This thesis is a critical examination of postmodernist pedagogy currently used in the education of visual artists. It is particularly concerned with the teaching of the traditional disciplines of painting and drawing within a postmodern context. My hypothesis is that the teaching of visual arts within a postmodern orientation more or less relies on an anti-aesthetic stance that is content-centered, with an insistence on critically and politically aware art. The overall objective of this thesis is twofold: First, to generate some questions and ideas that could be of assistance to post-secondary art instructors. Second, to establish a framework for an extended qualitative research that will address the impact of postmodernism on education of artists. The title "beyond the anti-aesthetic" does not necessarily present itself as a negation of the postmodernist paradigm. It identifies a need to revitalize visual art instruction within the postmodern model, to re-address the interplay between form and content in visual art and enhance critical thinking.

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Most adult human activities reflect a moral position. This thesis aims to show that art, as one form of human endeavour, follows suit. Consequently, art education should reflect this connection. In this thesis I make a philosophical investigation of one possible approach to art education. Furthermore, to be reflective of western society's emphasis on personal autonomy and authenticity, I contend that the only appropriate moral stance in education should be intuitive, non-calculating and non-utilitarian. / In order to philosophically illustrate and support my position, I use the aesthetic thoughts of Bergson and Nietzsche and put them in opposition. This is because they exemplify two opposite conceptions of morality that currently permeate society. Bergson's concept of aesthetics depends upon a stance of disinterest. Nietzsche's is utilitarian. The first exemplifies a humanist orientation that supports an altruistic morality and an aesthetics that puts emphasis on perception. This ethical position actually emerges from an active consciousness, a personal mode of being. On the other hand, Nietzsche's stance is a precursor to one strand of postmodern thought that may be described as a pragmatism oriented towards the achievement of power. This attitude excludes any possible form of disinterestedness. Indeed, Nietzscheism espouses a "noble egoism" and an impersonal mode of being that breeds a narcissistic and immature form of artistic creation. This is a creation that becomes a glorification and edification of oneself, albeit an impersonal self. This is a narcissistic attitude that finds an echo in some trends of contemporary art. / In regard to contemporary art, I argue that Nietzsche's influence may be seen in a deviant utilitarian morality that results in a scientistic and anti-aesthetic artistic current. This is a nihilistic trend evident in the work of artists such as Marcel Duchamp. As an alternative, I propose a Bergsonian "ethico-aesthetic" conception of art, inspired and encompassed by disinterestedness as a mature pedagogical value. From this perspective, instead of a neutral attitude, we maintain a more empathic position toward life and art. This altruistic morality produces a responsible and sensible art---concerned with the creation of common grounds. This suggests a need for a form of creation that unfolds from what Bergson could term a "mysterious" sentiment of obligation to bear witness to beauty, in all its forms, as a precisely non-utilitarian and disinterested experience of perception.

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