Elaine Scarry's On Beauty and Being Just
“It seemed like the most perfect metaphor in the world - so perfect it was almost embarrassing. This work, huge and heavy, was an immaculate expression of artistic ambition and achievement. It was work that required resources, and time, and the help of others. It required Judd’s belief in himself. And underneath: snakes. Like a ridiculously literal
... See moreHow can anyone claim to know what is attractive? How can anyone adjudicate between the competing claims of different styles or defend a particular choice in the face of the contradictory tastes of others? The creation of beauty, once viewed as the central task of the architect, has quietly evaporated from serious professional discussion and retreat
... See moreAlain de Botton • The Architecture of Happiness
The default assumption tends to be that it is politically important to designate everyone as beautiful, that it is a meaningful project to make sure that everyone can become, and feel, increasingly beautiful. We have hardly tried to imagine what it might look like if our culture could do the opposite—de-escalate the situation, make beauty matter le... See more