Kantian Art Criticism

Combining historical insight with contemporary theory, this book demonstrates that Kant's aesthetics can ground a robust theory of art criticism. It challenges the widespread view that Kant's rejection of aesthetic testimony - the idea that we cannot simply adopt someone else's judgment without firsthand experience - and his dismissal of general rules such as 'symmetry guarantees beauty' or 'a tragic ending ensures depth' leave critics powerless. If testimony and rules are excluded, evaluations such as 'Blade Runner is a masterpiece' lose authority, while descriptions like 'most of the story takes place in perpetual rain and darkness' seem irrelevant to the critic's evaluation. Kantian Art Criticism locates the solution in Kant's overlooked judgments of perfection such as 'the film innovates within the neo-noir genre.' It reimagines what critical communication can be by positioning these judgments as mediators. They guide aesthetic evaluations and draw support from descriptions of a work's nonaesthetic features.