Just a few notes as we continue reading this book. Note how I highlight methods--meaning research methods--in my questions. Methods of research are ways to collect or create data/art/writing/etc. That could include ways (methods) of making, observing, listening, writing or filtering--different lenses to think about, think against, analyze, assess, etc. For example, autobiography/autoethnography/biography are ways to document/create personal evidence/research. Keep in mind that making art is research. But there are different ways--methods--to make art. Weintrub's book, for me, expands what I considered legitimate media methods. It excites me to read about social practice as a method. Performance as a method. Bio art...getting the picture? Lots of ways to create research; art being one; making or writing or performing or thinking--numerous methods--ways of doing that. This book is a great pioneer for us to get us away from Western Euro linear thinking about what is art and what can be art and who determines what is art (though I understand and accept that Weintraub is a part of Western Euro thinking).
John Berger's book Ways of Seeing (1972) is fascinating. He addressed some of these natural and normal ways of seeing art that he challenges. It was a BBC series. It's a small book. I think you can retrieve the series on youtube--fascinating to watch--where he challenges historians, and misogynies, and all kinds of bias--that I/we just take for granted--because that may be the way it is or the way I/we learned it. He delves into mystification and obfuscation. I found it an absolute delight and essential for me to read. What I am saying here is notice those different methods of making art--they are beautifully transgressive and creative.
Some comments from posts form last week... cadillac Ranch. Almost in our own backyards--and our multiple and conflicting reactions to it. What do I know about it? What am I sure about it? What don't I know and am clueless about it? David posted the question "Must art have commercial potential?" Just thinking of myself as a solitary artist, working alone much of my time--much of the art I make is printed and handed out for free--though I make art that can be sold--but these are my stories and I would rather find a piece a good home. I notice that I often work around others and am influenced by others and often get help from friends when making stuff--including critiques.
John Berger's book Ways of Seeing (1972) is fascinating. He addressed some of these natural and normal ways of seeing art that he challenges. It was a BBC series. It's a small book. I think you can retrieve the series on youtube--fascinating to watch--where he challenges historians, and misogynies, and all kinds of bias--that I/we just take for granted--because that may be the way it is or the way I/we learned it. He delves into mystification and obfuscation. I found it an absolute delight and essential for me to read. What I am saying here is notice those different methods of making art--they are beautifully transgressive and creative.
Some comments from posts form last week... cadillac Ranch. Almost in our own backyards--and our multiple and conflicting reactions to it. What do I know about it? What am I sure about it? What don't I know and am clueless about it? David posted the question "Must art have commercial potential?" Just thinking of myself as a solitary artist, working alone much of my time--much of the art I make is printed and handed out for free--though I make art that can be sold--but these are my stories and I would rather find a piece a good home. I notice that I often work around others and am influenced by others and often get help from friends when making stuff--including critiques.
Now, this will sound very graduate schoolish--We have writing vs. visual art vs. perceptions vs. intents vs. knowable or not knowable. In grad school we can get ourselves into moments of not understanding, not getting things or something, not knowing--that may be interesting, frustrating, scary spaces to be in. We as teachers were taught taught that we had to know and grasp everything. Here, in this class, you do not have to. So, relish in some of those "what the heck is going on?" moments. You do not have to know everything--just be open to lots of new stuff.
In Week Five, we finish reading about Weintraub's short list of pioneers and move to 21st century eco art explorers. I am trying to use her concepts and verbs in my questions. Keep in mind the multiple methods used in making art. I am enjoying your personal comments and posts to each other, questions, and statements; how you are relating her knowledge to your personal experiences and professional lives. I especially enjoy your own questions to yourselves--quite simply, that's called creating a research agenda. You are forming initial questions that you may or may nor answer.
Please remember, you do not have to prove to me in your posts that you have read and understood the readings. Please feel free to go beyond my questions or ask better questions. Many of you have really rich and diverse histories in the arts. Please feel free to continue sharing your experiences and insights and biases as well.
Every once-in-awhile, when I am driving from Milwaukee, WI to Manitowoc (my home stomping grounds), I often exit at Cleveland, WI, about 18 miles from Manitowoc, drive east, and head north on the old Lakeshore Highway. I drive slowly. I often pull over to let cars behind me move ahead. But, even though I am in my car, I can see Lake Michigan and trees and farms and homes--and I am in my forest. I am instantly reminded of the beauty of that stretch of land. I notice new homes; new businesses, almost anything that has changed. And, I am still in awe of that old road. As a kid, I biked it. I'll pull over from time-to-time, and stare at trees or the water. I feel at home. I smell. I can still hear, see and smell long-dead aunts, uncles, cousins and my parents--driving this road; talking about the road; being in their working lives. This can be a ebook, a poem, a story, a happening, a lesson, a painting, a movie, a script, a performance, a reading, a digital image, an imprint, a performance--just from this one drive. It could be an 5 minute audio of me talking you through my drive or reminiscing. It could be a 5 minute podcast of sounds. It could be bio/performance/paint/design/social practice...catching my drift. In block four, I am going to ask you a bit about art making or thinking or writing what ideas are coming to mind and how you might structure them for a semester project. If nothing is occurring yet--don't worry, all is well.
