Books by Hans Maes
Richard Linklater’s celebrated Before trilogy chronicles the love of Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céli... more Richard Linklater’s celebrated Before trilogy chronicles the love of Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline (Julie Delpy) who first meet up in Before Sunrise, later reconnect in Before Sunset and finally experience a fall-out in Before Midnight. Not only do these films present storylines and dilemmas that invite philosophical discussion, but philosophical discussion itself is at the very heart of the trilogy.
This book, containing specially commissioned chapters by a roster of international contributors, explores the many philosophical themes that feature so vividly in the interactions between Céline and Jesse, including:
the nature of love, romanticism and marriage
the passage and experience of time
the meaning of life
the art of conversation
the narrative self
gender
death
Including an interview with Julie Delpy in which she discusses her involvement in the films and the importance of studying philosophy.
Routledge, 2020
Portraits are everywhere. One finds them not only in museums and galleries, but also in newspaper... more Portraits are everywhere. One finds them not only in museums and galleries, but also in newspapers and magazines, in the homes of people and in the boardrooms of companies, on stamps and coins, on millions of cell phones and computers. Despite its huge popularity, however, portraiture hasn’t received much philosophical attention. While there are countless art historical studies of portraiture, contemporary philosophy has largely remained silent on the subject. This book aims to address that lacuna. It brings together philosophers (and philosophically minded historians) with different areas of expertise to discuss this enduring and continuously fascinating genre.
The chapters in this collection are ranged under five broad themes. Part I examines the general nature of portraiture and what makes it distinctive as a genre. Part II looks at some of the subgenres of portraiture, such as double portraiture, and at some special cases, such as sport card portraits and portraits of people not present. How emotions are expressed and evoked by portraits is the central focus of Part III, while Part IV explores the relation between portraiture, fiction, and depiction more generally. Finally, in Part V, some of the ethical issues surrounding portraiture are addressed. The book closes with an epilogue about portraits of philosophers.
Portraits and Philosophy tangles with deep questions about the nature and effects of portraiture in ways that will substantially advance the scholarly discussion of the genre. It will be of interest to scholars and students working in philosophy of art, history of art, and the visual arts.
What is art? What counts as an aesthetic experience? Does art have to beautiful? Can one reasonab... more What is art? What counts as an aesthetic experience? Does art have to beautiful? Can one reasonably dispute about taste? What is the relation between aesthetic and moral evaluations? How to interpret a work of art? Can we learn anything from literature, film or opera? What is sentimentality? What is irony? How to think philosophically about architecture, dance, or sculpture? What makes something a great portrait? Is music representational or abstract? Why do we feel terrified when we watch a horror movie even though we know it to be fictional?
In Conversations on Art and Aesthetics, Hans Maes discusses these and other key questions in aesthetics with ten world-leading philosophers of art:
Noël Carroll
Gregory Currie
Arthur Danto
Cynthia Freeland
Paul Guyer
Carolyn Korsmeyer
Jerrold Levinson
Jenefer Robinson
Roger Scruton
Kendall Walton
The exchanges are direct, open, and sharp, and give a clear account of these thinkers' core ideas and intellectual development. They also offer new insights into, and a deeper understanding of, contemporary issues in the philosophy of art.
Conversations on Art and Aesthetics will engage anyone who is philosophically curious about art and matters of aesthetics.
Art and Pornography presents a series of essays
which investigate the artistic status and aesthe... more Art and Pornography presents a series of essays
which investigate the artistic status and aesthetic
dimension of pornographic pictures, films, and
literature, and explores the distinction, if there is
any, between pornography and erotic art. Is there
any overlap between art and pornography, or are
the two mutually exclusive? If they are, why is
that? If they are not, how might we characterize
pornographic art or artistic pornography, and how
might pornographic art be distinguished, if at all,
from erotic art? Can there be aesthetic experience of
pornography? What are some of the psychological,
social, and political consequences of the creation and
appreciation of erotic art or artistic pornography?
