scholarly journals Animals, Ethics, and the Art World

October ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 164 ◽  
pp. 113-132
Author(s):  
Ted Nannicelli

This paper argues that debates over art exhibitions that make use of live animals, such as the Guggenheim Museum's 2017 Art and China After 1989: Theater of the World, are reflective of a schism between two general approaches to the ethico-political criticism of art. One of these approaches, the interpretation-oriented approach, is dominant in the art world and its adjacent institutions. The other, the production-oriented approach, is tacitly adopted by art-interested non-specialists. This rift explains why the use of animals in contemporary art—a practice that many art-interested people outside of the art world find bizarre and prima facie unethical—is so rarely discussed critically within art world institutions such as museums and journals. In an attempt to redress this oversight, the paper argues that the production-oriented approach is not only conceptually sound, but rationally preferable to the interpretation-oriented approach in many such cases.

Author(s):  
Ted Nannicelli

With reference to a number of contemporary cases, such as that surrounding the Guggenheim’s Art and China after 1989: Theater of the World exhibition, this chapter argues that some important controversies about the ethics of art can be explained in terms of a disconnect between people who tacitly adopt the perspectivist (or another interpretation-oriented) approach to ethical criticism and people who tacitly adopt a production-oriented approach to ethical criticism. The chapter argues that perspectivism tends to be favored not only in philosophical aesthetics, but also in art criticism and in many art world institutions. In contrast, non-specialists tend to tacitly adopt the production-oriented approach. In the case of the use of animals in contemporary art, current controversies are further explained by the fact that, given some fairly uncontroversial premises about the moral respect that we owe to non-human animals, people who evaluate such work from a production-oriented approach are likely to find much that is prima facie ethically blameworthy. Moreover, they are rationally warranted in doing so.


Author(s):  
Monica Sassatelli

Biennials or biennales are periodic, independent and international art exhibitions surveying trends in contemporary art; since the 1990s they have proliferated across the globe. Biennials are much more than curated displays, they constitute ‘festival-exhibitions’ working as “a public model and a shifting backdrop against which the meanings of contemporary art are constructed, maintained and sometimes irrevocably altered” (Ferguson et al., 2005: 48). Whilst most contemporary post-traditional festivals (Giorgi and Sassatelli, 2011) have ancient roots, it is only in recent years that they have become an almost ubiquitous fixture of cultural calendars in cities around the world. This current proliferation is even more striking for art biennials. They arguably originate from the Venice Biennale, held for the first time in 1895, but have long exceeded their European, Western origin to establish a global format. Up to the 1980s they were only reproduced in a handful of examples; today biennials and derivates (triennials and others) have become key institutional nodes linking production, consumption and distribution of contemporary art. With now over 150 biennials around the world, we are increasingly likely to encounter contemporary art through their mediation, directly as visitors or more indirectly via the nebula of critical discourse and more generally the media coverage they generate. The phenomenon attracting attention has become not just the biennials but more specifically the biennalisation of the art world. The term biennalisation is used within the art world itself as shorthand to refer to the proliferation and standardisation of biennial exhibitions under a common (if rather loose) format. Sociologically, biennalisation can thematise the shifting set of cultural classifications, practices and values that differentiate the contemporary art world, affecting both its content (now sometimes referred to as biennial art) and the type of rationale and experience it crystallises. As phenomena that increasingly represent themself “on a global scale” (Vogel 2010), biennials offer a unique vantage point to access what is often termed ‘global culture’. However, they remain rarely empirically studied in clearly defined contexts, especially beyond affirmation or negations of their measurable impact (Buchholz and Wuggenig, 2005). Reprising within the art world unsolved dilemmas in the analysis of cultural globalisation, alleged optimists see in biennials the “embracing of a democratic redistribution of cultural power” (De Duve 2009: 45); whilst pessimists point rather to the “recognition of a new form of cultural hegemony and re-colonization” (2009: 45). This chapter traces the rise of the biennial, across time and space, providing contextualisation and interpretation for what are now often hyperbolic accounts of “hundreds of biennials” (Seijdel 2009: 4) across the globe.


