The Aesthetics of Ashé in Art - Methodology
Arturo Lindsay © 2006

Methodology

We conducted our investigation of ashé as an aesthetic criterion using an experimental research method grounded in phenomenology. The investigators first bracketed all a priori knowledge and prior experiences, as well as all knowledge based on deductive reasoning (relating cause and effect) in order to examine the art objects as freely as possible. We organized our work into four "time zones", each of which represented a different period of investigation.

TIME 1: Allow the phenomenon to reveal its ESSENTIAL QUALITIES.

In TIME 1 the investigators entered the Picker Art Gallery and selected a work of art.  The investigators sought to remain open in order to feel the energy emanating from a work and to select a work that attracted them. After selecting a work, each investigator stood before it, allowing the work to reveal its essential qualities. Shortly afterwards, the investigator left the gallery to document his or her experience. This time zone was the briefest in duration since its purpose was to register a visceral response. 

TIME 2: Describe DO NOT DEFINE the experience.

In TIME 2 the investigators returned to the gallery to examine their selected works a second time. The purpose of this time zone was to describe the work of art without attempting to define it. The documentation of the description took place in the gallery before the art objects. The description of the works in this time zone relied heavily on a formal analysis of each object and of the design principles used to create it. The investigators noted the title of their selected works and the names of the corresponding artists, and were then required to leave the gallery. The investigators were then asked to gather information on 'their' artists, and the style and subjects of their selected pieces.

In TIME 3 the investigators returned to the gallery armed with the information on their selected works and artists, and met with the gallery's curator, Diane Butler, who provided additional information on each work, including its provenance. The purpose of this time zone was to begin the process of interpretation. Investigators were encouraged to consider Formalist, Marxist, Feminist or Culturalist methodologies while conducting the interpretation of their selected work. They were provided with the following brief definitions of these methods:

• FORMALIST A method of aesthetic inquiry that stresses the primacy of form over content when locating the distinctive features in a work of art.
• MARXIST A method of aesthetic inquiry that stresses the primacy of the socio-political and economic context of a work of art as the determining factors for locating its distinctive features.
• FEMINIST A method of aesthetic inquiry that stresses the primacy of gender and social context of a work of art as the determining factors for locating its distinctive features.
• CULTURALIST A method of aesthetic inquiry that stresses the primacy of understanding the ethnic/cultural context of a work of art as the determining factor for locating distinctive features.

In TIME 4 the investigators judged their experiences by considering the styles, artistic intentions, and functions of their selected works. Based on the total of their various experiences with the artworks, the investigators were required to assess the ashé imbued in all the works they were judging. The criteria for assessing the ashé in the work were based on a variety of factors including:

• STRENGTH The degree of power emanating from the work of art.
• BEAUTY (ewa ode, or internal beauty, and ewa inu, or external beauty) According Babatunde Lawal, the Yoruba believe that ewa ode is the quality of form that attracts the eye and ewa inu is the inner quality that ultimately determines the true value of a work of art or a person. Possessing a high degree of both qualities is most desirable.
• TRANSFORMATION The ability of a work of art to have a transformative effect for the viewer.
• GROWTH The ability of the work of art to grow in appreciation for the viewer over time.
• VITALITY The ability of the work of art to emanate energy.
• CRAFTSMANSHIP The degree to which the artist displays mastery over the medium.
• INTERACTIVITY The ability of the work of art to engage the viewer. The ashé found in any object is determined by the interaction of that object with a viewer.  Consequently, the quality of ashé in a work of art will vary with each individual.