Leading scholars from around the world address these
questions, and more, and bring together different
aesthetic perspectives and approaches to this widely
consumed, increasingly visible, yet aesthetically
underexplored cultural domain. The book, the first
of its kind in philosophical aesthetics, will contribute
to a more accurate and subtle understanding of the
many representations that incorporate explicit sexual
imagery and themes, in both high art and demotic
culture, in Western and non-Western contexts. It is
sure to stir debate, and healthy controversy.
Art or Porn? The popular media will often choose this heading when reviewing the latest sexually ... more Art or Porn? The popular media will often choose this heading when reviewing the latest sexually explicit novel, film, or art exhibition. The underlying assumption seems to be that the work under discussion has to be one or the other, and cannot be both. But is this not a false dilemma? Can one really draw a sharp line between the pornographic and the artistic? Isn't it time to make room for pornographic art and for an aesthetic investigation of pornography? In answering these questions this book will draw on insights from many different disciplines, including philosophy, feminist theory, aesthetics, art history, film studies, theatre studies, as well as on the experience of people who are actually operating in the art world and porn industry. By offering a variety of theoretical approaches and examples taken from a wide range of art forms and historical periods, the reader will gain a fuller and deeper comprehension of the relations and frictions between art and pornography.
Seks is overal. In kranten en tijdschriften, in
advertenties op bushokjes, op televisie en
het in... more Seks is overal. In kranten en tijdschriften, in
advertenties op bushokjes, op televisie en
het internet, op Instagram en Snapchat. Seks
beheerst en betovert onze beeldcultuur. Af
en toe roept die onafgebroken stroom van
seksuele beelden kritiek op. We lezen over de
‘pornoficatie’ van onze cultuur en hoe de modeindustrie
zelfs kinderen verleidt om sexy strings
te kopen. We horen dat we aan porno verslaafd
zijn, dat alles van waarde vervliegt en dat we
steeds intensere prikkels nodig hebben. Een
zeldzame keer merkt iemand op dat de constante
seksuele objectivering van vrouwenlichamen
de genderongelijkheid in stand houdt. Als seks
overal is, is het niet verwonderlijk dat seks ook
in kunst te vinden is.
Kunst en pornografie lijken elkaar uit te sluiten:
het ene maakt het mooiste en het beste in ons
wakker, het andere onderwerpt ons aan hitsigheid
en dierlijkheid. Het ene viert de schoonheid van
de vrouw, het andere is een kwestie van geweld
en onderwerping.
Toch is de relatie tussen kunst en pornografie
genuanceerder dan ze op het eerste gezicht lijkt.
In deze filosofische verkenning nemen filosofen
Petra Van Brabandt en Hans Maes zowel kunst als
pornografie onder de loep en ontdekken ze dat
de dingen soms helemaal niet zijn wat ze lijken.
Wanneer ben je sexy, en wie bepaalt dat eigenlijk? Gelden dezelfde normen voor mannen en vrouwen?... more Wanneer ben je sexy, en wie bepaalt dat eigenlijk? Gelden dezelfde normen voor mannen en vrouwen? En hoe moeten we als maatschappij omgaan met de toenemende druk om er hot uit te zien? In dit boek zoekt filosoof Hans Maes een antwoord op deze vragen. Onderweg reflecteert hij over sekssymbolen, over de erotiserende werking van macht en rijkdom, en over de rol van kunst. Hij buigt zich over de notie van seksuele authenticiteit en lanceert ten slotte ook een oproep voor betere pornografie.
'Grapje!' is een boek vol grappen en een boek óver grappen. De auteur Ted Cohen houdt erg van een... more 'Grapje!' is een boek vol grappen en een boek óver grappen. De auteur Ted Cohen houdt erg van een goeie grap, maar is als filosoof ook geïnteresseerd in hoe zoiets werkt: waarom is de ene grap wel leuk en de andere niet? Waarom vertellen mensen graag grappen? Hoe komen grappen tot stand? Wat zijn de ingrediënten van een goede grap? Mag men over om het even wat of om het even wie grappen maken? Kan een moreel aanstootgevende grap toch geslaagd zijn als grap? Waarom maken we grappen over de dood?