As many of these methods get repeated, is anyone getting interested in trying something new out? Something different? Something scary? A method that is grounding? That might lead to a lesson? Or not? That might help ground you on your art/writing/thinking journey? Or help ground each other?
These last comments were to prod you to begin to think about a semester project idea...just to BEGIN to think--or not...it may be way too soon to even begin to think about that.
David posted about how to post images. The best way is to go to the right hand corner of the blog and click on Create new post. Once you do that, you will see an image icon. Remember images have to be less than 300K. When you date that post, date it David Week 5.
I don't think you can post images when responding. To existing posts, I would have to go into edit mode to add images, so the best is to create posts and just let us know they are there so we can look at them. Will that work?
Remaining Pioneers
ReplyDelete1. Carolee Schneeman
methods: paint/print/performance/deep and human ecology
Her Meat Joy is considered erotic. So one question might be, where is all of the eros and tenderness in our culture? Where or how to we teach that to ourselves and others? I liked the connection to dirty jobs. I could say it's a privilege not to have to do one--but then what am I saying? I'm thinking that the farther away I am from dirt, the farther away I am from the earth. Your thoughts? What is your version of a "real dance with the material"? We read Schneeman's. What can happen to me as an artist or teacher is I re-learn and reconnect to the earth, to what is really real?
2. Bonnie Ora Sherk
methods: performance/bio/installation/public/conservation/and all ecologies
The Farm. Magnet site of invisible energy. (Ever create something like this as a kid or adult?) Human/Plan/Animal--all performers. New ways to integrate: Not a farm; Not a school; Not a zoo, etc. Much more.
3. Alan Sonfist
methods: bio/generative/public/preservation/human ecology
Recreated Manhattan Island. A tree museum.
4. Mierle Laderman Ukeles
methods: performance/social practice/ecologies
Honoring Maintenance. A manifesto. Honor workers. Touch sanitation. Landfills are cultures/giant clocks.
The rest of her pioneers. I'm noticing the use of performance. Why do teachers not even "touch" on this method? Idea: video yourself working with the earth; helping it along. What else resonates with your with this last set of pioneers. What ideas or methods are catching your eye?
I watched a video of the performance of Schneeman ‘s Meat Joy in YouTube. For me, it was like some surreal movies. It didn't look like a dance performing. But it was like processes anything got more dirty and dirty. The corporal interaction between performers themselves and the props seems unreal. What is the reality behind this performance? I think is another way of seeing our recent lives on the earth. The different way of capturing the image of human life on the earth and human interaction with earth. For me, it is like a surreal image but what seems unreal is happening in the world. we are seeing them through the eyes of culture, media and the world which are defined for us. They justify the interaction of us with the earth; our dirty jobs. The way they taught us these interactions and jobs are not dirty but seeing them from another perspective they are and seem unreal.
DeleteHuman is born from the earth. Anything in our physical body is taken from the earth. we are not separate from the nature. Living in big cities and modern lifestyle suggest an isolated world from the nature. I remember my childhood when we had a small garden in front of our house. As I grown up, I forgot how much they were part of me and part of my life and I never thought I was losing my very nature. Nowadays, human entertain with his own handmaids and is too busy because them to remember his nature. Bonnie Sherk’s “The Farm” reminds us too look back and see what is happening in the green world and what we are losing. I am thinking in terms of sound and what we are losing in the ambiance of cities and surrounded life.
David:
DeleteThis was an interesting set of readings, which I read in reverse order. Not sure why, but Carolee Schneemann has always been problematic for me. When she first hit the art scene, I kept asking people if they would want to observe similar performances by non-normative people (admitting that the artist herself is not normative – she looked like a fashion model). Not to denigrate any persons, but I don’t believe most of her work would have met with even mixed reviews, in the time she performed, if the performer had been obese, crippled, decrepit, or in any way unremarkable, especially if the performance addressed sexuality. We tend to embellish what thoroughbreds do and ignore or scorn what non-thoroughbreds do. If a performance artist is going to use their body to make their art, it should translate to other bodies. I have always had this reservation about Scheenamann’s work, though some Feminists object. If the viewer’s vanities make the performance, then Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt performing Meat Joy wouldn’t work. Neither would Darlene Cates, who played the mother In 'What's Eating Gilbert Grape', performing “Interior Scroll.” Others may disagree?
