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In his posthumously published diary, the well-known Italian writer Cesare Pavese notes, "It is an interesting idea that in art feeling is the purely mimetic part, the accurate description of the silence of the sea" (Pavese, 1980, translated from the Dutch edition). It would seem that Pavese is poking fun at the conventional definition of "mimesis"; here the concept does not merely mean the representation of external reality but also, and especially, the portrayal of an emotional state of mind, the artist's inner reality, his dreams, emotions and obsessions. In this sense all art is of course mimetic, even abstract painting, music or lyric poetry. Pavese's statement, however, is not entirely nonsensical. As we have already seen, Plotinus interpreted "mimesis" in such a way that the work of art is seen as the ever-imperfect imitation of the pure Form or Idea which is present in the mind of the artist from the very start. We also noted that many Renaissance artists were inspired by a notion of ideal beauty which served as a guideline or a model during the creative process. These less radical versions of the "mimesis" theory move towards the idea that the true work of art is located somewhere in the artist's mind, and that the task of the artist is to give shape to this pure idea or form in his work of art. The emphasis here is no longer on the imitation or reproduction of supersensible (Plato) or sensible reality, but on the representation of an idea previously formed in the mind of the artist. Ultimately, it would seem that it is a matter of representing the artist's inner reality. And perhaps, or rather, undoubtedly, Pavese wishes to point this out to us by means of his seemingly enigmatic statement.

DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4020-5638-3_3

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