Contextualising the work.
3,000 words
‘Untitled 1’ and ‘Untitled 2’ Oil paint on canvas 58cmx69cm
The viewer sees an oil painting in a dedicated art space: a gallery, a studio, or possibly a museum. Painted on the canvas is the phrase ‘TRAIN your eyes to find me beautiful.’ The viewer is immediately addressed; they are asked to try and understand and attempt to detach and negotiate with themselves to uncover its meaning. Who is me? The painting? The institute? The viewer? What is beautiful, and how do we understand what it actually means?
In this placement within the materiality of oil - where the history is rich, and the technique is learned, you consider why it belongs there. Possibly not the content of the work but the material itself. There is a coldness and a lack of individuality as the words are projected on, yet they are still clearly created by an artist's hand, bringing into question what makes an artist or even a master. Artist Andrea Fraser suggests that "Art is not art because it is signed by an artist or shown in a museum or any other 'institutional' site. Art is art when it exists for discourses and practices that recognize it as art, value and evaluate it as art, and consume it as art, whether as object, gesture, representation, or only idea." (Fraser, 1996: p. 311) She is known for her focus on institutional critique; often framing the complex environment of art galleries and markets using humour. By using text, the painting removes an aspect of technical ability that can be used to justify its ‘right to be art’. Fraser continuously brings up the theory of genius by using an air of ambivalence in her work and referencing works that do the same. ‘Kunst Muss Hängen (Fraser, 2001) was a performance by Fraser reenacting a drunken rant by German artist Martin Kippenberger. While the work highlights many interesting differences in the positionality of Fraser and Kippenberger in the art space, I am particularly interested in the title itself. In her Nagel gallery debut, the artist displayed six aluminium discs featuring "smiley" and "frowny" faces, originally made for Amuse(m). Kippenberger bought these and placed them at his Paris Bar in Berlin, but they kept falling down. When he next met the young artist, he advised her firmly: “Kunst Muss Hängen (Art must hang)'' There is so much contradiction in this phrase. To use an imperative and definitive phrase in conjunction with the rules of art feels humorous. The fluid and subjective nature of what we know to be art is what creates such a widely acknowledged discourse. Considering Fraser’s belief that this discourse is in fact the central basis of what art is; the idea that there is or can be any definitive materiality is almost absurdist.
The use of the word ‘beautiful’ holds similar ambiguity in the works. What it means to be beautiful is constantly fluctuating and subjective. It tests the viewer to ask what beautiful means and in turn, the questions in which we ask to judge it. In an art space, they hold the idea that if you don’t find an artwork beautiful, you may just ‘not be looking hard enough’ or ‘from the right angle.’ Snobbery is commonplace and it can be hard to convey individual taste for the fear of misinterpretation that you simply don't have enough knowledge to appreciate it. Pierre Bourdieu speaks on this idea through his theory of ‘cultural capital,’ (Bourdieu, 1977). Webb, Schirato, and Danaher, define this as “A form of value associated with culturally authorised tastes, consumption patterns, attributes, skills and awards. For example, an academic degree constitutes cultural capital within the field of education.” (2002, p. x). Bourdieu considers not just money as a form of capital but also the continuous bias of minor differences in being brought up in upper or middle-class circles, such as posture, taste, mannerisms, accent, and clothes (Bourdieu, 1977). The art space is highly concentrated with this belief that it is a class-based space where you must have a certain calibre of knowledge to enter. What is not so widely talked about, is in a space driven by discourse, how can we expect a rich, flourishing environment when so many people believe they don’t belong. bell hooks’ idea of engaged pedagogy backs this up. Her theory references the education system, stating that the differences in power dynamics in education including class, race, and gender should be addressed for students to engage in a meaningful way (hooks, 1994, pp. 13-23). Thinking in this manner will create more understanding and open-minded conversation around subjects; and lead to a more justice-conscious future. Many of these skills are fundamental to creativity.
The paintings further comment on the market beyond the art world. They depict a corporate-looking, readable message that directly asks the viewer to react. The font (Eurostile black) is used by the unpopular corporate beast shell oil, and the colours from, among other brands, the London Underground. There is some irony there, that the two paintings fight against; while also complementing each other. They try to eat up the attention of the audience - one vibrating and less pleasing forces your attention to the more digestible version. The alternative message is the same, but the audience is mocked by believing they have a choice. This, more digestive version, just uses the branding from another huge company.
With this in mind, to what extent is art just another piece of content, and how can we protect the space? There is a certain safety behind placing work within an institute that gives it space for error. While that works positively in a lot of ways, it also closes the space in other ways; I wonder how many times I hear somebody say something along the lines of ‘I don’t know if I like this work, but I am probably just seeing it wrong’ or ‘I don’t really know enough about art to understand it.’ I want there to always be an aspect of simplicity that is easily accessible, and branding, for very different reasons, has mastered just that.
