Crossing Boundaries
In a world with ever-growing complexities, the challenges which artists face today include that of exploring ideas outside of their comfort zone and fully utilising their wealth of resources. A response to this is the development of multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary practices within the art world. As stated by Katja Fleischmann in ‘Creative Exchange: An Evolving Model of Multidisciplinary Collaboration,’ traditional creative arts practices do not sufficiently reflect the evolving contemporary work practices; it is instead these new hybrid of practices which demonstrate the vast diversity that is now present within all areas of life. (Fleischmann)
In the past, the art world was displayed much like rigidly separated genres. This is evident in the way we categorize artists from history within the art gallery space. Each piece of art, and each artist, was placed into an easily distinguishable box. The artist was shaped by their materials and vice-versa. During the revolution of modern art, however, this hierarchy that existed between mediums was sought to be broken. It began with the craft systems which became rejuvenated during the early industrialisation of society, through designers such as William Morris. It gained further footing through the Bauhaus. Since its establishment, the Bauhaus has become an icon due to its desire to destroy the established hierarchy through its multidisciplinary collaborative approach. In the contemporary world, artists are now, more than ever before, pushing the boundaries. There is an entire generation of artists that have grown in an environment where disciplinary lines are crossing. A much wider division of labour now exists within the process of creation, and vast diversity because of it.
By nature, artists are explorers in experimentation and therefore the mediums should also share that exploratory nature. By applying our already established interests into an unknown medium in order to explore new results and expand knowledge, we can further enrich our visual language. By taking the ideals and markers of one discipline and employing those principles into the world of another, artists allow a broader view of perspectives in all of the abstract, poetic, and literal senses.
In the contemporary world, the distinguishable Museum of Modern Art is recognising the need to depict artworks less in categories and more in the whole context of their histories. To quote MoMA’s chief curator of painting and sculpture Ann Temkin, who stated that the museum is “reflecting a more widespread shift from thinking in categories — or thinking in so-called canonical narratives — to thinking about multiple histories. Having a sense of curiosity, rather than a desire for pronouncement.” Even galleries today are adopting different ways of thinking.
