The purpose of this paper is to study the philosophy of Avicenna, in order to identify his thoughts and reflections regarding aesthetics. We will try to analyze several texts in which he treated the notion of beauty. This analysis will allow us to compare the aesthetics of Avicenna with its main origins, namely Aristotelianism and Neoplatonism. Then, the detailed presentation of his aesthetic reflections will show us that his contributions to subjects relating to beauty, perfection, and aesthetic delight bear some (...) originality which, despite the determining influence of Neoplatonism, has its own independent voice. The latter is the case, since these originalities are the results of a hybridization of two great philosophical schools, namely Aristotelianism and Neoplatonism. (shrink)

This paper explores some issues concerning the ontology of photography. It would appear that photography’s ontology bears some significant specificities comparing with other art forms. First, the study of negative film and printed photograph relations shows us that photography has a multi-layered ontology, since although the latter is ontologically dependent upon the former, it stands autonomously as work of art. Second, I will consider the problem of forgery in photography. It seems that photographs are autographic and allographic, fakeable and unfakeable. (...) Third, ontological status of negative film will be explored. Apparently, current ontological categories aren’t pertinent as far as negative-photograph’s ontology is concerned. That’s why, relying on Gérard Genette ontological notions, I propose to consider the negative film as «immanence» and the printed photograph as work’s «transcendence». In this regard, printed photograph functions as a manifestation of the negative film. (shrink)