beauty changes everything
Guest post by Margaret Ferguson, founder of Beyond The Chair: Earlier this year, Aesthetics Research Lab launched their project, The History of Aesthetics, to sharpen our understanding of the practice and application of aesthetics in our everyday lives. Explaining the history of aesthetics is deeply important to understanding the philosophical concepts that drive our aesthetic … Continue reading Gustatory Influences: Food Scarcity, Changing Fashions, and Aesthetics
Sometimes a microcosm of the world allows us to examine something in a fresh way. Cosplay culture gives us a new context in which to understand how beauty standards affect people. Cosplay is the practice of dressing up as a character from a movie, book (often a graphic novel), video game, or comic. Most frequently … Continue reading The Aesthetic Influences on Cosplay
Our personal taste—for example in art, fashion, or music—does not develop by accident; it is not passive. People choose what they view, wear, and follow. But companies and organizations know how to exploit our natural desires for beauty and aesthetics. Before the Internet became a household necessity, people often trusted a friend or family member … Continue reading TikTok Aesthetics
For brands to stay relevant and successful, learning the tastes of customers is imperative. Taste influences how people see and act in the world. Taste is a reflection of our selves and a way to see what other people value. This idea led Stephen Bayley to describe taste as "a window and a mirror." "The … Continue reading Taste Maps for Brands
The idea of curation has long been connected with the art world. We may picture someone making decisions about which art to hang in a gallery, which works fit in with a particular theme, or which artists to endorse or ignore. Curators could provide the breakthrough an artist needed to launch their career, or they … Continue reading Curating Your Brand’s Aesthetic
A previous post discussed the importance of considering aesthetics in business from the book Aesthetic Intelligence: How to Boost It and Use It in Business and Beyond by Pauline Brown. I wanted to follow up that entry with some insights from this book on how to develop aesthetic intelligence, specifically how to better curate your … Continue reading Aesthetic Intelligence, Part 2
Beauty, and aesthetics more generally, is often considered to be nonessential. A pragmatic person may think aesthetics are unimportant, if something works. A humanitarian may think what's really important is that people are fed, clothed, and sheltered. A medical person may believe that health is the key concern for people. While all these elements are … Continue reading Aesthetic Intelligence, Part 1
Recently, I took a trip with my wife to Budapest. On our way back to the States, we stopped in Germany. At the terminal, we sensed we were in the presence of Americans. Did we see their blue and gold passports? No. Did we hear them speak and recognize their accents? No. What gave it … Continue reading Know Yourself! (… and your Body)