Emotion Beyond Our Control (Bell, Significant Form, & Aesthetic Emotion)

Significant form, according to Bell, is common to all art in its formalism. It is not the intention of the artist or the thoughts of the viewer which give art its unique value, but rather the aesthetic emotion which is evoked through the shape, color, and contour of the work. Further defending art’s unique value, Bell distinguished art from normal human experience when he wrote, “Great art remains stable and unobscure because the feelings that it awakens are independent of time and place, because its kingdom is not of this world.” These feelings are art's aesthetic emotion. The problem with aesthetic emotion is that it has yet to be defined. In his attempt at elaborating upon this mysterious feeling, Bell does not expand beyond the circular definition that significant form elicits aesthetic emotion which is the emotion felt from viewing significant form. The two terms are used dependent upon one another, creating a requirement for great art, but not defining characteristics which can exist outside of art.

In considering the power of aesthetic emotion derived from significant form, Bell states that, "The great value of art lies in its ability to shake us out of our everyday lives, to connect us with a deeper reality." My question is, who has access to this deeper reality? Is it the artist's job to create art which captures and intrigues its viewers and therefore forces aesthetic emotion upon them? Or is it the responsibility of the viewer to recognize significant form in order to obtain aesthetic emotion? Bell would argue that the only way to recognize art--and therefore significant form and aesthetic emotion--is to feel it. But how can we recognize an emotion if we have not previously experienced it? Is Bell suggesting that truly great art has a power over us? If it transports us beyond our everyday experiences and emotions, do we have a choice in how we respond to it?