Facsimile Bergens Tidende 2011-05-09 "Ny sjanse for bortsomlet kunst"
The Norwegian daily newspaper Bergens Tidende (/Bodil Garvik) writes a follow up on last week’s article. Because of copyright laws, I cannot publish the article in full, but here’s the facsimile.
Facsimile from Bergens Tidende 2011-05-05 - "Posten Somlet Bort Kunsten". Photo: Sofia Eliasson/Ellen Ringstad
The Norwegian daily newspaper Bergens Tidende writes about the Norwegian Postal Services’ failure to deliver my sculpture in due time. Good news is it will be shown at the Sofia National Gallery for Foreign Art with opening 14th of May and the postal services have agreed to refund the transportation costs.
The article is available only in print, and because of copyright laws, I cannot publish the article in full, but most of the information can be found in previous posts anyway.
My mother (the woman on the right with the red scarf) and I (second from the right) arrived in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, on monday for the Sofia International Paper Art Biennial and were warmly received by the organisers of the event, Todor Todorov (second from the left) and Daniela Todorova (not in the picture). On the left is a Stockholm-based Korean artist.
We will stay until friday, May 6th, heading to Charmey in Switzerland to attend the opening of the Triennale Internationale du Papier where I’ll show another sculpture.
Until then, we are enjoying the various exhibitions and events from the Paper Art Fest. These images were taken at the official opening of the event at the Sofia City Art gallery, in front of works by Helene Tschacher who is also the president of IAPMA (International Association of Hand Paper Makers and Paper Artists).
Travelling abroad to exhibtit is an excellent oportunity to meet others, for instance New-York based Korean artists Han Ho and Jinwon Chang.
Last minute inspection
This is me doing a last minute inspection on the paper sculpture entitled “Information Overload II” which was to be exhibited at the National Gallery in Sofia, Bulgaria, and which the Norwegian Postal Service forgot to ship.
I am glad to announce that the sculpture has finally arrived after much trouble, but too late for the exhibition at the National Gallery. The organisers of the Sofia Paper Art Biennial have been wonderful, and it will be shown at the National Gallery for Foreign Art instead, opening on the 14th of May.
I won’t be able to see it installed, but the kind and welcoming organisers will give me a guided tour of the premises, so I’ll get an idea of how it will look in the context.
So here I am in Sofia, Bulgaria, at the National Art Gallery, waiting for my sculpture which the Norwegian Postal Services did not manage to deliver in time for the exhibition it was due for.
When sending anything, one should always take precautions. Just to be on the safe side, I paid a lot of money for special express services, with a guaranteed two-day delivery time. Many days later, after the easter holidays, the package had still not arrived, and I was told it had not yet been sent, in fact the poor thing had been forgotten in a corner. Had it been an underdeveloped country, I might have expected such, but Norway being one of the richest and most efficient countries in the world…let’s say I wasn’t very impressed. I was promised that it would be delivered the next day.
To make a long story short, it didn’t show up for another five days. Mistakes do occur from time to time of course, but my experience of my country is this: don’t trust anything to function normally for a week before and after any public holiday. If someone wants to invade Norway, do plan the attack for the summer holidays, because that’s when even our government officials and armed forces take a much deserved break all at the same time.
My paper sculpture “Information Overload I” (2008), depicted on the invitation for the 7e triennale internationale du Papier in Charmey, Switzerland, at Musée de Charmey. The sculpture will be on show between May 7th-October 2nd 2011.
Ellen Ringstad. Black (2011). Installation view.
Ellen Ringstad. Static (I, II & III). 2011. Found ballpoint pens on left-over passepartout-cardboard. Installation view.
Ellen Ringstad. Static (I, II & III). 2011. Found ballpoint pens on left-over passepartout-cardboard. Installation view.
Ellen Ringstad. Coffee Stain. 2011. Left-over coffee on found wall - AND - Untitled. 2011. Waste from the mounting of the exhibition. Installation view.
Text by Rasmus Hungnes, Curator, Premiss
”The light that burns twice as bright, burns half as long” – from Blade Runner
Black, shown in the exhibition Ouroboros by Ellen Ringstad, consists of black plastic which was previously wrapped around the building housing the Hordaland Art Centre, for the exhibition Leila by the artist duo AiPotu. Ringstad’s gesture of appropriating the material relates to the concept of recycling, not only of materials (the plastic would otherwise be headed straight for the garbage dump), but also of ideas (the original piece by AiPotu references Wrapped Kunsthalle by Christo and Jeanne-Claude). Contemporary art constantly refers to ancient and modern art history, recycling and recontextualizing ideas. Is art history linear?
