22nd Annual Student Research Conference
Philosophic Ideas of Beauty in the Visual Arts
Galen M. Gibson-Cornell
Dr. Julia DeLancey and Dr. Patricia Burton, Faculty Mentors
The study of and search for beauty is intrinsic in the visual arts, as well as in many scholarly disciplines. It also can play a large, important role in our daily lives. Most people have their own definition or conception for beauty, leading them to believe in its subjectivity, and to ignore the actual purpose of beauty. However, as one can surmise from writings of Leon Battista Alberti and William Hogarth, beauty actually can be objectified and defined (take, for instance, the Golden Ratio), and its purpose in the visual arts can be clarified. This presentation will inquire mainly into these philosophic writings and apply their standards to Raphael's School of Athens painting. It will then offer a brief artistic analysis of Plato's writings explaining how beauty in artwork can be a vehicle or a medium through which one can achieve higher understanding and truth.
Keywords: Beauty, Golden Ratio
Topic(s):Interdisciplinary
Art History
Philosophy & Religion
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 34-1
Location: OP 2210
Time: 1:15