And Does It Need a Kickstart Forward?

proactivity in art AND DOES IT NEED A KICKSTART FORWARD?

A C A D E M Y O F F I N E A R T S I N G D A N S K

AUTHOR Michelle Tylicki Masters Thesis 2010 PROMOTOR P r o f . N i e c z y p o r o w s k i idea

If you believe in evolution then anything 100,000 years ago then we should agree that human kind -when the individual was at the whim is not finite. We have not reached the of the collective (survival of the fit- ultimate form of our species and no test). Then, it was efficiency: social such thing may actually exist, but it adaptation, dominance, war, preda- is possible to say we are definetly ad- tion. If we try too look beyond this, vancing in some direction. With the the future evolution would give us the communication technology advances traits that bring tendencies of truth, such as the guttenberg press, radio & justice, freedom and peace because television and most recently, the inter- these are necessities. those who have net, we are all connecting on an expo- already aquired such traits (be it na- nential level. We are an extraordinary ture or nurture) have the responsibilty collective consciousness. this aware- to pull the rest of mankind forward ness of our existence and information -away from what would distroy it (as demands responsibility: the ability to the future may seem dark and doomed decide who we are in the world com- for many)- which is due to an unsus- munity, which sets an example and tainable human population that leads further shapes the future of our kind. to injustices such as war, poverty, and the exploitation of nature which we If one looks at the high- have sprung from but still depend on. lights of human development, evolution can be put on a linear times- As one of my favorite utilitarians once cale: 2,000,000,000 years for life, held the idea that: 7,000,000 years for the hominid, “No great improvements in the lot of man- 100,000 years for man kind as we kind are possible until a great change takes know it. Further we develop: agricul- place in the fundamental constitution of ture 10,000 years, scientific revolution their modes of thought.” 400 years and 150 for the industrial revolution. We can see the further ex- That being said, ponential advancment in time. This “Everyone who recieves the protection of so- means we should be able to see dra- ciety owes a return for the benefit.” matic anthropological transforma- tions within our lifetimet1; within one and this requires the understanding generation’s worth the human popula- where tion has doubled. “A person may cause evil to others not only by his actions but by his inaction, and in With much independence either case he is justly accountable for the from surviving the external (most of injury.” us have, to some extent, satisfied basic needs such as housing and food), it is -John Stuart Mill (1806 – 1873) more of an individual process rather English economist & philosopher

