Aesthetic Approach Research Articles

Blue Boys: Maurice Pialat, Nicolas Poussin and the Work of Art

Maurice Pialat (1925–2003) in his Libération article “Éloge de Poussin” (1987) tells us that cinema has made no progress since the Lumière brothers’ first projected images. Provocatively, he informs his readers that only painting has progressed and, as such, remains the far more innovative art form. For all the pointed remarks directed with some force towards French film critics and filmmakers, Pialat’s short notes in Libé offer us something more. It is one of the few opportunities to consider the auteur’s critical and aesthetic approaches to filmmaking. While Pialat emphasises the failure of critics and filmmakers to elevate cinema to the level of art, the article more saliently invites us to analyse Pialat’s understanding of cinematic practice as an intricate enfolding of painterly and cinematic concepts. In this article I contend that, through a reading of the theoretical dimensions Pialat introduces in his “elegy” to the Classicist painter Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665), along with an analysis of a selection of the director’s films, we not only discover Pialat’s film-philosophy; moreover, we discover new ways to study Pialat’s acute rendering of fraught manhood. Significantly, I argue, Pialat’s wrestling with masculinity (fatherhood, sexual desire, boyhood, and so on) reveals itself through a key element critical to Poussin’s aesthetic palette: the colour blue.

COVID-19 grassroots memorial practices in the UK

At the time of writing, confirmed UK deaths from COVID-19 number over 160,000. While the restrictions on burial rituals and closure of faith spaces during successive UK lockdowns have impacted the commemoration of COVID-19 victims, the emergence of grassroots memorial practices – from street art campaigns to yellow hearts in the windows of bereaved households – demonstrates the extent to which communities have adapted ceremonial processes in a period of national trauma. This visual essay examines a selection of grassroots activities, created both during and between UK lockdowns, charting the way in which apparently coherent aesthetic approaches to COVID-19 memorialisation provide cover for diverse political and personal agendas.

An aesthetic approach to emotional intelligence: The development of the Aesthetic Descriptors of Emotion Measure (ADEM)

The four-factor model of emotional intelligence (EI) abilities has faced challenges in the inconsistency of the facilitation branch leading Mayer et al. (2024) to propose a provisional factor- Connecting Emotions- that consists of relating emotions to sensations. The Aesthetic Descriptors of Emotion Measure (ADEM) has emerging potential as a measure of this new EI ability factor. The ADEM is a performance measure based on the Aesthetic Approach to Emotions (AAE) that matches descriptive aesthetic-sensory language to emotional states providing a non-evaluative representation of emotions. The ADEM presents six emotions and found distinct aesthetic profiles for each. Cronbach Alpha and factor analyses respectively found consistency and validity with the internal structure of the ADEM. Bivariate and partial bivariate analyses (controlling for cognitive reasoning) indicated that the ADEM corresponds with self-perceived measures of emotional clarity and a similar performance-based EI measure (MEIS-Synesthesia subtest). The ADEM has potential as a method for developing EI in educational and clinical settings.

Harmonizing Political and Marketing Aesthetics: Insights from The Chess Olympiad 2022

This article explores how the Government of Tamil Nadu, India, utilised strategic mass communication methods that emerged from a fusion of political and marketing strategies to create an aesthetic approach that elevated Chess Olympiad 2022, an event typically less in the public eye, into a spectacle that captured widespread attention by focusing on the event’s impact on their cultural identity and the subsequent construction of a narrative of global cultural leadership. The marketing strategy of the Government of Tamil Nadu, India may be considered an aesthetic application of the theory of symbolic interactionism, as it employed literary, musical arts and visual arts across Chennai, that ensured active engagement of individuals in the city with the government's aesthetic representations. These visual representations acted as symbolic cues, inviting interaction and sparking the curiosity of the the whole host city, the Government of Tamil Nadu, India succeeded in turning Chess into a spectator sport, and by doing so, forged a key place in the national identity for Chess by building a narrative of collective linguistic and cultural identity. Since all citizens do not have an expert level knowledge on government policies, the media narrative that is built around any government policy determines its perceived success. The media narrative of Chess Olympiad 2022 was the narrative of India emerging as a global leader in cultural diplomacy - a soft power approach that is shaped by aesthetics. In dissecting the intricate interplay between mass communication, aesthetics, and societal identity formation, this study elucidates the transformative role of these strategies during the Chess Olympiad 2022, highlighting their profound implications within the socio-cultural landscape.

