Critique on Plato

Plato’s restrictive arguments on art are motivated by a conservatively pragmatic view on governing a democracy. In his criticisms he examines the riskiness of art that encourages diverse human expression and the repercussions that may ensue socially and politically, threatening an ideal government. Plato warned that the imitation of nature, the human experience is only copied and that the greater concern lies in the passion and empowering nature of art capable of perverting the mind and altering a sense of reality. Plato believed that art should only be identified in the realm of a craft or a skilled discipline that serves a necessary purpose such as historical documentation. Looking back at ancient art, the Lascaux cave painters did not consider themselves artists as did many others since they didn’t rely on making a statement and rather used art to observe and represent their surroundings. Aristotle suggests that tragedy and catharsis aid the representation of emotions and expression in art, evoking an appreciation and a tool for the growth and cleansing of emotions.

Censorship and creative control which Plato considers a necessary function of art differs from Aristotle’s approach because, without the pleasure and creative freedom of imitation, an artist is limited to an authoritarian approach to reality. The pleasure experienced from imitation denied by Plato is actually an idea encouraged by Aristotle as the artist's statement is known to confirm something we as observers had already dimly sensed. By allowing the exploration of universal truths and discourse on contemporary art, Aristotle builds upon Plato's idea of imitation as art and reveals the deeper truths of the universal human experience. This subjective reflection of reality can transform and teach us about the human condition through uncensored creative expression and the essence of imitation.


Mark Rothko, Untitled, 1953, Private Collection
















The power of art is to reveal what is unsaid or unseen and reflected in the personal reflection of the artistic process or as a viewer. For example, Mark Rothko was so committed to the emotional catharsis of art that he left most of his paintings untitled and wanted the viewer to encounter no other distractions while viewing his work. His canvases were large, abstract, bold in color, and frameless, implying there is no alternate reality outside of the experience inside of the work. He wanted his paintings to be positioned away from doorways or any peripheral distractions.

Rothko's paintings were full of bold color, large-scaled so the viewer could feel encompassed by the work. His artistic statement challenges Plato's highest view of art as merely the discipline of craft and skill, 

"There is no such thing as a good painting about nothing"- Rothko

Rothko's famous abstract compositions of the 1950s and 60s are known to engulf the spectator with expressive thin washes of color and expanding dimensions. With an increasingly simplified use of form Rothko's classical compositions resemble large, floating rectangles of color, exploring mystery, layering of color, and bold contrasts. 

References:

https://www.nga.gov/features/mark-rothko/mark-rothko-classic-paintings.html



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