Aesthetic Experience Research Articles

The aesthetic experience of interior spaces with curvilinear boundaries and various space properties in immersive and desktop-based virtual environments.

The aesthetic experience of interior spaces with curvilinear boundaries and various space properties in immersive and desktop-based virtual environments.

Empathy and Semiotic Narrative Practices concerning Art: A Cognitive Semiotic Approach to Aesthetic Experience and Emotion

This paper proposes a cognitive-semiotic approach to aesthetics to understand aesthetic emotion and its relation to the process of producing and valorizing art. The core argument presented is that the emotional aspects of aesthetic experience are integral to the processes of evaluation and meaning-making and that this interplay significantly influences individuals’ engagement with art, highlighting the importance of these dimensions in the overall experience. Therefore, the initial step in my approach is to illustrate that the process of meaning-making is significantly influenced by our active participation, as well as our interpretation and understanding of our own emotions and those of others. I intend to demonstrate that throughout this process, empathy is a vital component of the reciprocal interaction between the viewer and the artwork. In this regard, I will explore various concepts related to empathy, focusing on aesthetic empathy. Additionally, I will emphasize the correlation between aesthetic experiences and everyday life, explaining how a work of art can effectively mirror the core of daily life through a semiotic narrative practice. I believe that by exploring these narratives more thoroughly, we can achieve a deeper, empathetic understanding of both the artist and the artwork and that this understanding can lead to explicit and implicit responses to the artwork, ultimately shaping our overall attitude toward it. Hence, I will conclude that our aesthetic experiences provide us with opportunities to actively explore aspects of our narrative selves, which might help us understand how these experiences significantly change our relationship with ourselves and the social context we are a part of.

Shadows holding their breath – Winnicott, Bion, and integration from the perspective of aesthetic experience

ABSTRACT In the search for meaningful living, the theme of transformation and existence of differing self-states appears important in both Winnicott and Bion, well-exemplified by their theories of transitional phenomena and the caesura, respectively. For Winnicott, the possibility for differing self-states to coexist without strain emerges in the transitional area of experiencing. Bion emphasises the encounter with a gap between changing and contradictory self-states, acknowledging the tension that oppositions cause. This approach culminates in his account of the caesura. This article elucidates the differences in their approaches, highlights the value in both and explores the possibility to acknowledge both emotional realities – the strain-free coexistence of differing self-states and the preoccupation with the gap between them – in aesthetic experience, as one of its defining features is that of tolerating oppositions. I argue that aesthetic experience appears as an important source for engaging with diverging self-states. To address this, I look at an Emily Dickinson poem and concentrate on the relationship between the experiences of transience and continuity though the theoretical lens of Winnicott and Bion.

Spike Jonze Meets Shakespeare – Artificial Intelligence and Posthumanism

The hereby study aims to answer several questions regarding the impact Artificial Intelligence has had on our lives and on our art, especially on the performing arts, and particularly on theatre and cinema. In order to gauge and assess the importance of AI, both as a means of creating works of art and as a theme they trackle, I draw a parallel between Spike Jonze’s film, “Her” (2013), and Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2016 production of “The Tempest” by William Shakespeare, directed by Gregory Doran. While this particular production of Shakespeare’s play is a high-quality illustration of how Artificial Intelligence can enhance a theatre performance, in Spike Jonze’s film one can find AI as a theme, character and social issue. Besides being a state-of-the-art work, “Her” raises a question rarely addressed without bias, bigotry or militantism: a human’s warmth or a machine’s intelligence? Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of “The Tempest” answers: ’Both’. Director Gregory Doran worked with Imaginarium and Intel to create scenes where actors and holograms interact in a three-dimensional immersive experience, a feat which could not have been achieved without Artificial Intelligence. The hereby essay also tries to answer other questions, such as: Does the use of AI technology improve the spectator’s aesthetic experience, or is it rather an encumbering factor? And if so, why? Are we heading towards the posthuman age? And last, but not least, what implications does the increasing use of AI in the performing arts have from an anthropological and sociological point of view?

