The Abuse of Beauty
October 1st, 2002
Arthur C. Danto
In The Abuse of Beauty, art critic and philosopher Arthur Danto explains how the notion of beauty came to be regarded as antithetical to art, particularly during the rise of the avant-garde in the early twentieth century, and argues that while beauty is no longer essential to the definition of art, it remains a powerful and legitimate mode through which art can connect with humanity.
Daedalus
Posted bySamuel Garrett
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Abstract/Description
In “The Abuse of Beauty,” Arthur C. Danto examines how the concept of beauty, once central to the definition and value of art, was systematically marginalized in the twentieth century. Tracing this shift, he argues that avant-garde movements—beginning with Dada—rejected beauty as complicit in social and political failures, while philosophers of art, responding to new artistic practices, removed beauty from the criteria of what makes something art. Danto critiques this displacement, noting that although beauty is no longer essential to defining art, it remains a powerful way through which art can engage the human spirit and express meaning. He concludes by urging a reevaluation of beauty, freed from its historical abuses, as a legitimate and important dimension of the aesthetic experience.
