Humanities at the Department for Continuing Education
Humanities at the Department for Continuing Education
Oxford University
The Truth about Art 1 - Mystery or Mastery
1 hour 7 minutes Posted Apr 11, 2014 at 9:18 am.
0:00
1:07:08
Download MP3
Show notes
E.H. Gombrich famously observed that 'there really is no such thing as Art' (with a capital A). Instead he described the practice of art as 'mastery', which equates to the Quality recovered by Robert M. Pirsig in Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (1974). Quality is also a better word than 'virtue' to render the aretê that preoccupied Socrates in Plato's dialogues.