1 Waking life. Richard Linklater. Fox Searchlight Pictures, 2001. Throughout our short history are worried that we don’t exist -He- Today we have quite the op- This brings me to the main idea be- of ‘civilized’ man, the powers to be have gel. Seeing and communicating with posite in obvious forms. Beauty and hind my written venture: always wanted us to be passive observ- each other are what form the unique virtue are not parallel. In a simple ers. Even now, in the supposedly dem- experiences that condition the out- example: dexterously designed public Art can be an influential vehi- ocratic parts of the world, we are given come of our person. In contrast to billboards evoking an attractive air cle for taking important issues into the no other options except for the purely new and abstract forms of communi- to a man smoking a cigarette. Even mainstream – reaching beyond bor- symbolic participatory act of ‘voting’. cation such as writing or mathematics though everyone is aware of the dan- ders and backgrounds to collaborate, The ways of the world seem beyond us, which are much more demanding. gers, such as a painful death, young inspire and communicate to all sorts even to such an extent that it is not the Hence the popularity of Arts such as people continue to light up to such of people, and in all sorts of ways.2 people who decide upon what resourc- music, dance, film, and media like persuasion. Other examples of artis- es are worth war, and for what reason television and internet as sources of tic propaganda include how the Nazi “The situation which we face as humans they will be giving away their life. information. And hence the lack of regime used design to a tremendous demands to be matched at every level; philosophical, political, pragmatic and Yet we should never simply write our- interest of hard, written facts (such as effect. From the agressive use of the personal. The role of art institutions is selves off and see ourselves as a victim threats shown by climate change sta- colors red, white and black in the SS now truly cultural; to create the culture of various forces. Its always our deci- tistics) by the majority of the human logo, unforgettable and powerful swas- which nurtures nature, not only human sion who we are. And we are remind- population. Here we are caught in a tika, to fascist architecture of Goering. nature but all forms of nature. This is ed of the power of such awareness place where the importance for glo- Or late Gothic Cathedrals, revolution- neither a hobby nor a luxury. It is not a Status-Impact Event. It is an exigency through even the most hopeless times, bal sustainability and survival are not ary structures of their times, (“How?,” which affects everything, from the blunt by individuals who break through, recognized as priorities in comparison thinks the uneducated farmer of the demand for emissions- reductions with- such as Nicolaus Copernicus, Ma- to the more trivial yet more capturing medieval ages, “Does a stone stay in in institutions to the tenor of our lan- hatma Gandi, Martin Luther King, forms of short term entertainment. the sky above my head? -It must truly guage and the cast of our thought.” Jr., Marcel Duchamp and other he- That, which convinces and is most re- be a work of God!”) to them it was an -Jay Griffiths3 roic activists/revolutionary thinkers. ceived, is the sensori-emotional values unexplained phenomenon to build a And the power of an individual is one of aesthetic hedonism. stone roof -espcially that of a Gothic In Buddhist thought, the sec- thing, but the power of a collective Cathedral. This is really putting the ond noble truth is that the root of suf- is eccential to attain any further de- The Greeks would not dis- artificial in art. fering can be defined as the craving velopment towards a liberated world: tinguish beauty from virtue -to them for or clingin to the wrong things. So Taking examples from movements it was a unified ideal. The life of an It is safe to infer that the moral aquisitivness and searching for stabil- towards the eradication of slavery, individual was to be based on the value of a piece for art/design working ity in this constantly shifting world emancipation of women and the Ani- same values as those of aesthetics (it as a rhetorical device wholly rests in results in unhappiness. One obective mal Liberation Front... is important to note that the can- the fact that it has this content. And of meditation is to free oneself from non for art of the time was based on that real beauty lies in truth. habitual states of mind like greed Which brings me back to the premises such as proportion, har- and delusion that cause us to suffer. potential of communication vehicles. mony, and nature). The creation of But here it seems I am rejecting Probably the most easily assimilated such art required extraordinary artis- the power of Aesthetics. That beauty The philospher Schopenhauer senses are of the audio-visual recog- tic abilities and ambition. This tran- has too often been a tool of deception also identified happiness as the absence nition. In the course of the 100,000 scribed into the living ideal demands to be valid any longer. Now I would of suffering with a fatalistic approach. years of homo sapien development we great efforts of considering actions like to argue quite the contrary. Since He considered we do not control over have learned to create meaningful re- and their consequences, rather then art is often more accessible than ster- may of circumstances and argued that lationships in life by exercising these the easier, passive approach, which ile intellectual treatments it is possible desire is a source of pain because it stimuli and gestures. Until we are not leads to a life of dissatisfaction (lack that when these two communication makes us see our present situation as acknowledged by another person we of control) and evential doom of man. mediums are combined, they can have lacking in some way. He concluded, a very powerful effect. however that if we feel no desire, we are also dissatisfied because we are bored. by this he meant, that we feel a different absence, that of desiring.

2 www.fritzhaeg.com/writing/frieze-oct2009. html 3 CEO Julie’s Bicycle Fredrich Nietzche took this I would like to resist this say- idea further, arguing that since when ing art should be accessible and per- we are bored we say we have nothing vasibly placed. That art should facili- to do, rather than nothing to desire, tate a consciousness where people are the boredom stems from wanting de- prepared to discuss ideas rather then sires because they give us something desire another excessive unnecessary to do. we also feel bored when we are decoration. engaged in unchallenging pursuits, so Nietzsche argued that we desire resist- Art that is thought provok- ance in our activites so that we can feel ing rather then possecion provoking. empowered when this is overcome.4 Hegel once said: “Art will become philosophy”.5 It is easy to see how Nietzsche’ss theories relate to the practice of pro- It’s not the job of art to solve active art. There surely is a resist- problems, but the artist who responds ance that we can tackle, something to his or her time can help us feel the that we do not agree with and wish truth of the moment, which may be an to see changed. There is undoubt- end in itself, or the start of something edly great satisfaction to be had from else... spreading awareness or showing a solution to a problem. There is a re- Visual art has for centu- sultantant sense of achievement and ries been used to persuade, edu- empowerment, although it is tempo- cate or control. With greater free- rary, that is as Nietzsche described. dom, artists have deliberated about the appropriate use of their skills Further, it is possible to criti- and expanded means of expression. cize art being persued by the artist for, Let us now look at profound examples as mentioned earlier, aesthetically he- in the history of art and philosophy... donistic reasons. I could go as far as ridicule instant gratification of ‘art for art’, calling it old fashioned, as it has become more like a luxury, rather then a functional, communicating vehicle, with a concept to be delivered. As Karl Marx calls it, a comodity fetishism, in his critiuc of political economy. Art has become an embellisment and decoration to be appreciated for its luxu- rious state for the consumption of the wealthy.

