Navigating the Visual World
Week 10 notes
Definition of Relational Aesthetics
The age of anarchy in art – nothing is valid – nothing is sacred – there is no definitive truth
The role of the viewer acknowledged – more – the viewer co-constructs meaning – this led to lots of appropriation (post – modernism) – Exploring the past in new contexts – transformation of meaning – also in galleries – in the 90s – galleries no longer the ‘authority’ – did not have the answers – were debunked – DUEMS – dead European white man – the whole of our culture – till now.
The viewer coming to the gallery – big institutional gallery/museum – lots of strictures – secret knowledge – (I’m the dumb viewer) – The feeling of the viewer being educated – allusion – the rubber glove on the concrete work – when is art art? Anything can be art –
Fred Wilson – African American artist – goes to galleries – rearranged collections according to his reading of the collection. E.g. left a mop and bucket in the middle of the exhibition – as well as e.g. rehanging, writing new labels. – as well as saying – there is no real expert – (c.f. also Jill Orr, Rachel Whitehead) –
The internet – has changed everything – has opened up the option for egalitarian art
Identity process – the various groups – the gaze – e.g. the afro-american gay female gaze – we all have our own perspective – in art – lots of post-post modernism –
What relational aesthetics believes is the agency of the viewer to construct the work or co-create the art work – e.g. the Thai restaurant recreated in the gallery – is related to Internet theory, rhizome theory. Pad Thai
The viewer influences the work, relates to it – the art work is only created when the viewer interacts with it.
In the humanities – ‘The non-human turn’ – has to do the internet –
Some of our work was relational aesthetics – in our show – not articulated in our work – but our show included this. (Go back and re-read the Bourillard)
Aside – to Merinda’s work at The NG Powerhouse – juxtaposition of precious and junk – global cues, semiotics – referencing – old museum exhibits – restoration of old garden ornaments – encrusted in objects (like an archeological dig) – pop archaeology – all these in glass boxes – e.g. giving classification to these objects in scientific latin.
The internet is not linear – ISIS e.g. is playing on young minds –
The non-human turn is about - ??? –
Aside – the appropriation of Greek religion – e.g. the one god became – 3 – foundation of the RC (and trad church) – man has dominion over everything – we need to start to rail against speciesism – animal rights – the right of a rock to be in its place in the world – greed must be subsumed – we need to think of ecology – if an individual claims ownership – how does this effect others?
Aside – to a biblical text – e.g. the letters of Paul – back to a source document – then retranslated using the meanings of feminism – where multiple meanings occur – the inclusive one is chosen.
Art criticism – no longer a male dominated fleld – people can work outside the white cube.
Petition (Face Book) – against George Brandis – (meg S - Facebook Page) - NB Brandis has self-appropriated a large proporation of the Australia Council's funding to allocate himself.
The role of art has changed – so much so that some artists don’t make work – or if they do, they design, others make, or use of found objects – eg. Patricia Piccinnini’s balloon – is a metaphor for the internet.
Globalism – Merinda’s definition – a global space can be very bland – we no longer see the national style – the national brand – now everything can be anywhere – your style might be that of an internet nation –
In Relational Aesthetics the audience is seen as a community. Rather than the art work just being an encounter between object and view – relational art induces intersubjective encounters. Through these encounters (e.g. the Thai restaurant) – the audience becomes a co-creator – the artist is more a facilitator – Artist is conduit – the person who makes it happen – meaning is elaborated collectively.