(in English): My goal in this diploma thesis is to verify the claim that "dandy is a work of art". The figure of Dandy is often defined by the claim that it truly is a work of art. Dandy is after all defined like that by the founders of the debate on dandysm (Barbey d`Aurevilly, Charles Baudelaire and Oscar Wilde) and also by contemporary theoreticians of dandysm (such as Francois Coblence, Daniel S. Schiffer and Karin Becker). However, despite the numerous occurrences of the definition, the claim was never extended into general theory of dandy as work of art. I am here trying to do that. First, I am looking for a definition that best suits the concept of dandy according to the founders. I confront the concept of dandysm with several definitions of art (mimetic, expressive, formalistic, institutional or functionalist). With the definition that the comparison shows as the most appropriate - the functionalist theory of art - I continue to operate. With a structuralist definition of Jan Mukařovský. From the structuralistic point of view I answer the basic questions connected within the discourse of aesthetics with the concept of the work of art. I am looking for a basic material (material norm) that would create the identity of dandy as a specific kind of artwork. Based on that, I distinguish artistic...

Dans le cadre de la célébration du nouveau millénaire, la National Gallery de Londres a organisé l'exposition Encounters: New Art from Old (14 juin - 17 septembre 2000). La formule consistait à inviter vingt-cinq artistes contemporains à choisir une œuvre de la collection permanente du musée et à s'en inspirer afin d'en créer une nouvelle. Certaines des œuvres produites pour l’occasion ont été exposées près de leurs sources dans les salles historiques de la collection du musée. Ce mémoire examine comment la formule de cette exposition et son accrochage anachronique agissent de façon directe sur la temporalité de la collection historique en invitant à sa réactualisation, et à la mise en valeur de la création. Il situe cette formule dans le cadre d’un regain d’intérêt pour les collections, décortique la sélection des artistes par le musée et la sélection des œuvres de la collection par les artistes. Il propose aussi une classification des modalités par lesquelles ceux-ci ré-interprètent la tradition. Enfin, en s’appuyant sur la théorie de la réception, ce mémoire considère les réponses générées par l’exposition : celles des artistes aux œuvres de leurs prédécesseurs, celles des critiques et celles du public. / As part of the celebration of the new millennium, the National Gallery of London organized the exhibition Encounters: New Art from Old (June 14 to September 17, 2000). The concept was to invite twenty-five eminent contemporary artists to choose a painting from the permanent collection of the museum in order to create a new artwork. Some of the works produced for the occasion were displayed near the works that inspired them in the historic galleries of the museum. This dissertation examines how the anachronistic hanging of the works of art helped Encounters in shedding new light on the permanent collection of the museum and in showcasing the contemporary artists' interpretations. The dissertation seeks to situate Encounters in the context of a new interest in museum collections, to reflect on its selection of artists as well as on the selection of works chosen by the artists. It then proceeds to classify the new creations in four modalities of intervention and in conclusion addresses the reception generated by the exhibition: that embodied by the new works created and those of the press and the public.

This essay explores public monuments and memorials raised in dedication to historic women in the Swedish cities of Uppsala, Gävle and Västerås. Through the reception aesthetic method, the chosen works of art are analysed from a gender perspective. The overall history of public sculpture in Sweden, including the female nude sculptures, is examined closely, where the monuments and memorials which have been raised in dedication to historic men are compared to those raised in dedication for historic women. The range of artworks vary from traditional monument to modern and postmodern aestethics. The importance of figurative representation is the main focus of this study, and the purpose is to convey how women are represented in the monuments spatial situation and how it varies from the male sculptural representation.

This essay looks at memorials and monuments raised in Finland dedicated to the civil war 1918 from both the red and the white side. The earliest memorials are from 1918 and the newest one from 1964. The difference between the two sides and the change over time is looked at through a few chosen monuments and memorials analyzed using semiotics and reception aesthetics. The use of symbols is extensive throughout the period, but the form they take, as well as their connotation, change over time, depending on the political context they are created in. They are created with different aims.