Reading Karl’s latest post about Ultra Minimal Non-Conceptual art got me thinking a bit about where we are headed as far as art movements go. Here is my view.
Please bear in mind that this post was purely based on my ideas and observations and at most the product of an effort to understand the art world better. Hopefully I have managed to convey some sense, but if not, my sincere apologies.
Since a picture is worth a 1000…, I created a little graph to clarify the thinking a bit further and here goes…
All the movements depicted in the vertical axis depict major modern movements that captivated and channeled artists and society. It lasted roughly from 1880 and is deemed to end about now… The horizontal axis indicates a perceived degree of satisfaction that society might have obtained from each of these movements (again, the data here may be a bit non-empirical).
Pre 2000:
All of the major movements before Y2K had their genesis in times where differentiation and specialization of society/life/culture was minimal. In my view, societal satisfaction with ‘art’ levels were on an average, pretty low – a small group of people who were ‘in’ on the arts got to dictate and form the majority opinion with which the excluded played catch up years down the line.
Now:
We live in an age today where most areas we encounter have associated specialties and super specialties. We have morphed into a culture where we can all tailor, stitch and suit ourselves in our little fantasies. We can create, indulge, live and breathe our own private wishes and be coddled by attendant purveyors of the same if we have the means to pay for the comforts.
The art movements pre Y2K were less appreciated by the society at large because it did not have the level of personalization that can be inducted in the upcoming arts of today – a look at some of the burgeoning art of hactivism, animated gifs and second life are but small examples. The ‘new’ art will involve ever smaller groups of people who will seek out their own creative urges, use the necessary tools to pursue them and have a dedicated following devoted to the ideas expressed by the group.
The era of Individualism (or specialized personalized art) is here. An era where satisfaction levels would be higher among smaller groups of followers in the society: but with a difference – the avenues and means to express oneself creatively having exploded would naturally foster larger numbers of specialized groups to create or follow their own artistic movements (either contributing, collecting or enjoying). When the numbers of such groups increase due to lower barriers of entry (you can sit at your computer, create art and share it with millions worldwide at the click of a button), it would naturally translate to a larger percent of society gaining satisfaction through pursuit of these fragmented but tailor-made individualistic movements.
Note:
VIDA 10.0 is an international competition created to reward excellence in artistic creativity in the fields of Artificial Life and related disciplines, such as robotics and Artiftcial Intelligence.We are looking for artistic projects that address the interaction between “synthetic” and “organic” life”. In previous years prizes have been awarded to artistic projects using autonomous robots, avatars, recursive chaotic algorithms, knowbots, cellular automata, computer viruses, virtual ecologies that evolve with user participation, and works that highlight the social side of Artificial Life. Applicants should refer to awards previously granted at VIDA’s web page to determine suitability of their project.
Sunil,
Your graph would be more satisfying if you painted it in your own individualistic style, rather than presenting it in generic Microsoft. That’s so pre-2005!
But seriously, I think you have an excellent point that the art world, like other worlds, will be fragmenting in the way you suggest, facilitated of course by the web. Will we feel a loss of common culture? I don’t know. It might be worth it for the greater connection among individuals across cultures. Participation in a group blog like this one is a way to get a feeling for some of the possibilities.
Sunil,
Isn’t the point of an art movement, as shown through history, supposed to be exclusive? I think that your perception of “ever smaller groups” forming is right on, but simply how a movement begins–five people doing their thing, they have a group show, and its hailed by the New York Times (e.g., Richar’s post about The Times’s Gay Art Movement)
I would think that the Pop movement was super fun, especially for everyone living in that period of time aside from Andy, Roy, and Keith. The Pop Art art movement is a part of society that makes up the entire Cultural movement of the moment.
I kind of disagree that a movement of Individualism, as you define it, is here. In fact, perhaps Individualism is here, but just not as you define it. I don’t believe what you said is necessarily the definition of the movement, but more simply, a way people interact with art. It’s true that access to art is way easy, but small groups of artists will always be present. Imagine if something becomes really popular on the Internet? That, I believe, is when the movement is formed.
I am by no means an Art Critic, one who can eloquently write about a growing art movement, but I’ve attempted to rally the ranks with my own blog post and start a group that could ultimately start a movement. You might find it interesting, as my the first two lines state: “I’m interested in the direction pop culture is moving. It’s very apparent that there is an American cultural stress on the individual”.
Sunil:
I’m surprised that you neglected to include Individualistic Art Movement “F”.
Please listen to the man – I do. steve would like you to re-cast your graph in your own style. The one you have up is so July 19, 2007, 2:07 p.m. Play your cards right and the IAM “G” can be all yours.
Reminiscence time: it’s 1969 or thereabouts, and the art school student body would hurry to the library for the art mags just in – Artforum especially.Therein they would find identified the newest pole stars and where in the sky to find them. It was a rat race keeping up.
Steve,
I think blogs, group exhibitions around themes, meta aggregators and like phenomena would rule the fragmented but exciting world of tomorrow.
Jeffrey,
Isn’t IMyYou another example of what I just talked about? Or maybe I did not understand the concept behind IMyYou…
Jay,
As cheese tends to come multiple flavors, textures and varieties these days, the rats racing for the cheese also tend to indulge in ever more sophisticated race patterns…
Sunil,
iMyYou is totally in the same vein as your idea of Individualism. However, your descriptive post, to me, seems to discuss the way a movement (specifically Individualism) is formed (e.g., “the ‘new’ art will involve ever smaller groups of people…”, “an era where satisfaction levels would be higher among smaller groups…”, and “When the numbers of such groups increase…”) rather the about the concept of Individualism. Your descriptive cultural perception reveals the necessary steps towards the creation of the Individual Movement (like whatever cultural precursors led to the Pop Movement or the Conceptual Movement), but I don’t believe you necessarily describe what artistic elements make up the movement. What are the colors of the movement and why? What media are being used in the movement and why? Sure, any color and any medium could be used, but I think the trend within that movement that the artists subscribe to is what defines that movement.
“The era of Individualism (or specialized personalized art) is here.”
Sunil,
Didn’t this begin a long long time ago?