakura on the Japanese tea house as a place for important aesthetic insight. Other reflections by Tanizaki on the subtle power of Asian architectural design will broaden insights from the tea house and apply them to all of nature.
Developing a broad aesthetic view is challenging for an art student because there is a tendency to explore specific kinds of expression and media in art school. This is a natural tendency to stay in an aesthetic comfort zone because it takes real effort and focus to master a media. But following the mastery, the challenge is to broaden again ones view and remain open to other technical and conceptual approaches which can be added to what the student has already gained in terms of aesthetic awareness and artistic mastery.
Broadly based aesthetic readings can help to keep the student open to more media options and artistic world views and that is for the best because it keeps one vital. And of course John Dewey would more than agree with the need for vital art.
Bill
8 comments:
My favorite presentation was Krystal and Nick's discussion of the aesthetic of the Tea Room. I dont know how many people have actually participated in this ceremony but it is definitely an experience. As Westerners, it is almost a completely different experience than that of a medieval samurai. I could tell that the people observing us were getting a laugh out of our inability to sit "seiza" or on our legs folded under us and our surprise at how bitter the traditional green tea tastes. One thing that was not mentioned in the presentation was that the tea ceremony is meant to be used as medicine. I think that as a Zen experience, it does relate to people as medicine. Not just for the body, but particularly for the mind. It resets your thoughts and centers you in a space secluded from the stresses of the outside world. This ideal is not exclusive to Japanese culture but they have definitely brought the practice of relaxation to an artform.
I have to agree with td flynn, in that the most
interesting presentation was that regarding the
"Tea Room". It was a relatively foreign concept
to interpret and communicate to a classroom.
Krystal and Nick did a solid job of breaking down
the essay, from the architectural blueprint (floorplan) to its philosophical origins (Zen Buddhism).
Nick also made good use of the whiteboard, writing
difficult words, in terms of dictation, for our note-taking purposes.
Living in the hectic, fast-paced country that is America, it felt foreign and unusual to spend so
much time learning about the art of relaxation.
If my house was burning down I would grab my Sega Saturn video game system. Even though it doesnt function properly, I have wonderful memories of my childhood attached to it and I would be upset if something were to happen to it.
TD and Bahador,
Thanks for the comments from the reflective nature of the tea room and the very reflective nature of the discussion itself to TD sharing that one of her prized possessions would be a game system.
It may be the case that what you both have in common with the tea room and the game experience is the notion of spending some time outside time. Playing a game or sipping tea can transport one out of the stream of hectic life for at least a moment.
It is also relaxing in class to take the time to consider such aesthetic experiences.
Bill
Speaking of John Dewey... If anyone missed my presentation on his essay last week, here are my notes...
John Dewey: The Aesthetic in Experience
Esthetic experience would not happen in a world that did not move towards a close or a world that is finished. The patterns and spontaneity of life is what seems to keep us in balance. We are more content with knowing and not knowing. If it were one way or the other, there would not be any esthetic experience.
Life interacts with the environment, which can bring us conflict and harmony. The memory of enjoyment and harmony is what gets us through the disturbances. This is a process that never seems to stay one way or the other before long, and that is what life is.
“We have an experience when the material experienced runs its course to fulfillment” (page 47). Experiences are usually of a great importance to us. Through experiencing things there is constant changing and blending. One characteristic in piecing together experiencing something must be extremely dominant to create the experience. We absorb certain aspects from it in order to learn and remember the experience. Experiences are emotional, but they would not be anything if we did not have the time to cherish and reflect on them. They make us feel a certain way because we give them the time to effect us even if it is only for a split second.
Artists perceive a great understanding in what is done and what is to be done. Without an understanding of planning and organization, artists would not be able to complete their work effectively. There is a lot of work in thought process to be done in order to complete a work of art. You must have quite a skill to translate what is in your mind into a piece that others can visually see. Art unites the “relation of doing and undergoing, outgoing and incoming energy, that makes an experience to be an experience” (page 54). There is enjoyment in creating and viewing art, which can both cause great experiences for us. An artist finishes a piece when it is perceived by the maker as being good and when there is contentment in the experience of creating it.
Mandy,
Thanks for publishing your notes they are quite comprehensive as was your presentation. We will keep coming back to Mr. Dewey because his views are so experiential and complete that life is captured in all of it's richness in his aesthetic world view.
Bill
-in response to Bill
Thank you. I hope people can take away something from my interpretation of his writings. Some of these essays are hard to get through alone; so it is nice to have the presentations in class to put everything into our own words and better analyze the works.
The tea room presentation was wonderful. I loved the idea that the way the pine needles fell on the pathway would be the start of the aesthetic experience. When I worked in a fine dining Thai restaurant, I was given very different instructions in how to greet the customers and conduct myself than when I was working in similarly priced French dining. My first job when I got to work and opened was to offer incense to our Buddha and usually some fruit. This always put me in a calm mood before I began my other jobs. This emphasis on tranquility and joy and respect is something I wish was more integrated into our American lives.
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