A Violent Embrace: Art and Aesthetics after Representation

Instead of asking questions about the symbolic meaning or underlying “truth” of a work of art, renée c. hoogland is concerned with the actual “work” that it does in the world (whether intentionally or not). Why do we find ourselves in tears in front of an abstract painting? Why do some cartoons of the prophet Muhammad generate worldwide political outrage? What, in other words, is the compelling force of visual images, even—or especially—if they are nonfigurative, repulsive, or downright “ug...