Document Type
Master's Thesis
Graduation Year
2000
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Program Name
Humanities
Program Director
Harlan Stelmach, PhD
First Reader
Phil Novak, PhD
Second Reader
Leslie Ross, PhD
Abstract
This thesis presents a biographical analysis of the role of American composer, writer, and artist John Cage (1912-1992) in the evolution of visual arts in the twentieth century. The origins of Cage's aesthetic stance are discussed, particularly his melding of Marcel Duchamp's Dada orientation with philosophical positions derived from the study of Zen Buddhism. The influence of His views on painters, sculptors, and performance artists of the postwar period is documented, along with the aesthetic foundations of his own work in the visual arts.
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