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Jeremy Gilbert-Rolfe
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Beauty and the Contemporary Sublime (Aesthetics Today) Paperback – December 1, 1999

by Jeremy Gilbert-Rolfe (Author)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 8 ratings
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Esteemed critic, painter, and writer Jeremy Gilbert-Rolfe offers a provocative critique of beauty in relation to the contemporary notion of the sublime, which is now found in technology and a high-powered economy rather than in nature. Refuting established views, this book questions today's ideas of beauty, including those applied to contemporary art, and proposes a secular theory of beauty as glamorous rather than good, frivolous rather than serious. An illuminating read, this book provides excellent course material for classes in philosophy, cultural studies, art history, and aesthetics.

Allworth Press, an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, publishes a broad range of books on the visual and performing arts, with emphasis on the business of art. Our titles cover subjects such as graphic design, theater, branding, fine art, photography, interior design, writing, acting, film, how to start careers, business and legal forms, business practices, and more. While we don't aspire to publish a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are deeply committed to quality books that help creative professionals succeed and thrive. We often publish in areas overlooked by other publishers and welcome the author whose expertise can help our audience of readers.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    180 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Allworth
  4. Publication date
    December 1, 1999
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 6.1 x 9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1581150377
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1581150377
  8. See all details
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About the Author

Jeremy Gilbert-Rolfe is a critic, painter, and author of several books, including "Beyond Piety: Critical Essays on the Visual Arts 1986-1993" and "Immanence and Contradiction: Recent Essays on the Artistic Device." He has been awarded National Endowment for the Arts fellowships in painting and criticism as well as a Guggenheim fellowship in painting, and was presented the 1998 Frank Jewett Mather Award for Art Criticism by the College Art Association. He teaches in the graduate program at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Allworth; 1st edition (December 1, 1999)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 180 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1581150377
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1581150377
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 6.1 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 8 ratings

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Jeremy Gilbert-Rolfe

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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
8 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

SlackisGabe
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2014
Verified Purchase
Brilliant seller, exactly as advertised, thank you!
One person found this helpful
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N. Coppedge
3.0 out of 5 stars A little perverse and post-modern, but highly intelligent
Reviewed in the United States on August 18, 2014
Verified Purchase
This is a good book, with some highly intelligent essays. I'm bothered, however, that one of them mentions certain perverse characters B&B, which is not high culture by any means.
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Harry
1.0 out of 5 stars Talks a lot but says nothing
Reviewed in the United States on October 3, 2010
I read this book a few years ago with my book group. It was suggested by a member who was and is a working artist. Other members of the book group were also artists, had been to art school, regularly read art criticism, etc. Previous to this book, we had read Joyce, Pynchon, and other weighty writers who demand close attention and provoke debate.

Reading this mess however, none of us could figure out the argument or arguments, if any, the author was making. I should have realized after reading in the first chapter about how in one version of the story of the Trojan War, Helen had been murdered by her husband's in-laws, that this book was going to go nowhere. Wouldn't that mean she was killed by her own parents? That kind of deliberate obscurity ran through the book. Constant references to Derrida didn't help. The author still had nothing to say, but took a whole book to say it.

There were times when he seemed to be developing an argument or a point of view, only to have it lead nowhere. At the end of the book, I was so angry I almost returned it to the book store I bought it from. I didn't because it wasn't the physical aspects of the book that were defective, but the inner aspects. I would like to tell more, give more examples, and be more specific, but like I said earlier, I read it a long time ago, and I got rid of it, probably at a yard sale.
5 people found this helpful
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swalrun
3.0 out of 5 stars Not for beginners
Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2011
I am an art student pursuing my undergraduate degree in Sculpture and Art Education. I was assigned to read an art criticism book for my Contemporary Issues in Art Criticism class. I chose this book because I am quite interested in beauty and its place in the contemporary art conversation, and love learning about philosophy, and have a very small base of knowledge in these areas which I would like to expand. I regret to say, though, that this book didn't meet all of my expectations. I was frustrated because the author made the assumption that his audience was already well versed on the conversation of beauty and sublime, and I found myself lost and confused in much of the book. If I had the time to go through and research every question that arose as I read, I'm sure I would have learned a great deal and probably would have enjoyed the book, but unfortunately that wasn't practical and I stopped a little shy of halfway through out of frustration and confusion. If you frequently read books by art critics, and are familiar with philosophical views on aesthetics, you will have a much more productive and enriching experience with this book than I did.
5 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Chao Meng
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 3, 2015
Verified Purchase
Very good
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