Philosophical Threads in the Work of Marcia Muelder Eaton

Marcia Muelder Eaton (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, emerita) is former President of the American Society of Aesthetics; her work in philosophical aesthetics is of lasting significance. Her early work in the philosophy of language informs her later accounts of meaning, interpretation, and communication in art. Her contributions to debates about the ethical dimensions of aesthetic experience have shaped discussions on the role moral concerns should inform our responses to artworks, while her work in environmental aesthetics has expanded the scope of aesthetic inquiry beyond fine art to include everyday and natural environments. This conference offers a new opportunity to further the understanding of Marcia Muelder Eaton’s philosophical contributions, while advancing contemporary debates in aesthetics, ethics, and environmental thought. The conference will be held at her almamater, Knox College, in Galesburg, IL, from July 23–25, 2027. The conference is generously supported by Knox College and the American Society for Aesthetics.

There will be two keynote speakers for the conference: Noël Carroll (CUNY Graduate Center) and Carolyn Korsmeyer (SUNY at Buffalo, emerita). In addition, environmental photographer Regina Flanagan, whose work has been deeply influenced by Eaton’s theories, will make a presentation. We also have three confirmed invited speakers: A. W. Eaton (University of Illinois, Chicago), Roy T. Cook (University of Minnesota, Twin Cities), and Antony Aumann (Northern Michigan University), as well as the organizers, James Harold (Mount Holyoke College) and Brandon Polite (Knox College).