File spoon-archives/avant-garde.archive/avant-garde_1997/97-01-27.165, message 109


From: Zalew1319-AT-aol.com
Date: Thu, 2 Jan 1997 15:40:50 -0500
Subject: Re: Truth in 1997



>As the museums glowed in the night, the populace cheered and celebrated
>the end of academe-arts funding tyranny; you could still hear the
>crackling of curatorial crickets, flayed and seared art-journalist flesh
>and burning baby buggy whips. Artists and the very-names of art were free
>and local networked art-nodes flourished; this was art in the age of
>digital dissemination. The basic precept of the DADTP was gradually
>infused throughout the world. 

>from an interview with john baldessari in LA times dec.30,96:

Q: After last year's 40% budget cut, the National Endowment for the Arts 
is barely alive. Is a severly crippled NEA better than no NEA at all?

A: No. I really believe it should go down in flames.[NEA Chairman Jane 
Alexander] should make a stand and say: listen, this is the line, you 
pushed me past it and that's it. Just let it collapse.
     The NEA has become a joke. We might as well call a spade a spade and 
say [the nation] doesn't support art, so let's not have this lip service 
that we do. Let's make it very clear that we don't support art and see if 
anything starts up again. I think the chances for art are better if we 
start out stating clearly what we believe-which is we #don't# believe in 
supporting the arts. Then we'll see if there's any grass roots movment 
toward getting it going again.
    And if there's no public clamor then it's true: The business of 
America is business.

Q:What other  primary issues face art today?

A: Is there a reason for doing art other than money? Which is an issue 
that didn't exist before the 1980's. Now it lingers-like some kind of 
stain that won't vanish.
     Prior to the '80s, it was assumed you did it because you wanted to 
do it. When you see paintings getting smaller and smaller and alot of 
gallery tchotchkes around, is that because people really  want to do 
them? I'm not so sure.
     Or,  is it to pay my rent? [Artist and Newsweek art critic] Peter 
Plagens had this idea that the NEA should pay some artists NOT to do art.


happy new year
rupture and continuity as needed
john z. 



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