Resistance or Compromise: A Comparison of Western Mainstream Painting Language Before and after the Invention of Photographic Technology

This paper focuses on the developmental changes in the language of drawing brought about by the invention of the camera. Therefore, this paper takes the time of camera invention as the node. First, we will analyze the common features of the painting language of the famous painting schools before this point in time and the common features of the painting language of the famous painting schools after this point in time. Then we will compare and analyze them to explore the development and evolution of the painting language. Current research on painting before and after the invention of the camera is mostly focused on aesthetic approaches, art criticism, and its influence on popular culture. It adds to the gap in research on the language of painting and provides some insights into the creation and development of today's photography and painting.

The <i>Krabat</i> Motif in the Songs and Musicals of <i>Liedermacher</i> Gerhard Gundermann

This article looks at Gerhard Gundermann’s use of the Krabat motif from Jurij Brězan’s novel Krabat or the Transformation of the World in his Liedertheater productions with Brigade Feuerstein in the GDR and, post-unification, in his solo songs. From Hoyerswerda in South-East Germany, Gundermann was simultaneously an open-cast miner and a singer/songwriter and dramatist who died prematurely in 1998 at the age of 43. Emerging out of the GDR singing club movement in the late 1970s, he relentlessly exposed the ruling SED Party’s monopoly on power in his work with Brigade Feuerstein. After German unification, as a solo performer, he became the mouthpiece of culturally disenfranchised East Germans. Twenty-five years after his death—in the wake of renewed interest in this performer as evidenced by Andreas Dresen’s film Gundermann (2018) and Grit Lemke’s documentary Gundermann Revier (2019)—it is time for a proper academic assessment of his work. This study breaks new ground, firstly in its analysis of the unpublished works of Brigade Feuerstein and secondly by exploring the extent to which Gundermann’s life work was underpinned by the philosophy of Krabat, in its exposing of humans’ exploitation of one another and their environment. In this, one can see how Gundermann created an aesthetic approach that successfully spanned two political systems.

Advancing Lip Augmentation: State-of-the-Art 2D and 3D Analysis for Assessing Volume Enhancement and Lip Line Redefinition

Over the preceding five decades, there has been a noticeable surge in the pursuit of achieving voluminous and well-defined lips. This trend has prompted an escalating number of individuals to undergo lip augmentation procedures, aiming for a natural three-dimensional enhancement of lip volume and distinct vermilion borders. Despite the proliferation of lip augmentation techniques, there remains a dearth of comprehensive investigations into their precise effects on the three-dimensional structural integrity of the lips. This research endeavors to address this gap by employing stereophotogrammetry as a quantitative tool to scrutinize lip augmentation outcomes and to appraise the efficacy of lip plumpers. The study methodology involves a comparative analysis of lip dimensions among subjects treated with a commercial lip plumper using multi-spectral imaging for lip dimension assessment, coupled with markerless tracking technology and 3D interpolating surface methodology to analyze lip volume and shape. Additionally, the study evaluated lip youth state, including moisture level, softness, firmness, and tissue density. The demand for lip augmentation procedures is driven by perceived advantages such as quick recovery and minimal risk. Therefore, it is crucial to substantiate their efficacy with robust findings. The investigation suggests that both 3D and 2D stereophotogrammetry techniques are reliable for evaluating lip size before and after augmentation, whether through cosmetic or aesthetic approaches. Overall, the study provides a comprehensive analysis of a lip treatment aimed at enhancing volume and redesigning lip lines. It demonstrates that stereophotogrammetry is effective for assessing 3D lip dimensions and their correlation with internal lip structure. This research could be particularly valuable for evaluating the efficacy and duration of various lip enhancement techniques, including dermal fillers, implants, and topical cosmetic formulations, offering quantitative and reproducible assessments over time.

