[pt] Se imagem, por sua anfibologia, pode ser tomada como uma proposição dada à contemplação tanto quanto uma operação da consciência, a pintura parece ser um locus privilegiado para observar a intensificação de seus desafios ao pensamento, assim como arena apoteótica de sua neutralização. Este trabalho se empenha em deslindar alguns aspectos do problema das imagens, visando contudo, aclarar a possibilidade de uma reflexão sobre a mímesis na pintura moderna. O trabalho do pintor Édouard Manet (1832-1883) é assim analisado como contra-exemplo da reiteração de uma premência imitativa nas artes visuais – sem que com isso deixe de se enfatizar as profundas conexões estabelecidas entre obra e mundo. Nossa especulação incidirá sobre a formulação do lugar das imagens no pensamento ocidental, a fim de aclarar se algumas proposições iniciais não se apresentam ainda como entraves na reflexão contemporânea. Por não ser de todo corriqueiro, o empreendimento teórico sobre a mímesis, juntado aí a ênfase das imagens como um modo de relação sui generis, permite refletir sobre a ênfase poiética na pintura de Manet, distanciando-a da sombra de ser ela uma mera crônica reiterativa. Esta investigação, portanto, pretende oferecer uma objeção ao mecanicismo imitativo de alguns dos discursos sobre artes visuais. / [en] If image, due to its amphibology, can be taken as a proposition given to contemplation as much as an operation of consciousness, the realm of painting seems to be a privileged locus to observe the intensification of its challenges to thought, as well as an apotheotic arena of its neutralization. This paper endeavors to unravel some aspects of image s surrounding issues, aiming, however, to clarify the possibility of a reflection on mimesis in modern painting. The work of painter Édouard Manet (1832-1883) is thus analyzed as a counter-example of the reiteration of an imitative urge in the visual arts – without neglecting to emphasize the deep connections established between the work and the world. Our speculation will focus on the formulation of images locus in Western thought, in order to clarify whether some initial propositions do not yet present themselves as obstacles in contemporary reflection. As it is not commonplace, the theoretical enterprise on mimesis, along with the emphasis on images as a unique mode of relationship, allows us to reflect on the poietic emphasis in Manet s painting, distancing it from the shadow of being a mere scandalous and repetitive chronicle. This investigation, therefore, intends to offer an objection to the imitative mechanism of some established discourses on visual arts.

My thesis draws connections among Herbert Read’s aesthetics, his anarchism, and Carl Jung’s aesthetic theory. I discuss Jung’s concept of individuation and its importance in his theory of the creative process of life. He distinguished between personalistic and archetypal art, and argued that the latter embodies primordial symbols that are inherently meaningful. Archetypal art, he believed, symbolizes unconscious knowledge, which can promote self-awareness and impact on society, if an individual is able to discern its relevance and integrate this into an ethical lifestyle. Jung emphasized the importance of rational discernment and ethical choices along with free creativity. I show how Read used these Jungian concepts to explain aspects of his aesthetic and political emphasis on freedom. According to Read, art creates reality and as such it is both personally transformative and socially activist: he believed that aesthetics are a mechanism of the natural world, and that art is a unique type of cognition that manifests new forms. Art communicates new versions of reality because perception is holistic, allowing people to perceive both the essence inherent in forms and the relationships among them. Further, I consider Read’s belief that cognition and society are both organic, and should be allowed to evolve naturally. Therefore, according to Read, society must be anarchist so that creative freedom and aesthetic consciousness can be adequately supported. Finally, I conclude by highlighting the pivotal role of creative freedom in Jung’s and Read’s theories of personal and social change. I illustrate that Jung and Read concurred that the unique individual is the site of transformation, living out the organically creative nature of life.

My thesis draws connections among Herbert Read’s aesthetics, his anarchism, and Carl Jung’s aesthetic theory. I discuss Jung’s concept of individuation and its importance in his theory of the creative process of life. He distinguished between personalistic and archetypal art, and argued that the latter embodies primordial symbols that are inherently meaningful. Archetypal art, he believed, symbolizes unconscious knowledge, which can promote self-awareness and impact on society, if an individual is able to discern its relevance and integrate this into an ethical lifestyle. Jung emphasized the importance of rational discernment and ethical choices along with free creativity. I show how Read used these Jungian concepts to explain aspects of his aesthetic and political emphasis on freedom. According to Read, art creates reality and as such it is both personally transformative and socially activist: he believed that aesthetics are a mechanism of the natural world, and that art is a unique type of cognition that manifests new forms. Art communicates new versions of reality because perception is holistic, allowing people to perceive both the essence inherent in forms and the relationships among them. Further, I consider Read’s belief that cognition and society are both organic, and should be allowed to evolve naturally. Therefore, according to Read, society must be anarchist so that creative freedom and aesthetic consciousness can be adequately supported. Finally, I conclude by highlighting the pivotal role of creative freedom in Jung’s and Read’s theories of personal and social change. I illustrate that Jung and Read concurred that the unique individual is the site of transformation, living out the organically creative nature of life.

