August 29, 2018
by Aesthetics for Birds
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The American Society for Aesthetics (ASA) have released a statement regarding the renewed interest and concern surrounding last year’s sexual harassment incident and their policies on discrimination, harassment, and respectful behavior. The text of their statement is reproduced below.
August 11, 2018
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Last November, AFB reported on an accusation of sexual harassment at the American Society for Aesthetics (ASA) Annual Meeting. Five days ago, AFB reported that the accused harasser was on the program for the upcoming ASA Annual Meeting, along with the accuser. Since then, a number of differing accounts have emerged regarding how the original accusation was lodged, largely via discussions on social media. In particular, some members of ASA leadership have stated that no official complaint was ever made by the accuser. The accuser has asked us to publish the following statement. UPDATE: See a fact-checked summary of the full incident.
August 7, 2018
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Last November, we reported an accusation of sexual harassment at the American Society for Aesthetics (ASA) Annual Meeting. ASA member Anne Eaton wrote: “One alleged case of sexual harassment by a senior man toward a junior woman. I say “alleged” because the case has not been (nor will it be) officially adjudicated, although it has been reported to ASA governance. I know the details of this case and find it 100% credible. In fact, I have myself in the past had trouble with the senior male philosopher in question.” We also reported that, in response, “…the ASA leadership took immediate and decisive action in response to the report of sexual harassment. In addition to sending a forceful message to the harasser, ASA leadership immediately set up a committee to develop an official policy on sexual harassment.” The ASA has recently released new policies regarding discrimination (including best practices and how to … Continue reading
June 28, 2018
by Nick Stang
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Stanley Cavell died on Tuesday, June 19, at the age of 91. Obituaries and memorial notices can be found here, here, and here (a more complete list, including foreign-language sources, is here.) He was a prolific writer—the author of 17 books and countless essays—and a famously stimulating teacher, but it would be impossible to convey in a short piece like this what made Cavell’s writing and teaching inimitable. Instead, I will limit myself to trying to explain a bit of what I think is so important about Cavell’s work in aesthetics.
April 13, 2018
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Breaking news: In an interview with interior designer Axel Vervoordt, Kanye West reveals that he is working on a philosophy book. I’ve got this new concept that I’ve been diggin’ into. I’m writing a philosophy book right now called Break the Simulation. And I’ve got this philosophy — or let’s say it’s just a concept because sometimes philosophy sounds too heavy-handed. I’ve got a concept about photographs, and I’m on the fence about photographs — about human beings being obsessed with photographs — because it takes you out of the now and transports you into the past or transports you into the future. It can be used to document, but a lot of times it overtakes [people]. People dwell too much in the memories. I mean, it’s not a ridiculous, uh, concept. But I hope it gets developed a little better than that paragraph suggests. I wonder if he’ll engage with … Continue reading
March 15, 2018
by Aesthetics for Birds
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This post provides all of the information that is currently available about where to formally study aesthetics and philosophy of art. Note: There is a more recent version of this post here, from December 2020. It also includes a request for help from those working on aesthetics and philosophy of art in universities in the English-speaking world. Kathleen Stock (Sussex) has created a document that aims to comprehensively catalog all faculty working in these areas. But we need your help to fill it in!
February 14, 2018
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Sorry for the groan-worthy pun, but we’re very excited to announce that AFB is now on Twitter! Go follow us at @ArtFlockTweets for post updates, announcements, calls/invitations, plus more aesthetics and philosophy of art-related content. And you can slide on into our DMs if you have post tips or other suggestions. Tweets by ArtFlockTweets
December 31, 2017
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Here were our most-viewed posts this year. Scroll through to make sure you haven’t missed something big!
October 6, 2017
by Aesthetics for Birds
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A philosopher and artist is getting lots of recognition lately, culminating in an upcoming solo show at MoMA. Adrian Piper, who received the Golden Lion from the Venice Biennale in 2015, has enjoyed several shows in the past couple of years, and will now have a major exhibition at MoMA, “Adrian Piper: A Synthesis of Intuitions, 1965–2016” (March 31 to July 22, 2018), which will then travel to the Hammer Museum in LA (dates being finalized) before going abroad. From the MoMA press release: [T]he exhibition, which will be seen in its entirety only at The Museum of Modern Art, will occupy the Museum’s entire sixth floor—the first time that entire level has been devoted to the work of a living artist. Exciting! And the MoMA title isn’t just about her art. She has written about Kant’s notion of intuition. And indeed, this isn’t a case where “philosopher” is just … Continue reading
September 11, 2017
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Welcome back to a new year at Aesthetics for Birds! This year will bring all sorts of new things for the blog, but the most exciting is that we have five new collaborators! With these philosophers on board, we will be able to provide you with much broader, more diverse, and more frequent content. Other changes and new features will accompany this addition, but first the introductions. For those of you who are new to AFB, I will begin by introducing myself and Rebecca. (For more about AFB, visit our About page.) Alex King (Editor-in-Chief and Contributor; handles: aestheticsforbirds*, alexforbirds) Alex (that’s me) owns and is editor-in-chief of AFB. She is currently Assistant Professor at University at Buffalo (= SUNY Buffalo). Her research concerns the relationships among practical, moral, and aesthetic normativity. She also works on ‘ought implies can’ and issues surrounding high and low art (see her post on … Continue reading
