Concept as Vision: On the Problem of Representation in Modern Art and in Modern Philosophy

Abstract

The problem of pictorial representation will be discussed here largely by reference to one single movement, the original cubism of Picasso and Braque. The crucial importance of this movement in the history of modern art is generally recognized, but its status is still puzzling and even controversial. This puzzle centers precisely on the relation of cubist art to the idea of representation. One’s first impulse is to think of cubism as a step, perhaps the most important step, in the development of modern painting towards increasingly complete abstraction. A look at the apparently unrecognizable shapes of many cubist paintings seems to be enough to confirm this interpretation.