Branding has forced itself into every corner of our psyche and there are few places left untouched by it. We see a church in Bournemouth that is now a Tesco Express (Google Maps, no date), a once sacred place now profiting from cigarettes and alcohol underneath the holy cross. While it is not commonplace, it is also not an outlier - all across the UK you can dine, chat, and drink coffee in various other previously revered locations (VisitBritain, 2022).
Westbourne Methodist Church (now Tesco Express), Poole Road, Westbourne, Bournemouth, 2nd December, 2010 (Ladell, 2010)
It becomes another level of power for the companies. What can I monopolise and how far can I go? Littered across the world are beautiful McDonalds; one a carefully designed glass dome, one shaped like a UFO, a charming pink terraced house, a picturesque log cabin, the list goes on (Nast, 2023). We treat them like tourist destinations in themselves, while the culture of historical landmarks is slowly being eaten right in front of our eyes.
Naomi Klein speaks on the dominance of the brand in her book ‘No Logo’ (Klein, 2000). ‘Branding has colonized the cultural landscape. It's everywhere, like kudzu, suffocating everything in its path.’ (date: page number)’ The tactics used by corporations are bold and cutthroat. They even closely mirror the subtleties of communication and colloquial language to ensure we feel at ease. This can be seen in the casual ‘I’m lovin’ it’ of McDonald's, Nike’s ‘Just do it!’ and Burger King's ‘Have it your way’ all promoting the ease of choice and freedom. Incredibly ironic considering all three have had allegations mentioning low wages, lack of benefits, and poor working conditions within their supply chains. Specifically, Nike who have received a huge amount of backlash regarding child labour and sweatshops manufacturing their products (Wazir, 2001). Particularly recognised after a photograph of a young boy, 12-year-old Tariq, sewing Nike footballs was published by Life Magazine (Schanberg, 1996, p.38).
The writer Mark Dery writes, ‘Factory capitalism has been superseded by an information economy characterized by the reduction of labor to the manipulation, on computers, of symbols that stand in for the manufacturing process. (Dery, 1993)’ with an exponential transition from physical to virtual exploitation, abuse in these industries becomes harder to track and in turn, resistance against them becomes more and more complicated.
A specific term that I resonate with is ‘culture jamming’, the previously mentioned article by Mark Dery describes how it was first used by the band Negativland in 1984 to describe the act of subverting hypocritical brand messages by altering billboards and other forms of media sabotage. The only way to beat them is to join them. Conceptual prankster Joey Skaggs focuses this jamming towards distrust of the press by proving to the public how easy it is for a story to break even if it never happened. As well as bringing to light the uneven distribution of entertainment compared with truth telling.
In one hoax named ‘Dog Meat Soup’ (Skaggs, 1994) Kim Yung Soo, aka Joey Skaggs, sent 1,500 letters to dog shelters asking for $.10 per pound of their unwanted dogs. On the letters, he left a phone number with an answering message in Korean and English with audible dogs barking in the background. Immediate backlash from the media, the public, and the shelters quickly turned to spread the message of misinformation on the subject. Reports stated legal action was being taken, they had talked to representatives, one reporter even stopped an Asian restaurant owner on the street asking if they had any information in an accusatory tone. Once the hoax is found out, one can recognise the prejudice and cultural biases exasperated by the gullible press. Skaggs hired press services to relay his message and wanting to profit off the story before anyone else, large-scale media broadcasters followed suit. The artist is incredibly transparent about this process, yet he has continued using his foolproof method for nearly seven decades.
If we relate this to the press’ response to celebrated awards such as the Turner Prize, we can see firsthand how there may be more motivation in covering a controversial exhibition that ‘doesn't deserve’ its praise than the positive, less clickable alternative. These patterns are becoming a fundamental backbone of our society—something that many see as unavoidable. The artists and groups that I have referenced recognise that this does not have to be the case. Thinking again about Fraser’s theories on what makes art, and the ideas I wanted to convey about perception as the artwork in my own paintings; Skaggs adds an interesting narrative to the story. That there does not have to be a physical manifestation of a work to build discourse around it.
An alternative example is culture jammer Rodriguez de Gerada, who specifically targets cigarette billboards in low-income areas (Klein, 2000, pp. 284-315). Contrary to other graffiti artists, he chooses to operate in the day, claiming the members of these neighbourhoods do not have the means even if they wanted to remove advertisements promoting unhealthy lifestyles; the artist quotes ‘‘They should have a right to talk back to images they never asked to see’ (Klein, 2000, p. 285).
