Art as Imitation

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A-Level Philosophy (Why do we value art?) Mind Map on Art as Imitation, created by lucy-hook on 14/05/2013.
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Mind Map by lucy-hook, updated more than 1 year ago
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Created by lucy-hook over 11 years ago
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Resource summary

Art as Imitation
  1. We learn from art because the imitations it provides teach us something about the world
    1. Degas' Little Dancer Aged Fourteen
      1. represents the fluidity and grace of movement of ballet dancers
    2. the more successful the imitation, the better the art
      1. valued for a true to life depiction of a scene
        1. Constable's The Hay Wain
        2. Heda's Still Life with a Lobster
          1. valued for accuracy and level of detail in creating a still life that is authentic, realistic and life like
          2. Plato
            1. art is only a copy of reality therefore it is essentially deceptive
              1. it is an imitation of an imitation of the original concept
                1. extremely imperfect
                2. art is not a good path to knowledge
                  1. art has no real practical purpose
                  2. Criticisms of Plato
                    1. presupposes the existence of a world of forms to begin with
                      1. assumes the key to successful art is accuracy
                        1. abstract art
                          1. Malevich's The Black Square
                        2. artist's aim is not to represent material objects, but rather to grasp their essence
                          1. possible to see art as imitation but not devalue it as 'mimesis'
                            1. Raphael - 'in order to paint a beautiful woman... I make use of a certain idea that comes into my head'
                              1. He tries to represent the ideal woman - not a woman who actually exists
                            2. purpose of art is not only to imitate objects but to represent their essence
                              1. Idealism
                                1. Vecchio's A Blonde Woman
                              2. Trompe l'oeil
                                1. most impressive in terms of skill at representing reality as it seems three-dimensional and deceives the audience
                                  1. However can we say that Trompe l'oeil artworks are better than Picasso's Guernica or Van Gogh's Chair because they are less realistic
                                    1. del Caso's Escaping Criticsm
                                      1. we can work out quickly that it is only an illusion
                                      2. If art was only imitation, it would be an illusion whose aim was to deceive
                                        1. it would be a failure as soon as we worked out that it is an illusion
                                          1. How can art inform us if its purpose is to deceive us?
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