Coffee Stain also reveals ways in which the artist discovers the potential in materials otherwise considered worthless: it is a wall painting painted with coffee left in the cups of guests at Ringstad’s part-time job. The exhibition space is used the way it was found, except for minor adjustments, visible in the piece “Untitled”.
Static is a series of drawings on superfluous cardboard collected at a passepartout-factory, using ballpoint pens Ringstad has found here and there. Propelling the gaze to jump like a wild horse around the densely patterned surface, referring to abstract expressionism, minimalism and the monochrome tradition, as well as Sol LeWitt’s conceptual drawings, this is advanced scribbling, virtuously doodled in three layers.
The recycling symbol, the entangled arrows, bears resemblance to the Ouroboros, the snake biting its own tail. The Ouroboros is a symbol for cyclicality, self-reflection and alchemy. Ellen does not, like the alchemists, make gold, rather she turns rubbish into art. Avoiding the role as a missionary for the environmentalist agenda, rather posing questions about how we live our lives, her works may induce us to think twice about our roles as consumers and administrators of resources.
Poetic and dystopian, sometimes with a hint of discreet humour, Ellen Ringstad offers an experience satisfying to the eye, emotions and intellect.
Ellen Ringstad
Ouroboros
18 -20th February 2011.
Friday 18th 20:00-23:00. Saturday-Sunday 12:00-18:00
Premiss
Damsgårdsvn 35,Bergen
www.prmss.no
www.ellenringstad.com
“I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe (…) All those moments will be lost in time like tears in rain.”
Scene from Ridley Scott’s dystopic movie Blade Runner (1982):
Update 2011-04-22 [Read more and see documentation of the exhibition here: http://refusetobeacoward.com/2011/04/22/recycling-anything/]
Tori Amos, Purple People:
So hey do you do judo when they surround you
A little mental yoga will they disappear
It’s grim but never dubious as motives go
One thing she always promises a show
Thunder wishes it could be the snow
Wishes it could be as loved as she can be
These gifts are here, for her, for you, for me
I watch me be this other thing and never know
If I’m marooned or where the purple people go
Then lily white matricide from vicious words
It doesn’t leave a scratch so therefore no one’s hurt
Thunder wishes it could be the snow
Wishes it could be as loved as she can be
These gifts are here, for her, for you, for me
And on and on
The nurses make it clear
Just when you escape, you have yourself to fear
A restaurant that never has to close
Breakfast at every hour, it could save the world
So hey do you do judo in your finery
An angel’s face is tricky to wear constantly
Thunder wishes it could be the snow
Wishes it could be as loved as she can be
These gifts are here, for her, for you, for me
Sol LeWitt (1928-2007) was an American artist, linked to various art movements such as Conceptual Art and Minimalism (1). LeWitt was in the forefront of a radical aesthetic practice, reacting to the Abstract Expressionism movement of the 60s. His work is said to advocate equality, accessibility, open exchange, and public space, all core elements of democracy. Emphasising the importance of the concept or idea, his works are executed by others to strict instructions. LeWitt’s wall drawings redefined the way by which art could be purchased and owned, criticising the proprietary rights imposed by his fellow artists. LeWitt regarded copying as “the most sincere form of flattery” and insisted that anyone could copy his wall drawings, as long as the copier follows his instructions (2).
LeWitt also valued the processual aspects of making art, stating that “If the artist carried through his idea and makes it into visible form, then all the steps in the process are of importance. The idea itself, even if not made visual, is as much a work of art as any finished product.” (3) In June 1967 he published his “Paragraphs on Conceptual Art” in Artforum, where he wrote “All intervening steps, scribbles, sketches, drawings, failed work models, studies thoughts, conversations, are of interest. Those that show the thought process of the artist are sometimes more interesting than the final product” (4).
LeWitt has been and continues to be a strong influence on new generations of young artists, including myself.
Links:
Sol Lewitt Retrospective, Mass Moca
Sol Lewitt on Lisson Gallery
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My friend Rasmus assisted in the destruction of an artwork at Hordaland Art Centre (HKS).
