Art Now
Aesthetics Across Music, Painting, Architecture, Movies, and More.
LEON BOTSTEIN, Conductor, Leon Levy Professor, President of Bard College
eSeminar Overview
It is one of the most debated subjects of all time, and President Botstein of Bard College steps boldly into the fray: What is art? Some might think it doesn't much matter whether or not consensus is achieved on this highly subjective topic, but the definition of art has an enormous impact upon how the arts are — or aren't — funded. The question of what constitutes art spills over into debates about art's value to society –– whether access to the arts is right as basic as education or health care, and whether it should be assessed and supported by government or left to the "invisible hand" of the free market. President Botstein explains why it is essential to ask these questions and offers a sturdy basis for evaluating them. He goes so far as to suggest that engaging with art can give our lives meaning and purpose.
Art is often dismissed as being purely subjective, but President Botstein argues that there are some commonalities among the diverse products that different people call art. He points out that art-making is uniquely a human activity, that it has its own semantic vocabulary that transcends the limitations of language, that its very existence is meaningless without viewer engagement and response. He argues that the most important thing about art is every person's capacity to make it, and that the body/mind discipline of cultivating your artistic abilities has collateral utility for every aspect of life. By the end of the lecture you will understand why you should actively make art part of your life-long education.
A six-month enrollment in this eSeminar will grant you access to:
- • A one-hour HD video lesson by Leon Botstein, broken into five easy-to-digest segments and featuring Hollywood production values
- • An array of supporting learning material, including case studies, curated articles and video segments, and more
- • Discussion questions posed by experts
- • A comprehensive reading list designed by President Botstein
Purchase this eSeminar now for $39.99
How to enroll:
- (1.) Go to the purchase page, select the "Art Now" course option, and click the Pay button
- (2.) Sign in with your Floating University account, or register by entering your email address and selecting a password
- (3.) Enter your credit card information, check out through our secure servers, and start learning!
About Leon Botstein
Leon Botstein is the conductor of the American Symphony Orchestra and president of Bard College in New York. He became the youngest college president in US history when he took the head post at Franconia College at age 23. Dr. Botstein has published scholarly works in numerous disciplines, including music, education, and culture. Botstein is the author of the popular book Jefferson's Children: Education and the Promise of American Culture, in which he lays out a progressive view of education.
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