Post on 14-Nov-2014
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In the last chapter we determined…The emotional and psychological effects of modern warfare with modern technology lead to:
Escape through complete Abstraction A need for the spiritual through abstraction
With Modernism dead, so is the artist and his subjective reality. As war shows us, Western man is brutal, evil, rather than creative.
With Modernism dead, the US seeks to consume (like the Pop Artists note).
That leads us into this week’s set of Guiding Questions.
Guiding Question(s)
Who are we? How have we been traditionally defined? With what methods can we question tradition?
Definitions of ArtRace/EthnicityGenderSocial Problems
After generations of taking for granted what we know, the Postmodernists are going to question EVERYTHING.
Postmodernism Defined
PM will delve into the conceptual, art that is based on IDEA rather than an outcome
Much of PM work will be unintelligible without a knowledge of the artist’s explored idea
PM will assert that identity (gender, race, self, nation) is constructed
Our truths are informed by biases and biases (rooted in language) should be deconstructed
After the hope of Modernism that says the Artist is God and is creative, PM says that nothing is original
After the promises of modernism are dashed, PM will resign that the banal is all we can hope for or trust
Emphasis on bodily fluidsEmphasis on the ugly
Guiding Historical Events1945 Formation of the United
NationsSignals the globalization of world
economies, but also presents a united front against WORLD problems no longer seen only in nationalistic terms
1966 Formation of National Organization of Women
Signals a shift in women’s rightsInvention of Reality TV in the 80’s
A reminder that we are voyeuers and that we are disconnected
DECONSTRUCTION—the primary tool of postmodernists
Developed by Jacques Derrida Language can mask meaning instead of
making it clear Language depends on cultural contexts SO…
Deconstruction seeks to “take apart” assumed traditionsMakes the hero the anti-hero and the
antagonist the hero In literature, we see Kazantzakis’ The Last
Temptation of Christ and Lagerkvist’s Barabbas
Gender is a ConstructMale, Female= Sexes (anatomy), Man, Woman= Genders (roles)
Cindy Sherman, from the Untitled Film series, 1978
IDEA--Film culture determines gender roles
IDEA--Gender is a disguise we wear, like a set of clothes
Race/Ethnicity is a Construct Race=system of classification of humans into groupsEthnicity=cultural aspects (economic, language, social status
Betye Saar’s Liberation of Aunt Jemima, 1972
Reclaims iconography that traditionally stereotypes black women, i.e. the Mammy
Here the “slave” takes control of her own life and takes up arms against inequality
Jean-Michel Basquiat, Charles the First, 1982
Comments on race and ethnicity—the exploitation of black heroes (Martin Luther, Malcolm X, here Charlie Parker, who dies at the age of 34)
Artist identifies with black artists who fall from grace Basquiat overdoses at 27
Transitions between street art and the fine arts Says that mistakes ARE art
Art is a constructArt no longer belongs to the Elite
Art no longer must even be seen by an Audience
Art is a Construct Art no longer belongs to the Gallery World
Street Art by Banksy
Anonymous artist working under a tag nameAnonymity
functional and anti-establishment
Graffiti as Street Art Prank as Art
Performance
Christo and Jean-Claude
Defy the idea that “art” can be a commodity
Environmental ArtEphemeral (not meant to last)
Communal (art belongs to everyone)
Based on the concept that wrapping objects brings them to our consciousness again
To CONCEAL is to reveal
To REVEAL is to conceal
Art is a Construct Art no longer must be seen by an audience
Robert Smithson’s Spiral Jetty, in the Great Salt Lake of Utah
In remote, inaccessible location Environmental Art as Ephemeral (changes as
nature, not the artist, determines)
The Self is a ConstructA series of constructs we simulate (act out), usually unconsciously
Gender Sexual Orientation Social Class Ethnicity Nationality Religious Belief
Self as Bias A set of assumptions
we make about ourselves and others based on our own experiences
Neither good nor bad; it’s what we do with them.
Leads to “Political correctness” debacle
Andres Serrano’s Piss Christ If we really want to know
ourselves, we have to confront our biases through the banal.
To know Christ is to confront his humanity, and ours. Urine is considered dirty by
Western society, BUT In fact, it is quite sterile out
of the body, and Urination is required to
live. Which means Christ had to urinate.
What initially seems profane is in fact the artist’s efforts to SHOCK us into questioning our biases
In subsequent presentations, you will learn more about:
The role of the National Endowment for the Arts in contemporary commissions
Feminist Art
Conceptual Art with components of Performance Art