Aesthetic Choices Research Articles

‘Harsh’ SoMa vs ‘Beige’ Castro: The cross-modal construction of contrasting femininities in queer San Francisco

The study of gender in sociolinguistic variation has long concerned the ways linguistic variables pattern with binary gender identities like male and female, with the implicit assumption that masculine individuals will use variants that index masculinity, and feminine individuals will use variants that index femininity. The emerging field of trans linguistics has built upon insights from queer linguistics and challenged the idea that there must be a one-to-one correspondence between linguistic variants and gender identities. Studies of transgender speakers have illuminated that indexing gender is a process of bricolage, where multiple variables collaborate, and only one needs to index gender in a particular way for the speaker's overall semiotic construction to carry that gendered meaning. Here, I investigate cross-modal bricolage, by exploring how visual gender presentation and three different linguistic variables come together to construct contrasting feminine styles among San Francisco drag queens. Linguistic patterns and aesthetic choices illuminate that bricolage involves a semiotic division of labor, in which only some signs (or modalities) need to index gender to give the overall style that gendered meaning. Concurrently, other signs can contribute qualia to a style's overall qualic cloud, that distinguish the style from others in the semiotic landscape. This exploration illuminates the role of the body in conditioning the indexical potential of linguistic signs, destabilizes monolithic essentializations of trans linguistic practice, and acknowledges the varied ways that gender non-normative identity can manifest across communities.

Attempting an Ontology of Participatory Film

In this video-essay, participatory filmmaker, Paul Cooke, and social anthropologist, Stephanie Schwandner-Sievers, discuss in detail images from two activist-focussed, participatory video projects Cooke has run with young people in South Africa and Lebanon. They ask whether participatory film can communicate their creators’ activist intentions to audiences often far removed from the original context of production. They challenge themselves to answer this question by deliberately juxtaposing their respective disciplines’ distinct philosophical approaches to ontology. Bazin’s foundational discussion of the ontology of the photographic image (as a universally relatable ‘essence’ encapsulated in the image) is juxtaposed with anthropology’s ‘ontological turn’ (a radical cultural-relativist focus on people and contextually situated meaning). The video-essay reflects on whether the young participant filmmakers’ aesthetic choices generate images which speak for themselves or, alternatively, whether the transfigurations these images undergo through different registers of representation and curation – as the films move from community showcasing event to international film festival or academic setting – change their originally-intended meanings. In identifying tensions between proximity and distance, intimacy and exploitation, the potentials and limitations of mediating local activists’ voices to remote audiences through film is left up to the spectator for final arbitration.

AESTHETIC ALCHEMY FOR UNVEILING THE TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF ARTISTIC CHOICES IN POSTCOLONIAL TRAUMA NARRATIVES: EVALUATING THROUGH THE INTERPRETATIONS OF AMITAV GHOSH'S SELECTED NARRATIVES

