ART AND POLITICS!

THE BIRTH OF REALISATION!

Theophile Gautier - “l’art pour l’art!” (art for arts sake)

Whilst politics had always been an undertone in the production of art, it was not until Frenchman Gautier, made a call for the opposite - aesthetics opposing didactic function - that politics in art became a prevalently discussed concept.

Art has not been without strong politics since this statement was made, whether it be seen in the Utopian cries of the Lissitsky, dark oppressional works, such as Picasso’s Guernica or the American dream being realised through the Abstract Expressionism of Pollock.

A ‘Culture of complaint’ was recognised in 1980’s art by critic Robert Hughes. This recognised the regularity with which artists were using ‘one dimensional message art’ to create a sense of civil victim-hood amongst the art community, despite no reason to do so.

Other critics, like Benjamin Buchloh, take aim against this idea, and believe that these artists are embracing their society by making use of its free speech and championing ideas of ‘the cultivation of pleasure’ a very capitalist ideology.

GUERRILLA GIRL!

Guerrilla Girls are an anonymous group of feminists devoted to fighting against sexism within the visual fine art world internationally. Started in New York City in 1985 to protest gender and racial inequality in the art world, members are known for the gorilla masks they wear to keep their anonymity.

Through their history the Guerrilla Girls have seen art and the world surrounding it evolve into a different place with issues changing since 1985. Tokenism is just one of the concerns challenged by the group today. Economic discrimination in art sales and the auction market is another. Women and artists of colour earn about 10-20% of what white men do for comparable artwork.

here is a link to their website: http://www.guerrillagirls.com/

here you can find a bunch of their artworks etc.

Vantage point (sorry its late)

The section of Burnetts essay that i took note of, discusses the importance of the image, and how trustworthy it can be in speaking on behalf of the real object or person, which the image depicts.

Burnett begins to question our belief in the 'truth' of images. He asks what happens to the 'truth' when images are altered - eg photoshopped? The idea that someone can wipe certain elements from an image, or cause an addition to an image, is a very potent idea, as what if someone has only seen the altered image? that image, to them, is the original carrying all the authority of an original photograph - which in turn, depicts to documentational degree, what happened at the events and place where and when the photograph was taken. Maybe photos are just a way through which we re-imagine the past and if so how important is the original? He singles out reinvention, visualisation, imagination and retelling as some of the important aspects when considering images. He also make a serious point about the place an image takes in someones heart, in terms of sentimental value, due to its content. For example if a mother were to have a picture of her daughter, whom leived overseas on her mantle piece, she may talk to it, kiss it and for her, it takes the place of her daughter - when in reality it is simply ink and paper. The idea that this could physicallty be destroyed, and whilst nothing negative would actually happen to her daughter, the mother would still be distraught, and feel as though a part of her daughter were destroyed, as the image (due to her daughters absence) has taken the place of her daughter, and to the mother, is no longer simplya representation, but has become the real thing. If an image is that powerful, Burnett questions the morality in the alteration of images to suit a certain person or corporatinos agenda...

James out...

Art and Archive

The artist i chose to focus on for art and archive is Charlie Sofo. He is a young Australian artist, who showed in the ann Landa prize, with a very archival work. He work Fields is a documentation of what Sofo noticed, and what revealed itself to him when he took expeditional walks around the city of Melbourne. He documented his findings on a low table, spread out in a scientific manner presenting all the objects and sounds he found 'out in the field'. He collected such objects and statistics as a rock from the Gallery grounds, a slideshow of stones from the grooves of his shoes, a collection of paint samples lifted from suburban houses, and a video of Sofo touching familiar objects as if for the first – or last – time.

here is a link to the work, - you also should all remember it, as we actyually saw it in person. too...

http://www.darrenknightgallery.com/artists/sofo/2011/FieldsTHM.htm

James out...

Art and Globalism, Yinka Shonibare

Yinka Shonibares work, Gallantry and Criminal Conversation, i feel is an excellent example of globalistic art. whilst according to critics, it is about the phenomenon of the Grand Tour, an extended trip focusing on the art, culture and history of Europe that was considered central to the education of young ladies and gentlemen in the 17th and early 18th century, it is very hard not too observe it from a much more colonial, conquestial view, considering the artist who made it, and their cultural and social upbringing. - Shonibare, being an artist of British Nigerian descent, whether by choice or not, brings a certain element of multiculturalism to the work, and by choosing to leave the mannequins headless, he seemed to further distance himself, and the viewing public from the british people in the sculpture... as a result, one feels more isolated and removed from, aswell as a sense of fear towards the british, giving the work a much more sinister undertone - which, ergo, drives this idea of conquest and colonialism in the work...

http://www.tate.org.uk/britain/turnerprize/2004/images/shonibare-Gallantry-Crimina.jpg

art and spirituality

the artist i chose to look at was Shirin Neshat.

