2011 No2
April / May
Something, somewhere, seems to have gone seriously wrong, if we look at the glee with which political parties of the right are taking the axe to art. We can conclude that the lobby for the arts over the last several years, if there ever was such a thing, has failed. Art is suddenly counted as a greedy parasite, devouring subsides as it sits myopically in its own little world. It seems to have utterly lost the esteem in which society once held it.
The Dutch cultural critic Bas Heijne wrote about this in a recent issue of the weekly De Groene Amsterdammer, which was devoted to the disappearance of the elite. Heijne claims that everyone in the arts has been asleep, failing to realize that political interest has been absent from the concert halls for years now, while premières of Joop van den Ende's popular musical productions keep pulling in the crowds.
The art world has failed to look beyond its own back yard, and it is a sign of a much broader malaise in Western societies. As optimistic as the spirit of the times was in the 1990s, it is equally pessimistic today, with Western societies apparently having lost all control. In the visual arts as well, all kinds of large and small disasters are leading to a rather fatalistic perspective.
Nonetheless, as Antje von Graevenitz makes clear in this issue, it would be far too simple to take the current preoccupation with failure in the art world as a topical socio-economic commentary. Failure has always been an important philosophical motif, with a history that goes back centuries and mythological origins. Fallibility is ultimately human. So too is our fear of failure.
This issue of Metropolis M is not all melancholy. We pause to look more deeply into the work of Christopher Williams, an artist’s artist, who is not especially well known in the Netherlands, but who has nonetheless been extremely influential, and we review the success of the Dutch photography book, a bright little light in darker days.
Exhibitions have increasingly become a topic of investigation. Afterall Books have just launched a new series of case studies, Exhibition Histories. An interview with Teresa Gleadowe, Research Consultant and Series Editor.
The Battle of the Narratives
02/05/11 BAVO
Dutch research bureau BAVO reflects on the possibilities for political art in times of political populism.
10/05/11 Domeniek Ruyters
The idea of failure is attracting great interest, not only in society in a broader sense, but also in art. A recently published book about failing in art comes to a surprising conclusion.
02/01/12 Coline Milliard
Exhibitions have increasingly become a topic of investigation. Afterall Books have just launched a new series of case studies, Exhibition Histories. An interview with Teresa Gleadowe, Research Consultant and Series Editor.
COLUMN
