Claude-Joseph Vernet, 'A Shipwreck in Stormy Seas', 1773
Part of our series of courses, thinking about art: Philosophical approaches to art history.
The sublime, a mingled experience of awe and terror, is one of the central modes through which Western art has sought to capture the natural and supernatural worlds – from shipwrecks to volcanoes, to the Last Judgement itself. It is also one of the most important concepts for modern philosophy of art, mined for insight into everything from morality to ecology.
In this introductory session with Sacha Golob, we begin with classic presentations of the concept from the Gallery’s collection, including paintings by Turner and Claude-Joseph Vernet.
We will then explore how the idea has developed in modern paintings and photography as artists turned to industrial and urban or sublimes.
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