Author(s):  
Sophie Moiroux

The internationally renowned artist Jimmie Durham, who now lives in Europe,elaborated throughout his career a work of contemporary art which is profoundly rootedin his Cherokee culture, while efficiently engaging the art world which gives him anincreasingly important place (one of the rare such Amerindian artists). His artworkappears to combine: 1. Contemporary art devises and issues as well as western conceptsand viewpoint which he uses and assesses within pieces which are made for a (western)art public, 2. his Cherokee perspective on objects and the world (and 3. his ownpoetics). The condensation of these two perspectives within art pieces is paradoxical, forthey conceive and perceive things and relationships in the world in a priori incompatibleways. Paralleling his work, his own identity or persona is paradoxical, in that on the onehand he defines himself and is considered as an ‘international’ artist, therefore denyingthe ethnic label which has been applied to him in his early career and which he had tofight, and on the other hand he maintains that his only way to be is as a Cherokee. Thecontinuous colonisation and stereotypification of his peoples in the USA, and theirimpossibility to be seen as themselves, which the artist feels deeply, cast light on hisaim to be a “homeless orphan”. Being truly a Cherokee however does not prevent hisbeing an “international artist”, but rather contributes to it, and vice versa.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-31
Author(s):  
Annamma Joy ◽  
Russell Belk

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the meaning, in both local and international context, of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB), the first international exhibit of contemporary art in India. Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF), which administers the KMB, identifies art as a means for transforming society, with a mission to bring global contemporary art to India and to present India’s modern art to the world. The authors further investigate the role of government sponsorship and corporate patronage in funding the KMB, and investigate how resistance through art is key to the KMB’s identity. Design/methodology/approach This study focuses primarily on published materials relating to the KMB. One of the authors attended the 2016 KMB and interviewed fellow attendees. Additionally, the authors reviewed and assessed social media postings regarding the 2016 KMB. Findings The authors argue that government sponsorship and corporate patronage are never solely about political or financial power. Rather, a generalized reciprocity among the three entities – corporations, the government and the artists – allows the KMB to flourish. For the artists involved, the KMB, co-founded by activist artists, sustains interest in and awareness of resistance. Originality/value Extant literature on biennales is sparse on ways in which these exhibits extend their impact beyond the art world. The authors examine issues such as India expanding its position on the world stage through art, and the implications of political resistance embraced by Indian artists on future directions for the KMB, that have heretofore been unaddressed.


Phronesis ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 263-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Makin

AbstractIn this paper I offer a new interpretation of Melissus' argument at DK 30 B8.In this passage Melissus uses an Eleatic argument against change to challenge an opponent who appeals to the authority of perception in order to support the view that there are a plurality of items in the world. I identify an orthodox type of approach to this passage, but argue that it cannot give a charitable interpretation of Melissus' strategy. In order to assess Melissus' overall argument we have to identify the opponent at whom it is aimed. The orthodox interpretation of the argument faces a dilemma: Melissus' argument is either a poor argument against a plausible opponent or a good argument against an implausible opponent.My interpretation turns on identifying a new target for Melissus' argument. I explain the position I call Bluff Realism (contrasting it with two other views: the Pig Headed and the Fully Engaged). These are positions concerning the dialectical relation between perception on the one hand, and arguments to counter-perceptual conclusions on the other. I argue that Bluff Realism represents a serious threat from an Eleatic point of view, and is prima facie an attractive position in its own right.I then give a charitable interpretation of Melissus' argument in DK 30 B8, showing how he produces a strong and incisive argument against the Bluff Realist position I have identified. Melissus emerges as an innovative and astute philosopher.


