Art 109A: Art since 1945 Westchester Community College Fall 2012 Dr. Melissa Hall

The British Independent Group

The British Independent Group Formed in 1952 by students at the Institute of Contemporary Art, London

The British Independent Group Embraced “popular culture” -- Rebelled against the elitist values of the British art establishment

Eduardo Paolozzi, I was a Rich Man’s Plaything, 1947 Tate Gallery

“Movies, science fiction, advertising, Pop music. We felt none of the dislike of commercial culture standard among most intellectuals, but accepted it as fact, discussed it in detail, and consumed it enthusiastically.” Lawrence Alloway

The British Independent Group While British society continued to suffer economic scarcity, American advertising suggested a glamorous culture of abundance

Nigel Henderson, Shop Front Bethnal Green (London East End), 1949-1953

“These collages are mainly made from magazines given to Paolozzi by American ex-servicemen. They show his fascination with popular culture and technology, as well as with the glamour of American consumerism. The title of the series refers to Henry Ford''s famous statement that ''History is more or less bunk.... We want to live in the present''. It reflects Paolozzi''s belief that his work should respond to contemporary culture.” Tate Gallery

Eduardo Paolozzi, Meet the People, 1948 From the Bunk series, Tate Gallery

Eduardo Paolozzi, Evadne in Green Dimension (Bunk!), 1952

Eduardo Paolozzi, I was a Rich Man’s Plaything, 1947 Tate Gallery

The British Independent Group The term “Pop Art” was first coined by the art critic Lawrence Alloway

Lawrence Alloway, art critic and Independent Group member

“Pop Art, in its original form, was a polemic against elite views of art in which uniqueness is a metaphor of the aristocratic and contemplation the only proper response to art.” Lawrence Alloway. “Pop Art: The Words”

The British Independent Group He proposed a “continuum” between “high” and “low” art that refused to recognize hierarchies

The British Independent Group The Independent Group implemented their non-hierarchical aesthetic of inclusiveness in several exhibitions

Independent Group, Parallel of Life and Art, ICA, 1953

Independent Group, Parallel of Life and Art, ICA, 1953

The British Independent Group For an exhibition at the Whitechapel Gallery in 1956, members of the Independent Group collaborated on room-size installations

This is Tomorrow, Whitechapel Gallery, 1956

The British Independent Group One installation included a 16 foot “Robbie the Robot” from the film The Forbidden Planet

This is Tomorrow, Whitechapel Gallery, 1956

The British Independent Group And an image of Marilyn Monroe from The Seven Year Itch

This is Tomorrow, Whitechapel Gallery, 1956

The British Independent Group And amidst all this “kitsch” was a reproduction of Van Gogh’s Sunflowers -- the best selling reproduction from the National Gallery of Art

This is Tomorrow, Whitechapel Gallery, 1956

The British Independent Group A jukebox played popular songs while the spongy floors emitted strawberry scented air freshener

This is Tomorrow, Whitechapel Gallery, 1956

“In This is Tomorrow the visitor is exposed to space effects, play with signs, a wide range of materials and structures, which, taken together, make of art and architecture a many-chanelled activity, as factual and far from ideal standards as the street outside.” Lawrence Alloway http://www.independentgroup.org.uk/contributors/alloway/index.html

The British Independent Group Widely regarded as the founding work of the Pop art movement, this collage was made for the show’s poster and catalog

Richard Hamilton, Just what is it that makes today’s homes so different, so appealing? 1956

The British Independent Group Described by the artist as “instant art,” the work is made entirely from advertisements in magazines

Richard Hamilton, Just what is it that makes today’s homes so different, so appealing? 1956

“Hamilton and company seemed to question the very spectacle they celebrated” Foster et al, Art Since 1900