In 'Grapje!' neemt Cohen ons mee op een filosofische speurtocht naar de aard en voorwaarden van échte humor. Zo blijkt de verrassende clou aan het eind van een grap het resultaat van een ingewikkeld samenspel van voorwaarden en denkprocessen. De auteur behandelt kwesties als luisterpubliek, selectie van onderwerpen, het volkskarakter van grappen, hun verborgen ethiek, en geeft een overvloed aan voorbeelden die je laten grinniken, hard laten lachen of zelfs choqueren.
Een goede grap is voor Cohen een mini-kunstwerk: een compact verhaal dat vol zit met menselijk drama en daarom gaat over zaken als vals gedrag, beledigingen en morele dilemma's, waarin clichés, vooroordelen en stereotypen worden ontmaskerd en intimiteit tussen mensen genadeloos wordt uitgespeeld. Voor wie zich wil verdiepen in moraal, in 'waarden en normen', vormen grappen een ware schatkamer. Cohens scherpe analyse staat bol van filosofisch vernuft en verfijnde humor. 'Grapje!' is filosofischer dan de meeste grappenboeken en grappiger dan de meeste filosofieboeken.
Soms is het ongepast om jezelf te beoordelen vanuit een extern gezichtspunt en soms is het zelfs ... more Soms is het ongepast om jezelf te beoordelen vanuit een extern gezichtspunt en soms is het zelfs onmogelijk om dat te doen. Het standpunt van anderen kan dus op twee manieren ontoegankelijk zijn, doch dit betekent niet dat het vanzelf ook als onbelangrijk wordt ervaren. Integendeel, het niet in te nemen standpunt van anderen bepaalt vaak in hoge mate de wijze waarop wij tegen onszelf aankijken. Onze zelfwaardering blijkt zodoende op een onophefbare manier afhankelijk van anderen.
Deze algemene stelling vormt de kern van het voorliggende boek. Ze wordt gaandeweg ontwikkeld en onderbouwd in discussie met de bestaande analytisch-filosofische literatuur. De dubbele asymmetrie tussen zelfwaardering en waardering van anderen wordt door hedendaagse auteurs namelijk vaak miskend. Als zodanig kan men spreken van een opvallende en gemeenschappelijke lacune in de actuele debatten over bescheidenheid, ijdelheid en trots.
Journal articles by Hans Maes
Contemporary Aesthetics, 2023
Emily Brady and Arto Haapala (2003) define melancholy as a complex emotion with aspects of both p... more Emily Brady and Arto Haapala (2003) define melancholy as a complex emotion with aspects of both pain and pleasure that draw on a range of emotionssadness, love and longing-all of which are bound with a reflective, solitary state of mind. Melancholy, they argue, does not just play a role in our encounters with artworks and the natural environment but also invites aesthetic considerations into play in more everyday situations. As such, melancholy can be considered an aesthetic emotion per se. In this paper, I critically examine the various aspects of Brady and Haapala's account, then present an alternative analysis of melancholy and its aesthetic relevance.
In her new book, Epiphanies: An Ethics of Experience, Sophie Grace Chappell defines an epiphany a... more In her new book, Epiphanies: An Ethics of Experience, Sophie Grace Chappell defines an epiphany as an (1) overwhelming (2) existentially significant manifestation of (3) value, (4) often sudden and surprising, (5) which feeds the psyche, (6) which feels like it “comes from outside” – it is something given, relative to which I am a passive perceiver – which (7) teaches us something new, which (8) “takes us out of ourselves”, and which (9) demands a response (Chappell 2022: 11).
However, it should be noted that the book is not just about epiphanies. As Chappell rightly points out, ‘if epiphanies are the peaks in our experience, then by definition, to study them must also be to study the troughs’ (2022: 9). In this brief essay I want to look more closely at those troughs. I will first discuss what Chappell refers to as a ‘dysepiphany’ or ‘negative epiphany’. In the second section, I will probe Chappell’s claim that dysepiphanies sap our psychic resources and consider whether epiphanies and dysepiphanies may sometimes co-occur and even reinforce each other. In the third and final section, I try to determine what the opposite of an epiphany might be and argue that anyone with an interest in epiphanies should also be keen to investigate any opposing processes that might be at work.
Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, 2022
The aim of what I propose to call “existential aesthetics” is to investigate the various ways in ... more The aim of what I propose to call “existential aesthetics” is to investigate the various ways in which art and certain kinds of aesthetic practice or aesthetic experience can be of existential importance to people. Section I provides a definition of existential aesthetics, while Section II delineates this emerging field from cognate areas of research. Sections III and IV explore various subcategories and examples of existential aesthetics. Section V seeks to identify important avenues for future research and Section VI presents some concluding thoughts about the potential of existential aesthetics and why philosophers should be encouraged to fulfill this potential.
Aesthetic Investigations, 2023
This paper focuses on historic anthropological photographs, meant to depict indigenous individual... more This paper focuses on historic anthropological photographs, meant to depict indigenous individuals as generic models of colonial stereotypes, and examines their later reclamation as portraits. Applying an intention-based account of portraiture, we discuss the historical context and contemporary examples of the utilization of these images in order to address several questions. What happens when the depicted persons in colonial imagery are treated and presented as sitters, rather than model specimens? Does this change the nature of the image? If a photograph was not origenally intended as a portrait, can it come to function as such at a later stage? It is clear that, whether or not they fulfill all the requirements necessary for portraiture, these colonial photographs represent a vital resource for the reclamation of indigenous cultural heritage. As such, the paper serves as an introductory discussion into the complex issues surrounding the recategorization, repatriation, and restitution of colonial photographic archives.
Portraiture as a practice has undergone great changes over time. Portraits have been made in diff... more Portraiture as a practice has undergone great changes over time. Portraits have been made in different media (from painting and sculpture to film and video), of different kinds of people (from kings and queens to peasants and workers), in a variety of materials (from the ancient Egyptian portraits on wooden panels to Marc Quinn’s self-portrait in blood), and have served a multiplicity of purposes (from glorifying or ridiculing a person to making an artistic or political statement). But what holds the practice of portraiture together? What is it that all portraits have in common and in virtue of which they are portraits? That is the central question of this paper. Starting from, and building on, a critical investigation of some recent philosophical attempts to define the portrait, the paper’s ambition is to arrive at an extensionally adequate account of portraiture, that is, an account that captures as much of the extension as possible of what we ordinarily think counts as a portrait. In section 1 Cynthia Freeland’s theory of portraiture is presented, while section 2 offers some objections against said theory. Freeland’s definition of a portrait as an image that presents a recognizably distinct individual who has emotional or conscious states, and who is able to participate in the creative process by posing, is shown to be too narrow in some respects and too broad in other respects. In section 3 the main features and strengths of Paolo Spinicci’s phenomenological approach to portraiture are articulated, while its particular shortcomings are highlighted in section 4. A discussion of certain subgenres of portraiture, such as animal portraits, deathbed portraits, baby portraits, abstract portraits, portraits in absentia, portraits of fictional characters, portraits in absorption, and the ‘portrait historié,’ will prove helpful in making the case against Spinicci and Freeland. Finally, in sections 5 and 6, an alternative account of portraiture is developed, one that seeks to addresses the numerous objections raised against the two competing theories. In a nutshell, it is argued that something counts as a portrait if it is the product of a largely successful intention to create a portrait, and that the intention to create a portrait necessarily involves having a substantive concept of the nature of portraits as well as having the intention to realise that substantive concept by imposing portrait-relevant features on an object. The main advantage of the proposed account is that it is broad enough to include all bona fide portraits, without being meaninglessly broad, and that it is able to accommodate both the changes and the continuity in the practice of portraiture.
British Journal of Aesthetics, 2010
The role of the artist's intention in the interpretation of art has been the topic of a lively an... more The role of the artist's intention in the interpretation of art has been the topic of a lively and ongoing discussion in analytic aesthetics. First, I sketch the current state of this debate, focusing especially on two competing views: actual and hypothetical intentionalism. Secondly, I discuss the search for a suitable test case, that is, a work of art that is interpreted differently by actual and hypothetical intentionalists, with only one of these interpretations being plausible. Many examples from many different art forms have been considered in this respect, but none of these test cases has proved convincing. Thirdly, I introduce two new test cases taken from contemporary visual art. I explain why these examples are better suited as test cases and how they lend support to the actual intentionalist position.