Pollution of water bodies and related impacts on aquatic ecosystems and ecosystem services: the case of Ghana’s booming ‘galamsey’ industry

Galamsey is a Ghanaian jargon from the phrase “gather and sell,” coined from how gold was mined with simple tools by natives and sold afterwards, is deeply rooted in culture. Despite its socio-economic benefits, a significant upsurge in galamsey has been widely associated with significant environmental impacts viz, destruction of aquatic ecosystems and ecosystems services. This paper discuses impacts of galamsey on aquatic ecosystems and ecosystem services using the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response framework in combination with the quantitative defensible impact characterization approach to establish the cause-and-impact relationships between pollutants associated with galamsey, the extent to which aquatic ecosystems and ecosystem services are impacted while answering the questions what is happening to the environment and why it is happening (compilation and analysis of status and trends of key environmental indicators) and what the consequences are for the environment (analysis of impacts of environmental change on ecosystem services). There were highly significant differences (P<0001) between the analysed mean Hg, As and turbidity levels and the permissible levels in surface water with the potential of affecting ecosystem services including water for drinking, water for recreational, water for irrigational, and water for aqua culture purposes. Spiritual values, symbolic values, recreation, aqua culture and fish harvest were among ecosystem services highly impacted with a high impact significance ranged 101-125 (++++orange) while aesthetic experience was very highly impacted with a very high impact significance ranged between 126-150 (+++++red). Discolouration by silt, and hydromorphological alteration had a medium-high impact significance ranged from 76-100 (+++yellow) while spiritual value had a low-medium impact significance ranged from 51-75 (represented by ++green). It is recommended that efforts are made to promote responsible cleaner operations in the artisanal and small-scale gold mining sector through the provision of subsidized eco-friendly tools for gold amalgamation in addition to regular capacity building training on the impacts of galamsey on ecosystems, ecosystem services and human health using cycle of cause-effect-outlook relationship.

Plastic dislocations: questions of labour and environment in Plastic Heart

In the 1960s, as plastics gained traction as the ubiquitous material of consumer objects, artists began to experiment with the properties of the newly available polymers. Plastics such as latex, fibreglass, acrylic and polyethylene offered access to aesthetic experimentation with colour, reflection, transparency and flexibility. Yet the use of these materials was never without critical reflection, an orientation that strengthened with the passing of time and the increased knowledge of plastics pollution. Though the connections are usually invisible, plastic artworks never stand alone, but in fact drag into the gallery the histories of their manufacture, the extraction of their base materials, their broken relationships with land and water, and their future propensity to break down into smaller pieces and proliferate endlessly. We use the example of the exhibition Plastic Heart: Surface All the Way Through, curated by the Synthetic Collective, to examine how plastics bring the complications of their materiality into the gallery. We argue that exhibition production should attend to both its fossil-fuel consumption and its relations to place. Plastic Heart provides an excellent case study of how plastics and plastics pollution can be dealt with critically within the space of a travelling exhibition.

존 듀이 예술철학 관점에서의 음악의 형식과 본체

This study attempts to grasp the meaning of the form and substance of music from the perspective of John Dewey's art philosophy. John Dewey's art philosophy takes nature containing primary contribution and reality as its category. Nature acts as the source of all art's existence as well as the occurrence of form. The organization of nature's vital energies becomes a condition of form. Under this condition, the form of music is always a method of revealing the meaning of music as a fluid, dynamic, and processive aesthetic experience, and the body of music becomes a new and reinforced meaning of music made to be known. Therefore, from the perspective of Dewey's art philosophy, the form and substance of music are possible not as any intellectual structure or frame but as an aesthetic experience, and anyone who experiences music can possess a musical meaning. This ideological perspective not only solidifies the cornerstone of the philosophy of modern music education of ‘music for all people’ but will also serve as an important factor for the aesthetic experience of music as an experience that cultivates metaphorical ability, an essential competency in the AI era.

What do Teenagers Identify With and What They Value? The Range of Young People's Emotional Experiences: From Consumerism to National Identity

The aim of this article is to identify the emotional experiences of contemporary adolescents, revealing which societal phenomena or processes they value most. The paper presents a quantitative study aimed at identifying the various emotional experiences of Lithuanian adolescents of Lithuanian nationality studying in Lithuanian schools in Lithuania, Latvia, Poland and Belarus, both national and non-national - communicative, altruistic, romantic, glorious, hedonistic - experiences. Statistical analysis of the research data showed that contemporary adolescents living both in Lithuania and in neighbouring countries have a very positive attitude towards communicative experiences, while aesthetic and romantic experiences are also important for adolescents. However, experiences related to the nation (mother tongue, history) are not particularly important for contemporary adolescents.

