Postmodernism Postmodernism and Modernism Po Mo is reactions

Postmodernism

Postmodernism and Modernism • Po. Mo is: reaction(s) against Modernism; visible across all art forms • What is modernism? – Freedom and individuality – Optimism regarding technology – “impartial” evaluation of the work of art—Formalism and Greenberg – “Masterpieces, ” uniqueness, originality, and authenticity of the artwork all important – Linear sequence of progression – Fear/disdain of kitsch and middle class values/sensibilities – Binary Oppositions

Kitsch: lowbrow style of popular or massproduced art; often uses exaggerated sentimentality, nostalgia, or melodrama (tacky, cheesy, not serious).

Modernist Literature and Art (according to Klages) • Emphasis on impressionism and subjectivity, HOW of perception • Movement away from “objective” third-party narration • Rejection of traditional aesthetic theories, development of unique, experimental, or individual styles • Experimentation with meaning/language Klages says that Postmodernism continues all these trends of Modernism, the major difference is that while Modernism sees the fragmentation and dissolution of a stable subject as tragic, Postmodernism celebrates it. (I tend to think there’s more differences than that)

Modernity • History as fact/truth: memorize the facts • Western perspective, narrative of development or progress • Faith in traditional ideas of family, social order • Authenticity of originals • Mass consumption Post. Modernity § § § History as written by people in power; different histories or truths are possible Cultural pluralism, multiple perspectives and narratives Alternate methods of organizing morals and social structures Hyper-reality (MTV) and simulacra (copies without originals) Niches; small group identities (may belong to many groups)

Postmodern Cultural Relativism:

• A simulacrum (plural simulacra) is a copy without the qualities of the original, or in some cases, with no original at all. • Hyperreality: A condition in which what is real and what is artificial are blended together so seamlessly that you can’t tell the difference between them. • What are examples of things /places/movies/etc that you think may fit into these definitions?

Warhol, Brillo Boxes, 1964 Arthur Danto: “Why is something that looks exactly like a Brillo Box a work of art, but a Brillo box is not? ”

Hiroshi Sugimoto, Cheetah, 1980 from the Diorama series

Postmodernism: Basic Concepts • Blurring of all boundaries, especially between “high” and “low” culture, art, etc. • Rejection of all master narratives—All “truths” are contingent cultural constructs • Sense of fragmentation and decentered self, multiple conflicting identities • Mass-mediated reality

Pre-Postmodernist blurring of boundaries: Marcel Duchamp, Fountain, 1917

Parody/Pastiche: Vic Muniz and Pollock

Fred Wilson, Metalwork, 1793 -1880, detail from Mining the Museum, 1992 Postmodernism requires that we ask different questions about the artwork than Modernism, including: For whom was it created? Who controls the narrative? What power structures does it support?

Postmodernism and Architecture • Architecture adopted postmodern characteristics first • Architects no longer stayed true to one style or era of building--combined features of different styles. • Buildings were playful and function no longer dictated form. • Charles Jencks: architecture should be eclectic, playful and based on popular appeal • Michael Graves, Portland Building, Portland, OR, 198082

James Stirling, Neue Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart 1977 -84

Neoclassical pastiche

Pastiche of Ancient Egypt

Another Pastiche building in China

Appropriation • Takes something and incorporates it into something else, while recontextualizing or decontextualizing the original thing or concept. • Cultural appropriation • Artistic appropriation • It’s been around for a long time, but is a basic strategy of postmodernist art. Appropriation reminds us that originality is a myth

Appropriation: Titian—Manet—Morimura

Barbara Kruger, Untitled (We don’t need another hero), 1985 • Postmodern works often use ambiguous language: who is “we”? Who is speaking? • Questions traditional roles and values

Jeff Koons, New Hoover, 1981 -87

Koons, Michael Jackson and Bubbles, 1988

Vik Muniz, Double Mona Lisa, After Warhol (Peanut Butter and Jelly), 1999 Warhol, Mona Lisa, 1963 Duchamp, L. H. O. O. Q. , 1919

Vik Muniz, Saturn Devouring his Children (After Goya), 2005 original 1820 -23

Richard Prince, Untitled (Cowboy), 1989, 127 x 178 cm

Sherrie Levine, After Marcel Duchamp, 1995