Barnes’ influence on John Dewey’s Aesthetics: a preliminary approach

Abstract

Within Dewey’s thought, the genesis of his aesthetics deserves more attention than it has been given in the literature. One aspect in particular has been virtually neglected—with the remarkable exceptions of Robins 2015, Ueno 2016, Hein 2017 and Granger 2018a and b—namely its ties with Albert Coombs Barnes. Our hypothesis is that Barnes has played a crucial role in the “aesthetic turn” of Dewey’s mature philosophy. In the present article, we takes a first step towards clarifying the relationship between them and attempt to show the art collector’s influence on the philosopher’s work.