NEW YORK, NY.- Renowned scholar and educator Howard Gardner will present a series of three lectures entitled The True, the Beautiful, and the Good: Reconsiderations in a Postmodern, Digital Era at The Museum of Modern Art on three consecutive Tuesdays—November 25, December 2 and 9—at 6:30 p.m. in The Roy and Niuta Titus 1 Theater. The lectures will explore the concepts of truth, beauty, and goodness, which are present in some form in all known societies. Yet, according to Dr. Gardner, these three ‘virtues’ have come to be seen as increasingly problematic in today’s age of rapid technological advancement.

In his lectures, Gardner will consider how one should conceptualize truth, beauty, and goodness. As part of the post-modern critique, some intellectuals—and many cynics—have come to dismiss these ideas as outmoded or fundamentally misconceived. Gardner argues that human beings cannot get along without some version of this trio of virtues, but they are far from self-evident in today’s world and their explication poses severe challenges to those who would educate the young.

At the end of each lecture, Dr. Gardner will be joined in a discussion by a noted scholar.

Tickets for each lecture are $10 adults; $8 for MoMA members; and $5 for students and seniors (with current ID), and can be purchased online at www.moma.org, or at the Museum’s lobby information desk and Film desk.

Lecture 1: Kinds and Degrees of Truths
November 25, 6:30 p.m.

Gardner’s first lecture will explore the challenge of distinguishing among different forms of truth at a time when the Internet and other technologies have introduced new opportunities for deception. He will examine concepts of truth across a range of disciplines, professions and crafts. Gardner casts doubt on the appropriateness of truth judgments in the arts; instead he proposes that works of art may serve as authentic samples of experience, and that “authenticity” might be considered the equivalent in art of truth.

Discussion with Peter Galison, Pellegrino University Professor in the History of Science and Physics, Harvard University.

Lecture 2: Beauty and Its Successors
December 2, 6:30 p.m.

Unlike the case of truth, there comes a point where the concept of beauty has been stretched too far, and is no longer useful in characterizing why certain human artifacts are cherished, while others are ignored or scorned, says Gardner. Accordingly, particularly in the visual arts, other concepts have come to the fore, which he describes as ‘symptoms of the arts,’ such as “interestingness,” "memorability," and the potential to inspire awe. In this lecture, Gardner will examine how the advent of digital media is altering traditional notions of beauty and the relationships among art, science, invention, and design.

Discussion with Paola Antonelli, Senior Curator, Department of Architecture and Design, MoMA.


Lecture 3: The Good: Seen through the Prisms of Biology, Culture, and History
December 9, 6:30 p.m.

Children have no difficulty in distinguishing the good from the bad, which has led many scholars to conclude that a sense of morality is innate. But because notions of what is good and bad have varied greatly over time and across cultures, as in the case of beauty, argues Gardner, notions of goodness need to be approached through two lenses: the values of a culture, and the trends of history. Drawing on his own research Gardner will address how our digital era has altered the ways in which we think about our sense of identity, privacy, ownership, authorship, trustworthiness and participation in a community. In a globalized world, the moral and ethical demands made upon us are greater than ever; whether the more positive facets of human character will prevail remains an open question.

Discussion with Antonio Damasio, David Dornsife Professor of Neuroscience, and Director, Brain and Creativity Institute, University of Southern California.