situationisnt: works inspired by a society of spectacles

For his MA show, Joe Upton invites the audience to engage in ‘pseudo-activities’ which break the conventional roles of spectatorship through an immersive 3D Film installation and participatory Paint-By-Numbers.

Inspired by the avant-garde movement of Situationism, Upton transposes the theory of The Society of the Spectacle to the modern day. The movement’s theories propose all existing social and cultural conditions are perpetually mediated by image and representation. The institutionalising effects of ‘The Spectacle’ render the individual a passive consumer of fleeting trends and pre-packaged lifestyles.  Upton’s work observes these conditions have never been truer than in the contemporary climate of mass communication and media saturation.

Works Presented:
The Culture of Commodity: Part installation, part visual culture; this unique 3D Film experience plays with the notion of gimmick, alluding to the detrimental effects of our consumerist obsessions.
Man By Numbers: An audience participatory Paint-By-Numbers that encourages social and cultural interaction allowing visitors to contribute their creative expressions towards a communal finished piece.
3-Deerectives: Eye teasing Mixed-Media prints that highlight the fragmented and referential nature of our ideas and inspirations

Time and Place
23rd – 28th June, 12:00 – 18:00 daily / Private View Thursday 25th 18:00 – 21:00
Free Entry, All are welcome and encouraged to participate.
The DegreeArt.com Gallery, 30 Vyner Street, Bethnal Green, London, E2 9DQ
10 Minutes from Liverpool Street Station, nearest transportation;
Tube –Central Line: Bethnal Green, Overground – Cambridge Heath, Buses – 26/48/388

Filed under: degree show, exhibition, joe, paula roush

I don’t believe we believe the Simulationsof contemporary Hyperrealities and other such constructions

In terms of this sites organisation, despite enjoying the void of relative words floating in a virtual space, and playing with them for quite a while, I was initially confused as I thought they where links to new articles as opposed to a thesaurus/glossary of relative words. So although fun, I found it a little distracting from the point and slightly gimmicky, I also think it would be little use to a person actually looking for useful links/inspiration etc. on the title subject. I’d stick to the old fashioned get a thesaurus in physical book form, and read it.

In terms of presentation as research, I think its slightly simplistic and would be perhaps more useful for younger ages, e.g. as an interactive word association game for school children studying English or Media. But perhaps I’m just being harsh?

Content and it relevance to us!

Straight away the concept of simulation is relevant to me in a big way, The society of the Spectacle is a simulated reality. Not strictly a simulation, because a simulation isn’t real, it’s a test, a prototype of a given situation. The Spectacle is a simulation that cemented itself. One could see it as a capitalist/consumerist test which excelled its expectation outgrew its restriction and made a play for world domination.

This article begins by saying essentially the same hing about the media and art, whose expressions and communication of a singular perspective are now commonly mistook and accepted as a truth. These representations and opinions have as
Devin Sandoz’s article on simulation and simulacra suggests become the reality of things

As occupants of the culture industry however what does this mean for us, as artists or observers? I sincerely believe modern society raises the individual with a post-modern awareness of media slant and representation. Children now grow up hearing words like bias, editing, representation and role models and slogans ‘like it’s the medias fault’. We now grow up constantly aware of different angles, Specifically in this country where we now consider political correctness a rampant and destructive force, surely that too simply raises awareness of the simulations, the represented simulacra’s we become accustomed to and challenges us not to be swayed by them.

I think hyper-reality is becoming an outdated concept in a world were we are aware on them, we now chose identity like a cereal and after a few forays into fashion fads as teenager we come into our twenties with an awareness with how constructed these things are. The artificial simulation which dominate todays youth I think now lead to a more objective young adult a few years down the line. I chuckle to myself when thinking of the punk rock 16 yr old me with dyed hair and piercing, and I think this is a symptom of social cultural simulations that all young people now go through, an awareness of the fraud of youth culture.

I could perhaps myself being overly optimistic about contemporary awareness of the semiology and fashions of modern conditions having studied media now for almost ten years. However I don’t think so we’re now getting to the point where we have tv shows about tv shows, such as making of, etc. there is no more illusion to media and art, because we’re aware of the viral nature of marketing and franchising. I think now we’re just happy to accept these things and take them at face value rather than being swayed by the deeper meanings.

