Concept : Art Paying Attention with Anya Daly
Sep 19, 2025
Dr. Anya Daly, a philosopher exploring the intersections of perception, aesthetics, and Buddhist thought, dives deep into the world of meditation and how it shapes our engagement with art. She discusses Merleau-Ponty's phenomenology, explaining how it reveals layers of meaning in artwork. The conversation also touches on the political divides in philosophy, emphasizing the relevance of Indigenous lifeworlds in mental health. Anya links embodied experience to the appreciation of art, advocating for a richer understanding of both human and animal lifeworlds.
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Nonlinear Route Into Philosophy
- Dr Anya Daly describes shifting from law to psychiatric nursing to philosophy, with life events shaping her path into phenomenology.
- She raised three children as a single parent while studying and later completed a PhD in France, which deeply informed her work.
Art As Non-Conceptual Disclosure
- Art provides a non-conceptual way to disclose hidden aspects of the world and can motivate political action.
- Merleau-Ponty's idea that attentive perception transforms both object and subject guides Daly's aesthetic thinking.
Kandinsky's Haystack Revelation
- Daly recounts Kandinsky's reaction to Monet's haystacks: the concept 'haystack' evaporated and he engaged directly with color and form.
- That moment propelled Kandinsky toward abstraction by prioritizing sensory perception over conceptual labels.