Platypus primary Marxist reading group Summer 2013: art and politics


Chicago, New York

Saturdays 1–4PM CST

School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC)

112 S. Michigan Ave. room 920

Sundays 2–5PM EST

New School University

Eugene Lang College

65 W. 11th St. room 258

[]

Summer 2013

Art and politics

required / * recommended reading

[]

Required preliminary reading

• Chris Cutrone, “The relevance of Critical Theory to art today” (2011)

[]

Week 1. The meaning of art | Jun. 22–23, 2013

[Artists’] work is to sustain the critical moment of aesthetic experience. [Critics’ work] is to recognize it.

—Susan Buck-Morss, response to Visual culture questionnaire (1996)

• Susan Buck-Morss, response to Visual culture questionnaire (1996)

• Immanuel Kant, Preface and Introduction to Critique of Judgment (1790)

[]

Week 2. Modern aesthetics of art | Jun. 29–30, 2013

• G.W.F. *Hegel, Introductory Lectures on Aesthetics* first section:

1 Prefatory Remarks

2 Limitation and Defence of Aesthetics

3 Refutation of Objections

4 Scientific Ways of Treating Beauty and Art

5 Concept of the Beauty of Art

6 Common Ideas of Art

(i) The Work of Art as a Product of Human Activity

(ii) The Work of Art, as being for Apprehension by Man’s Senses, is drawn from the Sensuous Sphere

(iii) The Aim of Art

[]

Week 3. Art and politics in our epoch | Jul. 6–7, 2013

• Leon Trotsky, “Art and politics in our epoch” (1938)

• Clement Greenberg, “Avant-garde and kitsch” (1939)

[]

Week 4. Revolutionary art? | Jul. 13–14, 2013

• Walter Benjamin, [“Experience and poverty” (1934)

Benjamin,](/file/readings/benjamin_experience.pdf)“The author as producer (1934)

• Jürgen Habermas, “Modernity: an incomplete project” (1981)

[]

Week 5. Art and the commodity form | Jul. 27–28, 2013

• Stewart Martin, “Critique of relational aesthetics” (2007)

• Stewart Martin, “The absolute artwork meets the absolute commodity” (2007)

• Theodor Adorno, “Art’s self-evidence lost” and “Society”, Aesthetic Theory (1970)