As a speculative and abstract discipline, philosophy is traditionally considered to be in dialectical tension with physical experience and daily practice. In contrast to this conventional and idealistic perspective, and in line with aesthetics as embodied knowledge, this article attempts to show that not only do we constantly think via gestures, movements, and physical experiences but also that there is no need to disconnect a concept from practice. Passing from Wittgenstein’s idea of “form of life” to the pragmatist aesthetics initiated (...) by Dewey’s idea of “art as experience,” I propose an analysis of the philosophical framework of postmodern dance (Yvonne Rainer) and of Happenings (Allan Kaprow), in order to underline the theoretical and conceptual research that is already at work in the field of contemporary art practice, the latter being understood as a sensorial dimension intrinsically linked to ordinary life. My general argument is that gestures, which are an inescapable and vital part of everyday life, can be foregrounded by certain artistic practices without corrupting or theatricalizing their ordinariness. (shrink)

Reimagining Eroticism through Embodied Aesthetics: A Feminist Reading 1. The Epistemological and Ethical Aspects of the Arts of Love In the debate of contemporary thought and its intersections with philosophy, aesthetics, and the politics of the self, Richard Shusterman’s Ars Erotica (AE) makes a significant and inspiring contribution. The book delves into the intricate relationship between aesthetics and eroticism, offering a unique perspective on the relation between the ancient notion of d...

Inspired by the text entitled The Collapse of the Fact/Value Dichotomy and Other Essays (2004) of Hilary Putnam, the volume focuses on the theory and practice of knowledge, but one can legitimately extend it to other fields, most especially in aesthetics. Certain observable features in the fields of aesthetics, practice and artistic creation show that old evaluation criteria may now be obsolete. This is because upon further consideration, the definition of value remains opaque : should the artwork be judged according (...) to its moral value, its market value, or its formal value ? To side with or against the concept of value in art and aesthetics does not preclude a certain number of differences concerning the very nature of what is meant by value. If traditionally the ‘fact’ was the work, taken in all its tangibility, currently the materiality of the object no longer seems to play such a major role. Art is increasingly populated by so-called ‘immaterial’ or ‘ephemeral’ works and is therefore rarely, or badly, quantifiable according to old aesthetic and economic evaluation criteria. The progressively pragmatic contextualization of works within the social space puts forward a new definition of aesthetic value, no longer eternal and ideal, but rather anchored in the sensible and the politico-economic issues of a culturally specific situation. The current changes too support the idea that the question of ‘value’ and its confrontation with the concept of ‘fact’ is urgent. What role do artistic practices and aesthetic theories play ? A role of emancipation, of liberation, escape, or transformation ? Or on the contrary, could art become another means to subject individuals to the status quo ? As can easily be noticed, the question of maintaining or rejecting the dichotomy of facts and values is at the heart of the most pressing issues. (shrink)

Résumé À l’inverse d’une thèse de la disparition de l’œuvre – thèse soutenue de la plupart de théories autour de l’art performance (Peggy Phelan, Thierry De Duve) –, cet article défend la thèse d’une itérabilité des gestes du corps et se focalise sur ce qui se conserve lors du passage de l’expérience, lorsque la performance cesse. On remarque ainsi que cette conservation ne repose en rien sur l’idée d’un maintien à l’identique, mais épouse plutôt une logique de la transformation. À (...) la suite de Derrida, il s’agit de mettre en place une pratique de la déconstruction et de dépasser les limites de l’ontologie de la présence, laquelle reste intimement liée aux principes de la théorie de la mimesis. Les concepts de « restauration » (Richard Schechner) et de « re-enactment » (Rebecca Schneider) s’avèrent utiles afin de comprendre le statut paradoxal des arts de performance : un ensemble de gestes du corps qui demeurent profondément citationnels, et qui oscillent entre l’absence absolue et la répétition. (shrink)

Que ce soit dans la vie quotidienne ou dans l'art, le geste se confronte toujours à l'œuvre dont il est la cause. Or que se passe-t-il quand le geste est œuvre? Quand œuvrer n'est plus réduit à un résultat objectif mais maintenu intact dans son état de faire? Une ouverture sur une complexité théorique du geste et de ses possibilités chorégraphiques s'affirme. Les textes réunis dans ce recueil défendent la pertinence de l'idée de geste et en décrivent la méthode: l'intempestif, (...) l'impersonnel, l'incidence. Geste à l'œuvre maintient les gestes dans leur caractère intrinsèquement pluriel: un geste se compose en effet d'une myriade de micro-gestes, d'une somme incalculable d'ajustements corporels qui viennent former imperceptiblement ce qui apparaît comme un geste. L'unité fragile de ce dernier se dissout dans une infinitude potentielle de petits gestes. Ces essais explorent ce potentiel en pratiquant le croisement de multiples, pratiques gestuelles dans le champ de l'art et de la théorie philosophique. Quand le geste est œuvre cette dernière ne disparaît pas pour autant: elle existe en tant que processus et expérience. Ainsi les différentes disciplines convoquées ici placent l'œuvre dans le geste et mettent le geste à l'œuvre. Voici donc ce qui constitue à la fois la problématique et le parti de cet ouvrage: rendre compte des gestes, de l'actualité tangible du faire et de l'identification possible entre le concept de geste et celui d'œuvre d'art. (shrink)

In this paper, I propose some philosophical reflections arising from the encounter with a work of art, namely the Squatting Aphrodite, which is one of the Roman copies that is held in the same room as the Venus de Milo in the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. From the description of this artwork and the effect it has on the spectator, I draw three main consequences: the conceptual difference between ordinary sensibility and everyday aesthetics; the criticism of aesthetic conformity, and (...) the political implications of adopting an ordinary perspective towards aesthetic experience. (shrink)

In this paper, I propose some philosophical reflections arising from the encounter with a work of art, namely the _Squatting Aphrodite_, which is one of the Roman copies that is held in the same room as the _Venus de Milo _in the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. From the description of this artwork and the effect it has on the spectator, I draw three main consequences: the conceptual difference between ordinary sensibility and everyday aesthetics; the criticism of aesthetic conformity, and (...) the political implications of adopting an ordinary perspective towards aesthetic experience. (shrink)