A crucial role is played by aesthetics in shaping trauma narratives, impacting how individuals perceive, undergo, and process traumatic events. In this context, "aesthetics" encompasses the artistic or stylistic elements employed in storytelling across various mediums like literature, film, visual arts, and more. Aesthetic choices such as symbols and metaphors become potent tools for conveying intricate emotions and experiences linked with trauma, providing a layer of abstraction that facilitates a nuanced exploration of its psychological and emotional dimensions. Aesthetics also influence the structure of a trauma narrative, with elements like flashbacks, non-linear timelines, or fragmented storytelling mimicking the disjointed nature of traumatic memories, effectively conveying the disorientation experienced by those who have undergone trauma. In visual arts and cinema, the visual representation of trauma significantly influences its perception, employing stark imagery, visual metaphors, and symbolic elements to communicate the profound impact of trauma, transcending the limitations of language in capturing its depth. Aesthetic elements like soundtracks and musical scores contribute to the emotional tone, heightening tension, creating a sense of foreboding, and influencing the audience's engagement with the traumatic content. In literature, the choice of language and literary devices shapes the narrative style, impacting how trauma is portrayed. Vivid descriptions, metaphors, and unique linguistic styles evoke a visceral response, fostering a more intimate connection between readers and the trauma narrative. Additionally, aesthetics can influence the resolution of a trauma narrative, utilizing specific visual or narrative elements to contribute to a sense of catharsis or closure for both the characters and the audience, providing a pathway towards healing and recovery. In summary, aesthetics serve as a crucial lens through which trauma narratives are presented and experienced, enabling creators to enhance their depth, emotional resonance, and impact, fostering a greater understanding and empathy for the complex nature of trauma through thoughtful and intentional artistic choices. In the context of Amitav Ghosh's novels, the discussion of postcolonial historic aporia becomes significant, especially given Ghosh's aversion to the term "postcolonial" which tends to portray the aftermath of colonialism in a negative light. Ghosh expresses his dissatisfaction with this characterization, stating, ". . . when I think of the world that I grew up to inhabit, my dominant memory of it is not that it was trying to be a successor state to a colony; it was trying to create its own reality, which today is the reality that we do inhabit" (Kumar 105). This perspective reflects Ghosh's inclination to focus on the efforts of postcolonial societies in shaping their distinct realities rather than being defined solely in opposition to their colonial past. Ghosh's novels, influenced by this viewpoint, illustrate the complexities of postcolonial experiences through the aesthetics of storytelling. Within his narrative framework, he employs symbolism, metaphor, and narrative structure to delve into the intricacies of trauma. Through these aesthetic choices, Ghosh offers a nuanced exploration of the psychological and emotional dimensions of characters' traumatic experiences, challenging conventional postcolonial narratives that tend to emphasize negativity. Ghosh's deliberate use of visual representation, sound, and literary devices in portraying trauma further underscores his commitment to presenting a multifaceted understanding of postcolonial realities. Consequently, his intentional and thoughtful aesthetic choices serve as a critical lens through which postcolonial trauma narratives are depicted, fostering a richer appreciation for the intricate nature of these stories and the diverse realities they represent.

Dressing the Empire: Clothing, Identity, and Social Control in the Ottoman Millet System

This article explores the intricate relationship between the millet system and dressing within the Ottoman Empire, emphasizing how attire served as a potent symbol of communal identity and religious affiliation intertwined with the socio-political fabric of society. By analyzing historical texts, images, and clothing artifacts, the study illustrates how the Ottoman administration employed dressing as a cultural identity marker and a means of religious and social control. The Empire managed its diverse population through the millet system by allowing religious communities, or millets, significant autonomy within a structured governance framework. Dressing styles within these millets were not merely functional or aesthetic choices but were imbued with deep symbolic meanings that reflected the complex interplay of identity, status, and religious adherence. Each community’s distinctive attire helped reinforce social boundaries and foster a sense of belonging and collective identity among its members. The research highlights significant transitions in the traditional dress codes influenced by political reforms, such as the Tanzimat’s push towards modernization and secularization, which gradually shifted public expressions of identity. This shift was marked by a tension between preserving traditional attire and adopting more homogenized, secular dress styles, reflecting broader socio-political changes within the Empire. In conclusion, the article provides insights into how dressing transcended mere personal adornment to act as a crucial medium through which communal identities were negotiated, expressed, and maintained within the Ottoman public sphere. This examination enriches the historical understanding of the Ottoman millet system and contributes to broader discussions on fashion, religion, and identity formation.

Earth deity shrines of the Greater Taipei area: A first edition curated dataset

Community tutelary shrines in Taiwan have been identified as excellent resources for grassroots-level heritage. As community ritual assemblages, they are able to encode data about a settlement’s social, political and economic history in their material composition, aesthetic choices, artefacts, displays and orientations. This data paper previews a first edition dataset related to 752 such shrines found throughout the greater Taipei area in northern Taiwan. It explores the basis for such a dataset, how it can be used and what has been produced. This dataset is available on the depositar research data repository, operated out of the Institute of Information Sciences at Academia Sinica in Taipei and is publicly available for download.

