But Is It Art? Quotes

“Among the hardest problems an art theory faces are questions about how to settle art’s meaning through interpretation”
― Cynthia Freeland, But Is It Art?: An Introduction to Art Theory

“This meant that an object like Brillo Boxes was baptized as ‘art’ if accepted by museum and gallery directors and purchased by art collectors.”
― Cynthia Freeland, But Is It Art?: An Introduction to Art Theory

“The earliest corporations to provide major funding to museums were tobacco and oil companies, which likely sought to polish tarnished images by supporting ‘culture’.”
― Cynthia Freeland, But Is It Art?: An Introduction to Art Theory

“If a viewer responds to Botticelli’s Venus with an erotic desire, as if she is a pinup, he is actually not appreciating her for her beauty. And if someone enjoys looking at a Gauguin painting of Tahiti while fantasizing about going on vacation there, then they no longer have an aesthetic relation to its beauty.”
― Cynthia Freeland, But Is It Art?: An Introduction to Art Theory