The whole building had been wrapped in plastic and fabric for the exhibition LEILA by AIPOTU, giving the city of Bergen its own recontextualized Wrapped Kunsthalle. My concern being, obviously, what would happen to all that material when the exhibition was dismounted. And so, Christmas time and all, my loyal friend asked the management of HKS on my behalf, who informed him that it would be thrown away.
Leila, AiPotu (2010) Photo: AiPotu
Workspace, december 2010
I the midst of the art waste dislocation/relocation, my brain managed to inflate my head with thoughts on how to make use of it all. After filling up my studio, I allowed myself to play around with the material, because all work and no play makes Ellen a dull girl. I soon realised that it was in itself, without further transformation, both meaningful and beautiful. So here you can see the discarded material in itself, well, in the form of photographs on a computer screen:
“Catch a Cold Open” is the first exhibition ever to be hosted at Premiss.
Premiss is an experimental, artist-driven, non-profit, ‘non-gallery’, right below a white-cube gallery managed by Tag Team Studios, located in an old, cold, charming but nonetheless condemned building in Bergen, Norway.
We wanted to avoid the traditional white-cube sterilisation by maintaining most of the original details of the space, allowing for a direct dialogue with the surrounding atmosphere instead of alienating the works from the outer world. Ellen Ringstad‘s site-specific, reductive, formal experiment entitled ‘Yellow’, made entirely of found materials – plastic bags filled with shredded paper – was mounted in a ’found’ hole in the wall, next to a long line of mirrors, left-overs from previous tenants. Rasmus Hungnes‘ ‘Waste Line’, is, as the title suggests, literally a long line of found waste, placed on the green, worn-out cement floor. These two trashy, immobile installations were emphasized by Eric Alvin Wangel’s silent aesthetic video piece, projected directly onto the wall, subtly reminding us that time is quietly, inevitably ticking.
The non-gallery opening was marked by the serving of warm vegetarian soup, freshly home-baked bread and waffles, which may have prevented our guests from catching that anticipated cold.
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Catch a cold Open @ Premiss, 22.01.2011
PRESS RELEASE
Opening dinner @ PREMISS (just below TAG TEAM studios. MAP)
Saturday 22.01.11 @ 20.00h
Free food, free art
works by Rasmus Hungnes, Ellen Ringstad, Eric Alvin Wangel
You remember MacGyver, right? Right right? Right right right? The show always started off with a COLD OPEN: the exciting few minutes before the catchy tunes during the vignette hit in, setting the premises for the unveiling of the further next to intolerable excitement of the continued episode, spreading out in time and realm of perception, like a blossoming flower in the spring sun, flowering, its colourful petals reaching for our celestial star. Now, this opening dinner will be similar to this meta-into: Like MacGyver sez: (bad russian accent) I am political, but I also drink… blood… Who do you think would win, MacGyver or Jack Bauer? Creative non-violence or idealistically motivated torture?
24 will not be shown, but Ellen Ringstad, Eric Alvin Wangel and Rasmus Andreas Hungnes will show new work: there will be, if nothing else, a clean, aesthetic site specific installation in trashy surroundings by Ringstad, a stunning as usual video piece by Wangel; Hungnes will deliver the longest Waste line (you know, the dynamic art piece, which can be made at any time of the day, anywhere, by anyone, at any size, by anybody, by everybody and each and every one) yet materialized in the name of art.
Ellen Ringstad. Detail of Plastic Waste Polychrome (2011), still in the making, consisting of layer upon layer of the artist's own plastic waste.
Have you been following my blog? If so, you may have noticed how concerned I am with waste. This concern is best exemplified through my ongoing dialogue and occasional quarrels with Waste Line, who is, much to her misfortune, literally a line of waste. Contrary to popular belief, Waste Line has numerable questions about her origins and wherabouts in life, which is more than can be said about certain humans individuals.
You might be surprised to read that my intentions with waste are not entirely based on environmental idealism. This waste frenzy was likely triggered by a not-so-admirable intention: capital; or rather lack thereof. In order to make art, a poor student like myself desperately needs materials, preferably without paying much for them. Come to think of it, it must have started earlier because I remember how my Grandmother, who lived and survived the two great wars on this continent, saved all sorts of materials and then turned them into new, smart things. Perhaps it is her fault that I’ve been collecting all kind of useless stuff, “just in case”. It seems both my grandmother and I have a lot in common with squirrels.