Bonnie Ora Sherk and Alan Sonafist both had ideas that I really took to. Preserving and resurrecting living systems is what all humans were meant to do. Thinking that we have dominion over all other things, living and inorganic, is what killed off many species and blights the Earth. It’s the height of arrogance, exacerbated by the evolution of Homo Urbanis. I also liked that Sherk did not see The Farm as a zoo, a park, a farm, a school, or an organization. Impressive! Sonafist’s Time Landscape is intriguing! And that people may not do anything but look and smell what the landscape/oasis does is certainly worthy of Historical Preservation status in my mind. This “tree museum” reminds me so much of the 1972 movie Silent Running, set in a future where all flora is extinct on Earth. An astronaut, Bruce Dern, is given orders to destroy the last of Earth's botany, kept in a greenhouse aboard a spacecraft but refuses at the cost of his life while saving the plants with the help of even cuter RsD2-like robots. http://putlockers.ch/hdvids/hdstream.php?movie=Silent%20Running%20(1972)
Mierle Laderman Ukeles’ work strongly reminds me of some of the things I learned in Dr. Kristi Humphrey’s Domesticity class about service. Service is an expression of love, and the N.Y. sanitation workers that Ukeles championed were providing service to an entire city. They were an overlooked part of society, but a critically important one for urbanites who had lost touch with the fact that all human endeavors generate wastes. These people endured insults and second-class-citizen status while millions of the city’s dwellers were able to carry on in ignorance of the service they provided to all of them. Her service was honored by her being made an honorary Teamster’s Union member. Today, we have forgotten the history and struggles of unions, incorrectly believing that they are an impediment to economic growth. But the truth is that they protected the safety of workers and allowed them to make a living wage. And I was a Teamster briefly in my late teens for my first job. Today, I live in an at-will state and have no real job security. I have had my teaching load increased by 50% w/o any additional compensation. Someone is making a crap load of money, but it isn’t me or my colleagues. It’s an abusive system and it isn’t going to change for some time. We teachers could all use Mierle Ukeles right now showing that the work we do is necessary, important, and has become the whipping boy for frustrated people who haven’t had the rigorous training nor responsibilities we shoulder.
Raha and David,
DeleteSome really interesting thoughts on Schneemann's "Meat Joy". Raha, I was intrigued by the question, "What is the reality behind this performance?" I agree that we see through the lens our culture and the media provides for us. I also agree that this idea that things are "dirty" is problematic when we ourselves are biological creatures - full of microorganisms that sustain us. I think in human history we have tried to distance ourselves from nature, as if being outside of nature is somehow more civilized. My guess is that our long history of fighting pestilence and disease made us weary of the natural world once we figured out that basic sanitary measures would delimit the spreading of viruses/infection.
At any rate, I must say that I appreciated Weintraub's interpretation of "Meat Joy" as reintroducing/re-familiarizing our bodies with substances that are natural, but have become foreign due to processing/commodification. However, I agree with David that having a less attractive (normative) body would have changed the piece. Also, although Weintraub included this quote by Scheemann, "Wild things/wild life confuses them, makes them uneasy: bugs, birds, snakes. Mud, dirt and dust discourage their control over the world," I found her identification as an Eco Artist to be a bit of a stretch. I've always seen this work as more of an exploration of abject materials and sexual disobedience during a period that rejected puritanism.
I did appreciate the Dirty Jobs reference though, I thought that was a really good introduction to her argument for this work being eco art.
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DeleteAlan Sonfist's "Time Landscape" struck me as being a really beautiful artwork. I am not a believer in antiquated ideals of beauty, but for many reasons this word came to mind as I read about the work. I really appreciated the thoroughness of his research, not for its own sake but for the fact that it produced an authenticity to the piece that seemed respectful. I also appreciated that this work was designated (within it's boundaries) for life forms that do not include humans. At the same time, humans are interacting with the environment due to the location of the work within the city.
DeleteI studied Olmsted during my MFA quite a lot, but somehow I never came upon this work. The thing that interested me about Olmsted's landscape architecture was that it was so incredibly effective at producing a sense of being immersed in nature while sometimes being yards or mere feet away from an urban environment. Although Olmsted's parks provide ecosystems for other life forms in similar ways to Sonfist's, in contrast to Olmsted's approach, "Time Landscape" was designed not to be directly utilized by humans. To me, that is one of the things that makes it beautiful. Also, I found it beautiful that the work changed over time from being "...a reminder that the city was once a thriving wilderness and marsh...[and] now it chronicles the stresses imposed by contemporary lifestyles." I wonder what permutations will occur in the future...
Why do teachers not even "touch" on this method?
DeleteI think this is because of several reasons. It can be because performance is a very new media in the field of fine arts. In most academic structures, it is hardly included as a fundamental method for research or creating art. It is also not very well understood by many teachers. Me, personally, I have learned and experienced more about some disciplinary and solid methods for researching or creating art. For example, research mostly has been reading and writing. Or for creating art, I have been exposed to other methods more than performance. Methods such as painting, photography, installation, etc. As a teacher, then, I would tend to teach these methods more. Thus, I think one reason is that performance hasn’t become a part of our educational system yet, because it’s a very modern media.
Moreover, I think performance is highly interdisciplinary. Or, in other words, it doesn’t cover completely fit into any of the academic disciplines. Performance can be thought of art or music, or theater, all. It is also a more complex media because it integrates sound, image, narrative, etc. I think this is another reason that many teachers may overlook this media. In a personal level, as a teacher, I also may think performance is a challenging media due to its complexity for my student. Based on the degree of the class I am teaching, I may wonder if dealing with a complex and interdisciplinary is necessary for the class or not.
