Department of Aesthetics

General Characteristics of the Department

 

Aesthetics is studied as a single-major programme, or as the pedagogical programme called Aesthetic Education in combination with other pedagogical specializations. Bachelor graduates can analyze issues related to the history of aesthetics from ancient times until the 21st century, they are sufficiently familiar with aesthetic categories and theories to find jobs in a broad range of cultural, public, social or educational institutions. Graduates in the pedagogical Master’s programme in aesthetic education are prepared to become teachers of aesthetics, aesthetic education and special aesthetic disciplines. They are able to apply theoretical knowledge in the teaching process, to independently interpret an artistic text and to critically reflect on contemporary artistic movements in Slovakia and abroad. They have a grasp of information technologies, methods and tools of independent and creative interpretation of various areas of aesthetic knowledge, independent and creative interpretation of a work of art, or artifacts and phenomena in the field of the “extra-artistic aesthetic” and use their knowledge and interpretative skills to direct their teaching towards the development of the students’ aesthetic abilities and taste. Graduates of the specialized Master’s programme in aesthetics can reflect on contemporary art and aesthetic theory. Naturally, this type of knowledge and skills include the ability to critically address research tendencies and analyses of contemporary aesthetic thought. Graduates of the doctoral programme in aesthetics and aesthetic education have mastered analytical and critical methods of the most current research, they know how to work independently in research, and they can independently apply research results in a broader context of multidisciplinary research in scientific and artistic disciplines.

The department’s research focus naturally merges with its teaching aims. Research is concentrated on the history of aesthetic thought, but mostly on current tendencies and trends in aesthetic theory, in an attempt to maintain as close a contact with current art as possible. Members of the department extensively publish their academic work and regularly participate in academic conferences in Slovakia and abroad.