Art: Visual Perception and the Aesthetic

In this chapter, the concept of art will be examined. Art has its own scientific disciplines, theoretical frameworks, and methodologies and attracts attention from all sorts of social science as being representative of certain social orders or concerns. This chapter does not in any way attempt to cover the domain of art theory or art history but aims to point out some of the central features of art and how it contributes to day-to-day organization. Thus the approach to the analysis can be seen as being eclectic and synchretic; philosophy of art (i.e. aesthetics), sociology of art and artists’ own account of their work are discussed. The aim of the chapter is to show that art as social resource is a multiplicity; it can be examined from many perspectives and take on different meanings in various settings. The chapter is structured as follows: first, the concept of aesthetics is examined; then the concept of art perse is discussed. In the third section, art and perception is related and thereafter the literature on art and organization is reviewed. Finally, some concluding remarks are formulated.