carlos katastrofsky on Sun, 17 May 2009 14:43:20 +0200 (CEST)


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Re: <nettime> Political Work in the Aftermath of the New Media Arts Crisis


what i am always wondering about is why the media arts field is so
concerned with its media. is dealing with "new media" or "old media"
an excuse for making good or bad art? IMO defining art by its media
is on the same level as defining art by its subject. not getting over
these definitions will result in a ghetto-situation sooner or later.
the problem -IMHO- is not that media art is not recognized by the fine
art world but that the fine art world is dealing with other subjects.
when was the last big exhibition dealing solely with "painting" or
"sculpture" you've seen? ars electronica and the others are doing that
every year: "new media art" with changing subtitles.

the same problem persists when new media artists and theorists
insist on "politicalness" and "radicality". those terms don't say
anything about certain works either, no matter which media is used
in it. they only say that they may be recognised as "political" in a
certain time in a certain context. but that doesn't say anything about
it's "artness" either. "art doesn't become art by having specific
characteristics but by a specific kind of processual reference to it."
(J. Rebentisch, Aesthetik der Installation)

and -please hit me hard if i'm wrong- the "fine art world" questions
such things. this "eclecticism" and "cluelesness" some are claiming
exist, but despite the ugly quest for the next blockbuster there is a
lively scene developing things further without thinking about making
"political art" or "painting". seen from this point of view i think
that hans' claim "The aim should be Art, not Politics." is totally
right, even if it is harshly critisized by geert. to put it bluntly:
if i want to learn something about politics i would read a book with
proper information about it and not go to see art that repeats the
common sense that there are bad things existing in our world. i want
to see art. neither new media nor politics.

carlos

-- 
http://katastrofsky.cont3xt.net
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