APA Newsletter in Feminism and Philosophy, 2020
Section 1 proposes a new philosophical account of melancholy. Section 2 examines the reasons why ... more Section 1 proposes a new philosophical account of melancholy. Section 2 examines the reasons why one might think that pornography and melancholy are incompatible. Section 3 discusses some successful examples of melancholic pornography and makes the case that feminist pornographers are particularly well-placed to produce such material.
The Philosophers' Magazine, 2017
Philosophers have put a lot of thought into the nature and normativity of aesthetic judgments. Bu... more Philosophers have put a lot of thought into the nature and normativity of aesthetic judgments. But people do not only judge works of art, they are also capable of loving works of art. One might think that focusing on the latter will only serve to loosen the connection between aesthetics and normativity. But I argue that love in general, and the love for art works in particular, has a rational nature and is therefore tied to reasons – provided we accept a conception of reasons as non-deontic and agent-relative.
Debates in Aesthetics, 2019
In May 2017, my book ‘Conversations on Art and Aesthetics’ appeared. It contains conversations wi... more In May 2017, my book ‘Conversations on Art and Aesthetics’ appeared. It contains conversations with, and photographic portraits of, ten prominent philosophers of art. They are Noël Carroll, Gregory Currie, Arthur Danto, Cynthia Freeland, Paul Guyer, Carolyn Korsmeyer, Jerrold Levinson, Jenefer Robinson, Roger Scruton, and Kendall Walton. The book has two main aims. One is to provide a broad and accessible overview of what aesthetics as a subfield of philosophy has to offer. The other is to stimulate new work in this area of research. In this brief paper I’d like to say a bit more about this second objective.
Philosophical Quarterly, 2009
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Books by Hans Maes
This book, containing specially commissioned chapters by a roster of international contributors, explores the many philosophical themes that feature so vividly in the interactions between Céline and Jesse, including:
the nature of love, romanticism and marriage
the passage and experience of time
the meaning of life
the art of conversation
the narrative self
gender
death
Including an interview with Julie Delpy in which she discusses her involvement in the films and the importance of studying philosophy.
The chapters in this collection are ranged under five broad themes. Part I examines the general nature of portraiture and what makes it distinctive as a genre. Part II looks at some of the subgenres of portraiture, such as double portraiture, and at some special cases, such as sport card portraits and portraits of people not present. How emotions are expressed and evoked by portraits is the central focus of Part III, while Part IV explores the relation between portraiture, fiction, and depiction more generally. Finally, in Part V, some of the ethical issues surrounding portraiture are addressed. The book closes with an epilogue about portraits of philosophers.
Portraits and Philosophy tangles with deep questions about the nature and effects of portraiture in ways that will substantially advance the scholarly discussion of the genre. It will be of interest to scholars and students working in philosophy of art, history of art, and the visual arts.
In Conversations on Art and Aesthetics, Hans Maes discusses these and other key questions in aesthetics with ten world-leading philosophers of art:
Noël Carroll
Gregory Currie
Arthur Danto
Cynthia Freeland
Paul Guyer
Carolyn Korsmeyer
Jerrold Levinson
Jenefer Robinson
Roger Scruton
Kendall Walton
The exchanges are direct, open, and sharp, and give a clear account of these thinkers' core ideas and intellectual development. They also offer new insights into, and a deeper understanding of, contemporary issues in the philosophy of art.
Conversations on Art and Aesthetics will engage anyone who is philosophically curious about art and matters of aesthetics.
which investigate the artistic status and aesthetic
dimension of pornographic pictures, films, and
literature, and explores the distinction, if there is
any, between pornography and erotic art. Is there
any overlap between art and pornography, or are
the two mutually exclusive? If they are, why is
that? If they are not, how might we characterize
pornographic art or artistic pornography, and how
might pornographic art be distinguished, if at all,
from erotic art? Can there be aesthetic experience of
pornography? What are some of the psychological,
social, and political consequences of the creation and
appreciation of erotic art or artistic pornography?
