Claudia Koster

QUESTION 3. The word glitch refers to an unpredictable irregularity in a system—digital and analogue alike. Explore the creative possibilities of glitch.

700 WORD CONCEPT STATEMENT

The aim of my work is to criticise consumerism and today’s profit oriented art world. Consequently the ‘glitch’ in which I am exploring is embedded in the meaning and purpose of art. Artists are able to capitalise upon the characteristics of today’s materialistic society to market, promote and sell their works. In a world engrossed by consumerism it can be argued that the main reason behind art production is commercial. This idea was first explored through “Pop Art.”

Born in the mid 1950’s the Pop Art movement marks the shift of traditional art, to art produced purely for consumption, commercialisation and mass production. As the post-war era was marked by the inevitable period of prosperity and the rise of neoliberal capitalism, a particular consumer lifestyle started to emerge throughout the world. In a society that promoted the lifestyle of leisure and consumption, material objects and consumer goods crept into the art world as never before. Immersing themselves completely into the mundane living experience, Pop artists created something that they thought were nowhere to be found within museums and galleries: artworks talking about our everyday lives and experiences. Pop Art was all about capitalism, the unlimited market, sex, spending money, having it all, and always wanting more. Borrowing on works by Warhol, I have created a stereotypical ‘pop culture’ work that alludes to the consumerist lifestyle that coincides with this movement. Bright, distinct colours are a typical feature of pop art, consequently I used photo shop to colour an original photograph of a horse to red, purple, green, yellow blue and pink. I was originally only working with 6 of these images however decided to reproduce the same image multiple times to correspond with Warhol’s works and the features of mass production and consumption.

My last work on the ‘glitch’ focused highly on the power of language and its various meanings and connotations. For this work, I’ve attempted to focus more on conceptual definitions rather than how words shift through letters. Joseph Kosuth’s series ‘Titled (Art as Idea as Idea)’ showcases definitions of words that look like they came from dictionaries, which he then mounted on walls similar to how paintings, drawings, or photographs would be exhibited. Kosuth’s works make the viewer aware of the multiple identities and types of existence that these various things have, as solid objects and tangible things, as mechanical reproductions that are quickly made and mass-produced, and as verbal, written, and intangible equivalents. Similarly John Baldessari makes use of words and text as he collages together apparently unrelated categories of image or motif to force us to recognize that those images often communicate similar messages. Drawing from works by both Kosuth and Baldessari I have plastered the definition of “consumerism” over my Pop Art. As such, the comparison is not drawn between consumerism and the horse but parallels consumerism and pop culture.

In order to produce a work that critiques the purpose of art production, I have explored the features of pop art, repetition, and incorporated a conceptual use of text. I believe that the commercialisation and consumerism within the art world is a ‘glitch’ as it takes away from its original values and meaning.

FINAL WORK

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Artyfactory.com. (2017). Pop Art - the art of popular culture. [online] Available at: https://www.artyfactory.com/art_appreciation/art_movements/pop_art.htm [Accessed 15 Sep. 2017].

The Art Story. (2017). John Baldessari Biography, Art, and Analysis of Works. [online] Available at: http://www.theartstory.org/artist-baldessari-john-artworks.htm [Accessed 19 Sep. 2017].

The Art Story. (2017). Joseph Kosuth Biography, Art, and Analysis of Works. [online] Available at: http://www.theartstory.org/artist-kosuth-joseph.htm [Accessed 13 Sep. 2017].

Artyfactory.com. (2017). Pop Art - the art of popular culture. [online] Available at: https://www.artyfactory.com/art_appreciation/art_movements/pop_art.htm [Accessed 15 Sep. 2017].

Beetham, D. (2017). Consumerism Explored Through Campbell’s Canned Soup. [online] Daniel Beetham. Available at: http://danielbeetham.com/essay/consumerism-explored-campbells-canned-soup [Accessed 19 Sep. 2017].

Chasseur Magazine. (2017). POP ART IN FASHION. [online] Available at: http://chasseurmagazine.com/pop-art-in-fashion/ [Accessed 19 Sep. 2017].

Heathcote, E. (2017). How Pop Art plundered consumerist culture. [online] Ft.com. Available at: https://www.ft.com/content/7d7e2344-3bbd-11e3-9851-00144feab7de [Accessed 14 Sep. 2017].

