In my quest to understand why everyone seems so obsessed with style in Industrial Design, I came across the book “The Aestheticization of the World” by Gilles Lipovetsky and Jean Serroy. In it, the authors propose that every society shapes the world aesthetically, not just through art, but by embedding sensory and symbolic meaning into daily life. Based on this idea, they outline four ages of aestheticization, each revealing how art and aesthetics reflect deeper cultural values.
The first age, the Age of Ritual Aestheticization, refers to pre-modern societies, where aesthetic forms served ritual, religious, or social functions. Art wasn't created to be admired, but to perform: to heal, invoke spirits, or bond communities. This was Art for the Gods: pre-reflexive and inseparable from life’s practical or sacred dimensions.
The second age, the Age of Aristocratic Aestheticization, emerged in the Renaissance. Artists gained recognition as individuals, and art became a display of power, wealth, and prestige. Patronage from elites produced cultural innovation, but aesthetics served the social status of the few. It was Art for the Princes.
The third age, the Modern Aestheticization of the World, arose in the 18th and 19th centuries in the west. Art emancipated itself from religion and aristocracy, claiming autonomy and developing its own institutions. Artists explored freedom, originality, and aesthetics for their own sake, yet they also became increasingly dependent on market forces.
This era split art into two spheres: pure and commercial. Museums became temples separated from religion, and artists claimed the right to transform anything into art. At the same time, industrial and cultural capitalism brought style to the masses through cinema, fashion, design, and advertising. This was Art for Art’s sake, but it’s also the time when art enters the market.
The fourth age, the Hypermodern Aestheticization of the World, marks our current phase. Or at least the moment we were at in 2013, when this book was written. The authors describe a world where aesthetics are fully integrated into capitalism and everyday life. The old oppositions, art vs. commerce and elite vs. mass, have faded.
Now, everything is stylized: products, services, cities, identities. Artists and designers shape not just galleries but branding, packaging, architecture, and experience. Art becomes marketing; culture becomes entertainment; creativity becomes strategy. It’s Art for the Market.
They argue that we live in a transaesthetic system, where the visual, emotional, and symbolic invade every aspect of consumption: not just what we buy, but how we dress, travel, eat, decorate, and express ourselves. The modern consumer is eclectic, hedonistic, reflexive.
Values once associated with bohemian artists, such as authenticity, pleasure, self-expression, are now central to mass culture. Museums and landscapes are consumed like Instagram backdrops. Cities are themed and staged for tourism. Life itself is curated as an aesthetic project.
This shift reflects not only the triumph of artistic capitalism but the rise of a new subject: the homo aestheticus, a hyper-individualistic being who lives through images, sensations, and aesthetic choices. In today’s world, we no longer just see; we feel the world aesthetically. And in doing so, we aim not only to live, but to style our lives.
Considering this point of view, the obsession with style, the need to stylistically identify a product kind of makes sense. So much food for thoughts.