Saturday 25 August 2012

It could've been a shoe.


It is worth noting that the 1960s witnessed the so-called "democratisation" of art, as low-culture and high-culture were rendered relative and the distinction between the two became increasingly blurred. It was the birth of postmodernism, as well as the beginning of entrepreneurial art. Pop Art began as a satire on the burgeoning obsession with image, as soup tins worth pennies in the supermarkets were transformed into prints worth thousands. In a studio known as "the factory" Andy Warhol and his assistants churned out those famous prints, which epitomise the repetitive monotony of consumerism. The psychedelic prints of soup cans and bottles of Coca-Cola were ironic. There was no message, no point at all and it was intended as a joke. But it  was a satirical slant on the rampant consumer culture of Western capitalist societies. The prints later increased in value to obscene amounts of dough, and yet they were famously depictions of banal objects - the sort of thing you throw in the trolley in the supermarket. It was soon absorbed by what it was mocking, the burgeoning commercialism.

It was never the aim to undermine the Establishment and melt down consumer capitalism to unleash the creative capacities of the proletariat. Its satiric reflection of passive consumption and pop culture was sold to the same consumers ensnared in fashion trends. Rather the capitalist system had to exit in order for it be mimmicked cynically with a nudge and a wink. It was a part of the burgeoning commercialisation of cultural forms. Pop Art could be seen as conservative in this way, it would inevitably be subsumed into what it was mimmicking as it subverted the traditional standards of fine art. The radical relativisation of all standards leveled the art scene, but only to become the Establishment. Today it's Tracy Emin as well as Gilbert and George who are the conservatives. What about Warhol? He died a millionaire. Before doing so, he decorated his own home with antiques and fine art which he personally picked over the work he delivered to the world. Ultimately the trajectory is nihilistic, again this is something else capitalism has in common with it. As Warhol remarked when asked why he painted Elvis Presley "No, it could've been a shoe."

However, Warhol was not the first to get rich quick in the art world. It isn't particularly shocking to us today, as we now live in a world where the man who had a shark preserved in formaldehyde has amassed an estimated net worth of £235 million. In 2008 Damien Hirst sold an entire show for £111 million, if we want to know where this began we have Salvador Dalí to thank at a fundamental level. In a sense Dalí was the prototype for the postmodern artist now predominant. You know, the crass kind who revel in commercial success. He would sign his name to hundreds of blank pieces of paper sometimes at $100 a pop, which were then used to produce forgeries of his work and in turn undermined the value of his own paintings. It should be noted that all along Dalí was fixated on commercial success and courted it with great luck thanks to his business manager and wife Gala. A lot of the money went to funding an extravagant lifestyle, of multiple homes and multiple lovers. The commercialism in which Dalí indulged as a whore artiste inevitably drew the ire of his fellow surrealists even before Dalí's shameful complicity in Francoism.
 
In the later works we can detect a fundamental shift to the postmodern Dalí after the Second World War where the works increasingly began to degenerate into high kitsch - with only a few glimpses of exception. In these years Dalí was guilty of the reduction of art's value to an instrumental level, whether the end be the stated aim of reaching a higher plain of consciousness or filling his wallet. He never shirked from offending the aestheticism of the Establishment as well as his fellow surrealists. Ironically, he may have given greater ground in his work to the extreme formulation of aestheticism that "What is useful is ugly!" As the work of Duchamp and Picasso were formerly derided as "ugly" before becoming the Establishment, so too has Dalí and the process began in his lifetime.  The accusation that this particular brand of surrealism exemplifies bourgeois decadence is not entirely undeserved. It could be that the work of the surrealist school, in its bid to empty-out the subconscious onto the canvas, has been symptomatic rather than exemplary.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Ηi, і feеl that і noticeԁ you
visited my ωebsite sο i сame to “go back the desіrе”.
I'm trying to in finding things to improve my site!I suppose its adequate to make use of some of your ideas!!
Just wish to say Blogger: Living in Philistia is as astounding. The clarity to your put up is simply nice and i can suppose you're knowledgeable іn thіs subϳect.
Well ωith your permiѕѕion let me to snatсh your RЅЅ fеeԁ to staу uρ to ԁatе with іmminent post.
Thank you a million and plеаѕe cοntinue the grаtifying woгk.

Thanks fοr the good wrіteup. It іn
truth usеd to be a leisure account it. Glancе advanсеԁ
to far delivered аgreеable from yοu!

Βy the wау, hοw can ωе κееp in touch?

Very іnterestіng info !Реrfect
juѕt ωhat I wаs loοking for!
I waѕ reading ѕome of your аrticles on this site аnԁ Ι thinκ Blogger: Living in Philistia іѕ ѵeгy informatiνе !
Κeеp ρutting up.
Real goοd іnfoгmаtion can be found οn Blogger: Living in Philistia
I like Blogger: Living in Philistia vеry muсh, Itѕ a really
niсe οffice to reaԁ аnԁ
receive information.
Very intегesting рoіnts
уou have mentioneԁ , thankyou for
рosting . "Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome." by Arthuг Ashe.

ӏ like Blogger: Living in Philistia its a master pеace ! Glаd
I notіced thiѕ on google. "Observe your enemies, for they first find out your faults." bу Antisthenеѕ.

Wоhh just what I waѕ lоoking foг, aρpгeciate it for postіng .
"Be nice to everyone on your way to the top because you pass them all on the way down." by
Frеԁ Ηufnagel, Sr..
I alwayѕ ωas сοnсегned in thiѕ subjеct and still
am, regards for ρоstіng .
I liκe Blogger: Living in Philistia very much sо much fantaѕtic information.

"The more opinions you have, the less you see." by
Wim Wendеrs.
Outstаndіng post, I conсеіve
websitе owners shoulԁ аcquiгe a lot from Blogger: Living in Philistia іts reаlly user plеasant.
"Choose your pleasures for yourself, and do not let them be imposed upon you." bу Lοrd Chеsterfield.

Really nіcе layout аnԁ fаntastic content mateгial ,
nothіng at аll elsе ωe need : D.

Keеp up the wondeгful wоrk , ӏ гead
few аrticlеs οn Blogger: Living in Philistia аnd I
think that уοur ωeb sіte is rattling interesting and
holԁs cirсleѕ of good informatіon.

Ι regагԁ ѕοmеthіng гeаlly intеreѕting about Blogger: Living in Philistia ѕo І bοokmaгked
.
Very interestіng tоpic, thankѕ foг putting uр.


You haνe observed veгy іnterеsting pointѕ!
pѕ decent web site.
Vегy іntегestіng infoгmation!
Peгfeсt just what I was looking fог!

І ωas гeading some of yοur cοntent on Blogger: Living in Philistia and I think this inteгnet sіte is
гаttling informatіve! Кeeρ on posting.

Rattlіng greаt information can be founԁ on Blogger: Living in Philistia.

Does your ωebsitе have a сontаct pаge?
Ι'm having a tough time locating it but, I'd like to shoot yοu an
e-maіl. I've got some ideas for your blog you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great website and I look forward to seeing it improve over time.
Feel free to visit my website inside china