Niloofar I noticed this too but I think these 3 demonstrated something that may shine some light on the reasoning. I feel traditional taught disciplines have more of a straight forward spelling out of content. Traditional works tend to spell out the direction of thought process however performance requires more it would seem. As Sylvia pointed out an evolution of perception of beauty and cleanliness it makes me realize that that "art" almost doesn't settle on the object of art but in these cases resides more heavily in the actual discourse. The idea of a space that is not to be used by human is a truly intriguing idea because we must recognize that we are accessing beauty for something that is not for us to experience. It would go without saying then that the "beauty" is the idea. I believe we are seeing more and more of an idealization of perception that is manufactured for our own amusement. It makes me wonder if we are beginning to prefer these ideal senses of beauty as concept more than physical bias identifiers that are tangible. I tend to agree with Sylvia in a persepective that does see beauty in traditional terms however I wonder if this direction of works and non tangible beauty is really the antithesis or is it a superficial result of biases that have become a dogmatic idealization. What is the difference than between non object beauty and subjective non tangible idealization of beauty?
DeleteSylvia,
DeleteI agree with your interpretation of this work as “exploration of abject materials”. I think it is not only about the abject but also it can be about our habits and treatments that we involved with them. However, we justify them under cultural perspective or we customize them with different approach but the reality is that the concepts are the same; we only hide them under social and cultural lenses. “Dirty” is inseparable part of our life as abjection or anything we name them and no one can not deny it since we are a creature and part of the earth.
I also found the work, The Farm, by Bonnie Sherk’s really fascinating. Sherk’s works, including The Farm, is placing a piece of nature within a machinery and industrial space. Such combination or displacement of a piece of nature into urban life makes her work uncanny and to some extent shocking to me. Her works many times can be thought of a still performance.
DeleteI also like that she engages the common people as the audience of her works. Indeed, I think her works many times is not for artists or intellectuals, but it can build a profound dialogue with ordinary people, who are in the streets every day. Such dialogue I think it is crucial for eco artists.
Schneemann
DeleteReading this part of the book immediately reminded me of Meat Dress worn by Lady GaGA www.mtv.com/news/2513136/2010-vmas-lady-gaga-meat-dress-real/. Which the artist was highly criticized for by animal rights activists. I didn't understand the meaning behind the dress and I couldn't get a visual of Meat Joy either till I saw it for myself. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fw_wW2v45eI. My first thought was cross contamination, chicken and fish, germs and so on. Then I started to think what's the difference between Meat Joy and unsafe sex?
Sherk,
DeleteMy first thought is what a great concept of a dwelling place for nature in the midst of a busy city, I don’t believe nature would have the same feeling being in the midst of selfish humans. My faith in humanity is so jaded, I would be scared we'd mess it up.
Sonfist,
I don't see anything wrong with living museums, society isn't on the same page when it comes to conservation. Reminds me of the infrastructure growing in Lubbock TX and the overly large homes built that occupy tons of land just to satisfy mans living space. If anyone is familiar with Lubbock 82nd St. Used to be the edge of town for residency and businesses. Today you can't even distinguish the edge of town, Lubbock has grown over the years and has become more like a bigger city with suburbs and urban space.
Ukeles,
DeleteInterestingly, "Ukeles integrated her art practice into the city's waste processing unit when, in 1976, she was accepted as an unsalaried artist in residence with the New York City Department of Sanitation." (Weintraub, pg. 119). What I believe Weintraub is interpreting with Ukeles is the feminist perspective from an artistic standpoint. Along with the feminist perspective I believe Weintraub asks us (the reader) what do we do with our sanitation for a fast growing population?
1st Century Eco Art Explorers
ReplyDelete5. Brandon Ballengée
methods: bio/generative/social practice/installation/preservation/restoration
Bio artist: beyond metaphor to living cells. Reclaims a species. Reverse breeding. Is it science or nature that holds promise for the future? (I would have said science; now I believe nature does.) Knowing the context of his installation, what do you think of his method and results? Can the earth be your studio? How?
6. Beehive Design Collective
methods: paint/print/social practice/design/social and industrial ecologies
The brutal realities behind coal. The conditions for workers. Was anyone else intrigued with "your" electronic dependency lifestyle? (Could make for a very interesting project.) Collaboration is essential for this group. Making is done together-never singularly. And they end up with handouts. Could any of this be done in classrooms: true collaboration? handouts? Viewers take something with them.
7. Mel Chin
methods: paint/print/generative/social practice/ecologies
soil remediation. Detoxifying soils. Pig's Eye and New Orleans.
What can we bring into our own art practices or classrooms? What social histories can be reversed?