4 Good: an introduction of ethics in graphic design 5 Dzieje Szesciu Pojec - Tatarkiewicz examples

As art is a product of its times, Goya & Picasso I will first discuss three painters, where painting as a medium was compelling The Spanish artists Franc- in their times. esco Goya, with an archetypal representation in The Third of May 1808 and Pablo Picasso, with his abstract Jan Matejko Guernica, both draw attention to the need for Pacifism by breaking away In 1866, over seventy years af- from convention. ter The Last Partician (when the in- dependent nation of Poland ceased These two paintings portray to exist), Jan Matejko paints “Rejtan the horrors of war and the suffering it - The Fall of Poland” as a reminder to inflicts on civilians. Both these works the people about how they were de- have gained monumental status, be- ceived and threatened and why Polish coming a prerpetual reminder of the lands now belonged to Prussia, Russia tragedies of war, as anti-war symbols. and Austria. They helped bring the world’s attention to the Spanish resistance to Na- The painting portrays the poleon’s armies during the occupation mortifying scene of the treacherous of 1808 and The Spanish Civil War, magnates (lords), whose self-interest, respectivly. lack of patriotism and threats from the Russians, brought them to signing the These three paintings are clear- treaty which gave up the Polish cul- ly political and socially oriented activ- ture to three foreign nations for the ism. Such was a response of prodigious next 120 years. After one thousand artists in those times... Since then, the years of existence, this single signature world has exponentially expanded and caused Poland to disappear from the changed in every aspect (from politics, world map. science, climate, to culture, philosophy and the Arts) Our modern world Featured in this painting is presents a wider scope of pressing is- Tadeusz Rejtan, a nobleman, on the sues which demand a wider variety of floor, taring his shirt open exposing his expression. chest, yelling “Kill me, but don’t kill our motherland!” His protest shows Let us now examine how influ- virtuosity and selflessness in the name ential artists are responding toglobal of saving a heritage. Though Rejtan priorities with modern creative meth- was unsuccessful in his time, painting ods. this scene, Matejko wanted to inspire the fallen Poland to keep the spirit and culture alive, and he did. The Polish legacy survived living under foreign rule with the help of faith such as what the painting Rejtan represents, but not until 1918, after World War I, did Poland regain its name. Make Love Not War The Solidarity logo was con- cieved and designed by Małgorzata During the Vietnam War, in and Jurek Janiszewski as a quick 1969, Yoko Ono and John Lennon response to the stike at the Gdansk held two week-long Bed-Ins for Shipyard in 1989. Peace in Amsterdam and Montreal, which were their non-violent ways It served as campaign materi- of protesting wars and promoting al for the revolution which overthrew peace. the Soviet-style communist state. It became popular world wide as a sym- Another artist to discuss the bol of the movement to end commu- uneccesary suffering in the Vietnam nist rule in favor of democracy. Due War is Nickt Ut, who in 1972 photo- to this strike, Poland was the first to graphed a napalm attack on civilians. gain solidarity, which posed as an ex- The photo won recogni- ample to the possibilty and then was tion and showed the world of followed by countries throughout how real the far of war was. the world (like east Germany, Hun- It is interesting to know that when Ut gary, Czechoslovakia and the rest saw the burning naked girl running of the Eastern european bloc, along towards him out of a cloud of smoke with Russia and the Soviet Union). 35 years ago, Ut’s first instinct - after he’d taken her photograph - was Another example, Johnson to save her life. He washed off the Banks creates the logo for Shelter, a napalm, wrapped her in a soldier’s reknown charity in the UK that cam- jacket and drove her to a hospital. paigns to end homelessness and bad They are close friends to this day. housing. Shelter gives advice, information and advocacy to people in need, and tackles the root causes of Graphic Design bad housing by lobbying government and local authorities for new laws Design today includes the es- and policies to improve the lives of tablishment of identification. The homeless and badly housed people. importance of easy visual recognition is vital for the success of a In 1987, Milton Glaser de- cause. Below are three examples of signs the AIDS symbol bringing its use in different areas of hardship. awareness as an attempt to halt the spread of the disease. What Barry Says Cai Guo Qiang

