Indiscernibility & dematerialization: contemporary thesis concerning art modification and the emergence of contextualism

Abstract

The paper tries to indicate that, at least from a philosophical point of view, both the indiscernibility thesis advanced by Danto in 1964 and the dematerialization thesis advanced by Lippard & Chandler in 1968, assume a shared conception, namely: the displacement of the artistic a priori, canonically established by the artistic tradition in physical objects and their forms, to the a posteriori relative to the context of art and its many artistic practices. This means that contemporary production can no longer be apprehended, identified, or debated without this context being fundamentally recognized. In order to generate such a diagnosis, the paper makes (i) a brief genealogical resumption of contemporary art, especially conceptual art; (ii) an analysis of Lippard & Chandler's and Danto's arguments; and (iii) a discussion about the concept of art context, notion that, therefore, would ground any contextualist approach in philosophy of art and, especially, any philosophical claim that seriously considers contemporary art production.