AESTHETICS

Within the Master's Degree Programme in Philosophy, the course aims to provide students with an advanced knowledge and understanding of the dynamics of the contemporary debate in Aesthetics, meant as both the science of perception and the art- and media theory.
As for the Master's Degree Programme in Conservation of Cultural Heritage and Performing Arts Management, the course is also specifically aimed at developing a historical and theoretical awareness about the use of concepts such as art, fine arts, art autonomy, artwork and aesthetic experience, with particular reference to a historical and cultural contextualisation of these terms.

Knowledge and understanding.
The course's main goal is to provide an advanced knowledge of the theoretical issues at the core of the contemporary scenario of Aesthetics. At the end of the course, students will be expected to be able to critically deal with the main issues raised in the most recent debate on the nature, status, and tasks of philosophical Aesthetics.

Capacity of applying knowledge and understanding.
After the course, students will be able to:
- analyse contemporary dynamics in the aesthetic debate, especially in relation to the recent development of visual culture studies;
- identify strengths and weaknesses of the theoretical approach to the rapid evolution of new media, with particular reference to so-called "immersive media".

In order to reach these goals, moments where students discuss on readings previously prepared will be scheduled. Students will be also encouraged to do in-class presentations.

Making judgments.
Students should also acquire the ability to consider more critically the aesthetic tradition. They will learn to evaluate different philosophical positions by confronting the respective arguments, and they will develop the communication skills requested for a critical reconstruction of the main aspects of the contemporary aesthetic debate.

Students should have a basic knowledge of the main problems discussed in the history of Aesthetics. Although not strictly necessary, a background in the phenomenological approach to image theories would facilitate students' learning.

The course will tackle the issue of mimesis and realism in terms of mimetism and hyper-realism, thus focussing on the problem of excessive similarity between the image and its referent, between the “copy” and its “model”. What if an image is not just similar to its referent, but rather perceptually indiscernible from it? What happens to the traditional aesthetic paradigm of the “as-if” when similarity turns into (putative) identity? Starting from Husserl’s analysis of the difference between “perception” and “image consciousness”, we will address the issue of the ambiguous relationship between image, actual reality, and illusion. The theoretical notions acquired in the first part of the course will be then put to the test of hyperrealism, meant as a specific art movement, as well as of contemporary virtual immersive environments produced with the aid of the most recent image-making techniques.

• E. Fink, Presentificazione e immagine, in Id., Studi di fenomenologia 1930-1939, Lithos 2010 (only pp. 49-70 e 127-140).
• E. Husserl, “Fantasia e coscienza d’immagine”, in Id., Fantasia e immagine, Rubbettino 2017, pp. 1-128.
• D. Freedberg, Il potere delle immagini, Einaudi 2009 (only chap. 9).
• L. Wiesing, Artificial Presence, Stanford University Press 2010 (only pp. 87-101).
• P. Conte, In carne e cera. Estetica e fenomenologia dell’iperrealismo, Quodlibet 2015.

Non-attending students must add:

• M. Lister et al., New Media: A Critical Introduction, Routledge 2009 (ONLY Introduction + Chapters 1, 2).
• R. Debray, Vita e morte dell'immagine, Il Castoro, Milano 2010.

The learning objectives of the course will be tested through an oral exam, during which students should be able to show their ability to master the multifarious aspects of the course’s subject matter. Questions aim at evaluating whether students know and understand the main concepts of the course, and if they are able to link the various topics and issues that the course covers. They also are intended to test the students' ability in communicating the different positions with clarity and pertinence as well as critical awareness.

Frontal lessons with PPT slides.
Critical reading of the texts.

Italian

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