Russell Smith: "Eat your heart out, Toronto-haters:
Forget cerebral interpretations of the art, the party is the message of Toronto's Nuit Blanche event"... a snippet:
The citizens now understand, having experienced these odd interventions – projections, groups of people in costumes, giant inflatable rabbits – that this kind of art is not appreciable in terms of what it means, like a riddle: It's about a group experience. It only means what happens when there is a crowd interacting around it. If the artists had a clear message, they would have written an essay. (Some of them, of course, have done so: Those are the weaker ones.) People are going out in masses for that group experience. This represents the victory, really, of so-called impenetrable contemporary art: It has got around the problem of interpretation, it has shown a suspicious audience that their own reactions, unfiltered by museums' didactic panels and audio guides, constitute the work's explanation. The party is the message.
Ultimately, he's right, even though I found a lot of the work extremely unsatisfying to me as an artist, the spectacle was there, and the crowds loved it. (hell, I'm not above that)
Actually most of our posts on this blog prove that we are not above anything.
ewwwwwwwww...
So a couple hundred people barf on your doorstep and you get all cranky about it?
everyone has their own idea about how make it better, so here's mine. I think there should be a summer-long art festival with semi-permanently installed works. Then Nuit Blanche can bring in spectacles for the big closer. That way we can have our party and digest some of the art too. It'll also be good for tourism.
I disagree with Russel Smith when he says contemporary art has got around the "problem" of interpretation. Experiential immersion is good and fun, but interpretation is also good and fun. I agree with him when he says the audience's "own reactions, unfiltered by museums' didactic panels and audio guides, constitute the work's explanation." That's the interpretation part.
Actually it was the hipster slogan at the end of the quote that induced my own gag reflex. But yeah, geography definitely colours our outlook. A lot about Nuit Blanche is just Deja Vu for anyone who has lived on Waste Queen Waste for more than a decade. First there was the art then the art party then just the party and then...Oh well, the rents still cheap and we can always come and go by the backdoor on evenings and weekends. and it could be Ossington.
The other part of Russell Smith's article that's fun (doesn't come through in this quote) is his out-and-out taunting of Toronto haters. I love him for that.
While on the subject of Russell Smith check out his TVO Story of Belonging spot - Colonial Man.
The security guy at the Scotiabank info tent down the street didn't seem impressed when i asked if i could apply for a loan.
As a spectator I'm pretty happy with Nuit Blanche. It think its good silly fun and I like all the mayhem. As an artist who might be in a position to consider doing a project for Nuit Blanche I have major reservations and would probably not do it. Scotiabank should give you a grant, not a loan! (probably the security guy is not the one to make that decision)
a grant! now yer talkin! i am officially changing my character to Mr. Scotiabank from now on.
When I first got to the Bay area I was surprised at how nobody seemed to like the idea of Burning man. I mean a big flame out without rules in the desert should be fun right? Nope. After 15 years or so it's a big bureaucratic nightmare that no artist wants to participate in anymore.
and this of course;
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3139/2828294625_8d149ebd8e.jpg%3Fv%3D0&imgrefurl=http://flickr.com/photos/49503182412%40N01/2828294625&usg=__l7OrsxZkMDXUa0gGJs6YraGN-uQ=&h=500&w=375&sz=163&hl=en&start=1&um=1&tbnid=r2rAvqFQbg-hmM:&tbnh=130&tbnw=98&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsave%2Bthe%2Bshirtcocker%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1
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Russell Smith: "Eat your heart out, Toronto-haters: Forget cerebral interpretations of the art, the party is the message of Toronto's Nuit Blanche event"... a snippet:
- sally mckay 10-08-2009 2:54 pm
Ultimately, he's right, even though I found a lot of the work extremely unsatisfying to me as an artist, the spectacle was there, and the crowds loved it. (hell, I'm not above that)
Actually most of our posts on this blog prove that we are not above anything.
- L.M. 10-08-2009 10:51 pm
ewwwwwwwww...
- r.e.c. (guest) 10-09-2009 5:58 am
So a couple hundred people barf on your doorstep and you get all cranky about it?
- L.M. 10-09-2009 2:11 pm
everyone has their own idea about how make it better, so here's mine. I think there should be a summer-long art festival with semi-permanently installed works. Then Nuit Blanche can bring in spectacles for the big closer. That way we can have our party and digest some of the art too. It'll also be good for tourism.
I disagree with Russel Smith when he says contemporary art has got around the "problem" of interpretation. Experiential immersion is good and fun, but interpretation is also good and fun. I agree with him when he says the audience's "own reactions, unfiltered by museums' didactic panels and audio guides, constitute the work's explanation." That's the interpretation part.
- sally mckay 10-09-2009 2:58 pm
Actually it was the hipster slogan at the end of the quote that induced my own gag reflex. But yeah, geography definitely colours our outlook. A lot about Nuit Blanche is just Deja Vu for anyone who has lived on Waste Queen Waste for more than a decade. First there was the art then the art party then just the party and then...Oh well, the rents still cheap and we can always come and go by the backdoor on evenings and weekends. and it could be Ossington.
- r.e.c. (guest) 10-09-2009 6:38 pm
The other part of Russell Smith's article that's fun (doesn't come through in this quote) is his out-and-out taunting of Toronto haters. I love him for that.
- sally mckay 10-09-2009 8:03 pm
While on the subject of Russell Smith check out his TVO Story of Belonging spot - Colonial Man.
- sally mckay 10-09-2009 8:05 pm
The security guy at the Scotiabank info tent down the street didn't seem impressed when i asked if i could apply for a loan.
- mnobody (guest) 10-09-2009 9:57 pm
As a spectator I'm pretty happy with Nuit Blanche. It think its good silly fun and I like all the mayhem. As an artist who might be in a position to consider doing a project for Nuit Blanche I have major reservations and would probably not do it. Scotiabank should give you a grant, not a loan! (probably the security guy is not the one to make that decision)
- sally mckay 10-09-2009 11:36 pm
a grant! now yer talkin! i am officially changing my character to Mr. Scotiabank from now on.
- m(scotiabank)nobody (guest) 10-10-2009 12:28 am
When I first got to the Bay area I was surprised at how nobody seemed to like the idea of Burning man. I mean a big flame out without rules in the desert should be fun right? Nope. After 15 years or so it's a big bureaucratic nightmare that no artist wants to participate in anymore.
and this of course;
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3139/2828294625_8d149ebd8e.jpg%3Fv%3D0&imgrefurl=http://flickr.com/photos/49503182412%40N01/2828294625&usg=__l7OrsxZkMDXUa0gGJs6YraGN-uQ=&h=500&w=375&sz=163&hl=en&start=1&um=1&tbnid=r2rAvqFQbg-hmM:&tbnh=130&tbnw=98&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsave%2Bthe%2Bshirtcocker%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1
- joester (guest) 10-11-2009 12:15 am