#ybas

Sarah Lucas

Mat Collishaw

'Children of a lesser God'

2007

Many of the children who lived near his studio in Bethnal Green came from broken homes and wander the streets aimlessly, looking for opportunities to relieve their boredom and poverty.

To exaggerate their feral nature, Collishaw constructed a quasi-mythological scene, resembling the story of Romulus and Remus, using modern props to re-enact an ancient fable.

   I was not aware Post modernism had so many definitions so this article was certainly an interesting read. The article mentioned Damien Hirst who is certainly one of my favorite artists that I've been writing a research paper on recently. I identified with the mentioning as I see a bit of myself in Damien Hirst as an artist personally as I’m always looking at random objects and going “how can I incorporate this into art.” 

    To me post modernism was defined well by the Young British Artists, some of which were mentioned here such as Damien Hirst and Tracy Emin.  The YBA’s sought to create shocking and raw art from non art materials. Traditional materials of high art are considered things such paint, pencil, and canvas. Things that fit neatly in a gallery setting. Post modernism seems to look at things and go “this is art because I say it is” or “this is beautiful because I say it is” or perhaps “maybe art doesn’t have to be beautiful to be enjoyed.” It takes us back to the roots of Marcel Duchamp and his Fountain. Proclaiming something is art because the artist looks at it and says that it is so. This denotes that the artist has a lot of power in their title. Post modernism challenges the tidy structure of the gallery or sometimes fits the bizarre into the gallery without the usage of paint or pencil. 

1. Escaping the Confines of Museums: Lightning Field, Walter De Maria, 1977, Pointed Steel Rods: Although this is considered an earth work it is certainly post modern in the way it escapes the museum. It is breath taking union between land and sky that pushes the boundaries of what man can make into art. 

2. Collapsing Boundaries Between High and Low art: Girl with Hair Ribbon, Roy Lichenstein, 1965, Oil and Acrylic: This painting certainly reflects cutting the boundaries between high and low art due to the fact that is produced in a traditional high art medium, but reflects the low art style of cheap comic books. Combined, it creates something new. 

3. Rejecting Originality: Estate, Robert Rauschenberg, Oil and Silkscreen ink on canvas, 1963: I Think this work reflects objecting originality well because instead of inventing things purely meant for the purpose of aesthetic the work draws off of images one might see daily. Therefore drawing from everyday culture much in the way pop art would. 

4. Jouissance: Rhythm Zero, Marina Abramovic, Performance art, 1974: It was hard to really grasp the term and the meaning of it. The most I got out of it is that it is on the verge of something so pleasurable it grasps the threshold of pain. I think Rhythm 0 portrays this well as Abramovic left people in control to do as they pleased with her. This performance brought out the true animalistic qualities of human beings with the allowance of such freedom. 

5. Working Collectively: Rrose Selavy, Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray, 1920-1921, photograph,: This is a good example of artists working together on a project. Two early pioneer’s of Dada came together to shape Duchamp’s alter ego. Duchamp posed and Man Ray snapped each and every photograph of the female alter ego. 

6. Appropriating: Campbell’s Soup Cans, Andy Warhol, 1962, Screen printing on canvas: a very well known master of appropriation, Warhol would draw artistic inspiration from pop culture, mass consumerism, and advertisement culture. 

7. Simulating: You’re In, Andy Warhol, 1967, Spray Paint on glass bottles in printed wooden crate, With this category we see Andy Warhol again as he uses ordinary items to mimic a large chunk of consumerist culture and present it as art. 

8. Hybridizing: Char Nuptial Japon, Felix Armand Heullant, 19th Century, Oil on Canvas,: a strong example of hybridization is with the art movement of Japonisme. In this painting we see a very French impressionist style that is reflecting a very Japanese cultural atmosphere. 

9. Mixing Media: Monogram, Robert Rauschenberg, 1959, Oil on canvas, paper, wood, stuffed Angora Goat, tire : This work is a prime example of mixing medias as it combines several different elements together to make something between a painting and a sculpture. 

10. Layering: Golden Future, Sheppard Fairey, 2018, Color Screen Print and Multimedia Collage, : A prime example of layering many different images to create a singular piece. 

11. Mixing Codes: Power Washer, Banksy, Spray paint and Stencil, 2008, : This work mixes codes by the washing of what would be considered priceless parts of historical and cultural history in the form of cave paintings. The work offers a commentary on what we see as art vs. what we see as vandalism. 

12. Recontextualizing: The Golden Calf, Damien Hirst, 2008, Vitrine, Formaldehyde, calf, gold, gold plated stainless steel, marble, : this work represents the taking of something mundane and giving it new meaning with added materials and a title that denotes mystical and mythological qualities. 

13. Confronting the Gaze: How much Life is Enough?, Juno Calypso, 2018, photograph, : 

14. Facing the Abject: Blood Piss Blues Series, Vincius Quesada, Blood, urine, blue paint on canvas 

15. Constructing Identities:  Alvin Baltrop, Navy Sailors, 1969--72, Gelatin-silver print 

16. Using Narratives: After the Prom, Norman Rockwell, 1957, oil on canvas

17. Creating Metaphors: The Scream, Edvard Munch, 1893, tempera, pastel, oil paint