CFP: ‘I know what art is when I see it.’ Reasons (not) to define art

Submission deadline: January 17, 2014

Conference date(s):
May 19, 2014 - May 20, 2014

Go to the conference's page

Conference Venue:

Department of Philosophy and Moral Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent University
Gent, Belgium

Topic areas

Details

Call for abstracts: 

Abstracts of 800-1000 words are invited. Possible topics include but are not limited to: 

- What purpose(s) has a definition of art hitherto fulfilled, or still aims to fulfil?

- Do we not simply know what art is when we see it? Does the seeming impossibility to define art not necessarily imply the uselessness of the whole project, and, even broader, of analytic aesthetics?

-Can other questions within the philosophy of art be pursued without starting off with some kind of definition of art?

- What is the cross-disciplinary relevance or value of a definition of art, such as in art history or artistic practice?

 - What kind of analysis is a definition of art supposed to offer if it needs to be relevant for the broader field of the arts? Should it be descriptive or normative, conceptual or metaphysical? 

- What is the relationship between a definition of art and the value of an artwork, or the process of evaluating an artwork? Does this play any role in assessing the adequacy of a definition of art?

Submission details:

Please ensure that your abstract is prepared for blind review, and is sent in PDF or RTF format only. The deadline for abstract submissions is 17th January 2014. Notification of acceptance or rejection will be sent by 25th January 2014. 

Please send your abstracts to [email protected]

You can also use the above email address if you have any further questions regarding the conference. 

 

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