The Alien Resonances and Queer Obscurities of Hyperpop’s 100 gecs

This article pairs 100 gecs’ aesthetic praxes of obscurity alongside hyperpop’s extension of electronic music’s alien sonorities to explore how the musical and the otherworldly come to transpose and transform the self through anonymous or opaque modes of production, receptivity, and transmission. I suggest that Dylan Brady and Laura Les’ commitment to sonic, visual, and connotative obscurity is not only the force behind their viral success but is the spell that casts their music as particularly queer, as their aesthetic choices challenge the strictures of neoliberal personhood and the epistemological demands for rational transparency. I will first establish a cosmology of hyperpop through music, sound, race, and sexuality studies that tracks the genre’s obscure technological, magical, and nonhuman influences to explore how hyperpop is both an extension of the uneven distributions of power across varying positionalities of identity, while nevertheless offering a means to disrupt concepts of the human outside a politics of recognition by embracing the (im)materiality of the body. I will then analyze 100 gecs’ debut album 1000 gecs (2019) to attune to how the duo make themselves alien to structures of the human through queer and trans embodiments and resonances. Overall, I contend that hyperpop offers an avenue for understanding what it means to extricate the alien from the political, social, and linguistic-based schemas that manage concepts of the human under cisnormative racial capitalism and attend more closely to how logics of the alien escape, distort, and transfigure the human towards possibilities of sounding and living otherwise.

Anatomy of a Song

Anatomy of a Song

Visual significations of Monkey King: Hero is Back and Nezha: Birth of the Demon Child

Visual signs can be differentiated into denotative and connotative messages, where denotative messages form the perceptual foundation of an image, and connotative messages engage with a deeper, culturally cognisant layer, imbued with subjective interpretations and aesthetic significations. This study embarks on a qualitative textual analysis with the main aim to elucidate the connotation and denotation of visual significations in two pivotal Chinese animated films, Monkey King: Hero is Back and Nezha: Birth of the Demon Child. Guided by Roland Barthes’ Semiotic theory and Chen’s study, the research delves into the connotative and denotative meanings embodied in the films’ visual elements. The focus is primarily on facial design, physical appearance, clothing, and props, providing a comparative analysis of how these elements function within each film’s narrative framework. The key findings reveal that the visual significations in both films are not merely aesthetic choices but serve as substantial cultural and narrative tools. The characters’ faces, physical appearances, clothing, and props are intricately tied to themes like Chinese opera masks, subversive reconstructions, natural elements, and intangible cultural heritage. These visual cues play a crucial role in reinforcing cultural heritage, spurring innovation, invoking nature reverence, and bolstering national sentiment within film storytelling. Contrasting with previous research that predominantly focused on characters, this study expands the analytical scope to include props, recognising their significance as visual signs in animation. By expanding the analysis to include props alongside characters and visual elements into the analysis, this research offers a more comprehensive and nuanced understanding of Chinese mythological animations. It enriches the academic discourse on animation studies, demonstrating how visual elements can profoundly influence narrative interpretation and cultural representation. The research affirms the cultural and narrative potency of visual signification in animation and underscores the dynamic interplay between tradition and innovation within the realm of Chinese animated films.

To Press, Dry, Organise, and Represent

Abstract This paper examines the epistemological relation between two types of scientific image produced during a botanical expedition to New Granada in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries: herbarium sheets and botanical illustration. Visual analysis of an exceptional collection of these two types of documents brings to light how scientific ideologies were transferred from Europe to New Granada, during the transformation of this latter from a colony to a republic. This study shows how features such as composition, proportion, and pictorial technique derive from both aesthetic choices and epistemological necessities. It reveals the development of a codified visual language resulting from a highly organised and structured outcome, complying with Carl Linnaeus’ principles of classification, and materialising a new way of looking at plants based on Isaac Newton’s universal mathematical principles.