But maybe its just me?

Filed under: e-tivity04-0708, joe

The continued search

I have continued my search for artist blogs based around personal cultural interests and ones that might lead to inspiration of my own work, based on Situationism, and like socialist art movements. My previous search turned up the interesting art practice of the mysterious ‘Decapitator’, passing his or her comments (obviously those of rejection and dissent) on mass cultural products such as movies and advertising by ‘vandalising’ billboard posters around East London. I enjoyed this practice as it related to processes of detournment conceived and carried out by the Situationist. My latest search was again equally as unsuccessful in turning up ‘actual artist blogs’ but has once again led to some interesting sites and relevant to my own working interests and research.

Keyword search: Artist blogs Society of the Spectacle

his searched aimed to find likes and comments on Guy Debord’s text the society of the spectacle – the key work of Situationist rhetoric. It turned up little but a few blogging sites with minor references to the work but nothing in depth enough for my search. I wanted to find artists blogs whose work is all about Situationism, not just in the referential sense.

Keyword Seach: Situationist Blogging

Brilliant I have found a hive of Situationist discussion and on our very own wordpress no doubt. Coolios. This site is exactly what I’ve been looking for a forum of Situationism in the contemporary context with grounding in the movements contextual past.

http://thesituationist.wordpress.com/

After skimming and scanning through thesituationist.wordpress I was led to this artist Marc Scheff

This artist’s work and personal interest in both art and science show a union of rationality and creativity that is perfect for for comparison to Situationism. This along with his professional roots in computer programming evokes ideas of computer virtuality. An area with theoretical crossovers to Situationism (in it’s concepts of constructed realities, that are detached from actual real exsistance hence virtual).

Notions of virtuality, and the questions these ideas raise about the perspectives of reality and the immense possibilities that virtual worlds can offer to the cultural sphere. Essentially virtual work exemplifies and embodies a new form of creative expression and possibility which Situationism wanted to encourage. Virtual space is a blank canvass a void waiting for a world. A world waiting for input and manipulation of creative thought by infinite users.

I found these crossovers and ideas in the book Virtual Worlds by Benjamin Wooley. Which I was reading for such inspiration. Although essentially a very dry book on the history of virtual reality and computer software it does offer a few nuggets of poetic, philosophic inspiration in quotes such as

Computers are mostly used against people instead of for people. Used to control people instead of free them. Time to change all that, we need a peoples computer company.

Ted Nelson Compter Lib
(the communist manifesto of computer culture)

The computer technology that would allow this virtual creative forum also embodies Situationism’s desire to harness all technological means in the active creation of culture and situations.

It is worth considering however that there are some underlying contradictions in this idea. For example Situationism believes society has essentially become a virtual existence created by a complex semiology of comsurmeristic means and ends. Is a new virtual world for creativity an viable answer and application of Situationist theory. Or does it descend into further artificial and unlived existences of the masses tied into a cooperate machine.

This point could be debated forever, but at the very least it creates an environment of relatively pure creation, that would enable a talented programmer to create a world the way they saw fit. (but how affected by the spectacle would this world be – how engrained in our psyches is the spectacle – will we ever escape it)

from this site I then looked at the artists works and his methodologies

none of these however were actual blogs but then I found a like to his myspace page.

however no blogs are posted.

After searching around for a blog specific enough for me to comment on the artists work and processes I have found nothing useful. However it has lead me to innumerable discussion boards of Situationism which may rovide useful contacts for the future of my project. Hence I am posting all links in this blog to file them for both my use and the uses of others.

Filed under: e-tivity02-0708, joe , Add new tag

Artists blogs -first finds

Here is my ashamedly late entry for E-tivity 2, firstly I’d like to apologise to everyone who made an entry at the relevant and appropriate time. Hopefully I can still make some useful contribution to the group and our continued discussion.