IMPLANT AESTHETICS- AN OVERVIEW

Dental implant therapy is by far the closest replacement to natural teeth when compared to other fixed prosthetic alternatives. Aesthetic implant therapy enhances every aspect of oral implantology, thus evolving into a fundamental component of contemporary implant dentistry. Lately, significant advancements have been made, such as the development or regeneration of implant recipient sites through the stimulation of both soft and hard tissues, as well as the replication of sound peri-implant tissue architecture that are resistant to masticatory trauma and mechanical forces. Modern esthetic approaches require patient's preferences to be taken into consideration, and spontaneous addressal to their specific issues have become inevitable in modern aesthetic implant practice from a restorative sense. This review examines the key historical context surrounding dental implant aesthetics and outlines the various crucial elements that are necessary to guarantee a solid foundation to an aesthetically pleasing implant with stable anchorage. If aesthetic risk factors are to be identified and appropriately managed, then an interdisciplinary, systematic, prosthetically driven approach is required.

Intervención sonora en una escultura tipo Baschet

Some contemporary art practices base their discursive strategy on the amalgamation or mixture of different artistic media; these media are united and/or blended and thereby produce new aesthetic approaches to be experienced by both spectators and performers. This condition of contemporary art compels critics, historians, or writers to navigate certain unknown waters, delving into languages that are sometimes foreign to the visual arts and proper to other artistic media. In 2017, the sound artist Josep Cerdà, heir and successor to a large extent of the sculptural work developed by the Baschet brothers, was in Bogotá running a creative workshop to build a Baschet-type sound sculpture that was later used to create a sound intervention; this essay attempts an historical and aesthetic analysis based on this intervention. Readers are advised to first view and listen to the sound intervention at the following link in order to understand the development of the essay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FyYm15xGbs

IMPROVing Spontaneity: Gestalt Therapy Perspective on Improvisational Theater as a Therapeutical Intervention

ABSTRACT This article outlines the theoretical background for improv-therapeutical processes and interventions found in the contemporary theory of the Gestalt therapeutic approach. Although there is a growing number of studies reporting on the potential of improvisational theater in psychological well-being and psychotherapy, few of them explore theoretical parallels with existing psychotherapeutic approaches. This article proposes that the roots and paradigms of improv theater and Gestalt therapy are epistemologically close and explore how concepts specific for relational Gestalt therapy—understanding of self as a process in the phenomenological intersubjective field, an aesthetic approach to mental health, and the notion of creative adjustment—could contribute to the understanding and empowering of the therapeutic processes found in improv theater. The theory proposes that nurturing creative and spontaneous processes in improv possibly contributes to the healthy functioning of the self and, therefore, enhances healthy contact with the environment.

Harmony as an Aesthetic Approach for Meditation Centers

In recent years, meditation centres have become increasingly popular among individuals seeking solace, tranquillity, and respite from the pressures of contemporary life. This research paper seeks to explore the significance of harmony as an aesthetic approach in designing and organizing meditation centres, with the aim of enhancing the overall meditative experience for practitioners. By conducting an interdisciplinary examination of architecture, interior design, and psychological well-being, this study aims to investigate the role of harmonious aesthetics in facilitating a more effective and fulfilling meditation experience. The study emphasizes the importance of harmonious aesthetics in shaping the design of meditation centres. The pursuit of visual appeal extends beyond mere aesthetics to encompass a multisensory experience that evokes a sense of calmness and promotes mindfulness. The interplay of colours, textures, and spatial arrangements come together to create a serene atmosphere that guides practitioners on a journey inward. The paper underscores the significance of interior design in fostering harmony in meditation centres. Interior spaces that incorporate calming colour palettes, natural materials, and minimalist aesthetics create an environment that is conducive to meditation. Researchers examine the psychological impact of these design choices on practitioners, exploring how a harmonious interior can facilitate a deeper sense of mindfulness and focus during meditation sessions. Furthermore, the study analyses case studies of existing meditation centres that are renowned for their aesthetic excellence. By identifying commonalities in their design philosophies and best practices, the paper aims to inform architects, designers, and meditation practitioners alike. The goal is to foster a deeper understanding of the role of intentional aesthetics in enhancing the meditative journey and contributing to holistic well-being. In conclusion, this research paper emphasizes the significance of harmony as a key aesthetic principle in meditation centre design. By focusing on harmonious aesthetics, architects, designers, and meditation practitioners can create an environment that promotes inner peace, mindfulness, and overall well-being. The findings of this study contribute to the evolving discourse on meditation centre design and have practical implications for those involved in the design and construction of such spaces. Keywords: harmonious aesthetics, design of meditation centres, multisensory experience, harmony principle

