Tomorrow's topics to cover

[glegrady]

We will discuss the readings, go over the course schedule, and walk through the criteria for how to do your Thursday presentation...

The Studio Critique article is relatively easy to read - basically nuts and bolts. The shorter Goodman article is harder to read because of its references outside of the p10 pages we are covering but it should at the least give you a sense of how aesthetics are to be conisdered and evaluated. Here are a few additioal notes on the topic:

Languages of Art, Nelson Goodman
Philosopher, with a focus on aesthetics

Study of Aesthetics: A branch of philosophy, the study and critical reflection on sensory experiences, new ways of seeing, and perceiving the world.

Function of Art: to convey, or communicate an idea, through concepts, experience, and material, that could not be communicated otherwise.

Aesthetics & Information & Mathematics (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aesthetics) …appreciation of simple proofs with a short formal language description

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Goodman Wrote the book in 1976 on an NSF research grant, at the Center for Cognitive Studies at Harvard. http://books.google.com/books?id=e4a5-I ... &q&f=false

Focus of the book is on the analysis of symbols, icons, visual language. What are the differences between

. Notation: Visual articulation of a concept suggesting further action
. Musical Notation: Representation of aurally experienced music through written symbols
. Sketch: Rapidly executed freehand drawing to convey an idea
. Scripts: Instructions for a performance work | computer, cooking, etc. sequence of actions
. Computer Code: Human readable statements executable by a computer
. Schematic: Diagram that represents the elements of a system using abstract, graphic symbols
. Mathematical Notation: Symbolic expressions with precise semantic meaning

http://www.mat.ucsb.edu/~g.legrady/acad ... Image.html


5. Symptoms of the Aesthetic

Syntactic density: Suggests
Semantic density:
Syntactic repleteness: Representation distinguished from diagrammatic

Maximum sensitivity of discrimination

Definitions to arrive at 254: Density, repleteness and exemplification _> earmarks of the aesthetic
Articulateness, aattenuation, and denotation earmarks of the non-aesthetic.

Man goes on symbolizing beyond immediate necessary
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