Another artist interested in the On a more metaphoric and less war also working in typography -this direct note, Cai Guo Qiang has created a time puts it in motion. Simon Rob- hanging installation of 99 wolves which son has created a powerful three minute could be an interpretation about our animation using dynamic typography. tendencies of war.

In ‘What Barry Says ‘ Rob- “I wanted to make something that related son describes how the United States of to the destiny of mankind. As we know, glass walls are not structural and invisibile America has an insatiable appetite for walls are the hardest to destroy. I made conflict. Since the 50’s, the USA always ninety-nine wolves. They’re moving very waged war.. This time it’s the war on ter- tightly, very collectively in a pack strongly rorism. But in Robson’s view it actually is in collision with this invisible wall. After a campaign against the opposition of the they fall down, they get up and they run around again ceaselessly, and then end the US domination of the world, fueled by cycle. I’m hoping this reflects the destiny of US weapon manufacturers. Robson calls Mankind when they make mistakes repeat- it war corporatism, a new movement edly. On the surface this looks very realistic which has captured the US presidency. and very figurative, but I’m hoping to con- As mentioned before, the future evolu- vey something more abstract, something more spiritual.” tion stems from information. As we are -Cai Guo Qiang generally censored from truth, it is important to search for it as individuals and develop our own system of judgment.

This video, due to its dynamism and short time span, has been passed along the internet via youtube and internet communities making it accessible to a large public. Helping spread different opinions on the volatile subject. The Situationists of having a central role in our advanced capitalist society. The spectacle is a fake Investigating ideas in proactive reality which masks the real capitalist art I have come upon a theoretical move- degradation of modern human life due ment which has influenced much of the to society’s passive nature. examples I am yet to discuss. Since its foundation in 1957, The Situationists, “having to do the Situationists rejected the concept of with the theory or practical activity of 20th century art that is separated from constructing situations.” important political events, as that failed to grasp the present mission of the ar- Their main goal was to obtain tistic avant-garde, and conforms to the anti-capitalism in human life, which is game of reactionaries.2 characterized by a Marxist and surreal- ist perspective on aesthetics and politics. They proclaimed these conserva- They also rejected that art be separated tive forces forbid revolutionary ideas from politics. from artists and intellectuals to reach the public discourse by attacking artworks Though based on Marxist and which express comprehensive critique of Young Hegelian thoughts, the Situation- society, by saying art should not involve ists were remarkably differently from the itself into politics. After such separation established Left, anti-Stalinist and were by the conservatives, artwork becomes against all repressive regimes.1 sterile, banal, degraded, and can be safely integrated into the official consumer cul- To them, the capitalist order ture and the public discourse, where they limited the scope of our life experienc- can add new flavours to old dominant es. For this purpose they suggested and ideas and play the role of a gear wheel experimented with the construction of in the mechanism of the society of the situations, namely the setting up of en- spectacle.3 vironments favourable for the fulfilment of such desires. Using methods drawn Debord starts his 1967 work from the arts, they developed a series of drawing from Marx, which argued that experimental fields of study for the con- under a capitalist society the wealth is struction of these situations, like unitary degraded to an immense accumulation urbanism, psychogeography, and the un- of fetishized commodities, Debord ar- ion of play, freedom and critical think- gues that in advanced capitalism, life is ing.. reduced to an immense accumulation of spectacles, a triumph of mere appearance Their theoretical work, which I where “all that once was directly lived would like to focus more on, peaked in has become mere representation”.4 1967 with the highly influential book The Society of the Spectacle by Guy De- Elaborating on Marx’s argument bord. He criticised the spectacular fea- that under capitalism our lives and our tures like mass media and advertising environment are continually depleted,

