Skip to main content
Skip to main menu Skip to spotlight region Skip to secondary region Skip to UGA region Skip to Tertiary region Skip to Quaternary region Skip to unit footer

Slideshow

"Reshaping the Arts of Space" - John Kulvicki (Dartmouth College)

John Kulvicki
Peabody Hall, Room 115
Special Information:
with support from the Willson Center for Humanities & Arts

Depiction and freestanding statuary are two popular kinds of figurative art. Picture-making happens in two dimensions.  Statuary happens in three. Perhaps because pictures and statues are so popular, they are sometimes cast as the 2d and 3d figurative art forms. That is a mistake. Statuary is an exemplar of space invading figurative work, while depiction exemplifies space creating work. Invaders can work in two dimensions—silhouettes—and creators can work in three: dioramas. Silhouettes and dioramas are marginal art forms, but we gain much by bringing them into the discussion. In fact, I claim that the distinction between invaders and creators is one of the most significant for understanding the arts of space. It opens up new directions for philosophical investigation, new ways of understanding many figurative practices, it sheds light on non-figurative sculptural practices, the nature of tchotchkes, and much more.

Support Philosophy at UGA

The Department of Philosophy appreciates your financial support. Your gift is important to us and helps support critical opportunities for students and faculty alike, including lectures, travel support, and any number of educational events that augment the classroom experience. Click here to learn more.

EVERY DOLLAR CONTRIBUTED TO THE DEPARTMENT HAS A DIRECT IMPACT ON OUR STUDENTS AND FACULTY.