Aesthetic vs. Cosmetic: What’s the Difference?

• Aesthetic

  Aesthetics (; esthetics in US English) is a branch of philosophy that explores the nature of art, beauty, and taste, with the creation and appreciation of beauty.In its more technical epistemological perspective, it is defined as the study of subjective and sensori-emotional values, sometimes called judgments of sentiment and taste. Aesthetics studies how artists imagine, create and perform works of art; how people use, enjoy, and criticize art; and what happens in their minds when they look at paintings, listen to music, or read poetry, and understand what they see and hear. It also studies how they feel about art—why they like some works and not others, and how art can affect their moods, beliefs, and attitude toward life. More broadly, scholars in the field define aesthetics as “critical reflection on art, culture and nature”. In modern English, the term aesthetic can also refer to a set of principles underlying the works of a particular art movement or theory: one speaks, for example, of the Cubist aesthetic.

• Aesthetic (adjective)

  Concerned with beauty, artistic impact, or appearance.

• Aesthetic (adjective)

  Beautiful or appealing to one’s sense of beauty and/or art.

  “It works well enough, but the shabby exterior offends his aesthetic sensibilities.”

  “aesthetical|esthetic|tasteful”

  “inaesthetic|unaesthetic”

• Aesthetic (noun)

  The study of art or beauty.

• Aesthetic (noun)

  That which appeals to the senses.

• Aesthetic (noun)

  The artistic motifs defining a collection of things, especially works of art; more broadly, their vibe

  “Her most recent works have this quirky, half-serious 90’s teen culture-inspired aesthetic.”

• Cosmetic (adjective)

  Imparting or improving beauty, particularly the beauty of the complexion.

  “a cosmetic preparation”

• Cosmetic (adjective)

  External or superficial; pertaining only to the surface or appearance of something.

  “Fortunately, the damage to the house was mostly cosmetic and a bit of paint covered it nicely.”

• Cosmetic (noun)

  Any substances applied to enhance the external color or texture of the skin, e.g. lipstick, eyeshadow, eyeliner; makeup.

• Cosmetic (noun)

  A feature existing only on the surface.

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