I remember meeting this guy at an opening at Rare when it was back on 14th Street, probably around 1997 or 1998. I think he was handing out matchbooks or stickers with his puking guy icon and the word, "art" on it. Maybe. Memory is a funny thing. I think he was working at PopSmear Magazine at the time, and we spoke on the phone a few times. He put me on his mailing list, so I have some cool early postcards from him, including a metallic foil invite to the book party for "Flatness is God" that happened at B Bar. The party was fun, and I bought a book, which was originally published by Soft Skull Press (now defunct.)
I remember one phone conversation we had, where I was trying to garner some sage advice from him, and he was telling me about this book project he was working on, that is was pretty intense, and how I shouldn't get so caught up worrying about making gallery art, or getting into the galleries, etc. I was extremely impressed and inspired by the first book, and have a growing library of his publications, a few prints, and at least one tee shirt. Most recently found the issue of Arkitip he was in for half-off at the Staple clearance space down on Ludlow. I passed up buying the Peter Saville issue, which was a lot cheaper, because I wanted/needed the McGinness one.
His show earlier this year at Deitch Projects filled me full of wonder and laughter; how cool is it that he gets to make work that is so much FUN and that I find meaningful as well. I have the press release and some notes I made about that show and maybe someday I'll get around to writing something more substantial about it, but I am certainly happy to have the Arkitip catalog for it.
Was reminded all of this when SwissMiss posted a video of him working and talking about his work on her blog. The video is from Upper Playground, SF-based art/design/fashion collective, or whatever they would like to be called.
SwissMiss writes:
Ryan McGinness is interested in creating a new vocabulary for everyday symbols and icons through context and composition. Using layering, repetition, and juxtaposition, his complex pieces construct worlds within worlds. With his massively intricate silk-screened paintings, sculptures, and installations, hes able to blur the division between design, pop culture, and fine art. Ryan McGinnesss artwork has appeared in numerous books, magazines, and exhibitions throughout the United States and Europe.
Showing posts with label criticism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label criticism. Show all posts
Monday, November 9, 2009
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Rant: You Kids Get Off My Lawn!!!
The beginnings of a full-scale rant, in their raw form, an email back to a friend after a pretty innocuous comment from him. Couldn't really tell if he was being sarcastic or not, but the gray area allowed me to grow my rant.
From: Diran Lyons
To: Eli Noogabooga
Subject: ?
You really hate Girltalk? He's a legend in the remix world...reminds me a bit of Ethank.
From: Eli Noogabooga
To: Diran Lyons
Subject: ?
When did we communicate about Girltalk? I don't like him, but maybe I'm just an old man, railing against the yoot. He's one step further removed from cd-DJs, and even further removed from LP DJs, who really do show talent sometimes, in their mixing, etc. Girl talk as a studio artist is fine, he mashes up, he mixes and remixes, he creates a new composition from found pieces. Fine. But Girltalk getting $xx,000 to 'play' a Thursday night promo gig thrown by Canon and the magazine I work for? Fucking ridiculous. And, yes, full disclosure, I think I am a bit jealous.
My problem with Ethan's work (ed's note: ran a band's fansite before gradschool, continued doing so and as far as I could tell the only thing he changed for art grad school was the way he talked about this site. The Emperor's New Clothes theorum, as it were,) was mostly one of classification; what he was doing was mostly social engineering and social networking. His argument was that he was creating 'happenings', but most of the time it was just social networking that he was passing off as happenings. I think because of his SD background he saw himself fitting into the continuum of some of the seminal artists of that genre that are associated with that school. I think he also subscribed to the Jevbratt school of thought wherein Code = Art. This gets into a tricky area for me because its a bit of the tail wagging the dog; similar to printmakers, paper-makers, and ceramicists, the process becomes the focus of the art and the experience of the art, rather, the prescribed experience of the art by the artist, rather than a more laissez-faire attitude about viewer/user experience and appreciation really being up to them.
It is my belief that prescribing meaning is a slippery slope to a fascist and monistic attitude and posture, and that it should not be necessary to know all context specific to a piece of work for it to be understood and thus 'good'. (An argument for using language like 'good' or 'bad' in terms of art is too big to have here, so let's just assume its ok to judge ;)) I think we have had a lot of discussions about the relative value and merit of art that is text-dependant, where the Text is what drives the work, sometimes propping up the most flimsy facade.
To bring this full circle, Ethan's work is, I think, interesting, and has value, and is not merely style, but substantive. Whether or not it is art, and from there, whether or not it is 'good' art, is an altogether different discussion, but I don't think it is art, rather it is craft, technical skill, and from there, it is most definitely not good art. Girl Talk's remixes might be art, but definitely not good art, as they are 100% style, and are merely pastiche. He is a visual decoupagist, not even on the level of a true collage artist. That he is valued in the more public realm of popular music, commands money, etc. does not solidify him as an Artist, rather as an entertainer. He is a huckster selling snake oil, and he is louder than the other slimy hucksters clambering for the same bit of soap box in the town square.
