Work and Object by Peter Lamarque;

Author:Peter Lamarque;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: OUP Premium
Published: 2010-03-14T16:00:00+00:00

7 Imitating Style

When we say that a work of art is in a particular style, what do we mean? What is it for two works to have the same style? Or different styles? We call certain features or properties of a work stylistic features or properties. But what are these and how are they to be distinguished from other features or properties? It is not at all easy to pin down the defining features of style, even though we would probably have little difficulty recognizing certain well-known styles. Styles are associated with individual artists, regions, periods, and schools; and a simple, albeit not yet substantive, delimitation of stylistic features might be just those characteristics which serve in whatever way to place a work in relation to other works. Velasquez’s style—say in portraiture—is distinct from van Eyck’s; they belong in different stylistic categories; similarly, the style of Mozart’s operatic humour is different from that of Monteverdi. Works depicting the same subject matter—the Madonna, the Crucifixion—can do so in different styles. And works from a single artist or school can share a similar style yet depict quite different subjects.

All the arts—painting, music, sculpture, literature, architecture, dance, film—can exhibit styles and stylistic distinctions are often crucial in understanding, appreciating, and comparing works of art. But it is not only works of art that have styles—furniture, pottery, carpets, clothes, and cars exhibit styles and can be classified in terms of style. Nor are styles restricted to artefacts. Actions should be included as well: running, sailing, playing golf, playing chess, dancing, driving, even having a conversation.1 Perhaps, as is sometimes supposed, how you live your life can have a style, a so-called ‘life-style’. Can there be a conception of style that encompasses all these applications and is not vacuous? Does style just mean any distinctive characteristic?

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