Horwitz, S. (2017). Capitalism as Art | Steven Horwitz. [online] Fee.org. Available at: https://fee.org/articles/capitalism-as-art/ [Accessed 16 Sep. 2017].

Kelly, S. (2017). Joseph Kosuth - Artists - Sean Kelly Gallery. [online] Skny.com. Available at: http://www.skny.com/artists/joseph-kosuth [Accessed 15 Sep. 2017].

The aim of my work is to criticize consumerism and the profit oriented motifs of art. Consequently, the ‘glitch’ in which I am exploring is embedded in ‘the meaning of art.’

Born in the mid 1950’s the ‘Pop Art’ movement marks the shift of traditional art to art produced to facilitate consumption, commercialisation and mass production. Drawing from works produced by Warhol, I have created a stereotypical ‘pop culture artwork’ that represents this movement and alludes to the economic repercussions and change the movement created.

I then plastered the definition of ‘consumerism’ over my ‘pop art’ work. Although it would appear that an image of a horse and ‘consumerism’ have nothing in common, it is not the subject of the work that is related but the features of ‘pop art.’ I borrowed this idea from Baldessari, as he collages together apparently unrelated categories of image or motif to force us to recognise that those images often communicate similar messages. I chose to use the definition of ‘consumerism’ after looking at Kosuth’s work to convey that consumerism is formed in the tangible construction of pop art. Kosuth’s ‘definiton’  and other similar works, makes the viewer aware of the multiple identities and types of existence that these various things have, as solid objects and tangible things, as mechanical reproductions that are quickly made and mass-produced, and as verbal, written, and intangible equivalents.

“It was the mid-1950s when the art world got a new movement which, oddly, both celebrated and criticized consumption choices and mass (re)production. The movement in question, better known as Pop art, saw familiar imagery and products around us as an inspiration – famous brands, paparazzi photos of celebrities, the visual language of advertising. As the post-war era was marked by the inevitable period of prosperity and the rise of neoliberal capitalism, a particular consumer lifestyle started to emerge in the United States. In the society that promoted the lifestyle of leisure and consumption, material objects and consumer goods crept into the art world as never before. Immersing themselves completely into the mundane living experience, Pop artists created something that they thought was nowhere to be found within museums and galleries: artworks talking about our everyday lives and experiences. It was all about capitalism, the unlimited market, sex, spending money, having it all, and always wanting more.”

http://www.widewalls.ch/consumerist-culture-art-10-artworks/

The question I am exploring relates to the ‘glitch’. The word glitch refers to an unpredictable irregularity in a system.

After looking at the works of Kosuth, Warhol and Baldessari, it can be argued that the primary purpose of art and its production is for consumerism. Personally, I think this is the ‘glitch’ in art.

John Baldessari amalgamates Pop Art’s use of imagery into many of his works. Here, I have used a photo of my horse that I have taken and edited various colours of the top in Photoshop to simulate that stereotypical ‘pop art’ style.

JOSEPH KOSUTH

Titled (Art as Idea as Idea) The Word "Definition" (1966-68) Artwork description & Analysis: After beginning his One and Three series, Kosuth wanted to further remove images and objects from his language-based Conceptual art, and this led to his Art as Idea as Idea series. In these works, he produced enlarged photostats of definitions of words that look like they came from dictionaries, which he then mounted on walls similar to how paintings, drawings, or photographs would be exhibited. He makes the viewer aware of the multiple identities and types of existence that these various things have, as solid objects and tangible things, as mechanical reproductions that are quickly made and mass-produced, and as verbal, written, and intangible equivalents. This challenges us to think of how we would define or explain simple, ordinary things that we see and use in our daily lives.

Artwork description & Analysis: In 1993, Kosuth created Double Reading, a series of about twenty silkscreen prints on laminated glass that were illuminated from behind with neon lights. In each of these works, a cartoon from a newspaper or magazine with dialogue and captions is juxtaposed with a quote from a famous philosopher, theologian, political leader, and so on. Some of these works use cartoons with lots of text and long quotes while others are quite brief. In this work, a cartoon of a man in a large office filled with rectangular furniture, lighting, windows, and doors uses his intercom to ask his secretary to bring him a "round object." This cartoon is accompanied by a short quote from St. Augustine: "Dogmas are fences around the mystery." The viewer is encouraged to contemplate the situation illustrated humorously in the illustration by comparing it to the more serious and rather theoretical text from an earlier and different time in history and culture. The multiple, complex, and variable meanings of the profound quote are made noticeable in ways that are quite gradual and subtle.

