4E Cognition and the Spectrum of Aesthetic Experience

A review of 4E (embodied, embedded, extended, and enactive) approaches to art and aesthetic experience argues that extended mind analyses focusing on tool use overlook important aspects. To account for the wide range of aesthetic experiences across diverse artistic genres, four or more E's are needed. The authors develop an enactive, affordance-based approach to understanding art and aesthetic experience, while acknowledging both the potential and limitations of any single framework. They conclude that no unified set of principles can make sense of all art everywhere.

Study at a glance

Abstract

We review 4E (embodied, embedded, extended and enactive) approaches to the analysis of art and aesthetic experience. We argue that extended mind analyses that focus on tool use miss important aspects, and that it requires 4 or more E’s to address the broad spectrum of aesthetic experiences that correlate to the broad variety of artistic genres. We develop an enactive, affordance-based approach to understanding art and aesthetic experience. Considering both the potential and the limitations of any particular approach, we argue that there is no one unified set of principles that will make sense of all art everywhere.