Rush: Chapter 1 (58-68)
One of the things I think about when I read passages about these artists is, what did they think about themselves? Like, there seems to be some pretentiousness about calling yourself an artist, as we discussed in this class, around Martin Creed, I think ("What the fuck am I doing?"). I don't know, maybe I'm projecting my self-doubt on others, because it's hard for me to reckon someone without self-doubt.
Like does Mühl take himself completely seriously? Is Scheiss-Kerl supposed to be serious and profound? I know that rocking people's assumptions is part of art, but really? I know, art doesn't have to be serious; I guess simply prompting disgust in the viewer could be a legitimate goal. Others, however, looking at the "'bathetic sadomasochism', of the Aktion artists, whether directed towards men and more specifically towards women, fatally undermines their claims to liberation, catharsis and expiation" (A.L. Rees).
Like does Mühl take himself completely seriously? Is Scheiss-Kerl supposed to be serious and profound? I know that rocking people's assumptions is part of art, but really? I know, art doesn't have to be serious; I guess simply prompting disgust in the viewer could be a legitimate goal. Others, however, looking at the "'bathetic sadomasochism', of the Aktion artists, whether directed towards men and more specifically towards women, fatally undermines their claims to liberation, catharsis and expiation" (A.L. Rees).
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ReplyDeleteGreat investigation and inquiry here. When I was living in Scotland, I went to this opening of a very "famous artist" and after walking around a bit through the very serious art goers, I caught the artist himself kinda just standing in the corner. I figured, what the heck, why not go and say hello. So I did, and I told him that I thought his work in the exhibition was absolutely hilarious and super funny. He looked at me and said something like, "I thought so too, but you'd never know it with this crowd." We had a good laugh, but it was a profound realization for me that self-doubt and humility are some of the most lovely of human traits, and that it's often the myth/brand of the artist that is circulated and interpreted as serious and pretentious, and that those myths seem to have their own life forces, regardless of whether they're based in fact or unsubstantiated, art market nonsense.
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