60-373 Aesthetics from a Global Viewpoint

Units: 9.0 Department: Art Related URLs: http://artserver.cfa.cmu.edu Aesthetics From A Global Viewpoint (Lowry Burgess). The arts and their making is a behavior that differentiates our species. Artistic/aesthetic differentiation is a global phenomenon occurring since the dawn of our species. This seminar will explore the articulated aesthetic philosophy of large historic cultures: Western traditions from Plato to Heidegger, including Islam as integral to the Abrahamic traditions along with the vast and rich array of Hindu, Buddhist, and Shinto aesthetics. These broader traditions may be examined along with additional examples from small, isolated or ancient cultures, such as the Hopi or the Aborigines of Australia. Across cultures, we will explore the aesthetics of cardinal cultural objects (architecture, painting, sculpture, performance/ritual, dance, film, and other media) through readings and discussions. Each student's individual definition of the nature of the arts will be constantly measured with and against the ideas of other cultures, all developing an interactive and integrative dialogue. Other issues include: the study and understandings of the roots of the iconoclastic traditions and their constant struggle and interaction between the meanings of the icon and the image; the notion of cultural otherness; and how aesthetic problems manifest themselves in our world in immediate and violent ways; and the evolution of the drive for the preservation of cultural memory in light of recent destructive events in Afghanistan and Iraq. This course may be considered a prologue to the Center for the Arts international conference scheduled for the Fall of 2005, (Im)permanence: Cultures in/out of Time.

Popularity index Rank for this semester: #775 Rank in this department: #16   Students also scheduled 54-114 Non-Major Dance 48-596 LEED Buildings and Green Design 42-101 Introduction to Biomedical Engineer... 12-657 Water Resources Engineering 79-365 Climate Change, Energy Policy and E... 80-210 Logic and Proofs 57-214 Dance (Tap) II 62-450 Flame I 54-192 Acting for Non-Majors 85-446 Psychology of Gender

Spring 2005 times

Sec	Time	Day	Instructor	Location
A	6:30 - 8:50 pm	R	Burgess	CFA 303