At least my grandmother made useful stuff, while I make art. However, I believe there is an important message in this kind of artistic expression. Found materials automatically say something about the society in which we live. As reflected citizens, one must inevitably raise the inconvenient questions about the way we live. How will our patterns of consumption affect the future? My grandmother, like so many others of her generation, learned the hard way. I’m trying to learn from her so I’ll be prepared for tougher times.
The photograph above is a detail of my new painting in the making, entitled Plastic Waste Polychrome, which will be approximately 300x200cm. It will be made entirely of my own melted plastic waste reminiscent of Waste Lines gone by, reminding me of just much how much I consume. It also references the works of Robert Rauschenberg.
David Garcia - Archive II (2005)
“The Archive Series are investigations on space and books. Its departure point is density and micro spaces, and a series of traditional relationships that humans have to books. Private collections have existed for centuries, but when this is added to nomadic behaviour, curious contradictions arise; this is the area studied by Archive II. How can an individual travel with it’s own library, given that books are so heavy? This is something we can all relate to when moving house. Archive II is a nomadic library, a transport system and an intimate space. Inspired by ancient travelling libraries from the Far East, which visited courts and cities, Archive II transforms this into a personal space, where walking and reading coexist as refuge and transport.
The average reader can read about 240 words per minute. A 300 page book normally takes 9 hours to read, non stop. If you read while you walk, you can read a book in about 43 Kilometers.” (1)
(Did you miss previous chapter in the fascinating story of Waste Line? Don’t worry, you can find all of it here. PS: The chapters are best read in chronological order)
Some of you might be worried about Waste Line given the insignificant disagreement we had on saturday, but not to worry. Waste Line is a bit grumpy today, that’s all, and she’s punishing me by giving the silent treatment. I had to remind Waste Line that her existence depended upon our cooperation, so she finally complied and let me measure her weight (540 g) and length (920cm).
Waste Line, Day 4
About Waste Line: Each day the narrator’s personal non-organic waste is lined up, photographed, weighed and measured for the sake of art. Waste Line is literally the story of a line of waste, who is just as concerned with her own origins and wherabouts in life as the rest of us. This tentative project is based on the conceptual and dynamic art piece conceived by the Norwegian artist Rasmus Hungnes, which was inspired by Ellen Ringstad’s organic waistline. Coincidentally, the author of the story is Ellen Ringstad herself. You can follow and contribute to his open-source project on the blog http://waste-line.tumblr.com. Read more about their collaborative project on this post. All related posts can be found here.
Waste Line - Day 3
It was late in the afternoon already when I noticed the sound of light drizzle drumming on the window. That’s when I remembered Waste Line. Such is the menace of chaotic souls, indifferent to all but themselves. I looked out…she was still there! The wind had not blown her away yet. I hurried to the porch and much to my surprise I found her in a splendid mood; my absence had gone unnoticed. True, at first she had felt somewhat crispy from the cold, but after a while she had forgotten all about it. As a matter of fact, the moment she had come to terms with the situation, she quietly embraced the solitude: there was so much to see, to hear, to smell, to feel; countless impressions to digest! She realized that her life until present time had been such a waste!
- “Please forgive me, Waste Line, I never intended to leave you out in the cold all by yourself,” I mumbled.
- “Don’t worry about it, I forgot all about you too”. I could swear she blinked, but it was only the light breeze catching the cardboard box. Had I arrived only seconds later, she might have been dispersed, for only a fine line separates life from death. For the sake of my own sanity, I promptly erased that thought.
- “I must remove the old waste and feed you fresh new waste. I should also move you indoors before the wind gains momentum. Besides I wouldn’t want you trashing my neighbourhood” I took Waste Line carefully in my arms, carrying her over the threshold, but ignoring the symbolism.
- “Well, who am I to refuse the temptation of fresh waste” She paused for a while as I carefully lined her up. “My first memory is that of a production line”, she continued, “After the sky cleared up yesterday I noticed some mesmerizing light dots in the sky, and they felt so familiar. Maybe it was déjà-vu, but for some reason it connected me to my ancestors. Most of my life, before ending up as waste, I spent long hours in dark storage spaces, struggling to survive the boredom, arguing with other products about who was entitled to the best spot, then fighting for attention on supermarket shelves. Had I known how quickly the New becomes Old, I would have stepped out of the limelight sooner and spent more time reflecting upon where I was headed. Anyway, thank you for sharing the beautiful view with me. Most people would simply toss me away. But enough about that, I want to learn more about you. Why are you so determined to measure and weigh me? You never paid me any attention before?”
