Abstract
Aesthetic taste rose to prominence in the eighteenth century, and then quickly
disappeared. Since the start of the 2000s, scholars have slowly returned to the main
traditional concepts in aesthetics—beauty, the sublime, and aesthetic experience. Aesthetic
taste, however, has lagged behind. I focus on two explanations for this downturn:
aesthetics is too often associated with art alone and taste is thought to have no connection
with anything objective. In this paper, I suggest that theories of aesthetic taste are still
valuable. While tastes will surely differ, individuals should explore the ways that their
life and circumstances affect their taste and how they can become more intentional about
developing their taste. Using prisons, engineering, and business, I show how theories of
aesthetic taste can enter the contemporary scene by suggesting ways that it can influence
their respective practices.