Reimagining Spirit: The Woodcuts of Arthur C. Danto

Many are aware of the enormous contributions Arthur C. Danto has made to contemporary art. His pivotal works such asThe Transfiguration of the Commonplace (1981) and After the End of Art (1997) revolutionized the field of Philosophical Aesthetics. Few, however, know Danto as a successful artist—a decade-long career that preceded his tenure as one of the most highly regarded philosophers and art critics of our time. Through Danto's 2010 gift of all his prints and original woodblocks to the Wayne State University Art Collection, recognition of his art making is being revived.

Arthur C. Danto grew up in Detroit and in 1948 received his B.A. in Fine Arts from Wayne University (now Wayne State University) and his M.A (1949) and Ph.D. (1952) from Columbia University. He began exhibiting his art in national exhibitions in the early 1950's. During this decade Danto's woodcuts were exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Detroit Institute of Arts, Los Angeles County Museum, The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and at the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. Following a successful solo exhibition at NYC's Associated American Artists gallery in 1960, Danto gave up making art and turned his interests exclusively to philosophy and art criticism. His essay 'Stopping Making Art' speaks to this pivotal moment in his life.