Aesthetics
Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed through judgments of taste.Aesthetics covers both natural and artificial sources of experiences and how we form a judgment about those sources.
4 episodes
Episodes in this category also belong to the following categories:
Inspiration and Genius
Melvyn Bragg examines the true meaning of genius and whether it is born or made. What circumstances are necessary for the great leaps of consciousness that inspire the development of science and art?
15 June 2000
Featuring: Arthur I. Miller, Michael Howe, Juliet Mitchell
Modernist Utopias
Melvyn Bragg discusses the mad, bad world of modern utopias where babies are hatched from test tubes, where women live without men, where machines have taken over, and where the poor are exterminated.
10 March 2005
Featuring: John Carey, Steven Connor, Laura Marcus
Symmetry
Melvyn Bragg discusses symmetry in art and nature. From snowflakes and butterflies to the music of Bach and the poems of Pushkin.
19 April 2007
Featuring: Fay Dowker, Marcus du Sautoy, Ian Stewart
The Artist
Melvyn Bragg discusses the rise of the idea of the artist and the claims made for it, and examines the role that aristocratic patronage of the arts has played in changing the status of the artist.
28 March 2002
Featuring: Emma Barker, Thomas Healy, Tim Blanning