The Classification of Visual Art
A Philosophical Myth and its History

Sutton's work explores what it is that bestows the designation 'art' on an artwork.

Tiffany Sutton (Author)

9780521772365, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 28 March 2000

198 pages, 21 b/w illus. 24 tables
23.5 x 15.9 x 2 cm, 0.465 kg

This book is an important contribution to the philosophy of art that bridges the disciplines of philosophy and art. It engages with a long-standing debate about what it is that bestows the designation 'art' on an artwork. Tiffany Sutton shows how the history of art should influence the classification of visual art. She considers the various theories that have been put forward to define the nature of the artwork and then offers her own set of classificatory norms. Amongst the critical questions that are addressed in the process are: how important is patronage in the contemporary visual arts, and what lends conceptual art its specific aura?

List of illustrations
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Part I. The Historical Basis of the Myth: 1. Juxtapositionality in art history
Part II. The Framing Myth: 2. The Framing Process
3. Framing in art-historical perspective
Part III. The Myth Framed: 4. Theoretic refinements
Illustrations
Notes
Selected bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Analytical philosophy & Logical Positivism [HPCF5]