THE URBAN TENDENCY IN IMPRESSIONIST PAINTING

Urbanism is a human tendency towards development, cognitive growth, progress and creativity in various fields, and it has an active presence in the physiological structure of humans in general and the artist in particular. Urbanism is an obsession that expresses the artist’s interest in lifestyle, movement and daily interaction. The research study included four chapters: (The first chapter) contained the methodological framework of the research, which consisted of the research problem, its importance, and its goal represented by (revealing the urban tendency in Impressionist painting). (The second chapter) dealt with the theoretical framework of the research, which consists of three sections: (The research study The first) aesthetic approaches to the concept of urbanity, and (the second section) included representations of the city in the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, and Classicism, and (the third section) dealt with urban features in contemporary European painting. (Chapter Three) included research procedures that consisted of a research community of (20) models, and the researcher used the structural (descriptive) analysis method in analyzing (the research sample) of (3) pictorial models of Impressionist school paintings. (Chapter Four) discussed the research results and conclusions, and the study also reached some recommendations and proposals

The Role of the Aesthetic Function in Printed Ecological Advertising

The aesthetic dimension in ecological advertising plays a crucial role in establishing an emotional connection between the audience and environmental issues, stimulating involvement and commitment to conservation efforts. The aesthetic function embedded in ecological advertising serves as a foundation for raising awareness and mobilizing the public regarding environmental issues. This aesthetic approach fosters deep emotional connections, motivating active involvement in environmental initiatives and significantly contributing to leaving a lasting impression and focusing attention on the ecological message conveyed. The use of visually captivating imagery, including landscapes and vibrant colors, grabs attention and sparks curiosity among viewers. Their distinctive style, together with origindesign elements, elevates them to an artistic level, enriching their impact and resonance. Ecological advertising draws inspiration from diverse aesthetic influences, similar to those found in fine art, with deliberate reinterpretations and realignments to serve its purpose. Adherence to fundamental design principles ensures impactful and memorable ecological advertising campaigns. By presenting aesthetic means, namely disturbing aspects of environmental degradation, ecological ads can evoke a strong emotional response among the audience, prompting them to take action or support initiatives for nature conservation. However, it is essential for such imagery to be used judiciously and accompanied by messages/texts that provide solutions or inspire hope and positive action in the face of environmental issues. We will observe how techniques like unity, harmony, and balance, along with intentional emphasis and contrast, enhance the effectiveness of ecological advertising in conveying its message to the public.

Automation of visual communication and aesthetic construction of national image: a computational aesthetic analysis of social bots on Twitter

Abstract Vision and aesthetics are inseparable dimensions of national image building. Based on 106,562 China-related images from Twitter (renamed as X), this paper introduced a computational aesthetic approach to investigate the visual communication activities of social bots on Twitter and compared the similarities and differences between human and bot accounts’ posted images so as to explore the influence of social bots’ aesthetic strategies. The results show that social bots have displayed different aesthetic strategies in the construction of the China-related visual frame, and formed obvious stylistic differences with humans in brightness, saturation, color, etc. Negative binomial regression indicates that the aesthetic strategies of social bots contribute to more likes and shares. The automation of visual communication and aesthetic construction not only makes the global building and communication of national image face new situations and challenges, but also pushes the whole human visual aesthetic, creation, and communication activities under the potential subjectivity crisis.