JOHN BALDESSARI

Noses and Ears, Etc.: The Gemini Series: Profile with Ear and Nose (Colour) (2006)

Artwork description & Analysis: In this piece Baldessari exposes an isolated nose and ear on a facial profile in silhouette. He views anatomical elements as singular organs, rather than organs that relate to the whole of a face or body. Context has been omitted, leaving only two sensory organs in black and blue space, and leaving the viewer to invent their own narrative to explain them. Perhaps we are prompted to associate an emotion with a color, or to think that the organs suggest facets of the figure's character. Either way, we are led to realize how many of our own assumptions we bring to the reading of images. It is an important insight that has implications for the way we look at all kinds of images. It reminds us of how we respond to cues in advertising, and of how all manner of connotations hover uncertainly around certain motifs. It also leads us to ask what great art consists of: is it a matter of vision and inspiration, or simply the skillful manipulation of codes.

Similar works- Inspiration

Ideas

ADAD1002 ASSESSMENT 1

3. The word glitch refers to an unpredictable irregularity in a system—digital and analogue alike. Explore the creative possibilities of glitch.

The term ‘glitch’ refers to a sudden, often temporary, malfunction or fault of a system. My work, ‘Lost in Translation’ critiques the ‘system’ of language and its inevitable and unavoidable flaws.

Language is communicated in many forms including speech, letterforms, emotions, various signs, symbols and even colours. It is most likely that language will be misconstrued and distorted when communicating verbally. An individual’s interpretation of language may vary from person to person. This is largely due to a variation in personal contexts and individual understanding. Similarly, many languages fall short to “untranslatability,” which refers to the instances when there is no equivalent translation in a different language. Such a glitch exemplifies the flaw in languages across the world. Speech and writing is not the only form of language that is prone to miscommunication. In a similar manner signs, symbols and colours may hold different meanings. For example various countries and cultures across the world hold various interpretations of colours. In Western cultures the colour red symbolises love, passion, action and danger, however Eastern cultures regard red to symbolise luck, prosperity and happiness. These various interpretations of colour is a typical example of how language and communication is not fluid and are predisposed to misconception.

Emulating the concept of ‘Chinese Whispers’, my work takes a somewhat comical approach to the glitches in communication and visually demonstrates how easy it is for language to be ‘lost in translation.’ The work starts with an image of a pineapple and then slowly distorted and transformed into a disparate and unrelated image (pineapple, apple, chapel, cable, carpool). The images progress from one form to the other based on what may be misheard for the last. Consequently the work demonstrates how a slight verbal misconception can lead to an extreme visual glitch. I specifically chose to present the work in black and white to parallel a newspaper- a common form of communication used throughout the world. The poster is overlaid with a translucent sheet of cardboard supported by text that mimics the same transition as the images. This is to further mimic the uncertainty and confusion of language. Essentially, my intent for this work is to reproduce the ‘glitch’ that is evident in all forms of language and communication.

Progress Shots & Final

Translucent sheet

“Editing”

Editing is defined as ‘making new meanings by rearranging or reassembling materials, texts or ideas’. Using the theme of “editing” as a starting point, I began my work with an old untouched cow skull. As such, I have reworked the form and consequently the meaning of the skull. In its raw form, a brittle, white cow skull represents poverty, death and drought. In order to adjust this perception, I painted the skull with a ‘marble finish’ to represent value. Marble is an expensive and coveted stone, very commonly used in Ancient Greek sculptures. I specifically used this finish to represent these ideas, as throughout time, sculptures, pillars, tiles and other marble goods have been associated with wealth.