2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 36-43
Author(s):  
Raisa Foster

Abstract Tanssi-innostaminen® (‘dance animateuring’ in English) is an artistic and pedagogical method, which I have developed in order to empower both individuals and communities. By dance animateuring I refer to dance/ movement based activity, in which everyone can find their own way of moving and expressing by movement, but also reflecting the self and its connections to the other and the whole world. In this paper I will argue the six theses that define my approach to contemporary art making in dance animateuring practice: 1) The dancer should never aim to produce something specific but only to be present. 2) The performance shows that everyone can dance. 3) The performance is born from action, not from an idea. 4) The performance is multisensory and multidisciplinary artwork. 5) The performance is incomplete and ambiguous. 6) The performance challenges the conventional ways of seeing the world and people.


2011 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-144
Author(s):  
Patricia Esquivel

Arthur Danto proklamierte das »Ende der Kunst«, d. h. das Ende der auf ein Narrativ und auf eine unidirektionale Grundlage basierenden Kunstgeschichte. In der zeitgenössischen Kunstwelt und besonders in der Historiographie hingegen findet man durchaus ein Telos. Dieses Telos ist die Globalisierung. Es gibt heute ein sich ausbreitendes unidirektionales Narrativ, dessen Regel als »Netzwerklegitimation« erklärt werden kann. Ein Netzwerk, dessen Ausmaß (mehr Regionen der Welt), Sättigung (mehr Objekte) und Historizität (umfassendere Entwicklungsketten) zunehmen. Das Netzwerk hat auch einen Mittelpunkt, den Westen, wenn auch nicht für immer.<br><br>Arthur Danto proclaimed the »end of art«, that is, the end of the history of art structured on a narrative and unidirectional basis. But in contrast to Danto’s ideas, we detect a telos in the contemporary art world, especially in historiography. This telos is globalisation. At present, we have a clearly expansive unidirectional narrative in which the norm can be summed up as »network legitimation.« A network that is growing in extent (more regions of the world), saturation (more objects) and historicity ( further-ranging chains of development). The network also has a centre, the West, although it may not last forever.


2013 ◽  
Vol 48 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 103-123
Author(s):  
Monika Sosnowska

ABSTRACT Drawing on Allan Edgar Poe’s provocative statement that “The death ... of a beautiful woman is, unquestionably, the most poetic topic in the world” (1951: 369), I will focus on the pivotal role of Shakespeare’s Ophelia in attesting to this assertion. Ophelia’s drowning is probably the most recognizable female death depicted by Shakespeare. Dating back to Gertrude’s “reported version” of the drowning, representations of Ophelia’s eroticized death have occupied the minds of Western artists and writers. Their necrOphelian fantasies materialized as numerous paintings, photographs and literary texts. It seems that Ophelia’s floating dead body is also at the core of postmodern thanatophiliac imagination, taking shape in the form of conventionalized representations, such as: video scenes available on YouTube, amateur photographs in bathtubs posted on photo sharing sites, reproductions and remakes of classical paintings (e.g. John Everett Millais), and contemporary art exhibitions in museums. These references will demonstrate that new cyber story - digital afterlife - is being built around the figure of Shakespearean Ophelia, unearthing the sexual attraction of the lifeless female body.


2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-64
Author(s):  
Figen Girgin

