A Breathing Space for Aesthetics and Politics: An Introduction to Jacques Rancière. (December 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Papastergiadis, Nikos
• Is Part Of: Theory, culture & society. Volume 31:Number 7/8(2014:Dec.)
• Page Start: 5
• Page End: 26
• Publication Date: 2014-12
• Subjects: aesthetics -- contemporary art -- creativity -- equality -- ethnography -- Jacques Rancière; Social sciences -- Periodicals; 301.05
• DOI: 10.1177/0263276414551995
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0263-2764

Abstract

Jacques Rancière is one of the central figures in the contemporary debates on aesthetics and politics. This introduction maps the shift of focus in Rancière's writing from political theory to contemporary art practice and also traces the enduring interest in ideas on equality and creativity. It situates Rancière's rich body of writing in relation to key theorists such as the philosopher Alain Badiou, art historian Terry Smith and anthropologist George E. Marcus. I argue that Rancière offers a distinctive approach in this broad field by clarifying the specificity of the artist's task in the production of critical and creative transformation, or what he calls the 'distribution of the sensible'. In conclusion, I complement Rancière's invocation to break out of the oppositional paradigm in which the political and aesthetic are usually confined by outlining some further methodological techniques for addressing contemporary art.