David:
DeleteBrandon Ballengee’s practiceof Species Reclamation is utterly fascinating. Is it art? Honestly, I don’t care if it is or isn’t, but these readings make it clear that art is science is art, so there’s nothing to argue. What Ballengee is essentially doing is unhybridizing the frogs. WE could do the same with dogs if we all disappeared or let them run free. Dogs would non-selectively breed themselves back to their original 3 types. Accessory pooches would disappear, so would Dachshunds, and Great Danes. Dogs would be dogs. And the non-linear methods that Ballengee employs are the way nature does things. There would still be variety to suit different eco systems, but not to suit human aesthetics (though Ballengee’s aesthetics did play a part in his work to resurrect the frogs). The only thing I feel funny about in his work, is that the resurrected frogs cannot be released back into the environment. I get it that their environment may no longer exist. I get it that they may have resistance to deadly fungi and bacteria that could infect native animals. But just having the protocol for reverse hybridizing is a little like having the process w/o the product. And if humans possess the process and we don’t survive, why should we take the product out of the environment when we leave? But I don’t have his breadth of knowledge about these factors relative to his belief that the frogs he retro hybridized were, nonetheless, “laboratory bred, never wild.”.
The Beehive Collective has a social injustice agenda similar to Ukeles’. They seek to show how corporate greed destroys culture, ecosystems, and health. Exposing the complete fraud of “clean coal technology” is important, but no politician should e able to utter that phrase unless they can explain the “fake science” behind it. Their strategies are very interesting, especially their Postproduction strategies of anti-copyright imagery and badges to expand the influence of their work on their audiences as well as their sliding scale of pricing options. It’s socialism at work doing what socialism does better than capitalism – taking care of the least amongst us as Jesus called on all to do. (By the way, he also called on us to take in the stranger, regardless of their beliefs, which is in complete opposition to Mr. Trump’s, pseudo-Christian supporters’ values).
Mel Chin’s plan for soil reclamation that avoids hauling tons of contaminated soils away is amazing. Using biological means to remove heavy metals is genius. His Fundred Dollar Bill strategy for his Operation Paydirt project engages young people and raises awareness. I love the ethical stance he takes, letting himself not be the figurehead of this ambitious effort. Unfortunately, as the son of a politician, I have an innate distrust of that field of work and have real concerns that trading 3 fundred million dollars for 3 hundred million US dollars will not happen. I’d rather see the entire country reclaimed at the expense of our Defense Department’s swollen budget. (And while we’re at it let’s fund education and health the same way). If Americans were less divided and more aware of the good things their taxes can do, then everyone would have the same satisfaction as the young people Chin encourages in his efforts. This is what real citizenship should give to the land and the people.
The job of the eco artists is like the translator. They hand out the mirror of the life to the society and translate it to the society. It seems they are translating science language to the Art’s. when scientists warn people about their activities in the world and their impacts on the environment, it is the job of the artists to demonstrate these effects and the results aesthetically. Entertain people while teaching them what is happening in the world where people are entertained with technological devices which are the main source of alterations. Brandon Ballengée not only entertain himself with ecosystem but he is sharing his knowledge and findings through his biological and environmental artworks. People may hear various times from news in different media that something bad is happening to the environment but people will touch it and connect to the reality of the problems when they face it in their own life or something gives this feeling to them and make their eyes open to the immediate reality which is happening around them. The artists need to provide this situation for the audience through their work. How can I show them with any trash they are making they are going to kill a creature how can I translate the scientist’s findings to the language of the Art?
DeleteBut what it should be when the science is fake. The artist awake people with the reality is happening. like Beehive design collective they teach people in collaborative works. A group that follows the same purpose but are located in different places. Then it goes beyond the traditional perception of a union. Whereas the other in politics are seeking power they educate people what is really is going on. in this way they can spread their works all over the world as they said: "We believe in the importance of person-to-person interactions and the power of stories."
I too was fascinated with Ballengée's work! In terms of bio art, we teach Kac in Survey III, but I thought Ballengée's "Species Reclamation Via Non-Linear Genetic Timeline..." teetered much more precariously on the edge of art and science, which I loved!
DeleteWell, let me clarify that sentiment: I loved that he had a relatively uncomplicated goal compared to Kac, whose process includes many different elements and processes. However, Ballengée used a tedious, hands-on, idiosyncratic, and poignant conceptual approach to generate this work. To me, that is what makes it art. (Admittedly I don't care too much about deeming it as such, but for the sake of thinking about why I'd call it art...) The reason being that decisions were made in carrying out of the objective (unhybridizing the frogs), which result in meaningful engagement with the actions and outcome of the work. I also Ballengée's care in assuring the frogs' well-being was important, from not letting museum staff breed the frogs to allowing the frogs to die from natural causes instead of simply releasing them into the "wild". Finally, this is just a side note but I really responded to how Ballengée documents his work--I learned a lot from studying his decisions there.
David's inclusion of Biblical reference I think brings up a really interesting point that seems to lay to rest the question of these works being art. As Raha stated "The job of the eco artists is like the translator." I reflect on how we never really seemed to question whether the art of Christian commissioned works were art. We openly accept it as history of art as well as cave paintings and other objects used in religious practice. It has always seemed odd to me that work that is not for religious utilitarianism somehow falls under a test of art worthiness. Sylvia notes that art could be "decisions were made in carrying out of the objective... which result in meaningful engagement with the actions and outcome of the work." This definition I believe is an intriguing one that allows us to consider that maybe in our classrooms we should examine how intention and discourse are being utilized. Are we dis-servicing our children by teaching traditional art mediums instead of the why, for what reason, and what could be? What would a class look like that begins the only parameters of a work are the effective actions and engagement of discourse? It would seem to me that more often than not we would begin to see connections that could be easily observed as ecoart for the simple inclusion of selected environment and medium for a legitimized reason. Perhaps the less we force the confinement of the art definition the more of a discussion can be made and the art would be allowed to breath more. The question that bothers me though is if the "art world" rejects too strongly a work of art as art is the process, product, or content that is the issue. I have noticed the more we read the more eco art seems to be challenged in ways that religious or social issue artwork never would be. Why is that?
