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On Friday, June 4, 2004, at 11:32 AM, klaus krippendorff wrote: according to dictionaries: aesthetics is a theory of beauty and taste. this theory is advanced in philosophy (perhaps now also in psychology and cultural studies). To follow the cultural studies route, Raymond Williams points to three approaches to cultural studies: the ideal, the documentary, and the social. These approaches could be applied to the study of aesthetics, just as they could to any other cultural concept. The approach to aesthetics Klaus is taking relates to the ideal, the concept that there are aesthetics that can be distilled from a culture that can represent its philosophical or theoretical truth. The ideal approach attempts to attain an objective view. The documentary approach follows an individual or small group and attempts to understand something of the individual's aesthetics. The approach to aesthetics would be subjective and the researcher would expect to find quirks and unique aesthetic expression. The social or societal would study the institutions that mediate aesthetic information, such as museums, academic institutions and design firms. Williams, in response to many of the criticisms of the "Ideal" approach indicates that important information can be derived from this method. I agree with Williams, but I think at the same time that it is more often those who are most comfortable with the ideal position that negate the validity of the subjective information derived from the documentary approach to cultural study. Since I began studying art and design I have considered aesthetics to be democratic. Charles wrote, "Even Rap has an aesthetic and a social one at that." I would say that often the mass or pop-culture forms of expression have more clear and specific aesthetic criteria than most middle class or "average" Americans. The art critic Dave Hickey writes in his book Air Guitar that his aesthetic eye was developed before becoming involved in art. As a young man he was a hotrod aficionado. He says that the difference between a well redesigned, painted or altered car and a terrible car could come down to a single strip of chrome. The specifics of what should or shouldn't be done in specializing a car are, while generally described as kitch, are highly specialized and require a careful eye. It taught Hickey the things he needed to understand to be able to separate a "good" or collectable painting from a lesser work in a gallery. This is the same in punk rock, executive lifestyles, and the high school "popular crowd." The difference between meeting the aesthetic criteria of the lifestyle and missing the mark can come down to the performative act, such as a handshake and smile, or, on the other extreme, the right expressions of indifference. The above examples are like Williams' third category, the social, where group aesthetics are mediated by the institutions of the group. Hickey's explanation of how the development of one aesthetic arena taught him the skills to interact in another is an example of the documentary subjective approach to the study of aesthetics. The reason I believe aesthetics are democratic is that anyone who makes choices that result in a unified visual presentation of themselves for the purpose of comfort, expression of identity, or to express social belonging has an aesthetic that can be studied with one of the three methods Williams discusses in his essay. Williams, Raymond. "The Analysis of Culture." I can send publication information next week. Hickey Dave. Air Guitar. New York: Distributed Art Publishers.