Vygotsky’s “The Psychology of Art”: A foundational and still unexplored text

Fernando Luís González Rey

doi:10.1590/1982-02752018000400002

Fernando Luís González Rey

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-02752018000400002

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Abstract

ABSTRACT In the last ten years, new trends in the interpretation of Vygotsky’s work have been developed, many of which have transcended the traditional interpretations that have been hegemonic in Soviet and Western psychology since the 1980s. Nonetheless, Vygotsky’s “The Psychology of Art” is among the most interesting books written by this Soviet psychologist and, paradoxically, has not received enough attention in the study of his legacy. In that book, Vygotsky developed a rich psychology, in dialogue with Philosophy, Sociology and Art. In this paper, some theoretical questions and concepts developed by Vygotsky are discussed, which were not included in the dominant interpretation of his work, neither in Soviet nor Western psychology. The discussion opened by Vygotsky throughout the book shows that philosophy, art, poetry, Sociology and Psychology are interrelated in such a way that they are a living theoretical representation whose epicenter was human motivation and the creative character of human performance.

Highlights

In the last ten years, new trends in the interpretation of Vygotsky’s work have been developed, many of which have transcended the traditional interpretations that have been hegemonic in Soviet and Western psychology since the 1980s
Such an unprecedented situation was possible due to a psychology that was developed in an environment of high pressure, censorship and distortions, which was the reason why, until very recent times, the history of Soviet psychology could not be used as a source for new constructions, analysis and reflections on Soviet psychology
This paper aims to reveal some theoretical questions and concepts developed by Vygotsky that were not included in the dominant interpretation of his work, neither in Soviet nor Western psychology, where some of his last ideas and concepts have just recently begun to be discussed

Summary

Introduction

In the last ten years, new trends in the interpretation of Vygotsky’s work have been developed, many of which have transcended the traditional interpretations that have been hegemonic in Soviet and Western psychology since the 1980s. It is important to stress that some of his later ideas first appeared in the book, “The Psychology of Art”, in which Vygotsky opened what I called years ago as the “first moment of Vygotsky’s work” (González Rey, 2011), whose main concepts and ideas were taken up again only at the end of his life, between 1932 and 1934.

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