DeletePost marker.
DeleteBallengee,
DeleteI believe the direct study of animals/ amphibians effected by the environment due to selfish human consumption will impact the future. I also believe this could tell us more or less of our own human extinction as well. What I find interesting is the study of demographics in connection with plagues and disease. I say that the earth is becoming harder and harder to be one's own studio, infrastructure, the over growth of the population and the dismantling of nature is the root cause.
Chin,
I believe it's remarkable how Chin and his assistants see and create art in dangerous places. I lived in a home for several years with black mold in the walls and still covered in asbestos siding, when they sold the house to me back when I was 21 years old there wasn't an inspector or any housing property codes addressed. Sometimes I wonder if living in the home for so many years in the past is the cause for my health problems that have progressed in present day.
8. Chu Yun
ReplyDeletemethods: sculpture/installation/conservation/industrial ecology
Constellation. (Brilliant-my opinion.) Yun's values are consistent with mine. Growing up in the 60s, we did not waste anything. Coffee cans were used in my dad's shop. My mother baked bread twice a week and washed and reused other bread bags. I had to hand them out on the wash line. Thrift and collectivity. This could change a school. Change a community.
9. Critical Art Ensemble
methods: bio/generative/social practice/design/industrial and sustainable ecologies
Examining corporate products. Demystifying scientific processes. Becoming GMO watchdogs. I'm a label reader. A guest on a NPR talk show said that if a product has an ingredients list/label, it is not real food. Real food does not have labels. I grow some of my own things and purposefully cook and bake; to slow me down, to use real food, and to honor my ancestors when I make comfort foods. Kurtz was arrested. There's that fear thing again. Communities can beat corporations. Your thoughts on these eco practitioners?
This was a tough read because I spent a week with Steve Kurtz and Steve Barnes of the Critical Arts Ensemble during the time Steve Kurtz was on the No Fly List from the misguided application of the misguided provisions of the misguided PATRIOT Act. (Yes, it’s an abbreviation of "Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act.”) He was tense all the time and admitted that he had never properly grieved the sudden death of his wife, the event that brought the wrath of Homeland Security down on him and whose body he was never able to see again. We wore “Art is not a Crime” buttons until he was exonerated of ludicrous charges after a 4-year legal defense and fund-raising. But the Mail Fraud charges took an unfortunate toll on a scientist who provided the completely harmless bacteria, typically used in high school biology classes, to the CAE. He suffered a heart attack under the pressure of FBI pressures related to his “complicity”. A .pdf of an article and interview with Steve Kurtz is at http://lightresearch.net/interviews/kurtz/kurtz.pdf Also, I knew Beatriz DaCosta, one of their collaborators. Who taught my son at UC Irvine and, sadly, died of cancer a few years ago after beating it twice earlier in her life.
DeleteCAE’s spotlight on Monsanto’s Roundup Ready genetically modified seeds was an example of the CAE strategy to “use the minimum amount of force necessary to accomplish an objective.” And they were prescient about the doings of Monsanto, raising awareness of the seeds that had been patented and guarded with draconian penalties (you can’t legally harvest what you grow and save some of those seeds for next year’s crops, but must buy them yearly in complete contradiction to 5,000 years of agricultural practices). No wonder that so many countries ban the import of Monsanto’s seeds, even including Haiti after their devastating earthquake killed hundreds of thousands. And I wonder what the European countries know that we don’t when they burn fields planted with Monsanto’s GMO seeds? This is the kind of illegal activity that the Critical Arts Ensemble avoids, but it seems to be effective!
Chu Yun really brought home the point, and insanity, of planned obsolescence and the toxicity of discarded electronic technologies. "Scrutiny of Constellation" has great formal qualities (I am a Formalist and a Conceptual artist). His "Who Has Stolen Our Bodies?" made of discarded bar soap is far less appealing to me, and its underlying message about obsolescence is less effective in my opinion. I must confess that I use up everything I buy. No soap is thrown away, so maybe I don't have the proper mindset for this piece. I drive the wheels off my cars and expect to get at least 250,000 miles out of them before I donate them as scrap metal to charities. I do own an iPod Photo (click wheel style) that is over a dozen years old and has gone through 4 batteries. I don’t buy tools I can’t repair and I use my smart phone as a phone (and occasionally as a camera in a pinch). So, planned obsolescence is not my plan!
Weintraub relays the Critical Art Ensemble's term for their strategy - "fuzzy biological sabotage". I think employing a nonaggressive approach can be quite effective to when addressing issues of this nature.