Aesthetic experience and performing arts in the Arab region: towards an audience-centred perspective

ABSTRACT In this article, I engage with aesthetic experience as a central hermeneutic endeavour for theorising performing arts audiences in the Arab region. I argue that a critical engagement with Arab performing arts audiences’ aesthetic experiences necessitates both an archaeological manoeuver and a re-articulation of two keywords: ‘experience’ and ‘everyday’. The article advances, using evidence from research, that allowing the audiences of performing arts in the Arab region to speak may be a step towards democratising the triangular meaning making process among the performer, the audience, and the art institution, and a means towards dislocating, if not liberating, the categories’ Arab culture, art, performance, and experience, from their teleological articulations.

The Role of Aesthetic Labor in Human Resource Management Practices: A Qualitative Study

The purpose of this study is to examine the role of aesthetic labor in human resource management practices and to present a descriptive framework of aesthetic labor experiences. The study, which adopted a phenomenological design, focused on cabin officers, sales consultants, human resources managers and store managers in the aviation and retail sectors. Interviews were conducted face-to-face, by phone or online video chat. Content analysis method was used in the research. The findings of the study are presented under the themes of “selection”, “employee training”, “disciplinary practices”, “performance evaluation”, “employee rewarding” and “dismissal”. As a result of the research, it was observed that candidates were evaluated according to aesthetic criteria determined for their appearance, speaking style and demeanor in recruitment interviews. In order to improve aesthetic effort, employees are given trainings on hair, make-up, grooming, uniforms and customers. Disciplinary practices, supervision and warnings are experienced intensively.

A study on the green transformation path of industrial heritage from the perspective of user experience: A case study of Jiangsu Garden Expo Park

&lt;p&gt;With the advancement of economic structural transformation and urban renewal, the green transformation of industrial heritage sites is increasingly recognized as one of the key strategies for promoting sustainable urban development. Taking Jiangsu Garden Expo Park as an example, this study thoroughly explores the impact of the green transformation of industrial heritage sites on user experience and the relationship between user value perception, satisfaction, and behavioral intention. Based on the experience economy theory, the study classifies user experiences into four types: education, aesthetics, entertainment, and escapism, and examines how these experiences affect users’ functional perceived value, emotional perceived value, satisfaction, and behavioral intention. The results of the study show that educational, aesthetic, and escapist experiences have a significant positive effect on users’ emotional perceived value, while functional perceived value has a stronger effect on satisfaction than emotional perceived value. User satisfaction has a significant positive effect on behavioral intention, which suggests that enhancing user experience play a greater role in promoting positive user behaviour towards green transformation of industrial heritage sites. This study also provides recommendations for developing public participation, improving infrastructure development, cultivating spiritual connotations, and promoting cultural innovation to help the green transformation and tourism development of industrial heritage sites. The findings of this study provide certain theoretical basis and practical guidance for the green transformation of industrial heritage sites, explain the importance of optimising the development of industrial heritage sites from the perspective of user experience, and hopefully provide constructive suggestions for enhancing the attractiveness and sustainability of industrial heritage sites.&lt;strong&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

The sensory valuation account of aesthetic experience

The sensory valuation account of aesthetic experience

Artistic expression as a property of resonant musical experience: an interview study with upper secondary school music teachers

Background The curriculum for the courses given at the music specialization of the upper secondary school’s aesthetic program in Sweden includes the concept of artistic expression (AE). Being a criterion for assessment, no definition is provided by the National Agency of Education and there exists no consensus of how to interpret artistic expression among music teachers and music teacher students. Methods In order to explore how teachers understand, teach, and assess the concept and phenomenon of artistic expression, twelve qualitative interviews with music teachers were conducted and analyzed through an open coding process. Results The findings show that the concept of artistic expression is multifaceted and evasive. The results focus on two analytic threads: (i) situatedness and (ii) entanglement. (i) AE is situated due to context-specific parameters which underpins the meaning of the concept in this particular educational setting. (ii) Furthermore, the phenomenon of artistic expression is entangled (a) with the ongoing relationship between teacher and student, and (b) in a temporally unfolding and interactive musical event. The phenomenon of artistic expression as entangled is discussed, primarily through Hartmut Rosa’s concept of resonance, which brings into focus the intersubjective character of aesthetic experience. Doing so questions understandings of – and assessment procedures surrounding – artistic expression that relies on skill-based interpretations or reductions of entanglement. One example of such reduction is assessment of recordings of student performances which limits (a) the relational perspective (if assessed by a third person) or (b) the entanglement with the musical event. The perspective of resonance brings forth the teacher’s role during a student performance as characterized by self-efficacy and active listening, thus co-constitutive of artistic expression. Conclusions The article concludes with reflections on how the findings may contribute to the continuous discussion on how scientific grounding and proven experience may inform both the music education at upper secondary school and music teacher education. The concept of resonance provides a possibility to reframe conceptions of artistic competence in art education as being grounded in intersubjective and relational terms, rather than being reified as a set of measurable skills, an understanding which in turn risks replacing learning with criteria compliance.