She was much heavier now and surprisingly long; barely fitting into my apartment. How could it be? I dismantled her again and carried her up to the attic where there was plenty of space, or so I thought. Even with a wide-angled lens, I had no choice but to divide her in three equal lines to get all of her into one single photograph. Sadly this made her feel self-conscious and fat.
- “Well, Waste Line, here’s the thing: I am attempting a consumption diet, in order to reduce my waste line, as well as my waistline. The first step is determining just how much I consume. The second step is figuring out just how much it is possible to cut down, especially on product packaging”.
“So you want to get rid of me already, just when we were getting to know each-other? First you forget I exist and NOW YOU PLAN TO ELIMINATE ME?!!!”
I was surprised by her unexpected mood change. Her desperate attempt to fish for sympathy by calling attention to my neglect earlier was alarming and quite unfavourable. I would not fall for such a cheap trick, for once forgiveness is offered, it cannot be taken back. Although I empathized with her divided self, she was obviously no longer capable of a serious conversation, which is why I decided to leave her alone. She clearly had some issues to work on, which in my experience are better resolved in solitude.
As I left the attic, she yelled “And it’s not my fault I’m overweight today. It’s genetic!”
Waste Line, Day 3
Waste Line, Day 3
WASTE LINE, DAY 3
Length: 6,9m
Weight: 444g
Waste Line, Day 2
Waste Line, Day 2, detail
WASTE LINE, DAY 2
Weight: 116g
Length: 128cm
My Waste Line, Day 1, is 172 cm long and weighs 540 grams. If I substract all organic matter (334 g), which will go back to nature quickly enough, it only weighs 206 g. I suspect the weight readings are incorrect, because, as shown in the photographs, it was snowing, and therefore the items gained more weight.
Waste Line - DAY 1 - Detail
WASTE LINE, DAY 1
Length:172cm
(Total weight, 540g) – (Organic matter, 334g)= 206g*
*Although Organic matter indeed is considered waste, it is substracted from the equation, because it decays quickly enough. Accurate readings of my total organic waste is therefore considered irrelevant to this project, and would be hard to measure anyway. The artist (I) is (am) considering removing organic matter from my Waste Line, starting tomorrow, instead of rejecting the whole project as false. According to Dr. Donald E. Simanek, “Science progresses by making mistakes, correcting the mistakes, then moving on to other matters. If we stopped making mistakes, scientific progress would stop“(1). Same is true with art.
Note: Waste Line is a conceptual and dynamic art piece conceived by Bergen-based artist Rasmus Hungnes. You can follow and contribute to his open-source project on http://waste-line.tumblr.com. Read more about this project on this post.
Plastic Waste Line by Ellen Ringstad
Waste Line is a conceptual and dynamic art piece conceived by Bergen-based artist Rasmus Hungnes.
He says the project was inspired by my organic waistline, which he carefully examined during a visit to my studio. At the time, not long ago in fact, this week-end to be exact, I was working on a sculpture/installation, entitled Organic Waste, and I suspect his funky idea is related to that sculpture also.
My studio is rather trashy, filled up with poor materials patiently waiting to be used. And so the efficient artist did not waste any time: he constructed the first Waste Line, which is literally, as the title suggests, a line composed of waste. They “can be made at any time of the day, anywhere, by anyone, in any size, by anybody, by everybody and each and every one (…). If you make a Waste line yourself, please submit it here and I will post-it”, he declares on his dedicated blog. In an interview with me, he reveals how it would be nice if it became a huge, international, open-source, internet phenomenon. So if you want to be amongst the first to share lines, please do so on http://www.waste-line.tumblr.com/.
I thought this was a wonderful idea, and so I contributed with my first lines today. Since Rasmus was inspired by me, I am allowing myself to be inspired by him (being an open-source project and all). So every day, starting tomorrow, I will take a photograph of my own personal daily waste, except excrements and such, and, just out of curiosity, I will measure its lebgth and weight. The idea then, is to make a photographic exhibition, installing a long, long, long, long line of photographed waste lines.
And speaking of lines. Here’s a quote from the book Flatland – A Romance of Many Dimensions, a satirical novella by Edwin A. Abbott, which can be downloaded for free from this site.