DeleteAlso, I like the idea of demystifying scientific/technological processes to empower consumers. Having grown up within U.S. consumer culture, I have come to realize just how insidious hidden processes driving capitalism can be. In this sense, it's interesting to think that artworks can be fashioned such that they are legitimized, and ultimately inform and incite the public so that they may actively engage with those once-hidden processes.
Chu Yun’s installation, Constellation, is amazing. I looked it up on the internet and read about it more. It profoundly impacted me. I think the idea or concept behind his work is very simple: the joy of encountering the nature has replaced the ease and comfort that technologies or machines have brought about.
DeleteHowever, for me, the way he embodies this simple message is amazing. I think experiencing his work is a horrifying experience, a sudden and shocking turn of the feeling of sublime through looking at a starry night into a bleak room with some objects like a refrigerator.
Perhaps he is not suggesting that we shouldn’t enjoy the technology, rather he is just mirroring the transformations that are happening in the human life. His work is profound and psychologically impactful.
Sylvia, I really like what you said about Capitalism, and it’s “insidious hidden process.” And I really agree with you regarding the role that artist can play by engaging such “hidden processes.”
DeleteAs I have mentioned in my last posts, I think environmental issue is not simply an issue of environment, but it is deeply engaged with politic, economy, and benefit of some power structures. Thus, an impactful environmental activity is also an act of deconstruction or challenge of power. Clearly, capitalism is playing a critical role in environmental destruction. I agree with you that engaging such political or economic factors are a main part of being an environmental activist.
To “engage with those once-hidden processes,” is then an important intellectual duty for artists and teachers. I think it is not enough for artists to reflect the problems in the eco-system, but the need to reveal the complexity of the situation
“Who Has Stolen Our Bodies?" is my favorite piece of artwork. Different soaps with different colors, shapes, and sizes. They are designed, I think, like footprints and questions our typical thought about soaps. They supposed to clean and protect our body but why they are the objects accused to hurt. Obviously, these soups are the signifiers of the companies which produce them for us and encourage us to use them through their commercials. These factories and companies are the those who has stolen our bodies and these soaps are their footprints.
DeleteMaryanne, I agree about the horrific absurdities of the draconian laws surrounding Monsanto seed use but what is even crazier is I happen to have actually read why crops are being burned. Under the proprietary patents on the biology of the seeds it is considered their property that that is paid for as a sort of limited licensing. This is important because it does not just extend to the following year but also surrounding fields owned by other properties. There have been several cases Monsanto won where because of cross pollination or air born germinations other fields were introduced to Monsanto's genetic creations. The resulting harvest were found to contain the biological proprietary make ups and therefor the farms owed Monsanto for the utilization of their product even though they never purchased any at all. In some areas you will see barrier fences between farms being erected to combat this as it will easily destroy independent small farms financially.
DeleteWhen it comes to the discarded I feel that recycling items into work can be effective however in this case I think the concept is stronger through the discourse than it is in the actual works themselves. I feel like the ideas are almost something i expect to see as a slide in TED Talk and be more effective. While i agree that there is a problem with today's consumer culture in the ways of scientific/technological processes as Sylvia put, however, I see the problem lies in capitalism itself and not just a process in it. I believe it is the obsession of financial gains that are dictating higher amounts of waste when the science/technology is capable of so much more if allowed more time to be more greatly efficient and with less of an imprint. I have siblings that have studied and worked on process at Cal Tech and Standford in advancements in nano technology with quantum computing and more often than not they are constantly working on methods that would prove more eco friendly ways to do things to eliminate waste and the need for reproduction of devices and materials. I believe much like the algae farms, there are ways in which we can coexist and be ecofriendly with technology but we must first eliminate the obsession with short term profits.
And the last post/prompt that I posted about earlier. I would like for you to begin to think about ideas, reactions, thoughts, or thinking about what a project might look like for you this semester--for right now ideas for a work-in-thinking/progress. What's resonating with you? Challenging you? Enticing you? Calling out to you? Yelling at you? Grounding you?
ReplyDeletePublic notes to us--what you are thinking about to the class. You need to know what others in your class are thinking and writing. Not just me. Class members will have suggestions and positive praise for you/us. A project could be a manifesto to yourself. But for now, can you post your initial ideas, thoughts, concerns or questions. Feel free here to post back to each other--I expect you to. Don't wait for Ed's response that that is a great idea. It will be because it is you and where you are at. I'm hoping we might add to people's initial ideas. Add to your thinking. Add more questions. I not only think that that would be helpful but unconditionally valuable. Your thoughts.... If you have no idea--that's a great place to be and to begin.
Better questions to ask this week? Omissions? Additional insights or questions?
ReplyDeleteAll of this week's readings really brought home the economic realities of Externalities, the costs inherent in the production and distribution of all products. In America, most companies do not cover these costs. They let our taxes do that for them. Many WalMart's employees require public assistance in order to live on the shameful wages they are paid. And just this week we discovered that a dozen oil wells are being drilled a half-mile from our rural home to frack the daylights out of our formerly pastoral environment. I am infuriated because an investment in alternative energies benefits all, but oil and other fossil fuels benefits the top 1%. I'm trying to stay true to the Critical Arts Ensemble's philosophy of not resorting to illegal actions to protest corporate lack of responsibility. It's those damned Externalities, again, that we all must pay for, now very immediately in my family's case.