Revisiting the Realism/Modernism Debate: Marxist Thought and the Ethics of Representation

In Utopian Generations: The Political Horizon of Twentieth-Century Literature (2005), Nicholas Brown remarks on the difference between realism and modernism as one that expresses a conflict between “a responsibility to historical truth” and “a fidelity to the formal energies released by the emergence of a form of subjectivity liberated (or alienated) from historical consciousness” (182). This raises several issues that might be useful for us to develop since, despite the emergence of diverse critical lines of thought since the development of postwar critical theory, realism and modernism have continued to affect the intricately interconnected modes of philosophical and political attitudes towards the relation between aesthetics and politics. Marxist thinkers, Georg Lukács, Theodor Adorno, and Fredric Jameson, among others, explored the dichotomy of realism and modernism in terms of the dialectic of form and content. While they shared that there is an essentially inextricable relationship between literature and the underlying contradictions of our society, how they described the aesthetic expression of social contradictions was distinct, leaving the important question unanswered: “what does it mean to be ‘real’?” In this paper, I revisit the realism-modernism debate to explore this fundamental antagonism to see how these thinkers help clarify the following issues: what is realist form, and what are its features? How does realism negotiate the history of aesthetic forms? Are “formal energies,” as Brown puts it, by themselves an attempt to be free of “historical consciousness” or ones that, as form, highlight historical consciousness? And finally, how does realist form make political action possible? These questions also help us see what it means that the aesthetic choices of an older realism have been persistently replicated after modernism in the global periphery.

In the Mood for Heideggerian Boredom? Film Viewership as Being-in-the-World

In this article, I engage with Shawn Loht’s argument concerning film viewing as being-in-the-world, developed in his book Phenomenology of Film: A Heideggerian Account of the Film Experience (2017), focusing on the aesthetics of mood with particular attention to boredom. I elaborate on a phenomenological ontology of the film experience and its perceptual “rules” which hinge on aesthetic choices: what kind of world does the film open up for the viewer? Loht’s account of viewing Dasein enables us to deepen phenomenological approaches regarding the relationship between (cinematic) moods and (filmic) understanding, and through his engagement with Mitsein, to expand on film spectatorship conceived as a relation with a shared film world. I look at how Heideggerian boredom can elicit spectatorial experiences and disclosure of meaning, as well as allowing characters’ being in the film world. A broader engagement with cinematic moods is also conducive to exploring limits and potentialities of a possible Heideggerian film-philosophy. To illustrate some of these points, I discuss Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car (2021), wherein boredom is consistently awakened through aesthetic strategies of dead-time, silence, slowness and repetition. In the film, the mood of boredom, but also that of love and grief as world-disclosing moods which produce a radical change in our being-in-the-world, is a way to establish a sense of our embeddedness, orient our understanding and disclose our finitude and solitude.

Light and Shadow: Exploring the Aesthetics of Dune’s Visual Spectacle through Effects, Design, and Art Direction

This paper explores the profound aesthetics of light and shadow in Denis Villeneuve’s Dune. Drawing upon elements of cinematography, special effects, design, and art direction, the analysis examines how the interplay of light and shadow serves as a narrative language, shaping the visual storytelling experience. The study investigates the innovative use of lighting to enhance visual effects, the impact of design elements on thematic depth, and the role of art direction in creating a visually cohesive world. Additionally, it investigates the emotional and psychological dimensions influenced by the aesthetic choices, contributing to the film’s atmospheric tone and mood. Through an examination of audience reception and critical acclaim, the paper underscores Dune’s significant contribution to the contemporary visual language of cinema. The findings suggest potential areas for further research in the dynamic field of film aesthetics.