I picked her work turbulent to show the class, as, to me, it is one of the most spiritually relevant works of art ive ever experienced. Whilst it can be argued that this work is about gender roles, not spirituality, i argue that, it is about gender roles within Islam - The religion of Neshats homeland, Iran - and as such comments very much on spirituality. I feel Neshat is not only presenting the issue, but also herself ruminating over the implications of living as a muslim woman, and whether the lack of rights as a female is countered strong enough by the faith itself,

file:///Users/jonathandunlop/Desktop/turbulent01-4168404_0x440.jpg

Not only this, the work is also a powerful and beautiful peace of film and art - filmed very directly and confidently...

here is a link to the work...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCAssCuOGls

art and architecture

In researching art and architecture over the course of the week, i came across a certain artist whom recently had a show at CUBE gallery in Manchester, his name is Rupert Griffiths, and his works focus upon and play with the concept of the city, and and the tensions between the 'over determined and legible places' and the 'under determined and under the radar' locations, The work draws inspiration from the more derelict elements of the cityscape, including roadsides, canals, industrial infrastructure and railway tracks and houses,

Here is a description from the gallery exhibition that describes the materials used to construct the work: "The work uses materials, processes and techniques that are typically used to re-brand failed spaces undergoing redevelopment - the architectural models, computer renderings, slick surfaces, diagrams, photographs and tidy trees that are often employed to present an image of a cleaner, brighter, and fictional future. Here though, the work makes use of visual language in order to evoke the richness of dereliction."

Griffiths used techniques including 3D laser cutting, printing and etching to make the works aswell,

Krauss Reader

Krauss writes a compelling argument in this essay, where she seems to follow a thesis that contemplates the Breakdown of the traditional term sculpture - and observes how general and widespread the term has become in the modern art world.

"over the past 10 years, rather surprising things have become known as sculpture, for example - narrow corridors with TV monitors at the end of the hallways, Large Photos documenting nature hikes taken by the artists, mirrors at odd angles in ordinary rooms to create unusual light beams and refractions..."

She then goes on to say that although pulling and stretching of the term sculpture is all in search of attaining vanguard (any creative group active in the innovation and application of new concepts and techniques in a given field (especially in the arts)) aesthetics, it has been happening/been adapting since ancient historical works and monuments.

Another point noted by Krauss is that as postmodernity started to come into its prime in the early/mid 1970's, critics of sculpture (including Krauss herself) began, instead of looking back through the decades to create a social and cultural reference point to works, began looking back through millenia to help create a context. This inclusion of ancient tribal objects (such as pyramids, totem poles and stonehenge) created wider boundaries and allowed more work to be deemed sculptural - This In Turn Makes it harder to define exactly what sculpture is as this inclusion grows-

Sculpture had entered a categorical no-mans land; it was what 'was on or in front of a building that is not the building, or what was in the landscape that was not the landscape, as a result Krauss concluded on a sort of doubling back on her original argument, by stating that sculpture is now just a smaller sub category in a larger spectrum of fields of art, made up of marked sites, site construction, axiomatic structures - and of course sculpture,

thanks, youve been a great audience, signing out now,

narrative

The idea of storytelling- or portraying a certain tale in a work is very appealling to me. The concept that works can not only provide a vague focus on a topic, but instead tell a interwoven story is fascinating, and gives work mulitple layers of depth. Matthew Barney is an artist whom does this to great extent, and after seeing him in last weeks class, i found myself considering his work and contemplating his reasoning. his work the cremaster cycle is comprised of 5 different films, that can be viewed in varying order, to provide altered storylines. this idea is not only amazing to me, but seems nigh on impossible to be able to pull off well. I would very much like to explore his works further and sit down and watch his films the cremaster cycle series.

Martin Creed

here is an interesting piece of writing about the titling of creeds work that i found on this website

http://www.designboom.com/portrait/creed.html

the titling of creed's art
creed began to number his works,
not as a chronological catalogue but as a method of
description.
the titles given to the pieces also define them.

for example work no. 142, 'a large piece of furniture
partially obstructing a door'.
this work is exactly as the title describes:
a large wardrobe in a doorframe in the gallery.
you can physically walk past it, but you cannot fail to
notice it as the piece is nevertheless in the way.

and he comes up with equations:
the piece comissioned for tate britain gallery,
the large neon text, says:
'the whole world + the work = the whole world'
value reduced to zero?
is creed implying that art does not count for anything?
the paradoxical desire and contradictory impulse
to produce something and nothing?
is art part of our lives and it does not need to be
defined as a separate component?

