Arthur Danto - 2008

"Arthur Danto has long been considered one of the most influential thinkers on contemporary art," said Prof. John Kissick, director of the School of Fine Art and Music. "His work mixes significant philosophical insights into the nature of art in the post-modern age with accessible journalistic art criticism." A longtime art critic for The Nation, Danto has published a number of books and journal articles on art criticism and won the National Book Critics Circle Prize in 1990 for his book Encounters and Reflections: Art in the Historical Present. In addition, he is a contributing editor to the Naked Punch Review and Artforum. Danto is also the author of numerous articles and books on philosophy and is an editor of the Journal of Philosophy. He taught at Columbia University for more than half a century and is now Johnsonian Professor Emeritus Philosophy.

Danto's extensive knowledge in both art and philosophy have garnered him many fellowships and grants, including two Guggenheims, a Fullbright, and an American Council of Learned Societies Fellowship. He has served as vice-president and president of the American Philosophical Association and president of the American Society for Aesthetics.

Lecture - From Photograph to Philosophy: Two Moments of Post-Traditional Art
Well known for his expertise in philosophical aesthetics, Arthur Danto is highly regarded for his work on the classic question of how you decide whether or not something is a work of art.

MFA Grad Seminar Audio