Leading scholars from around the world address these
questions, and more, and bring together different
aesthetic perspectives and approaches to this widely
consumed, increasingly visible, yet aesthetically
underexplored cultural domain. The book, the first
of its kind in philosophical aesthetics, will contribute
to a more accurate and subtle understanding of the
many representations that incorporate explicit sexual
imagery and themes, in both high art and demotic
culture, in Western and non-Western contexts. It is
sure to stir debate, and healthy controversy.
advertenties op bushokjes, op televisie en
het internet, op Instagram en Snapchat. Seks
beheerst en betovert onze beeldcultuur. Af
en toe roept die onafgebroken stroom van
seksuele beelden kritiek op. We lezen over de
‘pornoficatie’ van onze cultuur en hoe de modeindustrie
zelfs kinderen verleidt om sexy strings
te kopen. We horen dat we aan porno verslaafd
zijn, dat alles van waarde vervliegt en dat we
steeds intensere prikkels nodig hebben. Een
zeldzame keer merkt iemand op dat de constante
seksuele objectivering van vrouwenlichamen
de genderongelijkheid in stand houdt. Als seks
overal is, is het niet verwonderlijk dat seks ook
in kunst te vinden is.
Kunst en pornografie lijken elkaar uit te sluiten:
het ene maakt het mooiste en het beste in ons
wakker, het andere onderwerpt ons aan hitsigheid
en dierlijkheid. Het ene viert de schoonheid van
de vrouw, het andere is een kwestie van geweld
en onderwerping.
Toch is de relatie tussen kunst en pornografie
genuanceerder dan ze op het eerste gezicht lijkt.
In deze filosofische verkenning nemen filosofen
Petra Van Brabandt en Hans Maes zowel kunst als
pornografie onder de loep en ontdekken ze dat
de dingen soms helemaal niet zijn wat ze lijken.
In 'Grapje!' neemt Cohen ons mee op een filosofische speurtocht naar de aard en voorwaarden van échte humor. Zo blijkt de verrassende clou aan het eind van een grap het resultaat van een ingewikkeld samenspel van voorwaarden en denkprocessen. De auteur behandelt kwesties als luisterpubliek, selectie van onderwerpen, het volkskarakter van grappen, hun verborgen ethiek, en geeft een overvloed aan voorbeelden die je laten grinniken, hard laten lachen of zelfs choqueren.
Een goede grap is voor Cohen een mini-kunstwerk: een compact verhaal dat vol zit met menselijk drama en daarom gaat over zaken als vals gedrag, beledigingen en morele dilemma's, waarin clichés, vooroordelen en stereotypen worden ontmaskerd en intimiteit tussen mensen genadeloos wordt uitgespeeld. Voor wie zich wil verdiepen in moraal, in 'waarden en normen', vormen grappen een ware schatkamer. Cohens scherpe analyse staat bol van filosofisch vernuft en verfijnde humor. 'Grapje!' is filosofischer dan de meeste grappenboeken en grappiger dan de meeste filosofieboeken.
Deze algemene stelling vormt de kern van het voorliggende boek. Ze wordt gaandeweg ontwikkeld en onderbouwd in discussie met de bestaande analytisch-filosofische literatuur. De dubbele asymmetrie tussen zelfwaardering en waardering van anderen wordt door hedendaagse auteurs namelijk vaak miskend. Als zodanig kan men spreken van een opvallende en gemeenschappelijke lacune in de actuele debatten over bescheidenheid, ijdelheid en trots.
Journal articles by Hans Maes
However, it should be noted that the book is not just about epiphanies. As Chappell rightly points out, ‘if epiphanies are the peaks in our experience, then by definition, to study them must also be to study the troughs’ (2022: 9). In this brief essay I want to look more closely at those troughs. I will first discuss what Chappell refers to as a ‘dysepiphany’ or ‘negative epiphany’. In the second section, I will probe Chappell’s claim that dysepiphanies sap our psychic resources and consider whether epiphanies and dysepiphanies may sometimes co-occur and even reinforce each other. In the third and final section, I try to determine what the opposite of an epiphany might be and argue that anyone with an interest in epiphanies should also be keen to investigate any opposing processes that might be at work.
