ABSTRACT
Over the past hundred years, the most striking development in the arts has been the emergence of the avant-garde style. Many of the most influential artists of the past century have adopted this style. These artists include writers such as Tristan Tzara and composers such as John Cage. The avant-garde style has been most influential in the realm of the visual arts. Notable adherents of the style include Carl André, Marcel Duchamp, Wassily Kandinsky, Jeff Koons, Kazimir Malevich, Piet Mondrian, Barnett Newman, Claes Oldenburg, Mark Rothko, Andy Warhol and many others. Although many people have doubts about the value of avant-garde art, criticism of works in this style has been rare and usually quite unsatisfactory. Often it has failed to rise above ignorant philistinism. This chapter will apply to avant-garde art the general approach to art developed in earlier chapters. The arguments of this chapter will indicate that doubts about the value of much avant-garde art are fully justified. The epistemology of avant-garde art will show that works executed in this style typically can contribute little to knowledge. Since, as I will argue, avant-garde artworks generally have little cognitive value, they generally have little aesthetic value.