i found creeds work quite interesting, as he seems to not take himself to seriously, the icorporation of music into his art, i find very effective, as it provides a full on assault on ones senses. His lack of seriousness in his art making gives his work a playful quality, thatuntil before i heard him talk of his works today , i had not seen before. I think his ethos is a very forward thinking ideology , and am very encouraged to research further into creed in future university studies./

anne landa exhibit

All up i felt that the anne landa exhibit was a succesful exhibit. i thought every piece except for two works were very interesting, thought provoking and visually interesting pieces.I felt that the work the lament, was the weakest piece, and proved a rather dull watch with little thought provoking material. My favourite work was the outlands by David Haines and Joyce Hinterding. The outlands is a piece that uses a gaming toolkit called the Unreal Engine 3 to create ‘a journeying landscape’. Whereas commercial games often involve rapid-fire carnage and a frenetic pursuit of rewards,The outlands is a world where viewers are free to take their time and look around.

It uses sticks as controls, allowing the viewer to travel around the worlds. After observing others, and myself having a turn exploring the worlds, i began to notice an appreciate the finite details of the various lands. the home land appeared to be comletely symetrical and reflective, and its soundtrack appeared to be matched too the players movements, making both sound and image that the player travel through different every time with no similarities....

Another work i appreciated was Ian Burns collection of pieces which i found very interesting and stimulating, as a result, i looked further into his works in my essay... yeah... read more there.

KUTLUG ATAMAN

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Xa8sYRiYSY

this is a film by kutlug ataman. I noticed that he was in next weeks class so i researched a bit of his work. he has an interesting technique that combines documentary style film making with a home movie genreesque style. this particular film examines the issues behind homosexuality , from the perspective of a young turkish immigrant living under his brother in Berlin Germany. the segments of the film that i observed made me feel quite uncomfortable and i feel that this is a commendation to Ataman .

louise bouegious.....

"For Destruction of the Father, Bourgeois bought hunks of mutton and beef, decidely on the bone, cast them in plaster and then covered the plaster with latex rubber. She put them in a cave-like structure lit with a red glow. And although Bourgeois maintained that her autobiography was not necessary to an understanding of her art, after the huge success of her Moma show she talked often about her childhood and its effect on her."

I feel that louise Bouegioious work, has a very primal feminine feel about it. Her work 'destruction of the father' is a cavernous work, which is simulteiouaneous to that of the female sexual organ. The idea of having her 'fathers(a mans) innards' resting inside her cavrnous space, in sucha provocative and intrusive manner is a stark metaphor to that of womens sexual liberty, and the intrusion of male sexuality, which is then shadowed by each sexes organs, eg, the phallic organ is very intrusive and penetrative, whereas the female organ is much more cavernous and vulnerable. i find this very interesting, in that Bourgious manages through such a simple piece, to create such meaningful context and subtextual referneces to femininity(not feminism) haha. and the intrusion of males into womens femininity.

sorry im late..... i forgot...

Heartney, Eleanor. Art and today. London: Phaidon, 2008.

The Book Art and Today reviewed art and its institutions in great depth, predominately focussing on the element of conceptual development in the contemporary art world. Through a chronological walkthrough of the ‘birth’ of the modern conceptualist, Heartney discussed how certain ideas and houses of thought came to the for front of the art world, and how in turn society and the art world reacted and dealt with the artists of the time. The authors research narrowed in on how contemporary artists felt they were simply a tool of economic trading, and how they reacted to this through their work, and in turn how the galleries themselves morphed into houses built to cater to these new revolutionary artists. The main limitation of the article is in its lack of critical analysis of individual works intent – in that it rather focuses on shows and collections of works by an artist. I found this article very useful, and will use it as the basis of my theory, however will need to find more information to specify my details and help solidify my slightly differing perspective to Heartney.

Shulevitz, Judith. “Hans Haacke: Art or Punditry?” Slate, (16^th March 2000)

In this article, Judith Shulevitz examines contemporary art, its relevance and what it has become today. She draws the conclusion that it has through becoming a parody of itself – become quite literally a joke, that of which artists themselves do not comprehend. She does this by unsubtly putting down clichéd topics and mediums of conceptual artists, before then moving on to Haacke. Interestingly, she appears to have quite an opposing view to Haackes work in comparison to her views on the vast majority of all other contemporary art. She goes on to examine Haackes intent, and how he, unlike most contemporary artists, does not beat around the bush with attempted satire and parody, but rather simply puts his message across. This is very useful to me, as I plan on using Haacke as my selected artist, and it goes a long way towards helping to identify the ideology that Haacke brings to his own art.