User Experience, Functionality and Aesthetics Evaluation in an Academic Multi-Site Web Ecosystem

The present study focuses on using qualitative and quantitative data to evaluate the functionality, user experience (UX), and aesthetic approach offered by an academic multi-site Web ecosystem consisting of multiple interconnected websites. Large entities in various industry fields often have the need for an elaborate Web presence. In an effort to address the challenges posed by this need specifically in the field of academia, the authors developed, over a period of many years, a multi-site ecosystem within the Ionian University, which focuses on interconnectivity and a collaborative approach to academic content management. This system, known as “Publish@Ionio”, uses a singular content management infrastructure to allow for the creation of content for different websites that share both information and resources while at the same time allowing for individual variations in both functionality and aesthetics. The ecosystem was evaluated through quantitative data from its operation and qualitative feedback from a focus-group interview with experts, including website editors and administrative staff. The collected data were used to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the multi-site approach based on the actions and needs of the individuals in charge of generating content. The study led to conclusions on the advantages that interoperability offers in terms of digital and human resource management, the benefits of a unified aesthetic approach that allows for variability, and the necessity of collaborative content management tools that are tailored to the content’s nature.

The cultural and philosophical foundations of the correlation of the phenomena of «artistry» and «creativity»

The object of this research is artistry and creativity as sociocultural phenomena. The subject of this research is the cultural and philosophical foundations of the correlation of the desired phenomena. The developed foundations represent the criterion foundation for differentiating artistry and creativity from the point of view of ontological, epistemological, axiological, sociocultural, anthropological, praxiological, ethical and aesthetic approaches. The phenomenon of «artistry» is justified as the creation of a previously non-existent or original, meaningful and qualitative transformation of existing being, which manifests itself in the establishment of a work of art that is valuable to the subject itself, society and culture due to its actual exclusivity. In turn, creativity is defined as a combinatorial and plagiarized comparison or formal and quantitative redistribution of heterogeneous fragments of being, which manifests itself in the emergence of an artistic work that has a certain price for a mass consumer audience due to its superficial «elitism». The methodological foundation of this research is a systematic approach, comparative-historical and analytical-interpretative methods, as well as hermeneutic and phenomenological approaches. The scientific novelty of the conducted research lies in a holistic, systematic and poly-aspect substantiation of the essence of the phenomena of artistry and creativity and the disclosure of the features of their sources, process, subject and orientation. On the basis of the developed cultural and philosophical foundations, multidimensional definitions of artistry and creativity are formulated, including the designated critical features. The research also outlines the contours of a special philosophical discipline – the philosophy of creativity and its separate subsections. The main conclusion of the research is the position on the inadmissibility of replacing artistry with creativity in order to avoid the dangers of depersonalization of the creative subject, dehumanization of social relations and degradation of cultural traditions.

The Weather in Tsai: Slow Cinema and Slow Violence

Abstract: Recent critical thinking on anthropogenic climate change has mourned cinema’s ability to capture the slow violence of large-scale environmental degradation and foresee a future of environmental disaster that is unchecked because it remains invisible to aesthetic representation. This essay argues that the rise of slow cinema aesthetics, particularly the affective mode of anxiety that it cultivates through the chronic violence of the long take, is one aesthetic approach within contemporary cinema to mediate slow violence. This argument is developed through a close reading of Tsai Ming-liang’s film, I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone (2006), paying particular attention to the representations of ambient toxicity, the exhausting forms of reproductive labor on display, and the queer forms of intimacy that are cultivated throughout.