En 1897, paraît la première revue parisienne consacrée à la critique des arts décoratifs contemporains : Art et Décoration, publiée par la Librairie centrale des beaux-arts. Jusqu’en 1914,elle reste fidèle aux engagements énoncés par son programme : être l’auxiliaire du développement d’un art décoratif français moderne, au sens large, en suivant étroitement l’actualité artistique et en prenant part aux débats critiques, esthétiques, théoriques et idéologiques qui sous-tendent cette actualité. Cette recherche a pour but de décrypter l’action critique et théorique d’Art et Décoration en tant qu’auxiliaire de l’évolution des faits artistiques, selon trois niveaux de lecture : la place d’Art et Décoration et de ses principaux acteurs au sein du champ éditorial des revues d’art, la vocation militante de son discours critique, et, enfin, son élaboration d’une esthétique décorative extensive.Tout en suivant ce triple niveau de lecture, cette étude adopte un parcours en quatre temps,correspondant à quatre périodes, définies par la superposition de l’histoire interne d’Art et Décoration, de l’évolution des faits artistiques et du positionnement critique et théorique de la revue vis-à-vis de ces derniers. / In 1897, the Librairie centrale des beaux-arts published the first Parisian review devoted to contemporary decorative arts criticism : Art et Décoration. Until 1914, the review adhered to its original mission of chronicling the development of modern, French decorative art by reporting artistic events, and taking an active role in the critical, aesthetical, theoretical and ideological debates of the period. This research intends to understand the critical and theoretical actions of Art et Décoration through three different perspectives: the role of Art et Décoration and its main contributors in the field of art review publishing; the militant language of its critical discourse ; and, its construction of an extensive decorative aesthetic. In addition to these three viewpoints, this study is further divided into four chronological periods based upon the internal dynamics of Art et Décoration, artistic developments of the era, and the progression of the review’s critical and theoretical positions.

<p>The focus of this essay is to investigate if there lies a difference between graffiti art that is placed in the public spaces and graffiti art that is sited in an institutional art setting; in this essay exemplified in a gallery space. My thesis is that graffiti art derives a great deal of its meaning and substance from its situation consequently making a change of cultural context also a change of connotation and understanding of the graffiti art itself.  Meaning that graffiti art situated in a communal space is different from graffiti art situated in the gallery space. They share aesthetic expression but their connotations differ; i.e. one being illegal and the other permissible making their meanings dissimilar. I have used a comparison between site-specific art and graffiti art to further strengthen my thesis concerning the importance of understanding how a change of context critically changes the substance of graffiti art.</p>

The focus of this essay is to investigate if there lies a difference between graffiti art that is placed in the public spaces and graffiti art that is sited in an institutional art setting; in this essay exemplified in a gallery space. My thesis is that graffiti art derives a great deal of its meaning and substance from its situation consequently making a change of cultural context also a change of connotation and understanding of the graffiti art itself.  Meaning that graffiti art situated in a communal space is different from graffiti art situated in the gallery space. They share aesthetic expression but their connotations differ; i.e. one being illegal and the other permissible making their meanings dissimilar. I have used a comparison between site-specific art and graffiti art to further strengthen my thesis concerning the importance of understanding how a change of context critically changes the substance of graffiti art.