DeleteI found this very interesting and really enjoyed looking at (some eco-artists photos):
Deletehttp://www.anothermag.com/design-living/9511/ten-photographers-drawing-attention-to-climate-change
There are various efforts are taken place each day to improve technology and make human life easier and better. But do they get to their goals? Each day I hear from different people that prefer the previous lifestyle than now’s. what does easy and comfortable life mean? Are we losing our nature in the mechanical world? Can we have both together, natural life and machine life? In terms of sound, I am thinking what will happen if one day there isn’t any bird in our environment and we do not have their singing?
DeleteWhat is really hitting me lately is we are racking our brains about how artists are reacting to processes in place, and consumer responsibilities, and how eco art may be introduced into the classroom. This is fine but it feels almost like we are addressing from the after effect instead of changing the foundations. I would like to see education that instills eco conscious mindset from day 1 as the norm. I see too often classrooms that attempt to force technology or multiculturalism into a lesson to meet some school district or state requirement but that isn't really fixing anything. A classroom that already has technological elements and is transcultural from day 1 does not need to worry about force inducing anything. I would love to see textbooks, teaching aid, classroom room decor and graphic novels that implemented these ideas before you even begin to teach. I believe it is the environment of learning we need to evolve instead of responding to the individual selected counter points. I would love to do a digital web comic that would cover art from an eco perspective that would begin critical thinking from a younger age of eco friendly consciousness.
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ReplyDeleteHelen & Newton Harrison:
One of the aspects of the Harrison's practice that stuck out to me was this idea that the artists continuously evaluated the success of their work from an ethical standpoint. In reading about their work, it also seemed apparent that they were scrupulous in their assessment of the outcomes of their projects. In other words, they considered how each project was interpreted or influenced viewers' conceptions of the human relationship with the environment. As someone whose work involves undetermined outcomes, it was interesting to see how the artists responded to the various outcomes of each project over time. On one hand, they took note of shortcomings in the work. In the example of the Indoor Orchard the artists' perceived an unintended consequence wherein the installation gave "the mistaken impression that a simple strategy could solve a compound environmental problem." On the other hand, there were successes garnered from situations that at first appeared to have gone array. In Portable Fish Farm the project was successful in part due to the process of the public being forced to confront their estranged participation and the consumption of catfish.
Friedensreich Hundertwasser:
I think the ideas that this architect promoted and lived for were truly ahead of their time. I was really excited by his assertion that, as biological beings, our relationship to the natural world is integral. I had heard of the concept of bio-mimicry before, but only in the context of sustainable design / medicine. His aims at integrating the wisdom of nature into our built world seem hugely important to me, in that they involve a greater commitment to our environment by increasing our psychical correlation with its material existence. (As opposed to promoting alienation from it as in modernist approaches.)
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ReplyDeleteAllen Kaprow:
For whatever reason, I had not thought of Happenings as being involved with ecological concerns. However, in rethinking the process carried out in EASY as interpreted by Weintraub, it was evident that by (loosely) stipulating participants' engagement with tangible experiences, Kaprow created a method that encouraged the re-experiencing or re-defining of human interactions with the Earth. By interacting with the stones (carrying out the action) based on environmental conditions , participants can reconsider intervals outside of stipulations produced by social (human-oriented) contexts.
Frans Krajcberg:
Krajcberg's approach to making work ("medium as subject") seemed like the ultimate humble gesture of a former painter. However, I admittedly questioned how effective or sincere the art works were in conveying the wonder of earth and matter. I suppose I was thinking that by decontextualizing the matter it would render it a bit like a commodity or just seem like a novelty. (Similar to how the Harrisons were dissatisfied with the museum-scale version of their installation compared to its presence in nature.) Albeit, when Weintraub described Krajcberg's experience as a result of the Holocaust, and drew a connection to his deep anguish over the destruction of nature, the emotion that motivated his devotion to this work (integral naturalism) was truly inspiring. Sometimes I think...if we don't feel, we can never expect to be able to will ourselves to take action.
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ReplyDeleteMario Merz:
Before learning about Merz's use of the Fibonacci sequence, I was fairly dismissive of its application in art (i.e. images of seashells in commercial photography, images of spirals in irises on posters.) However, the way that Merz compares abiding forms in nature (fruits, veggies, plants, and yes, spirals) with rigid, yet momentary manifestations of human observations (stacks of newspapers) invites much derivation of meaning. Perhaps I'll have to revisit Weintraub's description of the installation mentioned in the book, but I'm not sure I understood the significance of using neon to show the numbers...I think I grasp the goal of including/presenting the numbers, but why in neon?
At any rate, in my practice I often struggle with how much or how little I should incorporate or rely on my research. To me, this work was an intriguing example of how differing perspectives obtained from the efforts of human wisdom can be placed side by side to show a greater complexity of existence or truth.
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