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    STUDIA PHILOSOPHIA - Issue no. 3 / 2011  
         
  Article:   IS ART A FRUIT OR A VEGETABLE? ON DEVELOPING A PRACTICE-BASED DEFINITION OF ART.

Authors:  .
 
       
         
  Abstract:  Formulating an adequate definition of ‘art’ has been one enterprise of philosophy that has plagued all those who attempt it. Yet, the project of defining the term has many merits, especially when it comes to definitions for the purpose of arts policy and arts management. In these areas of activity where art figures centrally, the absence of a definition may have consequences for effective policy and management strategies. This article ponders the necessity for a practical definition by posing the question: is art a fruit or a vegetable? This allusion to a question that might be posed about the garden tomato, draws attention to the fact that while (for tomatoes) there is only one correct scientific answer, the practical answer depends on our own purposes; whether we are talking about tomatoes or art. With the case of the United States and several of its federal agencies as concrete examples, this article explores what a practice-based definition of art would look like and what advantages it might bring for the practical purposes of policy and management.

Keywords: art, arts management, arts policy, philosophical definition, practice-based definition 

 
         
     
         
         
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