Die Dissertation beschäftigt sich mit dem Werk des Dresdner Künstlers Hermann Glöckner (1889-1987) entgegen der bisherigen biografisch geprägten Sicht mit einem kunsttheoretischen Ansatz. Methodisch wird dabei das Werk im ersten Teil einer strengen Deskription unterzogen und funktionslogisch analysiert, d. h., die Bearbeitung stellt eine Art gestalterische Grammatik auf. Vor dem historischen Hintergrund einer Selbstfindung der Malerei nach dem 1. Weltkrieg ausgebreitet, wird durch die Grammatik deutlich, dass der Künstler weit mehr als bisher angenommen, einen mathematisch geprägten Weltzugang besaß und dieser indirekt zu einer Suche nach Universalität geführt hat. Neuland wird insbesondere bei der Darlegung von künstlerischen Denkstrukturen betreten. So kann gezeigt werden, dass sich in allen künstlerischen Äußerungen ein vornehmlich plastisches Denken manifestiert. Obwohl einige Arbeiten eindeutig zweidimensional angelegt sind, reflektieren sie dreidimensionale Probleme und weisen damit über sich hinaus in ein naturfremdes Universum. Es wird deutlich, wie der Künstler aus der beobachtbaren Natur Anregung und Kraft bezieht, seine künstlerischen Arbeiten aber nicht diese Natur spiegeln, sondern ihre Transzendenz geometrisch ausdrücken. Die Erkenntnisse des Künstlers aus diesem epistemologischen Malprozess fließen unmittelbar in Werke ein, deren optische Erscheinungen scheinbar ein Äquivalent in der Außenwelt besitzen. Aber auch bei diesen handelt es sich um einen nachprüfbaren, allgemeinen (universalen) malerischen Versuch, das Wesen oder den inneren Klang der Natur in einer &amp;quot;Einheit der Gegensätze&amp;quot; zu fassen. Die Analyse endet mit der Feststellung, dass sich die künstlerische Haltung Glöckners von einer konstruktivistischen zu einer eher symbolischen wandelt. Im zweiten Teil hinterfragt die Dissertation den bestehenden Forschungsstand in Bezug auf die durch politische Isolation begründete Eigenständigkeit bei der Entwicklung des künstlerischen Weges, die auch für eine Bewertung des künstlerischen Werkes im internationalen Kontext ein Hauptargument stellt. Durch weit reichende Recherchen wird das künstlerische Umfeld des frühen 20. Jahrhunderts in Dresden beschrieben, in dem sich der Künstler entwickelt hat. Dabei werden signifikante Verbindungen zu entscheidenden Entwicklungsimpulsen im Werk geknüpft, sodass deren Besonderheiten vor einer historischen Folie an Transparenz gewinnen. Entscheidend sind dabei einzelne Kunstwerke in Dresdner Ausstellungen insbesondere der 1920er Jahre, die der Künstler Hermann Glöckner gesehen haben muss, da sie zu seinem eigenen Werk eine hohe Evidenz besitzen. Einen bisher ganz vernachlässigten Akzent setzt die Dissertation mit der Untersuchung zur Schulzeit des Künstlers. Trotz reformatorischer Bewegungen seit der Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts ist der Zeichenunterricht in den Volksschulen kaum im modernen Sinne entwickelt. Gerade aber die strenge und reduzierte Form, die Lenkung der Wahrnehmung und Schulung der Hand auf elementare Formen und deren Übertragung auf die Natur, werden zu Katalysatoren der künstlerischen Entwicklung Glöckners. Ganz ungewöhnlich wird hier eine ansonsten als Beengung und Reglementierung empfundene Lehrmeinung affirmativ in eine künstlerische Haltung transformiert, die ihre Freiheit in der Beschränkung findet. Im dritten Teil stehen die kunsttheoretische Bestimmung Glöckners und deren Bewertung im internationalen Kontext im Mittelpunkt der Ausführungen. Wichtigste Erkenntnis ist, dass der Künstler zwar nicht öffentlich immer gesehen, aber im Werk begründet, an den wesentlichen kunsttheoretischen Zeugungsattacken der Moderne durch seine Werke sozusagen ideell mitgearbeitet hat. Seine Arbeiten besitzen den gleichen, an einzelnen Stellen sogar einen radikaleren Charakter, wie die Schlüsselwerke am Anfang des letzten Jahrhunderts. Bestechend ist die Authentizität der Werke Glöckners, weil er sein ganzes Leben an einem Spiegel der Welt gearbeitet hat, der er selber war. / The dissertation explores the work of Dresden artist Hermann Glöckner (1889-1987). Contrary to existing studies which have been characterized by biographical approaches, this dissertation follows an approach based on theory of art. In the first part, the method is to strictly describe his work and analyze it according to functional logic; i. e. during this process a kind of artistic grammar is being produced. Set against the historical background of a search for a new identity by painters after World War One, the grammar shows clearly that the artist cherished – way more than hitherto assumed – a world view shaped by mathematic principles which, indirectly, led him on to a search for universality. The demonstration of the structures of the artist's way of thinking breaks new ground and shows that in all of his artistic expressions a primarily plastic way of thinking