reModernize? … my movies

remodernism is a reaction to that mammothine (sic) beast postmodernism, according to my quick and dirty wikiperesearch (sic, again).

the remodernists call for a (re)infusion of emotion and “spirituality” into art. they see (that other mammoth-like creature) modernism as having had the potential for this, but never succeeded before it was squashed out by the popularity of pomo.

the ideology of remodernism can be discovered lurking in the fringes of the film world as well, with such remodernist filmmakers as jesse richards and nicholas watson, harris smith, and wolf howard, and has included the recent work of (famously No Wave Cinema) filmmaker amos poe.

the remodernist movement grew out of what is popularly known as the stuckist movement in art, a pseudo-revolutionary movement whose own STUCKIST MANIFESTO called for an end to the cynicism of conceptual and pomo and a rejuvenation of a deeper and more spiritually profound direction in art.

the stuckist name and subsequent manifesto was inspired by a quote from Tracey Emin:

“Your paintings are stuck,
you are stuck!
Stuck! Stuck! Stuck!”

here’s a trailer for amos poe’s EMPIRE II (2007), which is a kind of follow-up to warhol’s own EMPIRE (1964).

three photographers

Brandon Herman, Larry Clark, and Ryan McGinley are three photographers whose work focuses on youth, identity, and sexuality. Their photographs range from overly stylized to rather understated, but it is the subjects of their lenses that make their work stand out. Each chooses a subject (usually young people, often men/boys, with a varying range of homo-eroticism) that is compelling to look at and also depicts that subject in a way that implies something that is more-than-meets-the-eye.

Miranda Purves of the CBC pointed out in an article on Larry Clark that there is perhaps something “sinister” about his photographs of young people, which is an attack that could be fielded against any three of the photographers showcased here. When photographically depicting young people in relative states of undress, the photographer is treading on ethically shaky ground (it would be so easy to accuse him of exploiting such subjects). This is one aspect of their bodies of work that makes these artists so popular and has given them their respective states of fame (everybody loves scandal!!). But is it too easy? They seem to have the formula down pat: take photos of nude youths — get fame, fortune, and notoriety.

after … (???)

this VIDEO HAIKU was constructed by myself, incorporating appropriated images, sound, and text.

the subject of appropriation has come up in some of my previous blog postings.  is appropriation ethical? is art supposed to be ethical? appropriation has a long and contentious history in art making and the art world. my VIDEO HAIKU speaks to identity and self discovery — but also, through my use of appropriation, brings into question how personal identity is constructed? it also raises concerns around originality and authenticity in the realms of art, the artist, and the individual.

the artists represented in my VIDEO HAIKU are Attila Richard Lukacs (images), Animal Collective (sound), and Kijo Murakami (text).

Bluescreen Workshop!

I made this short piece from footage we shot in Video Art class during our bluescreen workshop.

on IDEAS, pt. 3

Video brings what happened into the what’s happening.

on IDEAS, pt. 1