(I) Postmodernism and Philosophy of Art (II) The Nature of the Contemporary

Speaker: Sundar Sarukkai

May 14 and 15, 2009 | 6.30 pm
Little Theatre, National Centre for the Performing Arts, Mumbai

Lecture I: Postmodernism and Philosophy of Art

This talk will begin with an introduction to important philosophical ideas underlying postmodernism. Some of the challenges that postmodernism poses to traditional and modernist societies are also ones that are important to philosophy of art. Postmodernism’s engagement with the idea of subjectivity, its critique of truth, emphasis on interpretation and so on, are also themes which art is fundamentally concerned with. Genres such as postmodern art engage explicitly with the conceptual world of the postmodern. But to understand these creative movements in art it is necessary to understand the philosophical basis of postmodernism, not just as a challenge to established tenets of modernism but also as an autonomous movement influenced by philosophy, literature, architecture and art.

Lecture II: The Nature of the ‘Contemporary’

One of the most difficult terms in art is ‘contemporary’. While this has not stopped the creation of artworks categorized as ‘contemporary’, there is still a sphere of ambiguity around the use of this term. Contemporary cannot only mean ‘in the present’, for traditional works created in the present should then also be called contemporary. Contemporary art, as a genre, is itself getting ‘outdated’ since elements of this art include works produced after World War II. The speaker will discuss some possible difficulties in conceptualising the idea of contemporary in art. Art has shown great flexibility in constantly creating new genres such as digital art, net art, software art, street art and so on. All these new creations often articulate a notion of the contemporary in order to legitimize themselves. In so doing, they often position themselves in opposition to tradition. What really then is the relation between the contemporary and the traditional? This is a question that is of great relevance to artists in India. Ironically, contemporary art forms in India often develop upon traditional themes, motifs, gestures, practices and so on. Contemporary dance in India is one good example of this constant struggle of contemporary dance to liberate itself from traditional dance forms and yet draw upon these forms in new ways.

Sundar Sarukkai is a Professor in Philosophy at the School of Humanities, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Indian Institute of Science Campus, Bangalore. He is trained in physics and philosophy, and has a PhD from Purdue University. His research interests include Philosophy of Science and Mathematics, Postmodernism, as well as Philosophy of Art. Sarukkai has been a Homi Bhabha Fellow, Fellow of the Shimla Institute of Advanced Studies and PHISPC Associate Fellow. He is the author of the following books: Translating the world: Science and Language, Philosophy of Symmetry and Indian Philosophy and Philosophy of Science, and co-editor of two volumes on Logic and Applications and is an Editorial Board member of the Leonardo Book Series, an influential series published by MIT Press on science and art.