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Single Idea 20332

[catalogued under 21. Aesthetics / C. Artistic Issues / 3. Artistic Representation]

Full Idea

It is necessary, if a drawing is to represent Napoleon, that the draughtsman should intend it to be Napoleon.

Gist of Idea

A drawing only represents Napoleon if the artist intended it to

Source

Richard Wollheim (Art and Its Objects [1968], 13)

A Reaction

Does a perfect and intended representation of a person also count as a representation of the person's identical twin? The families of both might well order copies.

Book Reference

Wollheim,Richard: 'Art and Its Objects' [Penguin 1975], p.34