Simulate This! Virtual Production and Cinematic Education with cineDESK

Due to the increased availability of computing power, hybrid image production – combining live-action image components with virtual assets – can now be performed in real-time, enabling filmmakers to seamlessly visualize, manipulate and incorporate digital assets into their shooting process. The related novel workflows are commonly referred to as “Virtual Production”. Here, we focus on the use of Virtual Production techniques for cinematic simulation. In 2020, the Zurich University of the Arts created cineDESK, a simulation tool to facilitate the previsualization of film scenes and stimulate the artistic choices of filmmakers. Using cineDESK, directors, cinematographers and production designers can collaboratively explore how space, light, props and acting are translated into cinematic sequences. In educational settings, students benefit from cineDESK’s capacity to explore specific aspects of the filmmaking process in isolation. cineDESK allows them to repeatedly rework their scenes, rearranging and optimizing camera angles and movements, lighting, production design elements and even the appearance of their (virtual) actors. Thus, cineDESK helps filmmakers to develop an idiosyncratic visual language and make informed aesthetic choices without being overwhelmed by the complexities of a real film shoot.

Mimetic designs in Helon Habila’s Oil on Water

The stark condition of the Niger Delta region is a factual reality, and Helon Habila’s Oil on Water has been read by several critics as a plausible reflection of this reality, glossing over the novel’s fictive nature and the aesthetic choices of its configuration. This paper argues that what is perceived as plausibility in the representation of reality in Oil on Water is instead a simulated appearance of reality suggested by Habila’s aesthetic choices. It demonstrates this with insights from the principle of mimesis and by accounting for three aesthetic choices in Oil on Water such as metafictionality, the animist worldview, and metaphors. These aesthetic choices not only attempt to imitate reality, but they also challenge conventional narrative, problematize the relation between fiction and fact in its simulation of reality, and imbue the novel with mimetic paradoxes.

‘America e Sardigna’: Una poesia in sardo della giovane Grazia Deledda (1893)

ABSTRACT This article focuses on the rediscovered printed edition of ‘America e Sardigna’, a poem written in Sardinian by Grazia Deledda for the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893; so far, this appears to be the only poetic text composed by Deledda in her native language. The analysis is carried out at several levels: historical, ideological, linguistic, orthographic, and metric-structural. After reconstructing the editorial context, the author frames the poem within the Sardinian literary system – in relation to diachrony and synchrony, cultured and popular style, and written and oral literature, also taking into account the multilingualism arising from the Logudorese koiné and the author’s dialect, Nuorese. The study, focused through the lens of Sardinian poetic culture, considers the stylistic and aesthetic choices of ‘America e Sardigna’, and concludes by considering why Deledda broke away from an avenue of poetic invention she had only recently embarked on.

Vincent Toro’s Hurricane Formalism

Abstract Vincent Toro’s poetry and essays critique the ways that US actions in the wake of natural disasters damage Puerto Rican ecologies and culture. The entwinement of colonialism and natural disaster is the subject of Toro’s two collections, Stereo. Island. Mosaic. (2016) and Tertulia (2020). These collections instruct readers to toggle between close reading of language and formal analysis of genre and shape. In Stereo, Toro produces a geo-formal poetics that takes a Taíno hurricane zemi as its central organizing form, an aesthetic choice that foregrounds non-Western literary forms in communicating Puerto Rican economic and ecological atmospheres. In Toro’s collections, the air and atmosphere are sites where anti-colonial critique and aesthetic innovation merge.

Per Ulrik Stenhammar i sin samtid

With the goal of shedding new light on a person who has come to be overshadowed by his famous son, Wilhelm Stenhammar, the aim of this study is to identify the musical activities of Per Ulrik Stenhammar (1829–1875), an architect by profession. Questions addressed are: In which musical roles does Per Ulrik Stenhammar appear? Which environments are included in his musical activities? Which aesthetic choices can be identified? The study has a biographical approach. The orientation is agent-structuralism, a perspective which focuses the interaction between the agent and the structure, seeing them as inextricably integrated. The study uses content analysis as method. The empirical data material consists of published and unpublished compositions, personal letters, notes and sketches, family chronicles, correspondence and newspapers. The result shows that in addition to being a composer, Per Ulrik Stenhammar was also an instrumentalist and a singer, that he was involved in both confessional and art-musical environments, and that his musical activities were based on a theologically motivated aesthetic. Examples of areas for future research identified in this study are Stenhammar’s string quartets and the interface between the different aesthetic expressions in his work in the two artistic disciplines of music and architecture. Keywords: Per Ulrik Stenhammar, biographical approach, confessional and art-music environments, public and private spaces, theologically motivated aesthetics.

