Art as culture : an introduction to the anthropology of art /
Evelyn Payne Hatcher.
- 2nd ed.
- Westport, Conn. : Bergin & Garvey, 1999.
- xxi, 337 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm
Includes bibliographical references (pages 303-330) and index.
Contexts and Comparisons: The Anthropological Approach Where? The Geographical Dimension How? The Technological Means Who? The Psychological Perspective Why? Social Contexts and Social Functions "What ...?" Art as Communication When and Whence? The Time Dimension The Esthetic Mystery The Global Context: The 15th Century Globalization: The 20th Century 1. 1 -- 2. 21 -- 3. 55 -- 4. 85 -- 5. 113 -- 6. 135 -- 7. 167 -- 8. 197 -- 9. 209 -- 10. 229.
The concept of art as being purely for aesthetic contemplation, one that is typical of industrial civilization, is not a very useful one for cross-cultural studies. The majority of the art forms that we see in museums and art books that have come from Native America, Africa, or Oceania are objects that were once part of a larger artistic whole from which they have been extracted. We need to try to piece together and imagine the artistic context as well as the cultural one if we are to attain a deeper sense of the import than a particular piece alone provides. Even then, it is almost impossible to define the artistic whole. Perhaps we would do better to regard these pieces as fragments from the lifestyle of a people. This book applies anthropological theory and information to the study of art, bringing a sharper perspective to the discipline.