Beyond Mimesis and Convention
Representation in Art and Science
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 9467471 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Clive Cazeaux (0000-0001-7495-0832, University of Wales Institute Cardiff, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2011 |
| Volume | 52 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 211-216 |
| Publication date | 2011-11-22 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The British Journal of Aesthetics (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0007-0904 • E-ISSN: 1468-2842 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1093/aesthj/ayr043 |
| OpenAlex | W2326719496 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 9 |
The theory of representation in art history and in the philosophy of science is at an impasse, according to Roman Frigg and Matthew C. Hunter, the editors of this volume. In both subjects, representation is theorized on the basis of either mimesis or convention, with each side opposed to the other but with no apparent way of overcoming the opposition. Representation conceived as mimesis is interpreted as one thing imitating or resembling another, whereas representation understood as convention is the stipulation and acceptance within a community of a system of signs, where none of the signs need resemble their referents in any way. In the philosophy of science, the impasse is over whether scientific models and their target domains are isomorphic, with conventionalists such as Frigg, Nelson Goodman, and Mauricio Suárez asserting that similarity is neither necessary nor sufficient for representation. The impasse takes a different shape in art history. Developments in non-representational modern art, and the influence of structuralism, semiotics, and political theory on art history have resulted in the subject's preoccupation with representation as mimesis (up to the mid-twentieth century) being overtaken by questions of how representation is constructed by language, signification, instrumentalism, convention, and socioeconomic conditions. Furthermore, historical studies of the ‘mimetic ambition’ in pre-twentieth century image-production find that concepts of resemblance are challenged by theories which make other practices, such as data-gathering or institutional requirements, central
Aesthetics · Convention · Epistemology · Opposition (politics · Philosophy of science · Political science · Politics · Representation (politics · Semiotics · Social science · Sociology · Aesthetic Perception and Analysis · Law · Museums and Cultural Heritage · Philosophy · Visual Culture and Art Theory
| Citations per year | 0.82 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2015 - 2025 (11) |
| Highly cited | No |