Elisa Caldarola is a Post-doctoral Fellow at the University of Padova where she is currently working on the research project ‘Museums As Works of Art, Aesthetic, Ontological and Cognitive Issues’.
Wednesday 3 December 2014 | 16:00 – 18:00 Senate House, G34
Is there any room for abstract paintings in the domain of depiction? Some have suggested that only those pictures that are ordinarily called “figurative” are depictions. Others have argued that depictive pictures are those that have been successfully intended to allow viewers to see depth in them. I critically address these views and argue that, in principle, any kind of abstract painting, no matter its appearance, could be a depiction. I claim that my view is consistent with an objective resemblance theory of depiction and show that it offers valuable insights into abstract painting.