Towards a Theory of Pre-Canonical Egyptian Art
Abstract
The two most important recent developments in the field of Egyptian art are the ideas of canon (developed by Whitney Davis) and decorum (coined by John Baines). Both Baines and Davis insist that the particular artstyle of the Egyptians is owing to conscious artists’ choices within a specific cultural framework. I propose that art from the Predynastic period (ca. 3900-3200 BCE) does not have a canon, but it does have a decorum that is specific to the period, i.e. a pre-canonical one. Due to the specificities of the Predynastic Period, before there were any written texts, a defined aesthetic canon and territorial political unity, it is necessary to develop a theory of pre-canonical Egyptian art that approaches it in its own right, and not in relation to later developments. That is, not as a “formative phase” but as a particular form of Egyptian art. Here I propose developing an appropriate theoretical and methodological toolkit that allows us to situate the figurations of the Predynastic within the history of this period. I am interested in constructing a theory of pre-canonical Egyptian art that serves as a platform for further studies, both my own and other researchers’.Downloads
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