Why Does Damien Hirst Cosplay Matisse?
By Michael Estrin
By Michael Estrin
Right now, I'm giving lectures on early postmodernism at university: enthusiastically telling students stories on Chris Bourdain's performance, where he asked a friend to shoot him, and afterward, when the galleries turned their back on him, decided to broadcast his art on late-night cable TV, amidst commercials for mattresses and discounts on electronics. Imagine the poor guy who fell asleep in front of the screen, only to wake up just as a naked Bourdain crawls through an empty parking lot strewn with broken glass. Or how the Russian art group “Gnezdo” in the 70s, at the height of the Cold War, bought and sold certificates of ownership for the souls of American citizens to people in the Soviet Union, and how one of the signers of the certificate turned out to be Andy Warhol himself. And so now, somewhere in Russia, it is quite possible that someone has a right for the soul of a great artist.
Hell, even the story with Damien Hirst's diamond skull: though it already smells like rotting capitalism, if you squint hard enough, maybe, just maybe, you can catch a glimmer of mockery, a slight jab at the bloated art market.
In recent years, it seems I can't find a single truly cool story! Where's the damn rock 'n' roll in today's art scene? Have we tumbled into a pit of bland, uninspired drivel? Is contemporary art now just a tedious march through a wasteland of dullness?
No! I want to assure you that there is a lot of new cool art, but you have to dive a little bit deeper for it.
We are slowly crawling out of postmodernism, and young art, although it is becoming more and more technological, becoming less conceptual and more emotional and empathetic every year. The personality of the author again begins to play a major role, as how it was in the modernist era.
And that’s the reason Hirst is now cosplaying Matisse in his recent works, but who are we to judge a retired man?
The main problem I see is the art industry we have. It was created in the '60s, at the peak of the trend towards depersonalization of the author, when art at all costs sought to separate itself from objectification and signature styles. And I think it has not been adapted for new artists so far.
Galleries and institutions, with rare exceptions, are not at all interested in the individuality of the artist, his inner world, and personal views; they need a trend and agenda that will ensure good sales and crowds on the openings. In recent years, fortunately, it seems that this strategy is starting to malfunction.
By the way, this trend is much more noticeable in the current crisis of Hollywood.
Fuck endless open calls, curators sucking out more and more absurd themes for exhibitions, artists who are trying to stretch their creativity for these meanings! Gatekeepers, and their fairs!
We need a rebirth, we need a new industry, and a stronger community!
Previous generations seriously failed us! Somehow, while trying to create art that should be closer and more understandable to the mass audience, postmodernists and the art market around them managed to build monstrosity that made an even greater gap between the artist and the audience. An elite club, accessible only to the “chosen few”.
But, it seems to me that new, sincere art has every opportunity to reach people, and then artists will again, as they once did before, begin to play a bigger role in shaping minds and new meanings for humanity. I'm sure this will make our world a better place. We just need to create the conditions for this.
And the first big step towards this goal can be education. But, I don’t mean that education from which we have all been bored to death in schools and universities. The more people will finally figure out that art is one of the few beautiful creative traits of the human species, the better.
To achieve this we must leave our cozy little communities, and find a common language with the masses. We soak enough in our juices and grow wonderful sprouts of a new culture, now we can go to the masses, scatter them around the world, and make every effort so that they blossom, not trampled. What does all this mean? More small local exhibitions, more independent magazines and publications about our art, more collaborations and open studios, blah blah, I think you get the idea. And for all that we don’t need any special conditions. Any idiot with a budget can throw an art show, but can you keep it to $100? Hans Ulrich Obrist started from the kitchen, so you are not better! As the great actor Shia LaBeouf once said: “JUST DO IT!” But do it with love and compaction, to find a common language with the audience, but don't indulge it! Inspire them, and make their hearts beat in unison with ours. By nurturing such environments, we can ensure that the art world does not lose its next generation of pioneers to the mere economics of survival but thrives as a vibrant community of diverse voices. The potential is here, people!
Two years of living in Tel Aviv gave me a lot of hope for the future. It has everything to create a new center of gravity: a seething cauldron of multiculturalism, gentrification in full swing, and a crowd of hungry, insanely talented free-spirited people. With its charm, the southern part of the city reminds me of the New York East Village of the 70s—the same unique combination of poverty, punk, and drugs, if only rent prices weren't so steep—you can’t dream of more!
Illustrations by Maria Sunroyse