manifests itself. Although a few of his works are unequivocally arranged in a two-dimensional order, they reflect three-dimensional problems and thus point beyond themselves to a universe alien to nature. It becomes clear how the artist gains stimulus and energy by observing nature, while his works of art do not mirror this nature, but express their transcendence in a geometrical manner. The artist's insights gained during this epistemological painting process directly leave their mark on works which by their visual appearance seem to possess an equivalent in the outside world. However, these works also represent a verifiable, universal pictorial experiment to subsume the essence or inner sound of nature in a &amp;quot;unity of opposites&amp;quot;. The analysis results in the conclusion that Glöckner's aesthetic position developed from a constructivist to a rather symbolic one. The second part of the thesis challenges the current state of research in relation to the autonomous artistic development due to political isolation, which also constitutes one of the main arguments for the assessment of Glöckner's works of art in the international context. Findings from extensive research describe the artistic environment of the early 20th century in Dresden in which the artist developed. At the same time significant connections to pivotal impulses in the development of his work are revealed so that their exceptional quality is demonstrated more clearly against a historic backdrop. Of key importance are individual works from art exhibitions in Dresden, especially from the 1920s, which Hermann Glöckner must have seen, since there are highly evident links to his own works. In studying the schooldays of the artist, the dissertation puts emphasis on a hitherto completely neglected aspect. Despite educational reforms starting in the middle of the 19th century, drawing lessons in elementary schools were hardly modernized. However, of all things the austere and reduced form, a controlled perception and the training in drawing elementary forms and assigning these to nature, turn out to be catalysts of Glöckner's artistic development. A doctrine otherwise perceived as restrictive and regularised as in an educational context is transformed in quite an extraordinary manner affirmatively into an aesthetic position which finds its artistic license in limitation. The focus of attention of the third part of the thesis is to determine Glöckner's position within theory of art and its evaluation in an international context. The main conclusion is that the artist as it were contributed with his ideas rooted in his oeuvre to the fundamental creative acts giving rise to modernist art theory, which has, however, not always been publicly acknowledged. His works possess the same character as the key works of art of the beginning of the last century and in some respects are even more radical than these. The authenticity of Glöckner's oeuvre is impressive, for all his life he had been working on a mirror of the world, which was he himself.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This Master Degree Thesis aims to identify how a small set taken from a series of contemporary artworks, considered by some authors as "contemporary Vanitas" is characterized formal, symbolic and thematically, delving to evidence how the today s art can incorporate its historical past and especially the Vanitas traditional theme. The study, using an iconographic approach based on the method of Erwin Panofsky, primarily noted that the analyzed group of artworks, besides incorporating other themes with that of traditional Vanitas, showed a great formal distance from the ancient Vanitas paintings. The survey also verified that these artworks do not take the traditional Vanitas only by displaying the same symbolic motifs of the theme, but in fact, by the apprehension of its idea, which can be summarized as the confrontation between the man's vanity and the transience of his earthly life. / Esta pesquisa de mestrado se propõe a identificar como um pequeno conjunto retirado de uma série de obras de arte contemporânea, consideradas por alguns autores como Vanitas contemporâneas se caracteriza formal, simbólica e tematicamente, buscando evidenciar como a arte atual pode incorporar seu passado histórico e, especialmente, o tradicional tema da Vanitas. O estudo, por meio de uma abordagem iconográfica baseada no método de Erwin Panofsky, constatou principalmente que o grupo de obras analisado, além de incorporar outros temas junto ao da Vanitas tradicional, apresentou uma grande distância formal das Vanitas antigas. A pesquisa também verificou que estas obras não assumem a Vanitas tradicional apenas pela exibição dos mesmos motivos simbólicos da temática, mas sim pela apreensão de sua ideia, que pode ser sintetizada como o confronto entre as vaidades do homem e a efemeridade de sua vida terrena.

