Introduction to Visual Studies: Fantastic Art

Fantastic Art

• one of the major art movements of 20th century
• radical, reactionary, controversial, challenged what constituted as art
• "anti-art" that gave rise to exploration of subconscious mind & other-worldly senses
• explores the absurd, bizarre, imaginary, whimsical, grotesque, etc.
• examination of "the other" challenges idea of abnormality

History

• originated in 1916 as reaction to WWI & coming to a close before end of WWII in 1940
• stressed growing interest in alternate way of living/thinking as a way to counter destruction of war & threat of developing technology
• threatened by Futurism which embraced technology, speed, machines, violence

-Fantastic artists felt robbed of their individuality
-needed to save it through personal interpretations of imagination, emotion, instinct 

Fantastic art has 2 unique styles

Dadaism (1916–1923)

• Zurich, Switzerland, reaction to WWI
• artists denied conventions of world, opposed accepted norms
• promoted absurdity, nihilism, irrationality
• called for deliberate chaos & randomness to reflect senselessness of war
• strove to stop violence as well as traditional art/culture through radical creations & behavior
• anti-art: stood against things that were beautiful
• called for rebellion against society's principles which were believed to contribute to the war
• explored the naive or childlike nature of art

Surrealism (1924)

• grew out of the chaos & nihilism of dada --> interest in dream world
• explored realm of imaginary & unreal
• explored states of unconscious mind 
• artworks were more positive in content & purpose
• reaction to war: encouraged people to cure themselves by tapping into unconsciousness
• psychoanalysis
• union of conscious & subconscious coexisting
• "pure psychic automatism...an attempt is made to express...the true functioning of thought"
• embraced chance, juxtaposition of ideas, forms, & meanings

Independent Artists did not want to adopt an art movement's goals or affiliations

• portrayed what they found meaningful & important
• inspiration stemmed from imagination, private dreams, memories, experiences

-Henry Rousseau

• inspired by nature & belief in ghosts
• supernatural, haunting, theatrical iconography

-Marc Chagall

• based work on memories of his native village
• paintings were poetic & nostalgic representations of his past
• people/animals defying proportion & gravity
• influenced by expressionist & cubist movements
• refused to analyze meaning of his images, viewed them as presentations of self

-Giorgio de Chirico

• most influence on surrealism
• troubling, bizarre, disturbing imagery
• reflect mood of the time characterized by social, political,  economic, industrial change
• metaphysical paintings w symbols of ancient antiquity & modern invention
• revealed a way of creating an alternate world by combining familiar & strange images

A Seismic Shift in the 1990s: Democratic vs. Conceptual Design

• suggestion that average consumer could access design (democratic design)

IKEA poang chair, 1990s: $29

campana brothers, vermelha chair 1990s: $12,370

maskros lamp, assemble yourself

aeron chair by don chadwick & bill stumpf, 1994
easily adjusted for variety of users
unprecedented ergonomic research
was very expensive when it came out
"dotcom throne"

• 1990s: fall of Berlin wall, Tiananmen square (crackdown on democracy), Nelson Mandela released, disillusion of USSR, exponential use of internet, etc.

• widespread democratization; target, ikea, crate & barrel became more ubiquitous

• making things more accessible to a wider spectrum of people

michael graves, architect designer
contributed line of work to Target
domestic products
wheelchair bound--> more aware of ergonomics
could create works that would be easier for those who needed

• 1990s, target approached michael graves (starchitects- star architects- generally stayed away)
• Graves became household name in democratic design

• designers seen as fun & creating nice things, accessible; not unknowable, wild
• rise of star designers
• James Dyson:

target being inclusive & democractic

mcqueen = avantgarde & wild yet still worked w target
design trickling down to you & i

advertisement, not elite
fun industrial design products for all

logo has become their identity, don't need their name

inclusive, societal change

anna sui billboard in times square
took it down & created limited edition handbag ($29.99) as to not contribute plastic to environment

target is major sponsor of exhibitions at cooper hewitt, national design museum

origins: 1943
major expansion
cultivated notion of you as the consumer participating in design process
ease of construction, affordability, ease of replacing

"democratic design" exhibition in Germany
bright, egalitarian
(scandinavia w socialist government)

around the time obama was president
conflates image w the campaign

backlash on the notion of disposable,
throwing away furniture bc easily replaceable, thrown into environment

design research, cambridge massachusetts --> crate & barrel, michigan
added american flair & color in Scandinavian design

crate & barrel in houston

• products available at crate & barrel

-famous designer Karim Rashid worked w them to create affordable, modern, casual design

garbo- karim rashid, 1990s
plastic garbage can
sold it via italian manufacturing firm Umbra
instant hit, allowing consumers to buy design on the cheap

Oh! chair by karim rashid, 1990s
low cost, $39.99
simple shell & snap on legs
didn't cost a lot to ship, lightweight

• consumption- threatening or liberating? 

-accumulating things

-putting things into environment

-what does the rise in distribution & availability really do?

• gijs baaker & renny ramakers: droog design

-criteria was flexible, some works were mass produced, some were statements

-got rid of tyranny of 1980s black & chrome, corporate design

marcel wanders, knotted chair, 1996
familiar, purity, hand craftsmanship
combination of high (tech- epoxy resin) & low (references macrame)

rage chair- tejo remy, 1990s
acquired chair of what we discard
simple, readily available materials 

you can't lay down your memories- tejo remy 1990s
statement on excess consumption
critique of the glut of objects at the market place
"each drawer carries its own memories...
you have to remember what you put into each drawer"

milk bottle lamp- tejo remy
milk crates references to dutch national identity

85 lamps- rody graumans
power out of inferiority

soft urn- hella jongerius
traditional in form
vases (associate w tangible & firm objects) made of squishy material
subverts expectations via materials
vase hides nothing, the traces of its making is still there
scratches, bubbles, molding joints still visible
shows inferiority & imperfection

• ikea approached her about vases, she reproduced them in ceramic & sold at affordable price 

drawing table

lace table- marcel wanders
 1997
epoxy resin

• 1990s rise in phenomena of star architect & designer

-names used as marketing tools, added value

• Philippe Stark

child's toy

• Jasper Morrison

• Alberto M.

• Campana Brothers

favela (slum) chair
doesn't look comfortable, not comfortable to live in a favela

• Karim Rashid

worldly designer artist

• "the strength of designer culture... the popular idea that designers wield magic wands... reached a peak in the 1990s" --> retreat, some designers became more quiet & lowkey

muji design
becomes widespread in late 80s/90s
produce design that counters western world consumption
wants to be more simple, lowkey, humble, subtly of traditional japanese design
ego-less products w/o association w famous designer names
designers design anonymously, w/o name associated
out of packaging, you won't even know that the design is muji

exquisite & understated packaging design

white, simple, quiet