Art as the Great Refusal: the (de)humanization of aesthetics

Authors

  • José Alfonso Correa Cabrera Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15174/rv.v0i23.413

Abstract

Philosophers such as Marcuse have underlined the liberating properties of artistic work. But if we are to think of art as the Great Refusal, we should show what is that that art rejects and with what it seeks to replace it. Regarding these questions, I outline two antagon istic answers. While one seeks, by means of the artistic experience, to reject what is given in the name of a timeless truth, the other also denies what is given, but admits the provisional nature of every truth. Although seemingly subtle, this distinction is substantial. Drawing from a reading of Plato, I show why the first position leaves no room for humanness, and why totalitarian implications arise from it. To characterize the second position, I turn to the aesthetic conception of Octavio Paz and the sculptural proposal of Alexander Calder. Both interpretations allow us to reconcile the dissatisfaction that underlies art with the alterity that characterizes humanness.

Author Biography

José Alfonso Correa Cabrera, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

Grado: Maestría

Título: Maestro en Ciencia Política

Adscripción: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

Líneas de investigación: Filosofía política, teoría democrática, filosofía del arte, teoría crítica.

Últimas Publicaciones: NA

References

Aristóteles, 2002, Poética, Antonio López Eire (trad., pról., notas de), Istmo, Madrid.

Calder, Alexander, 1943, A Propos of Measuring a Mobile [Documento PDF], s/e. Disponible en: http://www.calder.org/system/downloads/1943-A-Propos.pdf (Consultado: 30/V/2018)

Marcuse, Herbert, 2005, El hombre unidimensional, Antonio Elorza (trad.), Ariel, Barcelona.

Paz, Octavio, 2014, El arco y la lira, FCE, México.

Platón, 2008, Diálogos I, Julio Calonge, Carlos García Gual y Emilio Lledó (trad., notas de), Gredos, Madrid.

---------, 2008, Diálogos III, Carlos García Gual, M. Martínez Hernández y Emilio Lledó (trad., intr., notas de), Gredos, Madrid.

---------, 2006, La República, José Manuel Pabón y Manuel Fernández-Galiano (trad.), Alianza, Madrid.

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Published

2019-01-14

How to Cite

Correa Cabrera, J. A. (2019). Art as the Great Refusal: the (de)humanization of aesthetics. Valenciana, (23), 187–208. https://doi.org/10.15174/rv.v0i23.413

Issue

No. 23 (2019): Núm. 23 enero-junio 2019

Section

Artículos

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