The artistic value of the bestseller: the genre art of G. Yakhina’s novel “My Children”

INTRODUCTION. The study is devoted to identifying the artistic technique “genre hybridity” in the novel “My children” by modern Russian writer Guzel Shamileevna Yakhina. The purpose of the study is to identify the hybridization of the genres of the novel “My Children”, analyse the approach to its implementation, comprehend its meaning and the effect on the formation of the author’s creative style.MATERIALS AND METHODS. The research material is the novel “My Children” G. Yakhina, winner of the national literary award “Big Book” in 2019. When analysing the text of the novel, a phenomenological approach, a method for reconstructing the artist’s work and his art, and textual analysis are used.RESULTS AND DISCUSSION. It is revealed that the text of the novel describes historical events with the help of artistic techniques characteristic of folklore genres of fairy tales and legends, and shows the essence of real history against the backdrop of fantastic flavor. “Genre hybridity” manifests itself due to the fact that the fairy-tale plots present in the text of the work play a special role, they begin to come true “in the opposite direction”. It has been established that the work reflects the author’s handwriting in the depiction of an object in the novel (Germans of the Volga region) against the background of the “ebullient era” with mythological elements, as a result of which the depth of the work’s meaning increases.CONCLUSION. It has been established that the use of genre hybridity in the novel by G. Yakhina “My Children” helps overcome the contradiction between reality and romance, historicity and fiction, providing readers with a variety of aesthetic experiences.

Neuroaesthetics, Sublime, and Well-Being: Positive Affect of Awe and Aesthetic Emotions, and a Practical Framework

Aesthetic experiences influence the way we perceive the world, often at a subliminal level. But relatively little is known about how these aesthetic experiences affect us cognitively and how they shape our identity and improve our well-being. The purpose of this paper is thus to: (1) examine and review the current literature in the emerging field of neuroaesthetics—how the brain responds to beauty and sublime experiences; (2) extrapolate from current literature the properties of beauty and what it means when people perceive something to be beautiful; (3) synthesize the current literature and my own research on the topic to bring more awareness on the health benefits and transcendent power of experiencing awe or sublimity; (4) use the PERMA (positive emotion, engagement, relationship, meaning, achievement) theory of well-being proposed by positive psychologist Martin Seligman to present an action framework I established, acronymed NUMA (nature walks, unconditional love, meditation, affirmative goals). Within this paper, I argue that these perceptually aesthetic experiences (which can happen in a variety of forms such as in nature, artworks, music, or poetry) elicit in us a sense of awe and wonder, which performs a “scale effect” or “overview effect” on us and if experienced regularly could guide us toward living a more meaningful life.

THEORY OF "ATMOSPHERIC AESTHETICS" IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN OF TRADITIONAL CHINESE VILLAGES

