Gender and Aesthetics: An Introduction (Understanding Feminist Philosophy)

208 Pages·2004·4.96 MB·English

by  Carolyn Korsmeyer

GENDER AND AESTHETICS
Feminist approaches to art are extremely influential and widely studied
across a variety ofdisciplines,including art theory,cultural and visual stud-
ies,and philosophy.Gender and Aestheticscarefully introduces and examines the
role that gender plays in forming philosophical ideas about art.
The book discusses important topics within feminist aesthetics:
• Why were there so few women artists in the past?
• Art,pleasure,and beauty
• The role ofgender in taste and food
• What is art and what makes an artist?
• Disgust,sublimity,and aesthetic values
• The body and the formation ofsubjectivity
The book introduces in clear language the role gender plays in our under-
standing ofart,creativity,and aesthetic qualities.Philosophies ofthe past are
examined for their influence over gendered ways of conceiving aesthetics;
and contemporary theorists such as Arthur Danto and Luce Irigaray are situ-
ated in relation to feminist art practices. Each chapter concludes with a
summary,and there is an extensive bibliography.
Carolyn Korsmeyer’s style is refreshing and accessible,making the book
suitable for students of philosophy, gender studies, visual studies, and art
theory,as well as anyone interested in the impact ofgender on aesthetics.
Carolyn Korsmeyeris Professor of Philosophy at the University at Buffalo,
State University ofNew York.She is author ofMaking Sense ofTaste:Food and Phil-
osophy(1999) and the editor of several books on aesthetics,feminism,and
literary theory.
UNDERSTANDING FEMINIST PHILOSOPHY
Edited by Linda Martin Alcoff
This major new series is designed for students who have typically completed
an introductory course in philosophy and are coming to feminist philoso-
phy for the first time. Each book clearly introduces a core undergraduate
subject in philosophy, from a feminist perspective, examining the role
gender plays in shaping our understanding ofphilosophy and related disci-
plines.Each book offers students an accessible transition to higher-level work
on that subject and is clearly written,by an experienced author and teacher,
with the beginning student in mind.
GENDER AND AESTHETICS
Carolyn Korsmeyer
FEMINISM AND MODERN PHILOSOPHY
Andrea Nye
FEMINISM AND EPISTEMOLOGY
Phyllis Rooney
FEMINISM AND PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
Elizabeth Potter
GENDER
AND AESTHETICS
An introduction
Carolyn Korsmeyer
First published 2004
by Routledge
29 West 35th Street,New York,NY 10001
simultaneously published in the UK
by Routledge
11 New Fetter Lane,London EC4P 4EE
Routledge is an imprint ofthe Taylor & Francis Group
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2004.
© 2004 Carolyn Korsmeyer
All rights reserved.No part ofthis book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilized in any form or by an electronic,mechanical,or other means,now
known or hereafter invented,including photocopying and recording,or in
any information storage or retrieval system,without permission in writing
from the publishers.
Library ofCongress Cataloging in Publication Data
Korsmeyer,Carolyn.
Gender and Aesthetics :an introduction / Carolyn Korsmeyer.
p. cm (Understanding feminist philosophy)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1.Feminism and art.2.Women in art.3.Feminist theory.4.Arts—Philosophy.
I.Title.II.Series.
N72.F45K67 2004
700’.1’03082—dc22
2003058656
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 0-203-64663-0 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-203-67586-X (Adobe eReader Format)
ISBN 0–415–26658–0 (hbk)
ISBN 0–415–26659–9 (pbk)
This book is dedicated to three girls who grew up together.
One became a dancer,one a writer,and one sang.
For the singer in memoriam

CONTENTS
List ofillustrations ix
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction 1
1 Artists and art:a brief history of concepts 10
Conceptual foundations 11
The idea ofthe artist:ancient predecessors 15
Art-making:individuals and groups 23
Fine art and the modern concept ofthe artist 25
Genius 29
Expression theories ofart 31
Summary 34
2 Aesthetic pleasures 37
The aesthetic 37
Taste and beauty 40
Burke on beauty 42
Kant on judgments oftaste 44
Whose taste? 46
Aesthetic attitude theories 48
Feminist critiques ofaesthetic perception 51
Summary 57
3 Amateurs and professionals 59
Education and training:who learns? 59
Music 61
vii
CONTENTS
Literature 69
Painting 74
Reassessing the past 81
Summary 82
4 Deep gender:taste and food 84
The five senses 85
Pleasure sensuous and aesthetic 89
Subjectivity and objectivity 92
A defense oftaste 95
Food and/in/as art 98
Summary 102
5 What is art? (Art is what?) 104
Definitions and their contexts 109
Art and anti-art 113
Institutional theory 114
Art as a mirror:Arthur Danto 116
Feminist work and changing concepts ofart 117
Summary 128
6 Difficult pleasures:sublimity and disgust 130
Mind and body revisited 131
Sublimity again 133
Luce Irigaray:sexuate subjectivity 140
Disgust as an aesthetic response 144
Disgust and abjection:Julia Kristeva 147
Disgust:context and ambiguity 150
Summary 152
Notes 155
Bibliography 175
Index 189
viii
ILLUSTRATIONS
1 Auguste Rodin,The Eternal Idol,c.1905. 21
2 Illuminated letter Q,signed Claricia.German psalter from
Augsberg,late twelfth century. 24
3 Judith Leyster,Serenade,1629. 35
4 William Hogarth,“The Line ofGrace”.Detail after Plate I,
The Analysis ofBeauty,1753. 41
5 Jean-Léon Gérôme,A Roman Slave Market,c.1884. 52
6 Artemisia Gentileschi,Susanna and the Elders,1610. 55
7 Johann Zoffany,The Academicians ofthe Royal Academy,1771–2. 77
8 Paul Gauguin,Two Tahitian Women. 91
9 Jana Sterbak,Vanitas:Flesh Dress for an Albino Anorectic,1987. 106
10 Nancy Spero,Egyptian figure/Acrobat/Dancing,1988. 119
11 Ana Mendieta,Silueta Works in Iowa,1976–1978/1991. 123
12 Cindy Sherman,Untitled #224,1990. 125
ix