January 12, 2011 at 9:02pm Comments
December 24, 2009 at 9:37am Comments
December 24, 2009 at 1:18am Comments
"Life is absurd and knowledge is impossible. These are the only things I know for sure."
—
- Via Neal Jansons on Facebook
(“Immoral art is often quite good, but bad art is never moral”)
I don’t necessarily speak for Neal, but my interpretation of “bad art” has nothing to do with technical quality, as superior quality can often be quite bad, whereas poor quality can often be quite good. And vice versa.
And again, I do not speak for Neal, but as for art: thankfully, morality has nothing to do with it.
And as for the absurdity of life and the impossibility of knowledge, don’t think of this as a final conclusion, but rather as a reset and a new beginning. A sort of ‘clearing of the mind’ before re-assessing all that you believe.
As Descartes once said (I am not a fan of Descartes, but the man did have some glorious moments):
“…it is prudent never to trust completely those who have deceived us even once.”
Which means you start every day with the following prayer: “Life is absurd and knowledge is impossible” — and you take it from there…
December 22, 2009 at 7:58pm Comments
Special School of Painting, Sculpture and Print. Course of 1924 to 1925.
‘The student must keep this card’
Learn the rules before you break ‘em, kids.
December 22, 2009 at 7:03pm Comments
The phrase “I don’t believe in global warming” was written on a wall next to Regent’s Canal in London. British media have attributed the graffiti to street artist Banksy.
(via Pictures of the day)
The water keeps getting higher. I posted one of these shots earlier, and I know most everyone has seen at least one version, but I’m re-blogging on the knowledge that this is possibly Banksy’s work (not that that makes it any better, it’s just that he has a long and storied history and I want to promote the work of such artists in any way possible, even if some of you think my contribution meager to the point of being laughable).
December 22, 2009 at 5:07pm Comments
"
Well, now I’m thinking that I
I’ve never seen you look so down
I wonder if your heart has been chewed on
Because sometimes guys are dogs
Sometimes they chew toys
For their amusement
Well, I don’t want to say
That anything is wrong
But I might not be here
When you come over
It’s not your fault
It’s all your fault
—
Cursive (via lovelylulu)
Cursive “Art is Hard”
If at first you don’t succeed
you gotta recreate your misery
‘cause we all know art is hard
young artists have gotta starve
Try, and fail, and try again
the comforts of repetition
Keep churning out those hits
‘til it’s all the same old shitYou gotta sink to swim
impersonate greater persons
‘cause we all know art is hard
when we don’t know who we are
December 21, 2009 at 6:23pm Comments
In a survey of attitudes toward artists in the U.S. a vast majority of Americans, 96%, said they were greatly inspired by various kinds of art and highly value art in their lives and communities. But the data suggests a strange paradox.
While Americans value art, the end product, they do not value what artists do. Only 27% of respondents believe that artists contribute “a lot” to the good of society.
Further interview data from the study reflects a strong sentiment in the cultural community that society does not value art making as legitimate work worthy of compensation. Many perceive the making of art as a frivolous or recreational pursuit.
Other insights further illuminate the depth of the paradox:
• A majority of parents think that teaching the arts is as important as reading, math, science, history, and geography.
• 95% believe that the arts are important in preparing children for the future.
• In the face of a changing global economy, economists increasingly emphasize that the United States will have to rely on innovation, ingenuity, creativity, and analysis for its competitive edge—the very skills that can be enhanced by engagement with the arts.
I am extremely intrigued in this paradox of the value of art/artists. Further exploration is required.
I’ve seen these surveys and I just don’t buy it. The problem is that “art” is defined so broadly as to include tv sitcoms and crappy kitschy crafts. “Entertainment and Media” makes up for 92% of the 96%. Pull Hollywood from the equation, and you’re down to a more realistic 4% of Americans appreciating art (I pulled those numbers out of my ass, but the point, I think, is still valid).
But when you say artists, people think of smug pretentious coffee shop dwellers, no matter how broadly you define the term. Try this: Instead of just “artists”, add a category for “artists who own guns and accept Jesus Christ as their personal saviour” and prepare for your world to be rocked.
These are the surveys we all reach for when filling out our grant applications, though we all know it’s bullshit.
December 20, 2009 at 5:25pm Comments
December 19, 2009 at 11:49am Comments
Art and Vulnerability
It seems that most art today is marked by ironic detachment. I’m as guilty as anybody, both as a creator and purveyor of such product. But, as Baudrillard would say, “one gets the sense that it’s not really here that things are being played out.”
I think that raw honesty resonates. At the end of the day people are still looking for that connection. I think the role of art could (or should) be to elucidate this truth…but in order to do that you have to make yourself vulnerable. And who wants that? Perhaps that is a sacrifice that an artist must make in order to communicate something real. And that’s a sacrifice I’m not really sure I’m ready to make.
Actually lets not call it art at all. I always distrusted that word. Let’s call it poetry.
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