Beyond Aesthetics

Art and the Technologies of Enchantment

Christopher Pinney, Nicholas Thomas

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English

Berg Publishers
01 September 2001

Theory of art; Art of indigenous peoples; Naive art; Social & cultural anthropology

The anthropology of art is currently at a crossroads. Although well versed in the meaning of art in small-scale tribal societies, anthropologists are still wrestling with the question of how to interpret art in a complex, post-colonial environment. Alfred Gell recently confronted this problem in his posthumous book Art and Agency. The central thesis of his study was that art objects could be seen, not as bearers of meaning or aesthetic value, but as forms mediating social action. At a stroke, Gell provocatively dismissed many longstanding but tired questions of definition and issues of aesthetic value. His book proposed a novel perspective on the roles of art in political practice and made fresh links between analyses of style, tradition and society. Offering a new overview of the anthropology of art, this book begins where Gell left off. Presenting wide-ranging critiques of the limits of aesthetic interpretation, the workings of objects in practice, the relations between meaning and efficacy and the politics of postcolonial art, its distinguished contributors both elaborate on and dissent from the controversies of Gell's important text. Subjects covered include music and the internet as well as ethnographic traditions and contemporary indigenous art. Geographically its case studies range from India to Oceania to North America and Europe.

Edited by: Christopher Pinney, Nicholas Thomas
Imprint: Berg Publishers
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm, Spine: 15mm
Weight: 560g
ISBN: 9781859734643
ISBN 10: 1859734642
Pages: 296
Publication Date: 01 September 2001
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Christopher Pinney is Senior Lecturer in Material Culture in the Department of Anthropology, University College London Nicholas Thomas is Professor of Anthropology at Goldsmiths College, University of London. His books include 'Entangled Objects' (1991),'Colonialism's Culture' (1994) and 'Possessions: Indigenous Art/Colonial Culture' (1999)