알로이스 리글이 주창한 ‘예술의지’는 주로 각 시대의 문명이 부여하는, 특수한 사회 전반의 조건들을 반영하여 표출되는 특정 개인과 집단의 의지로 정의되곤 한다. 그의 예술의지 이론은 그의 저작에서 매우 중요한 개념적 중요성을 갖지만 동시에 언급되는 경우가 매우 적다. 이 모호성은 그의 예술사학의 영역이 예술작품의 태동의 순간에 영향을 끼친 모든 것과 관찰될 수 있는 모든 단서를 아우르는, 그 지평선들을 명확히 규정할 수 없고 계속해서 내적인 변화를 거치며 영구히 심화, 확장되는 영역이라는 점에 기인한다. 그러므로 리글의 예술의지 개념을 명료화 하는 일은 그의 예술사학이 대상으로 삼는 ‘영역’을 더욱 구체화하는 과정을 필요로 한다. 본 논문은 리글이이 영역을 두 무한 개념을 통해 설명했다는 사실에 집중하려 한다.
다시 말해, 리글의 이론에서 예술사학의 영역은 가장 작은 ‘미립자적무한’과 가장 넓은 ‘관계적 무한’ 사이의 긴장관계에 작가가 조형적으로 개입하는 계기가 드러나는 모든 실증될 수 있는 공간으로 정의될 수 있다.
Aloïs Riegl of the Vienna School has been often hailed as a scholar who established and solidified the most comprehensive and systematic foundation of Art History. Riegl famously upheld a major theoretical principle, namely that of Kunstwollen. Kunstwollen can be defined as the expression of the demands specific to the conditions of a particular period of civilization. One of the main reasons for the lack of clarity lies in the difficulties of locating the material boundaries of art historical research. In Riegl’s theory, the boundaries of art history contains objects of historical significance whose discovery and empirical understanding change both horizontally and vertically the internal dynamics of the field. Thus, seeking a more concrete description of the boundaries will lead to a more concrete definition of Kunstwollen. This article will first focus on the two types of infinity Riegl introduces to explain the scope of his art historical research, namely the infinity at the smallest, atomic level at one end, and at the other, the infinity in its largest, relational sense. Then the focus will shift to the very specific concept of space that Riegl propounds to explain the continuity between the two infinities.
Aloïs Riegl of the Vienna School has been often hailed as a scholar who established and solidified the most comprehensive and systematic foundation of Art History. Riegl famously upheld a major theoretical principle, namely that of Kunstwollen. Kunstwollen can be defined as the expression of the demands specific to the conditions of a particular period of civilization. One of the main reasons for the lack of clarity lies in the difficulties of locating the material boundaries of art historical research. In Riegl’s theory, the boundaries of art history contains objects of historical significance whose discovery and empirical understanding change both horizontally and vertically the internal dynamics of the field. Thus, seeking a more concrete description of the boundaries will lead to a more concrete definition of Kunstwollen. This article will first focus on the two types of infinity Riegl introduces to explain the scope of his art historical research, namely the infinity at the smallest, atomic level at one end, and at the other, the infinity in its largest, relational sense. Then the focus will shift to the very specific concept of space that Riegl propounds to explain the continuity between the two infinities.