Michael Kelly
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231152921
- eISBN:
- 9780231526784
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231152921.003.0004
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Aesthetics
This chapter examines the so-called Salcedo Effect—attributed to Doris Salcedo—in relation to aesthetics. Salcedo is a contemporary artist from Columbia who has created contemplative, public, ...
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This chapter examines the so-called Salcedo Effect—attributed to Doris Salcedo—in relation to aesthetics. Salcedo is a contemporary artist from Columbia who has created contemplative, public, affective spaces that elicit compassion for human victims of violence, suffering, or death. Through her artistic practices, Salcedo has successfully resisted the anti-aesthetic stance even while being identified with it. A sculptor who has exhibited worldwide, Salcedo constructs social sculptures and installations aimed at “giving form to society through art” and integrating political awareness with art. To understand Salcedo's art, the chapter considers the aesthetic strategies she utilizes in her art. It also discusses the anti-aesthetic language prevalent in many discussions of Salcedo's work and explores how Salcedo's artwork enacts suffering and if so, whether it is enough to deem it politically and morally effective—the Salcedo Effect. Finally, it takes into account the role of aesthetics in Salcedo's success.Less
This chapter examines the so-called Salcedo Effect—attributed to Doris Salcedo—in relation to aesthetics. Salcedo is a contemporary artist from Columbia who has created contemplative, public, affective spaces that elicit compassion for human victims of violence, suffering, or death. Through her artistic practices, Salcedo has successfully resisted the anti-aesthetic stance even while being identified with it. A sculptor who has exhibited worldwide, Salcedo constructs social sculptures and installations aimed at “giving form to society through art” and integrating political awareness with art. To understand Salcedo's art, the chapter considers the aesthetic strategies she utilizes in her art. It also discusses the anti-aesthetic language prevalent in many discussions of Salcedo's work and explores how Salcedo's artwork enacts suffering and if so, whether it is enough to deem it politically and morally effective—the Salcedo Effect. Finally, it takes into account the role of aesthetics in Salcedo's success.
Michael Kelly
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231152921
- eISBN:
- 9780231526784
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231152921.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Aesthetics
This book examines the motivations for the critiques that have been applied to the idea of aesthetics and argues that theorists and artists now hunger for a new kind of aesthetics, one better ...
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This book examines the motivations for the critiques that have been applied to the idea of aesthetics and argues that theorists and artists now hunger for a new kind of aesthetics, one better calibrated to contemporary art and its moral and political demands. The book shows how, for decades, aesthetic critiques have often concerned art's treatment of beauty or the autonomy of art. Collectively, these critiques have generated an anti-aesthetic stance that is now prevalent in the contemporary art world. The book considers the aesthetics of Susan Sontag in greater detail. It details how in On Photography (1977), Sontag argues that a photograph of a person who is suffering only aestheticizes the suffering for the viewer's pleasure. It also highlights how Sontag insists in Regarding the Pain of Others (2003) that such a photograph can have a sustainable moral-political effect precisely because of its aesthetics. The book considers this dramatic change to be symptomatic of a cultural shift in our understanding of aesthetics, ethics, and politics. It discusses these issues in connection with Gerhard Richter's and Doris Salcedo's art, which is chosen because it is often identified with the anti-aesthetic, even though it is clearly aesthetic. The book reveals the place of critique in contemporary art and confirms that it is integral to art. Finally, it advocates a critical aesthetics that confirms the limitless power of art.Less
This book examines the motivations for the critiques that have been applied to the idea of aesthetics and argues that theorists and artists now hunger for a new kind of aesthetics, one better calibrated to contemporary art and its moral and political demands. The book shows how, for decades, aesthetic critiques have often concerned art's treatment of beauty or the autonomy of art. Collectively, these critiques have generated an anti-aesthetic stance that is now prevalent in the contemporary art world. The book considers the aesthetics of Susan Sontag in greater detail. It details how in On Photography (1977), Sontag argues that a photograph of a person who is suffering only aestheticizes the suffering for the viewer's pleasure. It also highlights how Sontag insists in Regarding the Pain of Others (2003) that such a photograph can have a sustainable moral-political effect precisely because of its aesthetics. The book considers this dramatic change to be symptomatic of a cultural shift in our understanding of aesthetics, ethics, and politics. It discusses these issues in connection with Gerhard Richter's and Doris Salcedo's art, which is chosen because it is often identified with the anti-aesthetic, even though it is clearly aesthetic. The book reveals the place of critique in contemporary art and confirms that it is integral to art. Finally, it advocates a critical aesthetics that confirms the limitless power of art.