The artist claims that when police confront his actions, he explains his motives and is left alone. The bold nature of his process tests systematic oppression in an insightful way. It’s important to recognise that the food of capitalism is anonymity; as long as nobody can be fully held accountable, nobody is responsible; we are all just slaves to the system, the government, the corporation, the billionaire. And so the jammer operates under the stars, slowly suggesting new ideas as old ones sit comfortably uninterrupted. That has its positives in that anonymity allows us to focus on the idea presented to us over the person who made it. However, it can also act as a scapegoat. While the empathetic man understands he should do something, the problem feels too huge and out of his control. Lacan's idea of ‘the ‘big other’ as Mark Fisher references in his book ‘Capitalist Realism’ is too out of reach (Fisher, 2009, p.50). De Gerada allows himself to be seen, and recognising the ability to make a change through individual action is the food of the empowered.
Considering the context around Keith Haring, who was loved by many but arrested on numerous occasions for vandalism along a similar vein (Haring, 1982), it may be that De Gerada's responses are representative of a wider cultural shift - where the public is more open to social alternatives. Of course, many other factors are at play, but you can also see this theory validated through the work of the Guerilla girls who were sponsored to carry out ad subversion on 10 New York billboards later; in the same city, Haring was arrested for vandalising. (Gallery 98, 2017).
My research on culture jammers has led me to think more critically about the movements I resonate with in my own work. I recognise that the ‘TRAIN your eyes’ paintings were successful in an isolated, institutional setting. But I can also recognise that my practice has led me to a broader environment. These paintings pushed me to also understand that in this case, where the message and material used in advertising is huge and in your face, it may be more impactful if a painting about them was too.
Previously, I was blocked by a financial barrier, but after a residency where I was supported by an abundance of material and studio space, I was able to move forward prioritising those aspects. As my initial foray into painting text, I also used some subtleties to protect myself from backlash, specifically the fear of someone not understanding what it meant, hiding in some ways behind the sentiment of what beautiful means rather than directly revealing the ‘ugly’ social context behind it. Considering these reflections and fewer budget restrictions, I was able to move forward with a larger project. The following piece, ‘Simple pleasures’ presents a brand identity in a more recognisable way. The font remains the same, as that of shell oil, but uses the brand colours too. The scale helps to illustrate the almost wasteful amount of expensive oil paint that was used to create a painting that consists of almost all yellow. At this point, when the painting was placed in the ‘ideal’ setting that I imagined; a white cube-esque commercial gallery in central London (below, left), was when I realised how wrong that setting was.
Left: ‘Relax’ painting exhibited in PM/AM Gallery 150x160cm Right: ‘Into the wild’ Digital photography carrying the painting photographed by Annie Jacobs
In recognising the movement of activism in art and building a deeper understanding of the nuances of culture jammers such as Rodriguez de Gerada and Joey Skaggs as well as artwork of the Guerilla Girls, I find myself moving more towards public art. I feel my art is in its truest form when it is being seen and a part of the culture it comments on. I see myself as a brand rather than an artist just as a graffiti artist has a tag or an image such as Banksy. The work was made by me but the real work is in what happens when I let it go. I have been experimenting with ideas of dissemination by leaving postcards of my works in gallery shops and leaving collages on small advertisements on public transport and an airplane. As Jacques Ranciere describes ‘In order to hold onto the experience and fraught dynamics of m
For this reason, my future research will navigate the discourse around activism in art specifically around graffiti artists and the stigma attached to them. Alongside this, I will focus on text in art, more specifically the group ‘Art&Language’ who brought together ideas of how we define art through words and material in a post-Duchampian society (Lake, no date). And what followed, with the establishment of ‘The Fox’ Journal and the opposing views of the collective of the original UK group compared with the US. While the UK group was intent on its focus on art, the US Journal believed in an approach where commentary on the art sphere is inherently also about society. An Artforum article paraphrases Sarah Charlesworth’s article in Vol.1 of ‘The Fox’; ‘Art exists in an integral relationship with a definitive social and economic reality. The sooner that artists acknowledge this dependence, the sooner they will come to realize that they are all part of a larger community.’ (Alberro, 2003) I resonate deeply with the urge to recognise the parallels; so we can break down the walls that present art as an exclusive club where you are or are not a member, but instead as a reflection of human existence.
Art&Language: ‘Secret Painting (Ghost)’, 1968 and ‘Painting/sculpture’ 1967 (Object, Body, and Space (2024))
As Nicola McCartney suggests in her book Death of the Artist, the use of text further asks the question, ‘Does art have to be visual?’(McCartney, 2018, p.62) Maybe art theory is a stand-alone work, and experimentation in removing as much visual ambiguity as possible is a way to build philosophical discourse in an open, accessible way.
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