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Recognizing the context of art—both of its origin and reception—also requires us to realize the
multivalent and open-ended character of art interpretation. For example, the “meaning” of
Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony will vary depending on whether we are referring to its première in
1824, when Wilhelm Furtwängler conducted it in Berlin in 1942, or when Leonard Bernstein
conducted it before the newly opened Berlin Wall in 1989. Continuities and discontinuities of
meaning abound. A sensitive and informed engagement with a work of art, however, will be
cognizant of its originating context in all its complexity, while continuing to interact with
meanings forged in ever-changing contexts of reception. Moreover, highlighting the context of
art allows us to relate, when possible, aspects of authorial intent in dynamic interplay with other
contextually relevant interpretations in our own communicative encounters with art.
The driving motivation in this series of posts on the craft, content, and context of art is our desire
to make art accessible to a wider audience so that they might enjoy and discover how art plays a
significant role in their lives. We find that analyses of art focusing solely on emotional
expressiveness, moral appropriateness or even redemptive potentiality place undue limits on
understanding and engaging with art. By contrast, we desire to be attentive to art on its own
terms before evaluating or imposing meanings on it. We believe that focusing on the craft,
content, and context of art enables us to follow an inductive approach and to understand and
engage with art in a more satisfying and comprehensive way.
Taking this approach also presents rich opportunities for theological engagement with the arts, a
topic we will explore in an upcoming post.
Jignesh Gajera
Answered 105w ago · Author has 108 answers and 98.5k answer views
Originally Answered: In art, what is context?
Content:
Context:
– The set of circumstances or facts that surround a particular event, situation, etc.
This could include when a work of art was made, where, how, and for what purpose.
This could include historical information on the artist or issues or things the artist
references.