Comments | psychochicken: 5 Words Meme : Technique

psychochicken

5 Words Meme : Technique

Jun 24, 2009 15:45

anthrokeight ’s second word for my meme was Technique. I’m going to assume she means an artistic context for this one, as discussions outwith that could get complicated and involve age restrictions.

This is something which I’m passionate about improving despite the fact that its perceived importance seems to be dwindling daily. Drawing and painting skills are ( Read more... )

meme, art

Comments 5

(The comment has been removed)

psychochicken June 25 2009, 10:43:58 UTC

That's pretty sad.

anthrokeight June 24 2009, 20:57:19 UTC

I have this stuff about how the more functional (thus well designed) as well as beautiful/emotional/communicative a work is, the less highly it is regarded swimming in my head. The woman who coordinated The Dinner Party project, Judy Chicago, observed that womens' "craft" like plate painting and embroidery was long dismissed because it couldn't be art because you could use it and it was meant for regular use. Functionality, technique, and gender were thus connected in unfortunate and negative ways.

Thus, it doesn't surprise me that a douche like Hirst doesn't think it's important to make things well in order that they might last.

psychochicken June 24 2009, 22:57:20 UTC

The difference between 'art' and 'craft' is a very powerful historic thing in the art world, and the most common distinction is indeed along functionality lines, but there are far more complex, if no more useful, discussions on the differences between the two out there.

Thankfully I think the gender associations to either are all but gone, with as many of today's top contemporary artists being women as men. Perhaps removing the technique/craft from the equation has actually helped level the playing field in that regard perversely. Bear in mind though that when they said 'craft' they didn't just mean embroidery and stuff that the ladies did to keep themselves busy whilst the men did all the worthwhile stuff; they also meant stuff like building and carpentry and masonary, regardless of how beautiful or creative either the stonework or tapestry was.

sha_d June 25 2009, 08:14:59 UTC

To stir a little - I wonder what the comparative sale price of a piece of stonework and a piece of embroidery would be - assuming equal construction time and material costs?

psychochicken June 25 2009, 10:42:05 UTC

Stiring or not, it's a good point. Bizarrely it appears to depend more on the forum and mode in which the work is displayed and sold, and less on the type or quality of the work. I've seen stonework/ceramics and embroidery in similar styles and quality exhibited at both craft fairs and art fairs with very different price tags. At the Glasgow Art Fair this year there were old fashioned style 'Home Sweet Home' cross stitch things being exhibited and sold as fine art. I also saw them (I think by the same artist) in GoMA, and I thought initially that it was a bit of a cheek presenting these things as high art, but why should it be? And we're back to the art v craft debate, which is probably what the artist wanted ( ... )