Strange Way of Life

Strange Way of Life (2023), Pedro Almodóvar’s most recent English-language short film is the director’s first engagement with the Western. Based on the various interviews that the director has granted during the promotion of his film, the essay discusses the origins for the project and the script; the influence of the classic Western genre on the story and the film’s aesthetic choices; and the aspirations behind this queer, mid-life cowboy film.

Survey and Analysis of the Status Quo of Aesthetic Personality Cultivation by Integrating Aesthetic Education into Ideological and Political Elements in Medical Higher Vocational Colleges

[Purpose]To understand the current situation and posture of the cultivation of students' aesthetic personality by integrating aesthetic education into the elements of ideology and politics in medical higher vocational colleges and universities, so as to provide a better basis for education planning. [Methods]Using a combination of questionnaire survey, interview and investigation, the survey research method was used to select 2219 students majoring in medicine in six higher vocational colleges and universities in Jiangxi Province, China, from August 1 to September 20, 2023, to determine the sample size of 328 using the Krejcie and Morgan table, and the random number table method of extracting the questionnaires to do the analysis of the data, its questionnaire content includes: general information, the current status of students' aesthetic education, the current status of the integration of aesthetic education into the elements of ideology and politics, and the current status of the cultivation of aesthetic personality. [Results]Of the 328 cases of medical students, 89 cases (27.1%) were male and 239 cases (72.94%) were female; the medical specialties were 139 cases (42.4%) from nursing, 77 cases (23.5%) from clinical, 20 cases (6.1%) from medical laboratory technology, 41 cases (12.5%) from medical imaging, and 51 cases (15.5%) from other specialties in medicine; of these cases 115 cases (35.1%) from urban areas and 213 cases (64.9%) from rural areas; 42 cases (12.8%) were only children and 286 cases (87.2%) were not only children; 91.8% spent more than 3 hours a day on the Internet using cell phones and computers; 55.4% of the Internet users mainly watched movies and played games. At present, the integration of aesthetic education into the ideological and political elements of medical higher vocational colleges and universities is the norm, but the content of the teaching form is different, medical students have a high degree of acceptance of the integration of aesthetic education into the ideological and political elements of medical students. At the same time, the aesthetic personality of teachers is becoming an aesthetic necessity for medical students. Through cultivation, medical students have enhanced their ability to perceive aesthetics, their aesthetic choices have become more rational and humanistic, and they are equipped to manifest the aesthetics of traditional culture..[Conclusion]To summarize, the cultivation of aesthetic personality of medical students is generally in good condition, but the cultivation of aesthetic personality with the integration of aesthetic education into the elements of ideology and politics needs to be deeply explored.

Cinematic journalism: the political economy and ‘emotional truth’ of documentary film

ABSTRACT News organizations in recent years have embraced documentary film. From streaming ventures to Academy Award nominations, newsrooms are producing documentaries to reach new audiences and maintain their relevance in changing media cultures. This study examines documentary’s surging popularity among news outlets and addresses two questions: How does the political economy of media affect filmmakers’ editorial decisions and aesthetic choices? And, how do seemingly commonplace audiovisual and production techniques – such as music, lighting, sound design, and directing – complicate journalistic norms? Drawing on in-depth interviews with journalistic filmmakers (n = 24), the study offers three findings: the political economy of digital media is altering the production and distribution models for documentary, creating ethical dilemmas for filmmakers; the relational dynamics among filmmakers, participants, and audiences significantly inform the ethical frameworks that filmmakers use; and the ‘emotional truth’ of documentary storytelling forces filmmakers to reevaluate their conceptions of objectivity and neutrality. The study illuminates the relationship between documentary and journalism, and details how filmmakers are navigating the increasingly-blurry boundaries between these fields.