2 The Counter-Situationist Campaign in Various Countries, Internationale Situationniste #8, 1963. 1 Bandini & 1998 Preface to second edition 3 Debord 2006 Report on the Construction of Situations. 4 Debord G.E. (1967) : thesis 17, 42 Debord adds that the Spectacle is the to challenge the idea of “what’s cool,” system by which capitalism tries to hide along with assumptions about the per- such depletion. He added that, further sonal freedoms of consumption6. Cul- than the impoverishment in the quality ture jamming is usually employed in op- of life, our psychic functions are altered, position we get a degradation of mind and also a to a perceived appropriation of public degradation of knowledge. In the spec- space, or as a reaction against social con- tacular society, knowledge is not used formity. anymore to question, analyse, or resolve contradictions, but to alleviate real- Next I will explore the most ity. Such argument on the Spectacle as prominent modern examples of creative- a mask of a degrading reality has been ly infiltrating capitalism: elaborated by many Situationist artists, producing détournements of advertising Banksy where instead of a shiny life the crude reality was represented. Modern laws against activities likes vandalism have been apparently In cultural terms, the Situation- created to protect properties. ists’ influence has been even greater, if more diffuse. The list of cultural practic- Street artists like Obey (pictured es which claim a debt to them is almost on the next page as top right), Blu (bot- limitless, of which some I wish to men- tom right) and Banksy, create there own tion now. artwork in direct violation of vandali- sation laws, yet retain the concept that Applied Criticism of Capitalism there work is for the greater good. If advertising is legal then why not street art? Culture jamming, a tactic used This argument can be further expanded by many consumer social movements5, to then ask who is it that decides what we is a mechanism in which an activist at- should or shouldn’t read, the argument tempts to disrupt or subvert mainstream of censorship, and the use of advertising cultural institutions or corporate adver- and making graffiti illegal as a method of tising. Many culture jams are simply controlling the thoughts of the masses. aimed at exposing questionable political assumptions behind commercial culture “Any advert in a public space that gives you so that people can momentarily consider no choice whether you see it or not is yours. It’s yours to take, re-arrange and re-use. You the branded environment in which they can do whatever you like with it. Asking live. for permission is like asking to keep a rock someone just threw at your head.” Culture jams re-figure logos, -Banksy7 fashion statements, and product images

6 Boden, Sharon and Williams, Simon J. (2002) 5 Binay, Ayse (2005) `Investigating the Anti- `Consumption and Emotion: The Romantic Ethic Revis- consumerism Movement in North America: The Case of ited’, Sociology 36(3):493-512 Adbusters’, unpublished dissertation, University of Texas. 7 ‘Brandalism’ in the book ‘Cut It Out’ Street Art helps to demonstrate casts, the sometimes anonymous Yes the power of censorship and control Men are among the most visible and of the collective thoughts by using the effective artist-activists of our time. current methods of advertising and the Over the past decade they have fearlessly public space, often twisting and defacing taken on the world’s biggest corporations them to create a new meaning. and bureaucracies through a process they call “Identity Correction.” Masquerad- In one example Banksy is ridi- ing as official representatives at business culing the L’Oreal advertising slogan conferences and on the news, they have “Because I’m worth it” (on previous helped keep critical issues in the interna- page) and bringing an awareness to the tional spotlight. power of advertising psychology on the thoughts of the people, in this case by “Unlike Identity Theft, which criminals practice with dishonest intent. Identity insisting that a particular product is for a Correction is the art of impersonating a pow- certain calibre of erful criminal to publicly humiliate them person, and that through using the prod- for conspiring against the public good.” uct you can attain such a level of calibre. Infiltrating the elite realm of the “You owe the companies nothing. Less influential and the moneyed, cloaked in than nothing, you especially don’t owe them any courtesy. They owe you. They the sheerest layer of authority - thrift- have re-arranged the world to put them- store suits, quick-print business cards, selves in front of you. They never asked for forged press releases -these social acti- your permission, don’t even start asking for vators urge us to question where ethics theirs.” belong in our captialist-driven society. In their elaborate hoaxes and impro- “I like to think I have the guts to stand up anonymously in a western democracy and vised ranks, The Yes Men provide fleet- call for things no-one else believes in - like ing glimpses of a more humane world: peace and justice and freedom.” a hoax appearance as a DOW Chemical representative on BBC World assumes “The time of getting fame for your name on full responsibilty for the worst industrial its own is over. Artwork that is only about wanting to be famous will never make you accident in world history (which killed famous. Any fame is a by-product of mak- thousands and left over 120,000 requir- ing something that means something. You ing lifelong care) at Bhopal, India. The don’t go to a restaurant and order a meal Yes Men, posing as this representative because you want to have a shit.” describes the honest thing DOW Chem- -Banksy ical should have done over thirty years ago -liquidate funds of twelve million The Yes Men dollars to help the injured). Soon after this performance, when DOW Chemi- Along these lines are a culture cal announced that it was a hoax and jamming activist-duo consisting of Andy that they will not help those they have Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno, together harmed, created a loss in investors of 2 known as The Yes Men. Through actions billion dollars. of tactical media, primarily raise awareness about problematic social issues. Another example of their work Reaching countless people of mockery (pictured to the left) was through websites, newspapers, docu- their demonstration of ‘Survival Balls’ mentary films and television broad- on the alleged behalf of Halliburton and advanced democracies only in the dozens of other climate threatening cor- twentieth century. Here are just two of porations at a summit after Hurricane many graphic expressions of protest: Katrina. An inflatable ball-shaped -cos tume known, claiming it was a self con- The 1913 march on Washing- tained living system for surviving disas- ton was the first nationally-organized ters caused by global warming. 8 parade sponsored by the National American Woman Suffrage Associa- “We are America’s largest companies, and tion. Over 8,000 participated in the we have a plan to save you from the wide march, and thousands more gathered range of catastrophes that are likely to come from our increasingly unstable cli- to watch. When some onlookers be- mate. gan to assault women, Washington police failed to protect them. While others look to Senate bills or UN ac- cords for a climate solution, we look to our The resulting scandal proved best engineers. embarrassing to the authorities. And our expert team has come up with a The March 1913 parade captured solution in perfect accord with our values. the imagination of the Ameri- Technological. Profitable. And, dare we say, can public and became one of the 9 beautiful.” movement’s defining moments.