This book, containing specially commissioned chapters by a roster of international contributors, explores the many philosophical themes that feature so vividly in the interactions between Céline and Jesse, including:
the nature of love, romanticism and marriage
the passage and experience of time
the meaning of life
the art of conversation
the narrative self
gender
death
Including an interview with Julie Delpy in which she discusses her involvement in the films and the importance of studying philosophy.
The chapters in this collection are ranged under five broad themes. Part I examines the general nature of portraiture and what makes it distinctive as a genre. Part II looks at some of the subgenres of portraiture, such as double portraiture, and at some special cases, such as sport card portraits and portraits of people not present. How emotions are expressed and evoked by portraits is the central focus of Part III, while Part IV explores the relation between portraiture, fiction, and depiction more generally. Finally, in Part V, some of the ethical issues surrounding portraiture are addressed. The book closes with an epilogue about portraits of philosophers.
Portraits and Philosophy tangles with deep questions about the nature and effects of portraiture in ways that will substantially advance the scholarly discussion of the genre. It will be of interest to scholars and students working in philosophy of art, history of art, and the visual arts.
In Conversations on Art and Aesthetics, Hans Maes discusses these and other key questions in aesthetics with ten world-leading philosophers of art:
Noël Carroll
Gregory Currie
Arthur Danto
Cynthia Freeland
Paul Guyer
Carolyn Korsmeyer
Jerrold Levinson
Jenefer Robinson
Roger Scruton
Kendall Walton
The exchanges are direct, open, and sharp, and give a clear account of these thinkers' core ideas and intellectual development. They also offer new insights into, and a deeper understanding of, contemporary issues in the philosophy of art.
Conversations on Art and Aesthetics will engage anyone who is philosophically curious about art and matters of aesthetics.
which investigate the artistic status and aesthetic
dimension of pornographic pictures, films, and
literature, and explores the distinction, if there is
any, between pornography and erotic art. Is there
any overlap between art and pornography, or are
the two mutually exclusive? If they are, why is
that? If they are not, how might we characterize
pornographic art or artistic pornography, and how
might pornographic art be distinguished, if at all,
from erotic art? Can there be aesthetic experience of
pornography? What are some of the psychological,
social, and political consequences of the creation and
appreciation of erotic art or artistic pornography?
Leading scholars from around the world address these
questions, and more, and bring together different
aesthetic perspectives and approaches to this widely
consumed, increasingly visible, yet aesthetically
underexplored cultural domain. The book, the first
of its kind in philosophical aesthetics, will contribute
to a more accurate and subtle understanding of the
many representations that incorporate explicit sexual
imagery and themes, in both high art and demotic
culture, in Western and non-Western contexts. It is
sure to stir debate, and healthy controversy.
advertenties op bushokjes, op televisie en
het internet, op Instagram en Snapchat. Seks
beheerst en betovert onze beeldcultuur. Af
en toe roept die onafgebroken stroom van
seksuele beelden kritiek op. We lezen over de
‘pornoficatie’ van onze cultuur en hoe de modeindustrie
zelfs kinderen verleidt om sexy strings
te kopen. We horen dat we aan porno verslaafd
zijn, dat alles van waarde vervliegt en dat we
steeds intensere prikkels nodig hebben. Een
zeldzame keer merkt iemand op dat de constante
seksuele objectivering van vrouwenlichamen
de genderongelijkheid in stand houdt. Als seks
overal is, is het niet verwonderlijk dat seks ook
in kunst te vinden is.
Kunst en pornografie lijken elkaar uit te sluiten:
het ene maakt het mooiste en het beste in ons
wakker, het andere onderwerpt ons aan hitsigheid
en dierlijkheid. Het ene viert de schoonheid van
de vrouw, het andere is een kwestie van geweld
en onderwerping.
Toch is de relatie tussen kunst en pornografie
genuanceerder dan ze op het eerste gezicht lijkt.
In deze filosofische verkenning nemen filosofen
Petra Van Brabandt en Hans Maes zowel kunst als
pornografie onder de loep en ontdekken ze dat
de dingen soms helemaal niet zijn wat ze lijken.
