THE WORK OF ART IS NO LONGER NECESSARY
Friday, October 27, 2006
Hi Gregg,Thank you for your letter. I appreciate the concern and will try to keep my response as short as possible.
I do not understand why you feel this constant need for a response to my work. In the past my production has been slightly reactionary and in turn received a lot of responses. Quite frankly, I am getting bored with this and am presently attempting to move toward something new. What that might be is still a bit unclear at this stage. I was never under the impression that there were any such requirements for the Very Real Time 2 projects.
In fact, it is my general impression that the Cape Town community are not really engaging with the project, and probably feel a bit excluded from the whole thing. It seems a bit closed off, and even to me as a local participant. It is for this reason that I decided to do my own thing, to try out different ideas of art making and see where it leads. I will list these now.
I made a well-attended and modest exhibition at Blank. I did a few braai performances at my studio. I bought some canvass and paints to see what it would be like to be a painter. I got some gear for my play station to do a night time performance for the duration of the month. I bought some new clothes as my public appearance felt a bit shoddy. I was under the impression that you would understand this kind of work.
Then there is the issue of the group dynamic and my unwillingness to participate in any of their organised activities. As I recall I invited all of them from the start to call me for a drink when needed and I have not yet had that call, only to ask for my assistance. I felt awkward around the group and really tried to engage, but it did not work. For this reason, I felt like spending less time with them. And their activities felt slightly touristy. I am not so interested in whale watching. I live here.
But this is where the project gets interesting for me. If part of the work is to develop out of some sort of social group dynamic, then how is negativity and uncomfortability a problem? I feel that this adds to the project rather than being a destructive force. And even your threat to fire me becomes extremely interesting and important. It fuels my work and at the same time develops it.
For this project I do not feel that what I am doing is worthwhile or important to anyone else but me, and as we discussed initially, you were willing to give me this time to reflect and respond to my own actions. What you are asking of me now, is to provide some thoughts as to why I feel my actions are valid, if I understand correctly. Such a response would seem like a justification in order not to be fired from the program. I have no intention of doing so.
On the topic of your paranoia of being involved in a “corrupt endeavour”, I understand your concern. But I have some ideas on the matter. Personally I am very interested in the financial matters of cultural funding in this country. We, as artists, often have to produce work with little or no money. This is primarily why my body of work has taken the route it has. I am also interested in what happens to money when it is provided for artistic projects. On a micro scale I have been involved in shows where government money is used mainly for the hefty salaries of the curators and no funding is used for actual individual projects. On a macro scale it would be interesting to see what happens to something like the Cape Biennale, after millions have been pumped into the venture (hogging most of our local cultural funding), if it will indeed happen. Therefore it is interesting to me that when you provide me with a fairly large some of money, I squander it on new jeans, lap dances and other useless things. You should not feel personally involved in a corrupt thing. It was my choice and I did it openly. And when this project is over and all the money is gone I will continue my production with zero cash. You still owe me 3K.
I am interested in what you refer to as “fuelling an inward turned and one dimensional cult of the personality.” I agree. I find this kind of one-dimensional work extremely interesting as it raises a lot of questions and discursive problems regarding the la-la-land of so-called “layered and meaningful art,” which I despise. I am a fan of one-liners as it seems less pretentious and opens itself up to criticism. This is more important as it might offer a general discussion amongst the general public and does not hide behind certain art discourses. And if I am the topic of this criticism, I will “take it like a man”.
I also feel that this does address the insecurities of art practitioners, including myself. It is not that I think that art should be ignored on purpose; I find that most art bores me. This has left some questioning my involvement in the arts. The fact is that I don’t like ‘art’. I don’t like the industry. I like the bickering, the backstabbing and constant references to: ‘but I did it first’ and ‘she stole my idea’. Basically I like the bullshit. And it is not that I really dislike all the art. I just think that my work is better.
I urge the other artists, as well as yourself, to come forward with responses.
Looking forward,
Ed
But please: Not the new Jeans.
posted by Ed Young at 2:16 PM
23 Comments:
Fuck you you motherfucking cocksucker. I'm gonna fuck you up. I'm gonna take your head and shove it up your fucking arse. And fuck the 3k. Get in the ring motherfucker, and then we see.
Ed, please spend some of the R14k (or your mom's allowance) on an english writing course. Or read a book. You can't write, you fucking stupid inbred dutchman.
It is my parents that are first-cousins. That is why Ed is stupid.
Jesus. People take themselves quite seriously!
Was anybody else bored as stiff as Ed's prose by the second paragraph? If this is "brief", God save us from him in a chatty mood.
Ed
You don't need the jeans. I like the bare feet but the jeans are totally wrong: too, too "don't worry. be happy". Too strident in their denial of Angst. Pardon me, but your layer is showing.
Mona likes your rant about curators. What other multi-million industry functions this way? Imagine, magazine publishing where the editors and janitors get paid, and the magazine showcases articles and photographs for free. Or a music industry where the promoters get all the money and the stars appear for free. Or a rocket launch. The man who counts down from 5 to 1 and presses the button takes everything ( after they have paid for the machinery and parafin), the astronauts get to ride for free.
