看隔壁Joey说“行为艺术”,想起年初写的这篇笔记。
Pompidou doesn’t really look as grotesque as in the photos. It is like a gigantic fish tank. Anything tube-shaped looks approachable to me.
The featured exhibition that day was a collection from female artists. There was a giant poster at the entry titled “Do women have to strip to be recognized as an artist?” or something to that effect. The topic here apparently is about gender inequality. I chuckled at the idea of stripping artists, but soon I realized this was not just a figure of speech. After some nudity things got progressively raunchy. There was a gay porn featuring acrobatic positions, various forms of self mutilation (one involving a barbed wire hula hoop), and video of a girl in full frontal contemplating over a decapitated, blood-splashing chicken.
When people talk about not appreciating modern arts, (sometimes with pride, since it implies that they have a conservative view, and conservatism often suggests superiority in social status.) what is in their minds is probably the works of rather “conventional” modern artists such as Picasso or Matisse. Had they seen this collection, they would have run to the Picasso sections crying for mommy.
I am sure all these have a point, it is just the point never reached me. I think artists should refrain from using sex and violence to get people’s attention, not because they are unimportant topics, but because they are really the easiest tricks in the book --- an easy way out, if anything else fails to shock or to impress. We are living organisms, to survive and multiply is what we do, so naturally we respond to such stimuli. But then what? If the topics are about sex and violence themselves, what would you tell us that we don’t already know? If they are used as catalysts, then what are the underlining messages you are trying to send? We should always thrive to provide more – in style or in substance – than mere sensationalism.
Rarity and novelty only works when it is indeed rare and novel. Nowadays people tend to be over stimulated by the media. Exposed to anything for a prolonged period, you feel blasé eventually.
This is an age when everyone can actually get attentions from everyone, even if it is just for fifteen minutes. But to demand attention is to claim a piece of life from others. When you light up the beacon, there got to be a better reason than: “Look at me!”, or even worse: “Ha, made you look!” How can one be sure of that? I’d be in constant doubt.
- Re: the Paris notesposted on 05/14/2010
"To demand attention is to claim a piece of life from others"
---- 感激读到这样的警示之语
- posted on 05/14/2010
"To demand attention is to claim a piece of life from others"
That kind of demanding is basically cheap cheating unless the demander has his piece of life that is worth others' while to offer.
Good classical arts have something eternal in them - patience and harmony.
Life is already hard for many people who go to art studios to watch. Who in their right state of mind want to look at those noisy trash arts the purpose of which is solely to declare the artists' uniqueness and identity?
I think most people who claim that they do enjoy those noisy stuff are just pretentious ones. They are perfect match to the pretentious artists.
Joey wrote:
"To demand attention is to claim a piece of life from others"
---- 感激读到这样的警示之语
- Re: the Paris notesposted on 05/14/2010
谢Joey. 其实我想文化的“消费者”也应该承担一半的责任吧。
Shudai, I think you are a little too harsh. I'd certainly be happy to see the
artistic expressions and celebrations of uniqueness and self-identities,
but we are fooling ourselves if we believe uniqueness automatically equals
high quality.
Anyway, tastes in art are highly subjective topics.
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