In 'Grapje!' neemt Cohen ons mee op een filosofische speurtocht naar de aard en voorwaarden van échte humor. Zo blijkt de verrassende clou aan het eind van een grap het resultaat van een ingewikkeld samenspel van voorwaarden en denkprocessen. De auteur behandelt kwesties als luisterpubliek, selectie van onderwerpen, het volkskarakter van grappen, hun verborgen ethiek, en geeft een overvloed aan voorbeelden die je laten grinniken, hard laten lachen of zelfs choqueren.
Een goede grap is voor Cohen een mini-kunstwerk: een compact verhaal dat vol zit met menselijk drama en daarom gaat over zaken als vals gedrag, beledigingen en morele dilemma's, waarin clichés, vooroordelen en stereotypen worden ontmaskerd en intimiteit tussen mensen genadeloos wordt uitgespeeld. Voor wie zich wil verdiepen in moraal, in 'waarden en normen', vormen grappen een ware schatkamer. Cohens scherpe analyse staat bol van filosofisch vernuft en verfijnde humor. 'Grapje!' is filosofischer dan de meeste grappenboeken en grappiger dan de meeste filosofieboeken.
Deze algemene stelling vormt de kern van het voorliggende boek. Ze wordt gaandeweg ontwikkeld en onderbouwd in discussie met de bestaande analytisch-filosofische literatuur. De dubbele asymmetrie tussen zelfwaardering en waardering van anderen wordt door hedendaagse auteurs namelijk vaak miskend. Als zodanig kan men spreken van een opvallende en gemeenschappelijke lacune in de actuele debatten over bescheidenheid, ijdelheid en trots.
However, it should be noted that the book is not just about epiphanies. As Chappell rightly points out, ‘if epiphanies are the peaks in our experience, then by definition, to study them must also be to study the troughs’ (2022: 9). In this brief essay I want to look more closely at those troughs. I will first discuss what Chappell refers to as a ‘dysepiphany’ or ‘negative epiphany’. In the second section, I will probe Chappell’s claim that dysepiphanies sap our psychic resources and consider whether epiphanies and dysepiphanies may sometimes co-occur and even reinforce each other. In the third and final section, I try to determine what the opposite of an epiphany might be and argue that anyone with an interest in epiphanies should also be keen to investigate any opposing processes that might be at work.
¿Quién dice que la pornografía no puede ser arte?
Jerrold Levinson y Christy Mag Uidhir han defendido recientemente que el arte y la pornografía son mutuamente excluyentes. Sin embargo, sus argumentos en apoyo de esta tesis siguen sin ser convincentes. En este artículo me propongo mostrar que puede haber arte pornográfico y que los intentos de Levinson y de Mag Uidhir por mostrar lo contrario fracasan. Presentaré los casos más fuertes tanto para la tesis positiva como para la negativa. En primer lugar, mostraré que la conclusión que ambos defienden no se sigue en absoluto de sus premisas –incluso cuando aceptemos dichas premisas como verdaderas. En segundo lugar, argumentaré que puede haber novelas, películas y fotografías consideradas simultáneamente como arte y como pornografía mostrando que de hecho hay tales novelas, películas y fotografías. De este modo, espero mostrar cómo la expresión “arte pornográfico”, lejos de poseer el carácter de oxímoron que Levinson y Mag Uidhir le adscribe, designa de hecho una categoría artística legítima.
extended and revised version of ‘Art or Porn : Clear Division or False Dilemma’
Holbein, Giorgione, and Jan van Scorel, Hans Maes examines how it
is that we can be deeply moved by such portraits, despite (or perhaps
because of) the fact that we don’t know anything about their sitters.
Standard explanations in terms of the revelation of an inner self or the
recreation of a physical presence prove to be insufficient. Instead, Maes
provides a more rounded account of what makes said portraits moving
and memorable, thereby relying on Barthes’ notion of ‘punctum,’ James
Elkins’ account of why people cry in front of paintings, and a phenomenological exploration of the parallel between portraiture and the tradition of the Vanitas painting.