Abstract
KOBATA Junzo (1926-1984) is a rare aesthetician who brought the term “aesthetic
consciousness (美意識)” to the forefront. The Japanese term “bi-ishiki (美意識)” has a
different meaning from its German counterpart, “ästhetisches Bewußtsein”. The term
“bi-ishiki” contains an ethical connotation in which it has to do with one’s attitude
toward life and which has remained in everyday language.
In his main work, The Philosophy of Aesthetic Consciousness, he argues that the
essential trigger for an aesthetic experience is wonder, and the experience of wonder
brings about “awareness of ignorance”. The transformation of the subject in this process
can takes place in the continuity of life. This view is more obvious in his last book,
whose title Gudoˉ Geijutsu (求道芸術) says that art seeks after truth. Gudoˉ or asceticism
in everyday life overlaps with the potential of aesthetic consciousness for aesthetic
experience.
The everyday meaning of “aesthetic consciousness” is imporant for him for the
seeking after truth. “Aesthetic consciousness” is part of the seeking after truth in
everyday life. His continued use of the term “aesthetic consciousness” indicates his
understanding of aesthetics as a way of life.
