Kunst als Handeln

The analysis of Dewey’s philosophy of art shows that he assigns a certain type of action to the fine arts and subordinates every discussion of art theory to his strategy, which leads to unsatisfactory results. The transfer of his model of problem solving as the epitome of rationality to artistic creation contains a potential that is only inadequately used by him. That his problem-solving model can be expanded into a theory of art is shown by Arnold Gehlen, who transforms it into a theory of “experimenting action.” Direct references to Dewey can be found in his works “Der Mensch,” “Urmensch und Spätkultur,” and in the “Zeit-Bildern.” For Gehlen, “experimenting action” is fundamental to modern culture-and thus to action in the fine arts. As a result, the concept of “quality” and the problem of finality prove to be fundamental.