“I began to move my body out of Lineland. (…) when I had at last moved myself out of his Line, he cried in his shrillest voice, “She is vanished; she is dead.” “I am not dead,” replied I; “I am simply out of Lineland, that is to say, out of the Straight Line which you call Space, and in the true Space, where I can see things as they are.” (1)
Now….Let the rat race begin!
Apple Juice Kid - Frank Sinatra Remixed
Listen to conceptual artist Rasmus Hungnes‘ mash-up of Frank Sinatra’s version of the popular “My Way” pitched up and down so that it covers all 12 semitones in an octave. The uncomfortable feel in this version gives the lyrical content a much darker dimension in which the individualistic “I did it my way” might just be an explanation as to why “the end is here”. Enjoy.
Anselm Kiefer - Zweistormland/TheHighPriestess, Detail. 1986-89.
Today I finally visited the much acclaimed site UbuWeb, which functions as an utopian, commercial-free archive and distribution center for hard-to-find, out-of-print and obscure artistic works. I just thought I’d share this link, for I believe art should be free and freed from the destructive commercial forces of the market.
I’ve attached a detail of painter/sculptor Anselm Kiefer’s lead library Zweistromland/The High Priestess, which can be seen in the Astrup Fearnley Museum of Modern Art in Oslo, Norway (although funnily enough there is nothing on Kiefer on Ubuweb).
“There is nothing like a dream to create the future. Utopia today, flesh and blood tomorrow.”
- Victor Hugo, les Misérables.
In september 2010 I visited ART FORUM Berlin, an International Art fair where some of the most acknowledged galleries present “the best of the best” from their stack of artists. But my oh my! Everything was installed so tightly that the works could barely breathe. This is the place to experience art reduced to commodity.
Me, at the Art Forum Berlin 2010. Photo: Rasmus Hungnes.
I was explained that the Art Forum is not an art exhibition. The purpose of this particular circus is getting to know the galleries. That doesn’t justify the lack of innovative presentation strategies though. Only a few of the galleries had interesting curatorial solutions adjusted to the context (for instance Galleri ARNDT showing works of Ralf Ziervogel and Team Gallery with works of Gardar Eide Einarsson). But then, most galleries are no more than exhibition booths surrounded by white walls. No wonder it’s hard to differentiate one from another.
Disillusioned with the art market, I consulted a Berlin resident and fellow artist, who advised me to visit the BERLINER LISTE 2010, with the justification of it being the complete opposite of Art Forum. I did not know what to expect, but I was to regret it. The french philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre wrote “Hell is other people” (“L’enfer, c’est les autres”), but I suspect Hell is Berliner Liste: a nightmare of labyrinths filled with kitschy, amateur works, claustrophobically mounted. The experience was so grotesque and horribly depressing that I could just as well have thrown myself and the admission fee (10 Euros) into the Spree river.
Fortunately I didn’t; instead I concluded that:
I found this striking accusation whilst roaming the streets of Berlin, in an area especially overpopulated by galleries, so I had to document it. It must be intended for those who believe they have the answer to what art is, how it is supposed to look like, and how it must be presented. Needless to say (but I will anyway) – I liked it a lot.
Photo: Ellen Ringstad
I was jogging nowhere on a treadmill whilst staring into a televison screen, nervously swapping between channels, in desperate search for something that would turn my attention away from the other sweaty emotionless people in the gym so I could avoid that eary feeling of meaninglessness. I was thinking “one step at a time” for a whole hour already, but my new trainers were pressing hard on my poor little toes. Suddenly a documentary popped up on the screen: Shop ’til you drop – the crisis of consumerism. Oh, I love the irony! Here I am joging on a plastic/rubber thing inside an air-conditioned prison, when I should have been out in nature breathing fresh air. Then and there I decided to let my feet walk nowhere a little longer just to get some valuable food for thought. Here’s the trailer:
“Is the Western world too materialistic? Are we willfully trashing the planetary ecology in order to serve the desires and drives of the ego? And what, or who could be driving this powerful force of seduction? “Shop ‘Til You Drop” takes a critical look at social injustice, peak oil, resource depletion and our deep need to feel connected to each other through what we choose to consume. This unique documentary also examines the frenzied pace of fast-lane materialism that is beginning to burn us out. We are just now beginning to yearn for a simpler life, but is it too late? Have we set in motion a runaway train that threatens to undermine the ecological, social and spiritual cornerstones that make the pursuit of happiness possible in the first place?”
My poor feet did not do well after I stepped off the treadmill, the toenails on both my pinky toes have now turned blue. For a long time I believed I would have to amputate. But it was worth it.
