ESB067 Aesthetics and Theory of Photography

Faculty of Arts
Autumn 2015
Extent and Intensity
1/1. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Barbora Kundračíková, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
prof. PhDr. Petr Osolsobě, Ph.D.
Department of Aesthetics – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Ing. Ivana Vašinová
Supplier department: Department of Aesthetics – Faculty of Arts
Timetable
Tue 14:10–15:45 N01023
Prerequisites
Photography is a picture conditioned on the existence of its referent. As such, it produces the unique type of response, which significantly reflects all three levels of the photographic depiction – the real situation, the object and the subject of the image. What influence it has on the process of its interpretation and aesthetic evaluation? The main aim of the seminar is to explore possible structural and procedural grounds for the gradual establishment of the technical picture within a concept of art, and try to find an answer to the question why is the photography often seen as a principal picture of our time.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 20 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/20, only registered: 0/20, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/20
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 6 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
After passing the course, students are able to better understand philosophical background and sources of aesthetics of photography. They use relevant basic concepts, realize connections between art, representation, expression and technical picture.
Syllabus
  • 1| The invention of photography, its historical context 2| Aura, originality, artwork 3| Analytical approach: transparent images, representation and intention 4| Aesthetic and artistic value of photography 5| Photography and contemporary art criticism
Literature
    recommended literature
  • Carroll, Nöel. Theorizing the Moving Image. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 1996
  • Carroll, Nöel. A Philosophy of Mass Art. Oxford : Claredon Press, 1998.
  • Císař, Karel (ed): Co je to fotografie. Praha: Herrmann & synové, 2004.
  • Friday, Jonathan. Aesthetics and Photography. London: Ashgate, 2002.
  • Hopkins, Robert. Picture, Image and Experience: A Philosophical Inquiry. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 1998.
  • Kelsey, Robin; Stimson, Blake (eds.). The Meaning of Photography. Williamstown : Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 2008.
  • Kieran, Matthew (ed.). Contemporary Debates in Aesthetics and the Philosophy of Art. Oxford : Blackwell, 2005.
  • Lopes, Dominic McIver. Sight and Sensibility. Evaluating Images. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2008.
  • Lopes, Dominic McIver. Understanding Pictures. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1996.
  • Maynard, Patrick. The Engine of Visualization: Thinking through Photography. New York: Cornell University Press, 1997.
  • Scharff, Aaron. Art and Photography. Baltimore, 1968 (1974).
  • SCRUTON, Roger. Estetické porozumění : eseje o filozofii, umění a kultuře. Translated by Jiří Ogrocký. 1. vyd. Brno: Barrister & Principal. 177 s. ISBN 8085947927. 2005. info
  • Walden, Scott. Photography and Philosophy. Essays on the Pencil of Nature. Oxford : Blackwell Publishing Ltd., 2010.
  • Walton, Kendall. Mimesis as Make-Believe: On the Foundations of the Representational Arts. Cambridge : Harvard University Press, 1990.
  • Marvelous imageson values and the arts. Edited by Kendall L. Walton. New York: Oxford University Press. viii, 254. ISBN 0195177959. 2008. info
Teaching methods
lecture and discussion, visitation of photographic exhibitions / collections, presentation of paper on an assigned topic
Assessment methods
participation on the lecture (maximum of 3 absences), individual work and active participation
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught once in two years.
Information on course enrolment limitations: posluchači bc. estetiky, kteří začali své studium před více než třemi semestry, musí mít splněnu postupovou zkoušku (ESAPZE), jinak si tento předmět nemohou zapsat. Pro ostatní obory není zápis omezen.
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2012, Spring 2014, Spring 2017.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2015, recent)
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