Applications of
the Aesthetic
for Work and
Life
Amanda Lynne Smith
PhD Candidate
University of Denver
Defining the Aesthetic
The word “aesthetic” comes from the Greek
word, aesthesis, and means recognition via
one’s senses.
When was the last time you
had an aesthetic experience?
 Watching
a breathtaking sunset
 Listening to music or watching a play
 Having a meaningful conversation
 Examining a piece of art
 Creating something
 Sitting still and feeling the sun warm your
skin
 Participating in a physical activity
Engage your Senses…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_5g_
D_iP2s
Reflection
Take a moment to consider the way that
this experience made you feel. The music,
the images – did it make you feel calm,
present? Did it take you back, remind you
of something or make you day dream
about places you want to go? What stands
out and why?
Introduction and Background
Captivating College Classrooms
Applications of Aesthetic Themes for
Higher Education
The Aesthetic Themes
Connections
Risk-taking
Imagination
Sensory Experience
Perceptivity
Active Engagement
Research Questions
1.
2.
3.
What are the intentions of aesthetically
minded teachers who purposefully utilize the
Six Dimensions of Teaching and Learning
(CRISPA) in higher education institutions?
How do aesthetic themes (CRISPA)
operationalize in the classrooms of higher
education?
What is the significance of studying the
practices of aesthetically minded teachers
for higher education and education in
general?
Methodology
Educational Connoisseurship and Criticism
Educational connoisseurship and criticism is
an arts-based qualitative method of inquiry
initiated by Elliot Eisner (1998, 2002b)
Overview of the Literature
Alexander Baumgarten
Immanuel Kant
John Dewey
Suzanne Langer
Alian Badiou
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Elliot Eisner
Maxine Greene
Bruce Uhrmacher
Alexander Baumgarten and
Immanuel Kant
“There are two sources of human
knowledge, which perhaps spring from a
common but to us unknown root, namely,
sensibility and understanding.”
“The distinctive activity of the mind is to
synthesize and unify experience and to do
so, sensation, imagination, and memory
must be involved.”
John Dewey
“Through the creation of the expressive object,
the artist and the observer encounter each
other and the origin of the experience.”
“Such a lived moment is completely
memorable and connected by distinct, and
unique qualities that bind the experience into
one that makes them felt as an interlaced and
profound whole.”
Suzanne Langer and Alain
Badiou
“The visual elements of experience are
abstracted by cancelling out others.”
Badiou referred to these phenomena in his
description of the poem and how poet and
thinker rely on one another and “embody
within the work the opening out of its
closure.”
Mihaly Cskikzentmihalyi
The overarching satisfaction that is felt
through interaction with aesthetic pleasure
is generated from one’s experience of
aligning intuition and understanding.
Concepts of “Flow”
Elliot Eisner and Maxine
Greene
“Aesthetic modes of knowing”
“Aesthetics as a particular field in
philosophy - one concerned about
perception, sensation, imagination, and
how they relate to knowing, understanding,
and feeling about the world.”
Bruce Uhrmacher
Investigated the possibility of facilitating
“flow” and other outcomes of aesthetic
experience, while isolating a concise
number of aesthetic themes that teachers
could use in their classrooms in order to
facilitate enhanced learning opportunities
for students.
Theory into Practice
Indicators the Aesthetic Themes are Present
Well conceived lessons
Integration of various disciplines
Enhanced creativity
Connection making through the non-linear
Shared learning
Negotiation skills
Increased communication
Caring environment
Implications of the Research
Increased college student engagement
Higher graduation rates
New approaches to teaching and learning
A more holistic educational experience
Individuals who are creative problem
solvers
New strategies and best practices for online
education
Applications for Work and Life
Work and Professional Growth
Hobbies and Recreation
Love and Relationships
Personal and Spiritual Growth
Work and Professional Growth
Determination, Integrity and
Purpose
Hobbies and Recreation
Passion, Persistence and
Courage
Love and Relationships
Vulnerability, Trust and
Tenderness
Personal and Spiritual Growth
Transcendence, Gratitude
and Hope
References
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Badiou, A. (2004). Handbook of inaesthetics (A.
Toscano, Trans.). Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University
Press.
Csikszentmihalyi, M., & Robinson, R. (1990). The art of
seeing: An interpretation of the aesthetic encounter.
Malibu, CA: John Paul Getty Trust.
Dewey, J. (1934). Art as experience. New York:
Perigee Books.
Eisner, E. (1998). The enlightened eye: Qualitative
inquiry and the enhancement of
educational practice. New Jersey: Merrill Prentice
Hall.
Moroye, C. M. & Uhrmacher, P. B. (2009). Aesthetic
themes of education and the art of teaching.
Curriculum and Teaching Dialogue. Charlotte
Information Age.
“A happy life is one in accordance with its
own nature.”
-Lucius Annaeus Seneca
Indicators of Life Balance
 Work-Life
balance
 Fulfillment - and personal or emotional
fulfillment
 Well-being, and personal wellbeing/wellbeing
 Happiness, or simply being happy
 At peace (with myself or life) or in
harmony with life
 Contentment, and inner calm