Héctor Hoyos
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231168427
- eISBN:
- 9780231538664
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231168427.003.0006
- Subject:
- Literature, Criticism/Theory
This book has aimed to be an exercise in potentiating, within literary and cultural criticism, the multipolarity promised by the epochal transformations of 1989. It has done this by investigating the ...
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This book has aimed to be an exercise in potentiating, within literary and cultural criticism, the multipolarity promised by the epochal transformations of 1989. It has done this by investigating the Latin American novel's attempts to represent the totality of the world or the intensified interconnection of globalization. It began with the two, connected premises. The first premise led to a valuation of the maladjustment between the world and the work—a call to explore the negativity of this relationship. The second premise led to an appraisal of the historical specificity of post-1989 works, particularly ones from Latin America. The two strands of world and globalization converge in the notion of multipolarism. Many of the arguments that have been put forward in this volume can be synthesized in art: Shibboleth (2007), by Colombian sculptor Doris Salcedo.Less
This book has aimed to be an exercise in potentiating, within literary and cultural criticism, the multipolarity promised by the epochal transformations of 1989. It has done this by investigating the Latin American novel's attempts to represent the totality of the world or the intensified interconnection of globalization. It began with the two, connected premises. The first premise led to a valuation of the maladjustment between the world and the work—a call to explore the negativity of this relationship. The second premise led to an appraisal of the historical specificity of post-1989 works, particularly ones from Latin America. The two strands of world and globalization converge in the notion of multipolarism. Many of the arguments that have been put forward in this volume can be synthesized in art: Shibboleth (2007), by Colombian sculptor Doris Salcedo.
Michael Kelly
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231152921
- eISBN:
- 9780231526784
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231152921.003.0005
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Aesthetics
This book examines the critiques that have been applied to the idea of aesthetics and have often focused on art's treatment of beauty or the autonomy of art, giving rise to an anti-aesthetic stance ...
More
This book examines the critiques that have been applied to the idea of aesthetics and have often focused on art's treatment of beauty or the autonomy of art, giving rise to an anti-aesthetic stance that is now prevalent in the contemporary art world. The book considers the aesthetics of Susan Sontag, who argues in On Photography (1977) that a photograph of a person who is suffering only aestheticizes the suffering for the viewer's pleasure. It also considers Sontag's claim in Regarding the Pain of Others (2003) that such a photograph can have a sustainable moral-political effect precisely because of its aesthetics. The book sees this change as a reflection of a cultural shift in our understanding of aesthetics, ethics, and politics, and explores these issues in connection with the art of Gerhard Richter and Doris Salcedo. In this introduction, the so-called Dewey Effect—a combination of moral and political demands involving apprehension, recognition, and satisfaction—is discussed.Less
This book examines the critiques that have been applied to the idea of aesthetics and have often focused on art's treatment of beauty or the autonomy of art, giving rise to an anti-aesthetic stance that is now prevalent in the contemporary art world. The book considers the aesthetics of Susan Sontag, who argues in On Photography (1977) that a photograph of a person who is suffering only aestheticizes the suffering for the viewer's pleasure. It also considers Sontag's claim in Regarding the Pain of Others (2003) that such a photograph can have a sustainable moral-political effect precisely because of its aesthetics. The book sees this change as a reflection of a cultural shift in our understanding of aesthetics, ethics, and politics, and explores these issues in connection with the art of Gerhard Richter and Doris Salcedo. In this introduction, the so-called Dewey Effect—a combination of moral and political demands involving apprehension, recognition, and satisfaction—is discussed.
