The game of art as religious expression in Hans-Georg Gadamer

Abstract

This article aims to present an analysis departing from conceptual issues concerning art, religion and game playing, keeping sight of theoretical references such as the philosophical hermeneutics as developped by German thinker Hans-Georg Gadamer. The text comes divided in four different parts. In the first, a reflection has been elaborated on the representation involved in religious cults and artworks alike. In the second part, the notion of mimesis is analysed — a philosophical concept out of classical aesthetics — and the game of appearance it performs in the sphere of art. The third part focuses on game-playing as a dimension which enables for an horizon of self-understanding for religious faith. The fourth and last part deals with the matter of beauty in both art and religion through the dynamic perspective of the game. The reflections developped in this paper derive from a couple of notions which are fundamental to the gadamerian hermeneutics — namely the experience of art and the religious experience.