본 논문은 18세기 영국의 왕립미술원장을 역임한 조슈아 레이놀즈의 저서 『미술담론 Discourses on Art』의 내용을 소개하고 분석한 글이다. 본고는 신고전주의적 미술이론을 가장 명료하고 극명하게 드러난 저술로 평가받는 『미술담론』의 비판적 분석을 통해 레이놀즈가 제시한 신고전주의 이론이 무엇인가를 구체적으로 살펴보고, 신고전주의 이론이 단순한 미술의 문제만이 아니라 당대 영국의 정치 담론과 어떻게 맥이 닿아 있는가를 살펴보고자 한다.Sir Joshua Reynolds’s Discouses on Art constitute one of the most eloquent
expositions of Neo-classical theory of art. Delivered originally as lectures to the
students at the Royal Academy, the texts present in elegant language the art theory
of the previous three hundred years and suggest attitudes prevalent in the nineteenth
century. Reynolds’s overall subject is the proper education of the artist. He is
concerned with the key issues relating to the problem: the purpose of art, the nature
of the creative process, the role of imitation and imagination in the creation of the
artwork, the importance of hard work and ceaseless study of the Old Masters, etc.
He deals with these questions with such a breadth and lucidity as to won the
immediate admiration of his contemporaries and the book has continued to hold the
attention of students of art history and criticism ever since. No other piece of writing
on art by an Englishman has enjoyed such sustained respect. This essay is an
attempt to introduce the texts to Korean students of Western art, locating them
within the framework of the academic setting for which there were intended, and of
the contemporary reception and responses. In addition, it seeks to argue that
Reynolds’s theory adopted the terms and concepts of the discourse historians now
describe as civic humanism. According to this account, the republic of the fine arts
was seen to be structured as a political republic; the most dignified function to
which painting could aspire was the promotion of the public virtues; and the genres of painting were ranked in accordance with their tendency to promote them. Since
only free citizens of the political republic could embody these virtues, the highest
genre, history painting was mainly addresses to them, serving ultimately the interest
of this landed aristocratic class.