From: Diran Lyons
To: Eli Noogabooga
Subject: ?
You really hate Girltalk? He's a legend in the remix world...reminds me a bit of Ethank.
From: Eli Noogabooga
To: Diran Lyons
Subject: ?
When did we communicate about Girltalk? I don't like him, but maybe I'm just an old man, railing against the yoot. He's one step further removed from cd-DJs, and even further removed from LP DJs, who really do show talent sometimes, in their mixing, etc. Girl talk as a studio artist is fine, he mashes up, he mixes and remixes, he creates a new composition from found pieces. Fine. But Girltalk getting $xx,000 to 'play' a Thursday night promo gig thrown by Canon and the magazine I work for? Fucking ridiculous. And, yes, full disclosure, I think I am a bit jealous.
My problem with Ethan's work (ed's note: ran a band's fansite before gradschool, continued doing so and as far as I could tell the only thing he changed for art grad school was the way he talked about this site. The Emperor's New Clothes theorum, as it were,) was mostly one of classification; what he was doing was mostly social engineering and social networking. His argument was that he was creating 'happenings', but most of the time it was just social networking that he was passing off as happenings. I think because of his SD background he saw himself fitting into the continuum of some of the seminal artists of that genre that are associated with that school. I think he also subscribed to the Jevbratt school of thought wherein Code = Art. This gets into a tricky area for me because its a bit of the tail wagging the dog; similar to printmakers, paper-makers, and ceramicists, the process becomes the focus of the art and the experience of the art, rather, the prescribed experience of the art by the artist, rather than a more laissez-faire attitude about viewer/user experience and appreciation really being up to them.
It is my belief that prescribing meaning is a slippery slope to a fascist and monistic attitude and posture, and that it should not be necessary to know all context specific to a piece of work for it to be understood and thus 'good'. (An argument for using language like 'good' or 'bad' in terms of art is too big to have here, so let's just assume its ok to judge ;)) I think we have had a lot of discussions about the relative value and merit of art that is text-dependant, where the Text is what drives the work, sometimes propping up the most flimsy facade.
To bring this full circle, Ethan's work is, I think, interesting, and has value, and is not merely style, but substantive. Whether or not it is art, and from there, whether or not it is 'good' art, is an altogether different discussion, but I don't think it is art, rather it is craft, technical skill, and from there, it is most definitely not good art. Girl Talk's remixes might be art, but definitely not good art, as they are 100% style, and are merely pastiche. He is a visual decoupagist, not even on the level of a true collage artist. That he is valued in the more public realm of popular music, commands money, etc. does not solidify him as an Artist, rather as an entertainer. He is a huckster selling snake oil, and he is louder than the other slimy hucksters clambering for the same bit of soap box in the town square.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
The Emperor's New Clothes
http://www.seventeengallery.com/index.php?p=2
Went to a bunch of the art fairs this year, yesterday and today. Scope, Pulse, and Volta. Pulse had the best of the work, in my opinion, but the others had art worth mentioning. But not here, or at least, not now. Tired and late, and I just lost an hour to the farmers and their dang clock-changing ways. Click the above link for work that you can spend days talking about and yet, in person, it is lacking: Lacking anything but the barest of barry la ve's, a gaudy(?) fischli & veiss, with platinum and gold nails in the finest of woods. Ok, I get it, you're sitting around your studio and you are fucking OUT of ideas, but you must be some kind of hot or some kind of intelligently persuasive beast to convince people that this shit is what's up. Say what you will about the tenets of National Socialism, at least it has an ethos ... this shit is just vacant garbage propped up by empty words.
On the positive side, there were some really nice drawings, photos, digital installations, video pieces, etc. Kudos to the pallbearers and the stormbringers.
Went to a bunch of the art fairs this year, yesterday and today. Scope, Pulse, and Volta. Pulse had the best of the work, in my opinion, but the others had art worth mentioning. But not here, or at least, not now. Tired and late, and I just lost an hour to the farmers and their dang clock-changing ways. Click the above link for work that you can spend days talking about and yet, in person, it is lacking: Lacking anything but the barest of barry la ve's, a gaudy(?) fischli & veiss, with platinum and gold nails in the finest of woods. Ok, I get it, you're sitting around your studio and you are fucking OUT of ideas, but you must be some kind of hot or some kind of intelligently persuasive beast to convince people that this shit is what's up. Say what you will about the tenets of National Socialism, at least it has an ethos ... this shit is just vacant garbage propped up by empty words.
On the positive side, there were some really nice drawings, photos, digital installations, video pieces, etc. Kudos to the pallbearers and the stormbringers.
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