Research into artists practices such as Damien Hirst and Fiona Hall, pushed me me to develop my work further. Hirst’s sculpture “For The Love of God” and its materials and themes were particularly influential in my work. Referring to the theme of ‘death’, Hirst explains that, “If you don’t like it, you disguise it or you decorate it to make it look like something bearable – to such an extent that it becomes something else.” In accordance with this idea, my skull has been transformed into something that may be deemed ‘beautiful’. The marble finish and diamantes arranged in an Aztec pattern are typical of wealth and fortune. Fiona Hall’s work “Manuhiri (Travellers)” revealed that synchronisation and cohesion are essential to unify a work. Drawing on this idea, I have configured a surrounding for the work with the same diamantes on the skull in order to create a more succinct and unified work.

The images displayed below show my final work with my intended surroundings and a close up of the detailing on the skull.

Drawing from Hirsts’ “For The Love of God”, I have continued to develop my work. With the help of a hot glue gun, I have used a similar ‘Aztec’ pattern and used ‘diamond- like’ finishes in order to ‘add value’ beyond the marble finish to the work.

Progress shot

Full view

Fiona Hall’s 2015 work, 'Manuhiri (Travellers)' is a large installation composed of found driftwood in the forms of living creatures. Halls’ work is described as 'Lopsided and incomplete they have a feeling of vulnerability, but also a grace and power reminiscent of naïve or archaic sculpture and the spiritual resonance of votive offerings'. As the various found objects are pieced together they create a work that would otherwise not have any major significance otherwise. as art. The unity of the various pieces if what makes this a succinct and unified work.

“Editing”

After receiving some feedback in class I was advised to push my concept further. Since then I have been looking at themes in art such as; death and poverty, bone artwork, and Ancient Greek sculpture. Such themes and ideas have been used by artists Damien Hurst and Fiona Hall.

Hirsts’ 2007 work “For The Love Of God” showcases a human skull covered in 3 layers of platinum and over 8,600 diamonds. Weighing a massive 1,106.18 carats, the value of the skull has been significant changed and increased. Similarly to the real cow skull that I have used in my work, the teeth inserted into the jaw are real and belong to the original skull.

‘For the Love of God’ acts as a reminder that our existence on earth is transient. Hirst combined the imagery of classic memento mori with inspiration drawn from Aztec skulls and the Mexican love of decoration and attitude towards death. He explains of death: “You don’t like it, so you disguise it or you decorate it to make it look like something bearable – to such an extent that it becomes something else

Not only does this work apply to the theme of “editing” it also coincides with my marble skull. Consequently I plan develop my marble look skull further, potentially incorporating the some Aztec elements and additional decoration.

Having previously explored the themes and ideas in ‘vagueness” I was interested in exploring another topic. “Editing” particularly appealed to me. As defined in class, editing can involve ‘making new meanings by rearranging or reassembling materials, texts or ideas’. With this definition in mind, I have taken a cow skull and attempted to recreate a new meaning. In its raw, natural state, the brittle bone symbolises drought, poverty and death. In an attempt to change the meaning of this skull I have modified/ edited its form. When I went back to my family property, in Moree, NSW I thought I might be able to find something that I could use as a medium with for the assessment. After driving around on my grandfather’s property, I found various sized skulls.

Many of the skulls were quite dirty as they had been sitting in he paddock for some time

As bone is made from keratin, I knew that peroxide would be effective to clean and white the skull. I purchased peroxide paste and covered the skull

After trial and error and some research online, I discovered that if I wrapped the skulls in glad wrap once covering them in peroxide paste and left them in the sun, they became extremely white.

I wanted to paint the skull and after painting a few, I realised bone was extremely porous. The paint seeped through the bone, the colour faded and I had to do multiple layers. In order to avoid this I needed to fill the pores in the bones. I glazed the bone with bondcrete, a paste used to fill the pores in wood before it is painted.

The idea behind my concept was to edit the meaning of the skull. The skull in its raw form represents poverty and death. I wanted to turn this perception on its head. My idea was to make the skull into something that represented wealth and value. 

Although the gold and the embellished skull are indicative of wealth, I wanted to push this idea further. I specifically chose this marble-look as I wanted to invert what the skull previously represented. Marble is an expensive and coveted stone, very commonly used in Ancient Greek sculptures. These sculptures were associated with wealth and power. Consequently the meaning of this work represents wealth and fortune.

In order to push my concept even further, I am now doing further research on the following: