From Prominence to Obscurity: Keith Arnatt's Transition from Conceptual Art to Photography MA, Bisera Ikanović MA, Lamija Hatibović University of Sussex Alumni University of Sarajevo Alumni Currently residing in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina Abstract— The article will show Arnatt’s transition from a II. COMING TO THE IDEA prominent conceptual artist to an unknown photographer. It will The art scene witnessed a great number of art movements analyze Keith Arnatt’s photographic work and put it in a context th of both his own artistic career and the artistic movements at the in the 20 century. Never before were there so many time of their creation. Parallels between absurdism, paradox, distinctively different artistic creations in such a short time humor, originality, perversity and the painterly characteristic are span. Each of them negated the former movement and most of all words are shown in his works. Two exemplary photographic them lasted for less than a decade. One of those ‘movements’ is series will be analyzed in order to reflect the former: Pictures Conceptual art. Perhaps it should not even be referred as a from the Rubbish Tip and Notes from Jo. movement, since the artists of this period were not considered to be a group. Their styles and ideas greatly differed from one Keywords – Keith Arnatt, conceptual art, photography, another. However, for the lack of a better expression to address this artistic style, the article will refer to it as a movement. I. INTRODUCTION In the British art community, Keith Arnatt was considered Up until a decade ago, not many people were familiar with to be one of the most respected artists of modern British art. the term Conceptual art and even less with the basic principles of the movement in question. It seemed to be lost in the sea of Recently, the respect has started to encompass his photographic th career as well, although perhaps still not in the scope that one numerous art movements of the 20 century. However, the might feel it deserves to. Arnatt’s photographic work is known reason for its growing popularity, now almost fifty years later, amongst the art scene, where his audience at the beginning could be attributed to the changed understanding of its role. consisted mainly from “photographic buffs, people who are Moving from a philosophy which associated art directly with knowledgeable in photography and the history of photography” an object to a, philosophically, more abstract concept of [1], with only a handful of art critics and artists alike that felt associating art with the idea for the artwork, not the object confident enough to discuss the work and interpret it. The itself. Putting painting and sculpture away from the limelight of possible reason for the public’s unawareness of Arnatt’s the art scene provided more space for other art forms to photographic work may lie in the rather small amount of develop. These new art forms refrained from the traditional exhibitions of his work. materials and instead used “photographs, film, sound, light, earth [and even] artists themselves” [2]. Today, not many books are written about Keith Arnatt and even less about his photography. Most of the information about Keith Arnatt was one of the pioneering conceptual artist, his work can be found in various catalogue articles and several not just in Britain, but a world-wide. He is considered to be one essays. Although the essays written in these catalogues shed of the first people who started to question the function and the some light on his pre-photographic and touch upon some of his role of the artist. Art critics of the time connected this issue photographic work, they are limited in information. Thankfully, with Barthes’ idea of the “death of the author” [3]. However, Arnatt was an artist who, even though he seemed to care little one must keep in mind that Keith Arnatt was original in his about the success of his work, did not mind discussing his ideas, a characteristic defined by his personality which was work with others and when doing so, he was very clear about such that many describe him as a person that “if anything is his ideas and accomplishments, thus reducing the possibility of popular then [he] would want to go the opposite way” [4]. He others misinterpreting it. However, this is more applicable to was not what some might consider a follower, but instead was his early works than for his photographic work. Due to the fact the one that created paths for other artists to follow. The fact that at that time photography was not considered to be a form that he was a world-wide renowned conceptual artist is not of art or, at least, any form of serious art, artists that were surprising. At the time, Britain was not the center of raising associated with it were usually quickly disregarded. In the artistic movements and it was even easier for him to establish second half of the 20th century photography became a more himself as a promising artist abroad. According to The New Art prominent medium, but it was usually used in combination catalogue, although people could read all about the artistic with other mediums, rarely on its own. So how did Arnatt go novelties in popular art magazines of the time, most of them from being a known Conceptual artist to an unknown coming from America, in reality people have “seen very little photographer? of it” [5]. According to a letter written by Anne Seymour to Keith Arnatt, Tate decided in 1972 to start the “first stage of a project, it is particularly interesting that during the nine days push to expand [their] collection somewhat in the direction of that the project was taking place, the TV program schedule was the ‘New Art’” [6]. printed on the back of each shot, or vice versa, depending on one’s stand and point of view. There are numerous accounts of Conceptual art was not what one might consider an Arnatt’s Self-Burial, which vary in their claims relating to the immediate success. In America it seemed to be progressing at a duration of the TV screening. Some reports claim that each faster pace and was appreciated by the members of the art photograph was presented on television for two seconds [15], scene, but the movement did not find the same acceptance with while others claim that each photo was presented for four the everyday visitors. Many art gallery visitors seemed to be seconds [16]. unable to understand the concept of art-as-idea and demanded to see more ‘artistic’, not intellectual, artifacts. In its essence, So, what would be the most appropriate description of these Conceptual art was the art of intellect. Aesthetics was not a photos? Ian Walker, for example, describes them as “static priority to conceptual artists, as it was to their predecessors. images, lugubriously deadpan in their very stillness, pretending The idea and the explanation behind the artwork is what to be ‘stills’ prom some probably very slow event” [17]. mattered and what made the created piece - art. Evolving from Richard Cork considers the Self-Burial to be “prophetic of its an object centered art to an idea centered art was a long maker’s subsequent development” [18], referring to Arnatt’s process. The reason why it was named Conceptual art is later disappearance from the art world. The latter mentioned because it explored “what the concept of art and the concept of piece, Trouser-Word Piece, is considered to be the epitome of artists were” [7], basing itself on the idea, “rather than style or Arnatt’s Conceptual creations. It was a work aided by a strong any specific aesthetic regime” [8]. philosophy, which was taking “egocentricity as its subject matter'' [19]. This artwork consisted of two parts: one was the Keith Arnatt was considered to be an extremely intelligent photography of the artist holding the I’m a Real Artist sign, and artist, with both profound and witty writings and philosophy. the other was the “text taken from philosopher J. L. Austin's What made Arnatt different, as David Hurn said, is that he was Sense and Sensibilia, exposing the indeterminacy of the “able to put that into the pictures in a way that the general meaning of the word real” [20]. public could understand” [9], something that Conceptual art lacked in general. He was one of those artists that could not III. BECOMING A PHOTOGRAPHER settle for one artistic medium and changed his artistic The change from being in front of the camera to being tendencies and preferences a number of times in his career. He behind the camera was not as sudden as it might seem. Even was interested in all forms of art from paintings, sculptures, during his period as a Conceptual artist, Arnatt would include photographs, performance art and language art. He began his photographs in his artwork. However, in most cases, he was artistic career as a painter, where he attended the prestigious not the one taking the pictures, but rather “directed the camera” Royal Academy in London, becoming a landscape painter [10]. [21] while he was in front of it. The photos were “usually taken His knowledge of fine arts is something that will be constantly by friends or colleagues from college” [22]. These photographs referred to in his later work, including in his photography. Not were used only as “records, not first-order works of art” [23], finding satisfaction in painting by the mid-60s, he turned to thus documenting his work and with it making the experimental art and unknowingly helped to form a new documentation a part of the work.