This first link was one of the first finds for my first search of ‘artist blog’ on google. It is not a blog but an article entitled ‘Artist blogs: why every artist needs a blog’. Generally it focuses on the more commercial artistry and self-publicity and the idea of blogging as a promotional tool. I thought it was an appropriate starting link as it defines what blogs are and how they’re useful.

theartrepreneur

This next search relates to my research into the work of Diego Rivera and Mexican muralism. I searched for ‘blog mural artists’ and didn’t find what I was looking for. However it did lead me to Francesca Gavin’s blogged articles on the Guardians ‘theblogart&architecture’. This blog is less the working thoughts of an artist and more the critics of a cultural observer, but it did lead me to a piece on an Artist called the ‘Decapitator’; a guerrilla/vandal artists whose been reworking billboards around London to change their meaning. This relates greatly to the Situationist’s ideas of Detournment. I like this guys style and will look into it further

I’ll post my results as the search continues, I’ll also find some actual artist’s blog relevant and interesting in relation to my work.

Check out the article and the links to a flickr page to see some more work

Gavin’s Decapitator article

Filed under: e-tivity02-0708, joe

3-D, the depthies, and a new direction

Hi All,

Over the Christmas period I began to rethink my project, the gloomy winter months had an effect on me and as a result I felt my ideas, directions and inspirations had begun to stagnate. Key to this realisation was completing my Presentation Commentary, this evaluation helped me realise that I had become too bogged down in theory. I felt my presentation wasn’t as clear as it could be, so I just wanted to share with you, and clarify, my intensions and new directions of experimentation.

In brief:

My project intends to look at contemporary life; analyzing key cultural products and their use and affectations and application as well the social idiosyncratic behavior that surrounds any cultural occurrence. From here I would then like to conceptualize an image of the future based on these actions, objects and ideologies. The project is basically an evaluation of the present day, and an investigation into the validity and relevance of our actions and investments.

My perspective is based on the theories of Situationism, and the idea of the Society of the Spectacle; the idea that contemporary society is little more than a shallow and continuously recycled version of itself and whose true meaning and direction has been lost in the complex semiology of contemporary culture and social values driven by Capitalist ideology and particularly it’s attitudes and inclinations of consumerism. The question is what type of world has this created and where will it lead?

I cringe myself at the adolescent angsty overtones this project implies, but hey, what can I do – I believe in it.

Diego Rivera’s work is still an influence, but perhaps as just a visual inspiration. I have recently been looking into 3-D stereo photography and the creation of anaglyphs. I am really excited about this direction, it allows me to hark back to the mid-1950s, the era of the consumerism boom, and all the while play with ideas of hyper-realities and the notions that something so heavily constructed can more accurately represent something that actually exists. The idea that 3-D adds more depth and reality to a fake image seems to link well with Situationist theory.

If your at all interested in how to make 3-D images check out this site.

http://www.the3drevolution.com/

Filed under: e-tivity 01-07/08, joe

better later than never

Hey all below is something i attempted to post in the first few weeks but was unable to do because, as it happens I appear to be technically retarded. I figured that although somewhat behind the flow of everyone elses discussion I’d stick it up here just to add something for now:

 I am continuing with further post-graduate studies to improve my skills base in a range of area, but also because I love being a part of educational institutions, because of the constantly new experiences and knowledge that surrounds the individual.

 I am chiefly interested in social and cultural theory because it is the what, where, when and why of our existance, it is our past, our present and our future. I think another thing I love about theory is that it is always opinion based and thusly, up for debate. Peoples opinions on people, places and things within social and cultural theory also lend to our understand ing and interpritation. It is for these reason I love all forms of culture and the social groups, organizations  and ideologies from which they grow.

 

For my project I am looking into Mexican Muralist such as Diego Rivera and the ideals surrounding this type of public domain art. It is rapidly changing my opinion on the role of art and media, and where and how we view cultural products. From this new learning together with old research into Situationism (specifically notions of the society of the spectacle) I hope to create a picture of contemporary life, perhaps post-modern. This work intends to acertain where we have been, what we are doing, and what the future holds for a spieces ever moving  forward…..well ever moving somewhere and thats my point. Are we moving forward, are we progressing, is there any real point or merit to the activities and goals we set for ourselves and occupy our time with.

Inspirations

Bill Hicks, Twain, Diego Rivera, Marx, Lefebre, Debord, Futurism, Dada, Situationism, Post-modernism, etc.

Filed under: e-tivity 01-07/08, joe