Repetition or interpretation in art is based on very old times. Much earlier repetition than mechanical copying was often done for master-apprentice teaching or for eye-training purposes. Copying in the mechanical way allows the production of similarities, while copying in digital mode allowed more circulation and access of similarities. From the 20th century, the work of art has become more accessible. The artworks exhibited in various parts of the world, in museums and galleries, reach other artisans or art buyers who are miles away from them, or they are welcomed in their living spaces. The original was now in distribution with copies. A similar situation is both faster and more common today in the Internet age. A similar situation is both faster and more common today in the Internet age. Warhol, on the other hand, puts a consumption object in the art world, which does not deny mechanic reproduction, but already has a graphic design and copies with it. A soup box with thousands of copies is exhibited alone or with copies of it. It shows that art and life are intertwined or that he don’t reject the popular culture-consumption conception in their society in the age of living. The graphic design of soup boxes with thousands of copies has been repeated by Warhol and won the original with his signature in the art. These paintings are reproduced both by his contemporaries and by artists today. An artwork that is actually a copy, can it give the same effect when it is repeated? How do original, unique, copy, reappear in Campbell's Soup Cans? Why and how has Campbell's Soup Cans been repeated in art? In this research, these questions were tried to be answered through the works of the artists who recreated Campbell's Soup Boxes. ​Extended English summary is in the end of Full Text PDF (TURKISH) file. Özet Sanatta tekrar etme ya da yorumlama çok eskilere dayanmaktadır. Mekanik yolla kopyalamadan çok daha önce tekrarlama çoğunlukla usta-çırak öğretisi ya da gözü eğitme amacıyla gerçekleştirilirken; mekanik yolla kopyalama benzerlerin üretilmesine, dijital yolla kopyalama ise benzerlerin daha fazla dolaşımına ve erişimine olanak sağladı. 20. yüzyıldan itibaren sanat yapıtı daha kolay ulaşılır hale geldi. Dünyanın çeşitli yerlerinde, müze ve galerilerde sergilenen sanat yapıtları, onlardan kilometrelerce ötede olan başka sanatçılara ya da sanat alıcılarına ulaşabildi ya da yaşam alanlarında karşılarına çıktı. Orijinal, artık kopyaları ile birlikte dağılımdaydı. Benzer durum, internet çağındaki günümüzde hem daha hızlı hem de daha yaygındır. Ancak Warhol tüm bunların ötesinde, mekanik kopyalamayı yadsımadan, hali hazırda bir grafik tasarıma sahip ve kopyaları ile birlikte dolaşımda olan bir tüketim nesnesini, sanat dünyasına sokar. Binlerce kopyası olan bir çorba kutusunu tek başına ya da onun kopyaları ile birlikte sergiler. Sanat ve yaşamı iç içe geçirir ya da yaşadığı çağda, kendi toplumundaki popüler kültür-tüketim anlayışını reddetmediğini gösterir. Binlerce kopyaya sahip olan çorba kutularının grafik tasarımı, Warhol tarafından tekrarlanarak, onun imzası ile orijinalik kazanmıştır. Onun çorba kutuları resimleri ise hem çağdaşları hem de günümüzdeki sanatçılarca tekrarlanmaktadır. Zaten kopya olan bir asıl, tekrarlandığında aynı etkiyi verebilir mi? Orijinallik, özgünlük, kopya, tekrar Campbell’s Çorba Kutuları’nda ne şekilde ortaya çıkar? Campbell’s Çorba Kutuları sanatta niçin ve ne şekilde tekrarlanmıştır? sorularına Warhol’un Campbell’s Çorba Kutuları adlı resmi ve bu resmi tekrarlayan sanatçıların yapıtları üzerinden cevap aranmaya çalışılmıştır.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (46) ◽  

Contemporary art and cinema have been crossing paths in contemporary art exhibitions. Videography & cinematography works started to be more frequent in galleries, biennales and in museums where we can see contemporary art. They can be seen either singular or on multiple screens, either fixed to a wall or mounted, either with singular channel or multiple channels projected to either walls or curtains or in a dark room like in movie theatres. Ruben Östlund’s movie The Square, is awarded “Golden Palm” in 70th Cannes Film Festival. With his movie, he is showing us the insights of contemporary art museum and its curator. By doing so, he is inviting his viewers to the contemporary art world and moves the contemporary art environment and actors & actresses to cinema world. The aim of this study is to analyse the contemporary art environment in the movie and how it has been reflected to its audience. Overall, discussions and definitions about contemporary art have been searched through a literature and with all the information found, connections have been made with contemporary art world in the movie. All comments on contemporary art and diatribes about art have intersections and disintegrations with the ones in the movie. Keywords: contemporary art; cinema; The Square; museum; curator


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