Aesthetic analysis of the pattern of West queen mothers in the Shandong region during the Han dynasty

The West Queen Mother, as a comprehensive cultural phenomenon, has long been the subject of scholarly attention. In recent years, particularly with the rise of traditional Chinese culture, the cultural significance of the West Queen Mother has gained considerable popularity. In the realms of cultural creativity, animation, and gaming, the portrayal of the West Queen Mother has undergone further evolution and innovation, resulting in corresponding shifts in aesthetics. This research investigates the content classification and features of the West Queen Mother's pattern in the Shandong region during the Han Dynasty. By employing a combined approach of pattern analysis and Chinese aesthetics, the aim is to gain a deeper and multifaceted understanding of the culture surrounding the West Queen Mother. This study interprets the aesthetic style and factors associated with the Queen Mother from the perspective of traditional Chinese aesthetics. The conclusion drawn is that the pattern of the West Queen Mother in the Shandong region during the Han Dynasty exhibits aesthetic characteristics ranging from a flat abstraction with simplicity and naturalness to order, normativity, and symbolic representation of divinity. These characteristics demonstrate the richness of Han culture and reflect the Confucian aesthetic concept of the harmony between heaven and humanity, encompassing auspiciousness, loyalty, and filial piety as the highest moral standards, thereby aligning with the prevailing spirit and sociocultural context of the time.

Cardiac implantable electronic devices in female patients: Esthetic, breast implant, and anatomic considerations.

The implantation of a cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) can have esthetic and psychological consequences on patients. We explore a heart team model for care coordination and discuss esthetic approaches for improved cosmetic outcomes in patients undergoing (CIED)-related procedures or de novo implantation. Patients undergoing CIED surgery for approved indications between June2015 andJune2022 were identified. Patients were included when surgical care was provided by a collaborative relationship between the primary electrophysiologist and the plastic surgeon. Patient demographics, details of the surgical procedure, information on breast implants, complications, and outcomes related to cosmesis were recorded. Twenty-two female patients were included in this study. The mean age was 50.2 ± 18.2 years. The mean follow-up duration was 2.2 ± 5.5 months. The top two indications for the procedure included CIED generator change (n = 9, 41%) and implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) implantation (n = 7, 32%). The most common reasons for involving plastic surgery in the procedure included surgery near breast implants (n = 10, 45%) and device displacement or discomfort (n = 8, 36%). CIED pocket position was prepectoral in 10 cases (45%), subpectoral in 11 patients (50%), and intramuscular in one patient (4.5%). The majority of the patients (20, 91%) had cosmetically acceptable results postprocedure. One patient (4.5%) had breast asymmetry on the CIED side, and another continued to have skin erosion over the CIED and leads. A heart team approach incorporating the expertize of cardiac electrophysiology and plastic surgery is essential for providing optimal care for patients with breast implants and patients requesting esthetic appeal.

A Minimally Invasive Esthetic Approach for Teeth with Molar Incisor Hypomineralization: a Clinical Case Report

Molar incisor hypomineralization (MIH) is a qualitative defect of enamel, clinically characterized by white or yellow/brownish demarcated opacities that affect permanent molars, often associated with permanent incisors. The etiology is multifactorial, including systemic and genetic/epigenetic factors. Defects of anterior teeth can negatively impact children since they might present lower self-esteem and socialization problems. Purpose: To describe a minimally invasive treatment for anterior teeth affected by molar incisor hypomineralization, performed with direct composite resin restoration and a universal adhesive system. Case Report: An 8-year-old patient sought dental care with complaints about her dental appearance, reporting suffering from school bullying. She presented a white-yellowish opacity on the maxillary right central incisor. After a clinical examination, she was diagnosed with molar incisor hypomineralization. To improve dental esthetics, a direct composite resin restoration was proposed. The enamel surface was prepared and etched with 35% phosphoric acid etchant solution for 15 seconds before applying the universal adhesive system. Two different shades of the composite were used for layering the material to disguise the defect without extensive removal of the dental structure. The result was satisfactory as it was possible to mask the opacity, reestablish enamel thickness, and improve the patient's quality of life. Conclusion: Conservative restorations comprising a universal adhesive system seem to bring desirable esthetic results for anterior teeth with molar incisor hypomineralization.