Appleton, Josie. “Conceptual art: Whats the idea?” Spiked Culture (20^th November 2003)

This journal entry by Josie Appleton, discuss’ a) the quality of ‘conceptual art’ and b) what art can actually be correctly called ‘conceptual art’. It brings forth very intrigueing points about art, and ponders over whether simply an idea can be considered art, or whether a process must be applied to bring this idea into existence to be able to label such a thing as art. The author reasons that for a piece of art to be truly Conceptual art – it must contain both a CONCEPT and an ARTISTIC element.

Maurizio Cattelan - contemporary art...

maurizio cattelan’s art often combines sculpture and
performance. cattelan has a subtle sense of the paradoxes
of transgression, the limits of tolerance.
since the early 90's, his work has provoked and challenged
the limits of contemporary value systems through its use
of irony and humor.
he teases the art world without ever falling into the naive
trap of thinking he can subvert a system of which he is part.
the characters and personas inhabiting maurizio cattelan’s
world are ghostly appearances in a personal theatre of
the absurd: policemen flipped upside down, stuffed animals
hanging from the ceiling, a swami who buried himself in sand
for hours at a time ...
suspended between reality and fiction, maurizio cattelan’s
work simulates and subverts the rules of culture and society
in a continuous game of detournement, acts of insubordination
and symbolical theft.
constantly exploring different materials, contexts and
strategies, he refuses to take any moral or ideological position,
concentrating instead on reproducing reality in all its
complexities. while he does not offer solutions, he shows that
one can survive and use the system without being consumed
by it.

Gilbert and George

gilbert and george doing their art.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OGziyW-_FY

i do wonder what their intention is behind such a performance

Abstraction art

the concept of minimilism in art is quite a puzzling concept to me. I understand the initial intent behind such a movement, of stripping the work to its most fundamental form and features, and allowing it to be what it is. Early minimilist works seemed to play predominately on the 'shock' value, providing a sort of wow factor and create a certain public reaction. I can appreciate artists intent in this sort of situation. However as the movement progressed, and artists (such as Judd) began to make 'unmonumental' works, i start to question, just how is this art? These later minimilist artists, seem to be removing the practice from art and in turn eliminating the artist process. If a piece of brass can be a piece of brass in nature, and that is art - then how can an artist claim some sort of intellectual property over this concept by presenting it in a gallery? This is not at all an artists idea, and in turn the artist is removed completely from the process and finished piece of the art - so to what extent is it actually the artists art?

Unmonutmental summary

Unmonumental summary

Sculpture is a three dimensional art form that has been a component of the art world, since its conception. However, throughout time, artists and audiences perception of what sculpture is has drastically changed. Today, sculpture is perceived in an entirely different light than too what it was 100 years ago. In this modern world, sculptures are more likely to be built, sewn, glued or tied together, and can be made up of any object or material (potentially) in the natural world, rather than being cast, carved or moulded.

The concept of Assemblage in sculpture, allows for many new forms, shapes and in turn meanings to be derived from pieces, that otherwise would not have come into being through a more ‘fine’ artistic sculptural practice. Seitz once stated that assemblage was “The precondition of juxtaposition. It is a state of total randomness and dis-association”. Essentially what we can take from this statement, is that the key difference between the old avant gardes of Picassos era and the ‘new’ avante gardes, is chance. The element of chance incorporated into their works, not only added different visual layers and textures, but in itself, was a bold statement to their current political and social environment. By throwing logic out the window and allowing disarray to take place in their work, artists such as Duchamp, were metaphorically ‘sticking it’ to the calculating warfaring powers governing their nations, with the train of thought being that, if logic has led us too the brink of nuclear war, why bother with logic?

As Dada and sculptural practice in general broadened both in terms of practice and intent, more defined targets began to be noted in works, rather than simply society in general. An example of this is Huffy Howler (2004) by Rachel Harrison, a work targeting Pop Culture icon Mel Gibson, taking note of such events as his anti semitic comments and drug/alcohol addled actions. Through assemblage of not simply random, but carefully selected objects, Harrison managed to make a much more acute suggestion/attack, than that of artists of the past whom selected random objects to assemble.

One can note from these documents that it appears that the cycle of artistic intention is beginning to repeat itself. The conceptual framework behind pieces appears to swell in intent with each new development of practice. When practice first develops, its predominant intention appears to be to simply separate itself and establish a new ideology separate from that of all predecessors, and then gradually as time and development of the practice develop and become more refined, the intent changes from a ragged notion, to more intricate direct attacks or suggestions by the artistic.

asd

hello. i am james. i did it.