ASA at the College Art Association

The ASA is sponsoring a session at the 2024 College Art Association meeting in Chicago, IL February 14-17, 2024, at the Chicago Hilton. The ASA session is scheduled for Friday, February 16, 2:30-4:00 pm CST in the Lake Michigan Room (8^th floor). If you are attending the CAA meeting, please plan to attend!

The session, organized by Thomas Wartenberg, is “Art that Illustrates Philosophy: Author Meets Critics.” Thomas Wartenberg is professor of philosophy emeritus at Mount Holyoke College. He is the author or editor of 17 books including The Nature of Art. In addition to the philosophy of art, his main interests are the philosophy of film and philosophy for children.

Panel participants include: Jeffrey Strayer, Senior Lecturer Emeritus of Philosophy, Purdue University-Fort Wayne; William Conger, Artist and Professor Emeritus, Department of Art Theory and Practice, Northwestern University; and Michelle Grabner, Senior Chair of the Department of Painting and Drawing at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Illustration is a topic that has been neglected in the philosophy of art. Thoughtful Images is the first comprehensive study of art that illustrates philosophy. In addition to providing the basics of a theory of illustration, the book’s discussion of illustrations of philosophy includes: the first such illustrations in Ancient Greece and Rome, illuminated manuscript illustrations of Aristotle’s Ethics, paintings that are illustrations of philosophy, illustrations of Wittgenstein’s work, and graphic literature that illustrates philosophy. The two critics will engage in a discussion of both aspects of the book. They will each extend Wartenberg’s analysis in unexpected ways, showing the fruitfulness of his discussion for future directions of research in the philosophy of illustration. One of the unique features of this panel is that the two critics are both practicing artists, although Strayer is also a philosopher. This will add an unusual element to the critical discussion of a work in the philosophy of art.

As an affiliate member of the CAA, the ASA is guaranteed one 90-minute session at each annual meeting. If you are interested in presenting at the 2025 CAA meeting in New York City in February, please contact secretary-treasurer@aesthetics-online.org at your earliest opportunity. Final proposals are due to CAA in April. Although ASA pays the annual dues to be an affiliate member, all other expenses (including CAA membership, meeting registration, and travel) are the responsibility of the individual presenters.