Image Aesthetics: Rediscovering Nature: Rediscovering Nature

Author: Liu Chengji
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-01-01
Features: Object-oriented aesthetics is the inevitable outcome of the logical progression of aesthetics in the 20th century. In the late 19th century, Nietzsche's proclamation of the death of God marked the final demise of the theocentric aesthetics and foreshadowed that absolute subjectivism or humanism would become a significant topic in Western aesthetics in the 20th century. In the mid-20th century, the French thinker Foucault further proposed the philosophical proposition of "the death of man." On one hand, this meant that humanism, due to its strong human-centric tendency, had reached its end; on the other hand, it also provided an opportunity to reconstruct a new aesthetic relationship between humans and nature. Object-oriented aesthetics was proposed in this era and academic context, attempting to establish a new foundation for contemporary aesthetics through the dual reduction of traditional humanism and naturalism. Since Hegel and Schelling, Western aesthetics has largely neglected systematic research on natural beauty. Many professional aesthetic researchers believe that instead of seeking reasons for the beauty of a sunset scene, it is better to study the form of a milk can. However, this book argues that after the rough nihilism and narrow artistic tendencies in 20th-century aesthetics, the relationship between humans and the object world remains a core issue in aesthetics, and attention to nature is still a crucial guarantee for aesthetics to achieve philosophical dignity. But it must be recognized that traditional natural beauty lacks independent character; its value lies solely in having successfully served as a tool for carrying certain divine or human qualities of humans. Here, it is essential to clear up the of humanism in the field of aesthetics and allow objects to reveal themselves, which is crucial for rediscovering natural beauty. Recognizing nature as an independent form of life and affirming that natural beauty is the beauty of nature itself should become the starting point for reconstructing a new aesthetic relationship between humans and nature. In the contemporary era, the wave of industrialization has pushed pristine nature farther away from us, and humanity's impulse to conquer nature has made what is called aesthetic practice exhibit extreme destructiveness. Here, object-oriented aesthetics seeks to awaken people to respect the natural essence of objects and find the possibility of reuniting both sides through equal dialogue.