It is possible to see how the above men- The Guerrilla Girls are an tioned artists movements and ideas, anonymous group of radical feminist among others, stem back from the Situ- artists established in New York City in ationists, ‘creating situations’ or practic- 1985, known for posters, books, bill- ing detournement on advertisements. boards, appearances and other crea- Others include street manifestations re- tive forms of culture jamming that guarding the below subject. expose discrimination and corruption.

Trained as visual artists, their Women’s Rights first work was putting up posters on the streets of New York decrying the It is clear from the earliest gender and racial imbalance of artists records that civilizations have mostly represented in galleries and museums. regarded women as inferior, to be re- Over the years they expanded their pressed. The forces unleashed by the activism to examine Hollywood and Enlightenment and the demands of the film industry, popular culture, the Industrial Revolution led inevi- gender stereotyping and corruption tably to the emancipation of women. in the art world. They wear gorilla The fight was long and hard, with the masks in public and take the names right to vote coming to many of dead women artists as pseudonyms.

8 Keep it slick ISBN 0-929911-32-6

9 http://www.survivaball.com/index.php

Climate Change But most importantly, his ideas, which were rather controver- “Above all art distils for us our common sial and strongly parallel to what humanity; it questions and puzzles and I am trying to prove: That art- challenges. ists should have a moral responsibility to the world around them. There is a shamanic aspect to this and artists are, like shamans, movers between worlds, between the visible world Hundertwasser addressed the and the invisible one, able to heal in- idea of planting trees in an urban en- dividuals and society. Art can work vironment was to become obligatory: aboveground, in the heightened, precise “If man walks in nature’s midst, then super-realism of social portraiture, but he is nature’s guest and must learn to also below-ground, working different and deeper spells of restitution on the behave as a well-brought-up guest.” invisible realm of symbolism. His structures implemented Rebalancing the relationship between the use of live foliage on rooftops, human communities and the natu- trees growing through the in- ral world is a feature of shamanism, and artists play that same role, a role side of buildings, etc. All of which which needs and deserves public support showed his respect for nature and through policy priorities, through fund- the fact that it was here before us. ing and through recognition that this rebalancing role at the core of deep art Although Hundertwasser re- is now urgent in response to the unbal- anced chaos of climate.” jected rationalism, the straight line -kt tunstall and functional architecture1. His green roofs can be seen implemented Organic forms, a reconciliation in housing today; It works as insula- of humans with nature, and a strong tion -lowering the use of air condi- individualism -these are all themes in tioning. the work of Friedensreich Hundert- wasser (1928-2000) one of the best- It also reduces storm water known contemporary Austrian artists. run-off, provides a home for wildlife, and contributes to a clean atmosphere. Although his work as an ar- chitect can be compared to Antoni Gaudí in its use of biomorphic forms and tile mosaic works, Hundertwass- er remains sui generis, as he was the first to incorporate natural features of the landscape into housing projects.