Wierd world does work a bit this way. Mark Shuttleworth, Bono, Bloggs.
You won't shift this muck heap in barefeet. Boots might do the trick. But its much probably too late.
When art outstripped the understanding of its hangers-on ( patrons, sponsors, curators, the public) a new flash generation of curators took the gap. These Men in Black Suits (MIBs) became demi gods of the new religion - it would all make sense, yards and yards of Art, like seried Soap on a Rope, silly litle art ideas, mute vids, barnyards of unused consumer shit, sheds full , horizon to horizon. This coincidede neatly with the declining interest in formal religion and replaced Agricultural and Trade Shows , as a Place to Walk Around In.
If you think that Cape sucked up most of the Cultural Largesse this year, you aint seen nothing yet. The whole thing is very cunningly planned ( like most growth industry in SA at the moment) to exploit 2010 hysteria and divert as much swash from corporate and public coffers into a huge media frenzy which will create mega careers for the key personel in the earthly hereafter. What we saw this year was just a "look mom, no hands" promo. A teezer. The next one ( fuck "manifestation") will be MUCH bigger. And then the finale, 2010. VUVAZELA CULTURAL OLYMPICS. Its the same blueprint.
Actually whether run from a dingy office in Europe, or from a provincial beach head, its all the same, Cultural Colonial Invasion . Expeditionary Force. Except now its Post Colonial Expeditionary Force.
Heart of Drakness. Not Heart of Glass.
So where is VRT that dfferent? Smaller? indeed. Cuter? Time will tell.
Actually , Andy Warhol could not do The Sums. 15 minutes of Fame only buys you (equals) 14 Minutes of Very Real Time. 14 minutes is known in the trade as A Short Time. Like a psychiatrist's hour a bit is snipped off for dressing and cleaning up.
I want you, Edward. NOW, to repeat after me: You have been a very bad boy. You must do your homework other wise we wont all be allowed to play next time.
(Very Real Time, you see , is entirely geared to the NEXT TIME, its a conjuring trick to create The Next Time)
And you will not doubt the continuity of The Moral Universe. No Doubts.
You will write out 14,000 times: RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
etc, Ed.
I think you played a good hand, what a good deal:
14 minutes = 14,0000Rands. Brilliant!
But for God's sake dump thje jeans.
I can like to wear a jean-pant
I wish I'd thought of that
when i was at school, i fought a lot
Ed,
Have just looked at the VRT website: perhaps you are right, the work of art is no longer necessary. With a few exceptions ( ja fuck you, I'll show you my list if you show me yours first) it is all so SOFT. NUG-HEADED - if you follow me? Perhaps you should keep the jeans, at least they are a relic of a real transaction. But please don't wear them.
I liked Cinthia Marcelle's self-erasures, and Jo Connor's performance /research , but I guess you would find both these artists too layered?
Thembinkosi Goniwe's contribution reminded me of those commercials where American graduates at West Point toss their hats into the air and go "woopee" before getting airlifted to some under-armed corner of the suffering universe with God in their Balls. Why do we all have to be so clubby?
Mona you bore me
Oops Ed, you have a psychotic new fan I see. Remember fame can be dangerous.
S.C.U.M. to you anonymous
I dont see how slagging 'Mona' is support for Ed. Maybe you should stop lurking in the shadows anonymous and show your true skinny ass to the world. Psycho Bitch is out to get you!
Eventually the natural course of events, of social evolution, will lead to total female control of the world, and, subsequently, to the cessation of the production of males and, ultimately, to the cessation of the production of females
well there's a prediction without a hint of humour in it.
The elimination of money and the complete institutionof automation are basic to our reforms; without tese two the others can't take place;with them the others will take place very rapidly. The governmnt will automatically collapse. With complete automation it will be possible for every woman to vote directly on every issue by means of an electronic voting machine in her house. The elimination of males who wish to legislate "morality" will mean there will be practically no issues to vote on. Humour will be replaced by Joy.
Your mothers are already with us.
Why is it that all you stupid fucks do is sit and post such utter shit all day, like comments about Ed's hairy body parts. No offence, Ed. But geez people. Maybe if you actually stopped complaining and gossiping about every fucking thing and created useful discussion about serious and informative topics then maybe the South African artworld wouldn't be as fucking lame as it is. Stop being so fucking petty. Grow up.
I think if people really wanted to do something useful they wouldn't be artists. And if they think they are doing something useful being artists then their head is right up their ass and they have clearly never stuck their nose out of the artworld. So either way what is on this blog is not going to be anything but arsey pissing about, cos that's what art is.
The male "artist" attemts to solve his dilemma of not being able to live, of not being female, by constructing a highly artificial world in which the male is heroized, that is, displays female traits, and the female is reduced to highly limited, insipid subordinate roles, that is, to being male.
piss off bitch
'seried soap on a rope' was quite good, but what do es it MEAN, mona dear?
If you're greatest achievement is a new pair of jeans...At...least...get...some...that...are...not...shit
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