What is conceptualism? It is a synthesis of rationalism with empiricism

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Do you know what conceptualism is? This is one of the directions of scholastic philosophy. According to this doctrine, the manifestation of knowledge comes with experience, but does not proceed from the experience gained. Conceptualism can also be thought of as a synthesis of rationalism with empiricism. This term comes from the Latin word conceptus, which means thought, concept. Although it is a philosophical movement, it is also a cultural movement that emerged in the 20th century.

Representatives of conceptualism

Pierre Abelard, two Johns - Duns Scotus and Salisbury, John Duns, John Locke - all these philosophers are united by conceptualism. These are the philosophers who believe that ideas common to all appear during the acquisition of experience by an individual. That is, until we encounter this or that phenomenon, we will not understand the essence of this or that universal problem. For example, until we experience injustice, weWe do not understand the very essence of justice. By the way, this theory has become widespread in the creative environment - conceptualism in art, in particular in painting. Its most prominent representative among artists is Joseph Kossuth, and among musicians, Henry Flint.

Conceptual Art

Joseph Kossuth explained the significance of this theory in a complete rethinking of the functioning of works of art and culture in general. He argued that art is the power of the idea, but by no means of the material. His composition One Man and Three Chairs, which he completed in 1965, has become a classic example of conceptualism. Conceptualism in painting refers not to the spiritual and emotional perception of what is depicted, but to the comprehension of what is seen through the intellect. In conceptual art, the concept of a work of art, whether it be a painting or a book, or a piece of music, is more important than its physical expression. This means that the main purpose of art is precisely to convey thoughts, ideas. By the way, conceptual objects can be more modern types of works, such as photographs, video or audio materials, etc.

Conceptualism in painting

As already noted, one of the most ideological representatives of this trend is the artist Marcel Duchamp (France). He prepared the "ground" for conceptualists for a long time, creating ready-mades. The most famous of them was the "Fountain"-urinal created by the artist in 1917. By the way, it was presented at an exhibition organized forindependent artists in New York. What did Duchamp want to show with his work? A urinal is a common item used for sanitary purposes. If it is produced in a factory, then naturally it cannot be considered a work of art. However, if a creator, an artist participated in its creation, then the urinal ceases to be an ordinary household item, because it is unique, has aesthetic merits, and thought was used to create it. In a word, conceptualism is the triumph of ideas over emotions. This is what makes this or that work valuable.

Russian Conceptualism

This philosophical and artistic trend also took place in Russia, in particular in Moscow. It began in the unofficial art of the Soviet Union in the early 70s of the last century. However, the term Moscow Conceptualism arose a little later, in 1979, with the light hand of Boris Groys, who published an article en titled “Romantic Moscow Conceptualism” in the journal Ot A Do Ya. It has two branches: literary-centric and analytical.

Conceptual Art Examples

The first significant work in this direction, exhibited in 1953, is Robert Rauschenberg's Erased Drawing of Qing. Admit it, a strange name for an artistic sample. In addition, the question arises: who is the author of this work - Rauschenberg or Quing? The thing is that some time after the creation of this drawing, Willem deKooning's Robert Milton Ernest Rauschenberg erased it and presented it for his work. The essence of his act was dictated by the desire to challenge the idea of traditional art. He was a supporter of ready-made - a conceptual trend in painting, according to which it does not matter who the original author is, what matters is the final result, that is, the idea that is invested in the created work. The most obvious example of a ready-made are collages assembled from fragments of different works. Another representative of this trend, Yves Klein, became the author of the Aerostatic Sculpture of Paris. To do this, he needed 1001 balloons and placed them in the sky over Paris. This was done to advertise the exhibition above Le Waid.

Conclusion

So, the founder of this trend is Marcel Duchamp. It was he who proposed the definition that in art it is not the subject that is important, but the idea. The end result, its aesthetics, is not important, but it is important who is the author and what was the meaning of his idea. In a word, conceptualism is such a trend in painting, literature, music, in art in general, in which works are by and large incomprehensible to the viewer, reader, listener, or they are perceived by everyone in a special way.