Cette thèse propose l’examen des textes de théorie de l’art et de critique d’art portant sur la peinture en France, aux XVIIe et XVIIIe siècle, suivant l’angle de la vraisemblance. De nombreuses réflexions sur la légitimité de la critique de ceux qui ne pratiquent pas la peinture ont précédé la naissance de la critique d’art, et la question fait toujours débat au XVIIIe siècle. Or, la notion de vraisemblance, présente dans le discours des théoriciens (peintres ou non) du point de vue de la réalisation des œuvres, manifeste la prise en compte d’un regard porté sur le tableau, c’est-à-dire du point de vue de la réception : est-ce que l’ « on » peut croire à ce que le tableau représente ? Ce que nous souhaitons montrer est le rôle crucial que joue la vraisemblance dans la légitimation de la critique d’art. Si un spectateur, qui n’est pas peintre, n’est pas à même de juger la qualité du dessin ou du coloris dans une œuvre, il est en droit de dire si ce que le tableau lui présente est vraisemblable ou non.Notre étude cherche à comparer les différentes acceptions que le terme de vraisemblance prend sous la plume des théoriciens et des critiques, afin d’une part de mettre en évidence que cette notion est considérée des deux côtés comme une règle en peinture, et de préciser son évolution dans les discours au XVIIIe s. / This thesis offers to examine theory of art and art criticism texts about painting in 17th and 18th c. France, via the angle of verisimilitude. Numerous thoughts upon the legitimacy of the criticism of those who do not practice painting have preceded the birth of art criticism, and the debate is still going on during the 18th c. However, the notion of verisimilitude, present in art theory discourses (by painters or not) about the creation of an art piece, manifests that the perception of the painting by someone looking at it is taken into account, this time from the point of view of reception: can “one” believe what the painting shows? We aim at proving the crucial role of verisimilitude in giving art critic legitimacy. If a spectator – who is not a painter – has no legitimacy to judge the quality of drawing or colour in an art piece, he can say whether the painting is credible or not.We compare and study the several acceptations of verisimilitude in theorists and critics’ writings in order to highlight that the notion is considered as a rule of painting on both sides, and analyse its evolution in 18th c. discourses.

Depuis 1979, les critiques d'art en Chine ont accompagné le développement de l’art contemporain, participant à la renaissance de la vie intellectuelle durement éprouvée sous le règne de Mao. Les revues d'art reflètent l’évolution de leur réflexion. Dans ma thèse je présente d’une part ce paysage intellectuel dans lequel s’est construite la critique d’art chinoise, et d’autre part, après avoir analysé comment certains concepts passent d’une langue à l’autre, j’aborde les textes théoriques et leur réception dans le milieu académique. Attirés au départ par la pensée occidentale, un champ référentiel qui s’étend de Platon à Danto, les critiques chinois se sont tournés ensuite vers le corpus classique, voire le Livre des mutations, pour forger des outils “propres à la Chine” afin de ré-écrire une histoire de l’art contemporain chinois délivrée du carcan post-colonial, mais au risque de se prendre au piège d’un nationalisme insidieux encouragé par le Parti. Les larges extraits que je propose traitent de la méta-critique, du sort et de l’essor de la modernité et du postmodernisme, de l’art abstrait émanant des gestes et des outils de la calligraphie... 
Récusant les concepts occidentaux jugés inaptes pour interpréter l’art chinois, recourant aux concepts classiques pour fonder l’École du yi, Gao Minglu propose une théorie critique qu’il tente d’appliquer aux œuvres contemporaines. À l’inverse Wang Nanming défend une démarche qui se veut universelle et dénonce les artistes et les critiques qui brandissent leur identité chinoise... Ainsi les démarches étudiées sont variées et parfois antagonistes, mais attestent de la vitalité de la critique d’art contemporaine chinoise. / Since 1979, China Art critics have accompanied the development of contemporary art, participating in the revival of intellectual life which have been hit hard during the reign of Mao. The journals in art reflect changes in their thinking. In my thesis I will present both the intellectual scene in which is constructed criticism of Chinese art, and secondly, after analyzing how concepts move from one language to another, I approach theoretical texts and their reception in academic. Attracted initially by Western thought, a reference field that extends from Plato to Danto, Chinese critics then turned to the classical corpus, or the Book of Changes, to forge tools specific "to China" to rewrite history of Chinese contemporary art delivered from the post-colonial yoke, but at the risk of getting trapped in an insidious nationalism encouraged by the Party. The extensive excerpts I propose deal with the meta-criticism, and the fate of the rise of modernity and postmodernism, abstract art from gestures and tools of calligraphy. Rejecting Western concepts which are unfit to interpret Chinese art, according to the traditional concepts to establish the School of yi, Gao Minglu offers a critical theory he tries to apply to contemporary works. Conversely Wang Nanming defends an approach to be universal and denounces the artists and critics who brandich their Chinese identity ... So the approaches discussed are varied and sometimes conflicting, but attest to the vitality of contemporary Chinese art criticism. Art critics propose theoretical models that are more interpretive tools of interpretation than appreciation.