1 Wieland Schmied (ed.), Hundertwasser 1928-2000, Catalogue Raisonné, Cologne: Taschen, 2000/2002, Vol. II, pp. 1167-1172.

A “Ghost Forest” which are then documented with haunts Trafalgar Square large-scale photographs. The particular species chosen for these temporary Recently in November last interventions were once were natives year, Angela Palmer places the stumps of, but are no longer present in, the ar- of 10 rainforest trees, complete with eas in which their simulacra are placed. their roots, as an installation around Trafalgar Square in central London to Maslen & Mehra’s animal highlight the issue of deforestation. shapes, rather than being ‘filled-in’ representations, reflect the urban en- Laser beams marked the height vironment around them --- displacing the trees would have reached in the wild their identity outwards. They are crea- in comparison to Nelson’s Column. tures which share our space, but only as cut-outs, windows, absences. These Their presence worked to high- mirrored forms call out the very thing light deforestation in countries like that has displaced them --- confront- their native Ghana which has lost 90% ing us with the the phenomenon of of its rainforest in the past 50 years. habitat loss, species driven to extinction, and our own alienation from The questioning the future of the animal kingdom and the natural these precious resources is vital. As world. vital as the air we breath and the water we drink -because rainforests are resopnsible for the filtration of these. What more demands our attention?

Other spieces threatened by extinction due to our kind

Tim Maslen & Jennifer Mehra are a team of artists based in the UK, who communicate about the natural world’s place in today’s ‘human world.’