PS: If you live in Norway, this documentary is available online on nrk.no only until 19-01-2011 from URL http://www.nrk.no/nett-tv/klipp/693996/. Should you have any suggestions as to oher places where it can be found in full on the internet, please leave a comment! Thank you.
“A bad beginning makes a bad ending”
- Euripides (486 BC- 406 BC), Aegus
Some weeks ago I had the idea of starting up a blog, the main purpose being honesty and openness around my artistic working process, no matter how stupid, immature or irrelevant the ideas, because I believe that a work of art is the sum of its processes and not only the end result.
When we visit a gallery, what we often see is an artistic product. It’s been developed, and thoroughly thought through (The Three Ts). In essence it is not so different from any other ordinary/extraordinary product. Many artists, including myself, don’t like to think of art as a product. We like to differentiate ourselves as sceptics by staying “true”, “idealistic” and “uncommercial” (which really means “we don’t sell ourselves cheap”).
The term “product” can give associations to pejorative terms such as “capitalism”, “marketing”, “consumerism”, “mass-consumption”, “industrialisation”, “pollution”, “third world exploitation”, “depletion of natural resources”, “global warming/climate changes”, etc, perhaps explaining why we don’t like art products. According to the guru of marketing, Phillip Kotler, a product is “anything that is offered to a market for attention, acquisition, use or consumption and that might satisfy a need. Products include more than just tangible goods. Broadly defined, products include physical objects, services, persons, places, organizations, ideas or mixes of these entities”
So when “art” ends up in a gallery, it is – let’s just call a spade for a spade – a product. It may not always be for sale, but it has a purpose. Which purpose? – Now that is up to the viewer – you – to decipher. But don’t ever forget that someone is trying to pitch you something, be it an aesthetic ideal, a political message, a theoretical conviction, a transcendental experience… The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
“People who live in society have learned to see themselves in mirrors as they appear to their friends. Is that why my flesh is naked? You might say – yes you might say, nature without humanity… Things are bad! Things are very bad: I have it, the filth, the Nausea”
— Jean-Paul Sartre. Nausea. 1964 edition, p 29
Lately I’ve been feeling nauseous. In Jean-Paul Sartres novel Nausea, the main character writes: “nothing seemed true; I felt surrounded by cardboard scenery which could quickly be removed…”
I recognize this anxiety. I’ve had it before. I have it again.
Let me offer a small personal chronology of events. In 1999 I started my studies of marketing at the Norwegian School of Management BI/Norwegian School of Marketing NMH. After four years I broke off my studies. I got the nausea: starting off as light prickles in the skin the first semester, spreading to the pit of my stomach until one day I could no longer set foot in the school building. But there was no escape. The filth was everywhere: in the streets, newspapers, television, movies, people, in my cupboard, in my refrigerator, in me: surrounded and engulfed by superficiality there is no place to breathe. I sought refuge in art but I should have foreseen that running away never solves anything, for unresolved issues always come back to haunt you. Superficiality is as valid in the art world as anywhere else.
Now, superficiality is not necessarily a bad thing as long as it’s honest. It is deceitful however claiming something is more than it really is. Marketers are exceptionally gifted in devising rhetorical methods in order to sell products. For instance: hide your flaws – “you’re worth it”, drunks give you – “absolut truth”. Artists learn a vocabulary to devise sensual rhetorics (look! Listen! Taste! Touch! Smell!), strategies on how to talk about and present their art, building their image to differentiate themselves from the rest of the crowd. A rose by any other name would smell as sweet. It’s all marketing to sell yet another product.
Everybody knows the dice are loaded. Illusions lose its magic once the tricks are revealed. Artists hide their process to create mystery around their artworks. We all need an occasional escape to Neverland. It’s entertainment – fine! But be skeptic of anyone claiming aboslute truth, no matter the packaging.
I was planning on publishing a manifesto, a sort of purpose statement, as the number one post for this blog. It’s not finished yet. I’ve been hatching little devious strategies on how to word my manifest as efficiently as possible. But I realised the manifest might just as well be the end product, to convince you of my artistic viewpoints. That is why I’ll just end this thread, or rather begin, by quoting the science fiction novelist Frank Herbert
“The beginning of knowledge is the discovery of something we do not understand”
This blog comes with an artistic intent. This is my disclaimer.
Sources:
Ellen Ringstad Art Wire