Purpose of this study is to identify ways to apply the theory of atmospheric aesthetics in the design of traditional rural landscapes to enhance the visual and experiential appeal of rural areas. Today, the theory of "atmospheric aesthetics" is recognized as a foundation for revitalizing rural environments within the ecological design framework and is widely discussed in academic circles in China and around the World. Methodology. The research utilized literature analysis, inductive reasoning, case studies, and factor analysis of environmental design. Results. Based on the analysis of the practical application of the theory of "atmospheric aesthetics" in rural design, techniques to improve the aesthetic perception of traditional villages are demonstrated. The main advantages of using this theory in the design of traditional villages have been identified, such as: enhanced aesthetic experience; promotion of cultural heritage; improved quality of life; resolution of environmental crises. The practical application of the theory of "atmospheric aesthetics" helps create a unique artistic atmosphere and emotional resonance, making rural landscapes more attractive and strengthening the sense of identity and belonging among residents. Emphasis on preserving traditional cultural elements, such as ancient architecture and streets, contributes to the continuity of cultural heritage and the sustainable development of rural areas. Scientific novelty. Theoretical and practical approaches to rural environment design based on the theory of "atmospheric aesthetics" have been further developed. Extensive evaluations of the effectiveness of using this theory in rural design were conducted during field studies and surveys in various locations. This innovative theory enriched methods of studying environmental aesthetics, offering scientific support for rural revitalization strategies and innovative designs. Practical significance. The practical significance of the obtained results lies in their potential application by designers in the design of traditional Chinese village environments, where an aesthetically comfortable and attractive environment for both local residents and tourists is created based on the identification of emotional and sensory qualities of the surroundings.

What can the Renegade Teach us About Religion and Mental Health? A Philosophical Examination of Albert Camus' "The Renegade, or a Confused Spirit".

This study philosophically examines Albert Camus' "The Renegade, or a Confused Spirit," one of the short stories in Exile and the Kingdom. Despite previous scholarly interpretations of the story, the direct correlation between religion and mental health has not been explored sufficiently. In utilizing the theoretical framework of fiction as analogous to philosophical thought experiments, this article infers the pedagogical dimension of the short story, leading to the claim that "The Renegade" creates an aesthetic experience with the potential and risk to counter or reinforce the reader's ideologies, including religious ones. In turn, the understanding concerning the interplay between religious identity-making and mental health is deepened.

The Important Role of Aesthetic Education in Universities: An Empirical Research of the Effects of Aesthetic Experience on the Emotions of University Students in China

This paper aims to explore the crucial role of aesthetic experience in influencing the emotions of Chinese college students. Using the Aesthetic Experience Scale and the Positive and Negative Affect Scale, a survey was conducted among 551 students in Changchun City, Jilin Province, China. The results of the survey indicate that aesthetic education can significantly promote the generation of positive emotions while helping to alleviate negative emotions. Among the dimensions of aesthetic experience, cognitive synergies and elaboration, paratelic mode, and expressive perception significantly and positively predict positive affect. This provides strong support for the implementation of aesthetic education in Chinese universities, and highlights the important role of aesthetic education in promoting the holistic development of college students.

Deweyan Experiences and the Aesthetics of Remembering

ABSTRACT My goal in this paper is to argue that some cases of autobiographical remembering can be, and sometimes are, experienced aesthetically. Building on a Deweyan approach to the nature of aesthetic experiences, I show how Dewey conceived of aesthetic experiences as having a cumulative and progressive structure—I call experiences with such structure Deweyan experiences—and how that structure is replicated in some cases of autobiographical remembering in virtue of their having narrative structure. I also discuss the relationship between remembering and other forms of narrative thinking and argue that not only it is easier for remembering to be experienced aesthetically, but also that only remembering can have the cumulative and progressive structure that characterizes Deweyan experiences. I conclude by showing how the Deweyan approach allows us to conceive of the aesthetic value of remembering in terms of the pleasurable or hedonic character of Deweyan experiences.

Aesthetic Education

Here is a puzzle about aesthetic education. In a variety of contexts, we commit significant time, energy, and resources to aesthetic education. We teach (and in many cases publicly subsidize) university courses and degrees that have aesthetic education as their primary aim; we also invest public resources into museums, including enrichment programs that are also designed to afford aesthetic education. It would seem that if our commitment to aesthetic education is rational, then aesthetic appreciation is something that can be done better or worse. However, we also, in a variety of contexts (oddly enough, some of them being the same sorts of contexts that are designed to abet aesthetic education), act as if it is true that there is no disputing taste. We may try to persuade students to come around to particular judgments, but we do not penalize students for judging one way or another.The aim of this paper is to dissolve the apparent puzzle of aesthetic education by clarifying its aims and advancing a conception of it that deemphasizes the role of taste. I claim that, pace “the default view of aesthetic education” (as I shall call it), the primary purpose of aesthetic education is not to educate taste. It is, rather, to facilitate the development of certain perceptual-cognitive capacities so as to enhance aesthetic experience and improve aesthetic appreciation. Thus, I call the view of aesthetic education advanced here “a perceptual-cognitive model”.