Eastern Aesthetics | Western Aesthetics
The Art of Writing: Teachings of the Chinese Masters, translated by Tony Barnstone and Chou Ping
English translations of four Chinese classics on the art of writing. Contains "The Art of Writing," "The Twenty-four Styles of Poetry," "Poets' Jade Splinters," and "Stories and Aphorisms about Literature."Hojoki: Visions of a Torn World, by Kamo-no-Chomei, translated by Yasuhiko Moriguchi and David Jenkins
Hojoki is a prose poem written in 1212 C.E. also known in English as An Account of My Hut. Although this is not a work on aesthetics, Komo-no-Chomei's account of the virtues of a life of simplicity had a great impact on later aesthetic thought in Japan.Matsuo Basho, by Makoto Ueda
A short biography of Japan's greatest haikai poet followed by critical assessments of his work. Includes sections on Basho's haiku, renku, prose, and his critical commentaries. Basho is best known for his development of the nineteen syllable hokku (now often called haiku) into an art form. Matsuo Basho also discusses the aesthetic ideas that Basho developed as he transformed the writing of hokku from a parlor game into one of Japan's great cultural achievements.The Book of Tea, by Kakuzo Okakura, foreword and afterword by Soshitsu Sen XV
This classic work on Japanese aesthetics, with particular reference to the Japanese tea ceremony, has influenced generations of readers. Okakura's elegant yet straightforward explanations peppered with numerous stories about Taoists, Zen masters, and tea masters, while avoiding the use of technical vocabulary, has earned The Book of Tea its well-deserved reputation as the best book on Japanese aesthetics around. Okakura's gentle critiques of Western aesthetic standards help to clarify the issues and light the path to something he calls "the art of life." It is difficult to read this book and not become a convert.Essays in Idleness : The Tsurezuregusa of Kenko, by Kenko, translated by Donald Keene
A sequence of short essays and thoughts on aesthetics, ethics, Buddhism, and Japanese society, written between 1330 and 1333 C.E. Kenko was a court poet who took Buddhist orders following the death of his patron, Emperor Go-Uda. Many important concepts in Japanese aesthetics, including suggestion (the idea that the artist or poet should leave something for the imagination to fill in), irregularity, and simplicity, appear in this early work.Tao Te Ching (text with photographs)
Tao Te Ching (text only)
translated by Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English
One of the best and most accessible English translations of the Tao Te Ching. The larger version of this book contains nature photographs that help capture the spirit of Taoism. The smaller, text only version of this book includes an introduction and notes by Jacob Needleman. The Tao Te Ching contains many ideas that influenced the development of Zen (Chan in Chinese) Buddhism in China. Many of these same concepts later reappear as the basis for Japanese aesthetics as developed by tea ceremony masters and haikai poets.Wabi-Sabi : For Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers, by Leonard Koren
This is absolutely the best work available on Japanese aesthetics. It contains a clear and reliable explanation of the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi originally developed by tea ceremony masters and haiku poets and later expanded to apply to all art forms. Covers the history and development of wabi-sabi and summarizes the various aspects of the concept remarkably well. This beautifully designed book includes numerous photographs illustrating the ideas discussed, helpful charts and textual notes. Although not a great source for scholarly research, it is a must read for every artist, designer, poet, writer, and composer. Keep it by your side. It is a fountain of inspiration.Zen and Japanese Culture, by Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki
A collection of essays by D.T. Suzuki on the relationship between Zen and Japanese culture. Covers Confucianism, the samurai, swordsmanship, haiku, the art of tea, and the love of nature. Includes many plates of Japanese art mentioned in the text.Aesthetics (Oxford Readers), edited by Patrick Maynard and Susan Feagin
A diverse collection of readings on aesthetics by both Eastern and Western, past and present thinkers.Aesthetics : A Reader in Philosophy of the Arts, edited by David Goldblatt and Lee B. Brown
A collection of readings on aesthetics as they pertain to painting, photography, music, film and other arts.The Aesthetics of Thomas Aquinas, by Umberto Eco, translated by Hugh Bredin
A thorough and very readable coverage of Aquinas's aesthetic theories. Includes much material unavailable elsewhere in English. This book is of particular interest to Joyce fans because of the extent to which Joyce incorporated Aquinas's thought into his work.Art and Beauty in the Middle Ages, by Umberto Eco
This book covers medieval aesthetic theories quite well, with but a few exceptions. Since the original Italian version from which it was translated was but one chapter from a four volume handbook on the history of aesthetics by various authors, it does not cover early Christian thought or the aesthetics of Dante, both of which were covered by other authors in the original. It does, however, cover the ideas of the schoolmen (writing in Latin). Includes sections on "The Aesthetics of Proportion," "The Aesthetics of Light," "Symbol and Allegory," and "Inspiration and the Status of Art."The Birth of Tragedy and the Case of Wagner, by Friedrich Nietzsche, translated by Walter Kaufmann
Nietzsche's first published work and one of his last works in a single volume translated and annotated by one of his finest English translators. The Birth of Tragedy is known for the contrast Nietzsche made between the Apollonian (controlled fantasy) and the Dionysiac (wild intoxication) which were combined, according to Nietzsche, in the development of Attic tragedy.Letters to a Young Poet, by Rainer Maria Rilke, translated by Stephen Mitchell
A collection of ten letters Rilke wrote to an aspiring young poet on the art of poetry. Rilke's musings range from comments on the creative process and how to discover one's own style to the meaning of art and life.A Memoir of Gaudier-Brzeska, by Ezra Pound
Gaudier-Brzeska, a talented French sculptor and early acquaintance of Pound's in London, was killed in World War I at the age of twenty-three. This memoir includes Gaudier-Brzeska's statements on the aesthetics of vorticism, related documents on its development, letters from Gaudier-Brzeska to Pound, Mrs. Shakespear, and Edward Wadsworth, essays by Pound on Gaudier-Brzeska's life and work, and several photographs of Gaudier-Brzeska's sculptures. One of Pound's essays on vorticism of particular interest to anyone exploring the influence of Asian aesthetics on modern art in the West describes the Japanese hokku (now often called haiku) and the creative process behind a hokku-like sentence that Pound wrote, and which has since become one of his best known poems.Three Classics in the Aesthetic of Music, by Claude Debussy, Ferruccio Busoni, and Charles Ives
Ever wonder how composers think about music? Get it straight from the horse's mouth. This anthology contains three complete works on the aesthetics of music by three great composers.Philosophies of Art and Beauty : Selected Readings in Aesthetics from Plato to Heidegger , edited by Albert Hofstadter and Richard Kuhns
An anthology of selections from all of the major statements by Western philosophers on aesthetics. Includes selections from Plato, Aristotle, Plotinus, Augustine, Kant, Hegel, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, and Heidegger. Philosophies of Art and Beauty covers a lot of ground in a single volume. Unfortunately, this edition lacks an index, which would certainly make it a lot more useful as a reference book.
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