Their Native Series also uses the mirrored sculptures of animals. Here they are placed in the urban environment as sculptural installations Green Porno “Anchovies are resources, their populations are stocks, and their abundance is assessed Isabella Rossellini, famous for with the only purpose to ensure “sustainable yields,” money for fisheries. Small fish modeling (14 years at Lancôme) and by the thousands, all looking alike... clouds acting (in films such as Blue Velvet and of protein. Although there is some truth in Death Becomes Her), now ventures into the above perspective, it hides a huge mis- creating a short television and online se- understanding: anchovy may perhaps be ries Green Porno. abundant, but are not infinite; no form of life is infinite, a difficult truth to learn. Human’s tendency to overfishing has Critically acclaimed and provoc- crashed the population more than once, ative, the series features Rossellini as she with terrible consequences for people and acts out the reproductive habits of ma- wildlife. Other anchovy populations are rine animals and insects, both scientifi- not fully exploited, meaning more damage can yet be done.” cally accurate yet extremely entertaining. -Dr. Claudio Campagna “The secret to GREEN PORNO is that they allow of us to laugh but they also As the observer is captured by communicate true scientific informa- the entertaining aspect of the short tion, because of what I learned in doing films, they are also forced to think research for this series I felt strongly that about such feats. Awareness helps us there needed to be an added environmen- tal element to really inform people how decide in our decision making. delicate the futures of these creatures are.” This brings me to the final bit She uses her sexuality in a so- of this essay, which involves my own phistaicated and entertaining manner work in which I focus on such issues to attract attention to the delicate (and that I personally find as very impotant. often very strange) lives of animals. I find it important to under- In her second series, dealing in stand that the massive exploitation particular with marine creatures which of animals for human use is inter- are massivly consumed as food such as connected with and endangers other the anchovy, shrimp and squid. In be- spheres of human life such as climate, tween the quirky acting out of their health, politics, etc. and of course the sexual roles, Rossellini includes snip- ethics of not harming helpless sentient pets of a marine biologist speaking beings. about the animal’s future: Catch pounds, even 100, may be thrown away as bycatch. As one of my Masters final projects I have created a short ani- Bycatch describes living crea- mation, Catch, about the wonders of tures that are caught unintentionally ocean life. I take you into a magical by fishing gear. Unlike target spe- deep sea world as we slowly dive into cies—animals specifically targeted for the reef full of bubbly jelly fish, fire- capture—bycatch is unwanted and of- work sea anemonies, schools of eye- ten unused and die. ballfish, mermaids, hand squid, sea- weeds of hair, tiger-toothed nautillius, My animation hopes to chan- crystal corals and so on.... The plot of nel the observer’s conscious decision the story is simple: to fascinate and about what they choose to buy and remind the audience of the beautiful therefore contribute to. Setting a per- and strange marine life which we do sonal example of being vegan is one not normally come in contact with. option. But even for those that want a The story does not end there, however. future where they can still admire and Suddenly industrial fishing nets, 100 eat fish, certain measures need to be meters wide and twenty meters high, taken in sustainable fishing methods with weights that pull them across the and we can’t count on the money- bottom floor, visciously rip through fiending fishing corporations to do the delicate and helpless aquatic jun- this. gle. The film ends with an empty cloud of dust, all that remains of the It is not only a matter of spe- once abundant, playful and magical cies extinction, but also disrupting the life of the oceans. delicate balance of millions of years worth of evolution adaptation of food This mental assult, as the world chains for other species, including we begin to explore and are captured ours. by is taken from us before we even know much about it, is exactly what To bring this closer, I used col- needs to be communicated about the lage of familiar objects to compose my threats of industrial fishing techniques creatures and the credibility of mo- like the above described, bottom trawl- tion in the medium of a short film. ing. Youtube and other internet communities help in the expansion of interest- Scientists estimate that ing visual ideas with exponential speed 230,000 marine life forms of all types (hopefully this animation can be one are currently known, but the total of them). Although it concerns us all, could be up to 10 times that number. today people are impatient to want to In the meantime we are destroying it read raw statistics about a matter like before we even know what is out there. this, and since seeing is believing, being a witness to the situation allows For every pound of seafood for the stronger assimilation of the on- that goes to market, more thant 10 going tragedies of the deep. No Blood For Vanity the matter then in normal demon- strations I have partaken in. Even The other project was a dem- after I would explain the horrifying onstration on the streets of East Lon- treatments of animals in the industry don. It was a march of animal ghosts (anal/vaginal electricution, drown- as a silent protest against the use of fur ing, gasing methods of killing as well in fashion. I created seven different as skinning animals alive as a normal animals, each with their own unique practice) though concerned, my audi- headpiece (plaster of paris with addi- ence seemed more aware of the sub- tions like branches for horns, wires for ject, with a stronger opinion on the whiskers, etc). As an alternative way of moral issues that come with such a demonstrating against the horrific fur vain choice of purchasing fur and con- industry. tributing to the massacre. People left the conversation (rather then feeling The setting was imporant: assulted about something they did not Brick Lane on a friday evening, the want to talk or think about) with an air epicenter of what is en vogue for young of inspiration, as my manifested ani- fashion people of East London. In the mal ghosts seemed more real to them midst of vanity and fur coats, strange, then before, and more in demand of silent ghosts pass the streets, showing respectul treatment. This was the type both a beautiful spiritual magic as is of peaceful provokation I was hoping unique each soul of an animal, and at for and so can say the demonstration the same time was a haunting. was triumphant.

I was hoping to fascinate those who are most attracted by the visual As a conclusion I would like -those who wear fur for that reason. to repeat what I have mentioned in To bring people forward to ask ques- the introduction: that we should nev- tions about what this is performance er simply write ourselves off and see about, instead of having to listen to ourselves as a victims of forces that preaching and usually negatively are beyond us. It has been proven in charged animal rights protestors. It history, be it in art or not, that every was successful in the fact that people individual has the power to change or stopped and were captured by the ee- influence the world they live in and it rie situation. I was ushering the pro- begins with that awareness. I feel like cession and at the same time giving in- my creative journey has just begun, formational CAFT1 flyers with a short and look forward to expanding my explanation of what the ghost animals knowledge about the world in order to represented. judge it fairly and employ my creative skills in what demands and inspires People were very positively ex- me most. cited visually and as a result openly recieved the concerning issue. They were more willing to find out about

1 Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade bibliography