Formalism (art)

In art history, formalism is the study of art

by analyzing and comparing form and
style. Its discussion also includes the way
objects are made and their purely visual
aspects. In painting, formalism
emphasizes compositional elements such
as color, line, shape, texture, and other
perceptual aspects rather than the
historical and social context. At its
extreme, formalism in art history posits
that everything necessary to
comprehending a work of art is contained
within the work of art. The context for the
work, including the reason for its creation,
the historical background, and the life of
the artist, that is, its conceptual aspect is
considered to be of secondary
importance.

History
The historical origin of the modern form of
the question of aesthetic formalism is
usually dated to Immanuel Kant and the
writing of his third Critique where Kant
states: "Every form of the objects of sense
is either figure (Gestalt) or play (Spiel). In
the latter case it is either play of figures or
the mere play of sensations. The charm
(Reiz) of colors... may be added, but the
delineations (Zeichnung) in the...
composition (Komposition)... constitute
the proper object of the pure judgment of
taste."[1] The philosopher Donald Crawford
has summarized Kant's position stating:
"Thus, for Kant, form consists of the
spatial... organization of elements: figure,
shape, or delineation... In the parts of the
Critique of Judgment in which form is
emphasized as the essential aspect of
beauty, Kant is consistently a pure
formalist."[2]
Contemporary definition
Nick Zangwill has defined formalism in art
as referring to those properties "that are
determined solely by sensory or physical
properties—so long as the physical
properties in question are not relations to
other things and other times."[3] The
philosopher and architect Branko Mitrovic
has defined formalism in art and
architecture as "the doctrine that states
that the aesthetic qualities of works of
visual art derive from the visual and spatial
properties."[4]

According to the observation that works of

art can in general contain formal
properties and nonformal properties, the
philosopher Nick Zangwill has delineated
three types of formalism as they are
encountered at the turn of the 21st
century. First, Zangwill identifies extreme
formalists who think "that all works of art
are purely formal works—where a work is
purely formal if all its aesthetic properties
are formal aesthetic properties," then he
defines anti-formalist thinkers as those
who "think that no works of art have
formal aesthetic properties."[5] The third
type which Zangwill identifies as
representing the transition of the
philosophy of aesthetics into the 21st
century is that of moderate formalism,
where its principal exponents defend the
principle "that all the aesthetic properties
of works of art in a select class are formal,
and second, that although many works of
art outside that class have nonformal
aesthetic properties, many of those works
also have important formal aesthetic
properties that must not be ignored."[5]

The philosopher Michalle Gal has offered a

moderate version of formalism, entitled
"Deep Formalism", which is a symbolic
formalism based on philosophical
aestheticism. The artwork is defined by
her as deep form: "a form steeped in
content that cannot be extracted from it.
Artistic content, since it has no existence
or sense apart from the form, cannot
actually be referred to, other than
speculatively. The content seals the form
in an opaque, non-reflective, productive
symbol."[6] Here she introduces a broad
concept of symbol, an opaque-productive
symbol: one that is not transparent to
preconceived or pre-determined referents
and meanings, but rather produces new
ones.

Uses in art history

A formal analysis is an academic method
in art history and criticism for analyzing
works of art: "In order to perceive style,
and understand it, art historians use
'formal analysis'. This means they describe
things very carefully. These descriptions,
which may include subjective vocabulary,
are always accompanied by illustrations,
so that there can be no doubt about what
exists objectively".[7]

See also
Formalism (literature)
Formalism (music)
Progressive music
Abstract expressionism
Josef Albers
 Hard-edge painting
Color field painting
Minimalism
Lyrical Abstraction
Post-modernism
Geometric abstraction
Op Art
Elements of art

Notes and references

1. Kant. Critique of Judgment. Section
14.8.
2. Donald Crawford, Kant's Aesthetic
Theory (Madison: The University of
Wisconsin Press, 1974), p. 100.
3. Nick Zangwill, The Metaphysics of
Beauty (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University
Press, 2001), p. 56, ISBN 0801438209.
4. Branko Mitrović, Philosophy for
architects (New York: Princeton
Architectural Press, [2011]), p. 51.
5. Zangwill 2001, p. 84.
6. Gal, Michalle (2015). Aestheticism:
Deep Formalism and the Emergence of
Modernist Aesthetics . Peter Lang AG.
p. 14. doi:10.3726/978-3-0351-0787-6 .
ISBN 9783035199925.
7. Review by: Clemency Chase Coggins of
The Uses of Style in Archaeology edited by
Margaret W. Conkey and Christine A.
Hastorf, p. 233, Journal of Field
Archaeology, Vol. 19, No. 2 (Summer,
1992), pp. 232–34, Maney Publishing,
JSTOR

Sources
Bell, Clive. Art. London: 1914.
Denis, Maurice. 'Definition of Neo-
Traditionism.' Art and Criticism. August
1890.
Greenberg, Clement. 'Towards a Newer
Laocoon.' Partisan Review. 1940.

External links
"Aesthetic Formalism" . Internet
Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Formalism_(art)&oldid=874136014"

Last edited 1 month ago by Pirhayati

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