Description
This book is an introduction to the history of the concept and the institution of (fine) art, from its ancient Southern European roots to the establishment of the modern system of the arts in eighteenth century Central Europe. It highlights the way the concept and institution of (fine) art, through colonialism and diaspora, conquered the world. Ryynanen presents globally competing frameworks from India to Japan but also describes how the art system debased local European artistic cultures (by women, members of the working class, etc) and how art with the capital A appropriated not just non-Western but also Western alternatives to art (popular culture). The book discusses alternative art forms such as sport, kitsch, and rap music as pockets of resistance and resources for future concepts of art. Ultimately, the book introduces nobrow as an alternative to high and low, a new concept that sheds light on the democratic potentials of the field of art and invites reader to rethink the nature of art.
About the Author
Max Ryynanen is senior lecturer of theory of visual culture at Aalto University Finland.
Reviews
A bold, refreshing cultural critique of the system of the fine arts. Reading this book will transform your thinking about art. Absorbing and informative, here is a book with personality.
-- Arnold Berleant, Professor emeritus, Long Island University. Author of Sensibility and Sense: The Aesthetic Transformation of the Human WorldBook Information
ISBN 9781793634177
Author Max Ryynanen
Format Hardback
Page Count 154
Imprint Lexington Books
Publisher Lexington Books
Weight(grams) 413g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 163mm * 18mm
