Frameworks for the Downtown Arts Scene
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ACADEMIC REGISTRAR ROOM 261 DIVERSITY OF LONDON 3Ei’ ATE HOUSE v'Al i STREET LONDON WC1E7HU Strategy in Context: The Work and Practice of New York’s Downtown Artists in the Late 1970s and Early 1980s By Sharon Patricia Harper Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of the History of Art at University College London 2003 1 UMI Number: U602573 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI U602573 Published by ProQuest LLC 2014. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Abstract The rise of neo-conservatism defined the critical context of many appraisals of artistic work produced in downtown New York in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Although initial reviews of the scene were largely enthusiastic, subsequent assessments of artistic work from this period have been largely negative. Artists like Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Kenny Scharf have been assessed primarily in terms of gentrification, commodification, and political commitment relying upon various theoretical assumptions about social processes. The conclusions reached have primarily centred upon the lack of resistance by these artists to post industrial capitalism in its various manifestations. My investigation engages in a debate with these texts by challenging these assumptions by which the downtown artists have been understood. I address the work of Richard Bolton, Suzi Gablik, Hal Foster and Craig Owens, amongst others, by critiquing their differing conceptions of structure and agency and introducing the analytical dualist approach of sociologist Margaret Archer, one which theorises the agency of social actors within social structures in a superior manner. After making my case, I investigate five economic and political conditions facing these artists, including corporate expansion, entrepreneurialism, the entertainment industry, the rise of the neo-conservative political agenda and the struggle for dominance amongst critics themselves. In each, I investigate the production and distribution practices of a wide range of downtown artists in relation to the historical context, from groups such as Colab and PADD to individuals including Ann Magnuson, David McDermott, Jenny Holzer, Richard Hambleton, John Fekner, Jane Dickson and David Wojnarowicz, in order to illuminate the relationship between such practices and the social structures which shaped such activity. In so doing, I conclude that artists were both constrained and enabled by these contexts, thus providing a more complex picture of their place in art history. 2 Table of Contents List of Illustrations ..................................................... 4 Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... 5 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 6 1. Theorizing the Social Context: Frameworks for the Downtown Arts Scene ................ 14 2. “High art, high rise, high finance”: Investigating the Impact of Corporate Expansion.. 37 3. Production and Distribution I: Horatio Alger in Downtown New York.... ..................... 67 4. Production and Distribution II: “Let me entertain you” ................................................. 90 5. “It’s Morning in America”: Investigating the Impact of Macro-Political Change 114 6. Team Tactics: Blood, Sweat and Tears on the Critical Battlefield ............................. 143 Appendix: Illustrations ...................................................................................................... 176 Bibliography ........................... 203 3 List of Illustrations Fig. 1 Keith Haring, Absolute Vodka advertisement.................................... 176 Fig. 2 Cindy Sherman, Comme des Gargons advertisement ..................... 176 Fig. 3 Andy Baird, the Real Estate Show poster ............................................ 177 Fig. 4 John Fekner, Decay........................................................................... 178 Fig. 5 John Fekner, Broken Promises........................................................... 178 Fig. 6 Jane Dickson, Paradise Alley, Peep Land, Frisking............................. 179 Fig. 7 Keith Haring, chalk drawings ............................................................. 180 Fig. 8 Jenny Holzer, Abuse o f Power............................................................ 181 Fig. 9 Scot Borofsky, Dog-o-d...................................................................... 182 Fig. 10 David Wojnarowicz, untitled .............................................................. 182 Fig. 11 Rhonda Zwillinger, Post Minimal Glitz................................................ 183 Fig. 12 Kenny Scharf, Controlopuss............................................................... 184 Fig. 13 Duncan Hannah, invitation ................................................................ 185 Fig. 14 Mark Kostabi, with products .............................................................. 186 Fig. 15 A. More storefront ............................................................................. 186 Fig. 16 Christy Rupp, catalogue mock up for Rats......................................... 187 Fig. 17 Keith Haring, crib ............................................................................... 188 Fig. 18 Rhonda Zwillinger, piano ............................................................... 188 Fig. 19 Mark Kostabi, as ‘St. Market’ ............................................................. 189 Fig. 20 David Wojnarowicz, untitled .............................................................. 190 Fig. 21 Jean-Michel Basquiat and Kool Kyle in Downtown ‘81 ..................... 191 Fig. 22 Jean-Michel Basquiat and Debbie Harry in “Rapture” video 191 Fig. 23 Phone-in on TV Party......................................................................... 192 Fig. 24 A. More store advertisement .............................. !............................ 193 Fig. 25 Klaus Nomi ........................................................................................ 194 Fig. 26 Kenny Scharf, Jungle Jism.................................................................. 195 Fig. 27 Dan Cameron, Three Mile Island Lamp............................................... 196 Fig. 28 Kenny Scharf, Escaped in Time; Very Pleased..................................... 196 Fig. 29 Ann Magnuson, ‘Tammy Gets an Emmy” ....................................... 197 Fig. 30 Keiko Bonk, Love Tragedy 1................................................................ 198 Fig. 31 Elizabeth Taylor and Spencer Tracy in Father o f the Bride................ 199 Fig. 32 Rhonda Zwillinger, The Promise.......................................................... 199 Fig. 33 Jean-Michel Basquiat, Natives Carrying Guns, Bibles, Amerites on Safari 200 Fig. 34 Jean-Michel Basquiat, Hollywood Africans......................................... 200 Fig. 35 Fashion Moda, Food fo r the Soup Kitchens exhibition poster ............... 201 Fig. 36 Keith Haring in a tar and feather attack ............................................. 202 4 Acknowledgements As is the case for so many academic projects, my list of acknowledgements could carry on ad infinitum. Limited by space, however, I will simply mention key people who I feel deserve special thanks. To begin with there are those who helped keep me afloat financially while I pursued my ambition to complete a PhD. My main source of income came from a full studentship from the Arts and Humanities Research Board to which I am very grateful, not least for accepting my proposal as a worthwhile academic project. I would also like to thank Briony Fer and Sheila Ollin, both of whom facilitated my entry into academic teaching but were fastidiously conscious of the priority given to my research. In addition, Paul Lewis and Mike Fisher, my employers the Natural Grocery Store, were supremely flexible, bending to accommodate my every request for less work, more work or different hours. My project, of course, would not have taken shape without the input of both academics and artists alike. Through conferences and interviews I was able to gain valuable insight and advice on my area of research. In this respect, I would like to thank Meg Cox, Crash, Tom Gretton, Jenny Holzer, Anthony Hudek, Jeannette Ingberman, Nancy Jachec, Liza Kirwin, David Little, Alan Moore, Walter Robinson, Christy Rupp, Kenny Scharf, Greg Sholette, and Marvin Taylor amongst many others. Additionally, I would like to thank the staff at the Fales Special Collection at NYU, at the Smithsonian, and at the New York Public Library, who were so helpful when I was sifting through archival material. I also owe a great deal to the excellent supervision I received at UCL by Andrew Hemingway. He understood my position and my aims and always demonstrated his belief in my project. Most importantly, he instinctively knew when to encourage,