File spoon-archives/avant-garde.archive/avant-garde_1998/avant-garde.9806, message 115


Date: Tue, 30 Jun 1998 11:21:56 -0400 (EDT)
From: George Free <aw570-AT-freenet.toronto.on.ca>
Subject: Re: the H&H manifesto



On Tue, 30 Jun 1998, malgosia askanas wrote:

> George wrote:
> 
> > If I am not mistaken (and I very well may be) the intent 
> > (consious or not) of this manifesto is to distinguish German Dada, ie H 
> > &H, from their colleagues, whom they condemn as being merely "art for 
> > arts sake." In other words, they play at making a political gesture in 
> > order to distinguish themselves artistically.
> 
> If you mean that the H&H manifesto was merely a move in an internal Dada game 
> of mutual repudiation or posturing or artistic one-upmanship, then I don't 
> think there is any basis for saying this.  If you mean that it was an act of 
> self-definition or self-announcement, then this is of course true -- isn't
> every manifesto such an act?  So then the question is: what is the purpose,
> role, significance of such statements of self-definition, such announcements 
> of intent? 

	I was thinking of the latter,  and my point was that despite 
theri "political " and "anti-art" posture that this is one that makes 
sense only in an artistic milieu. It is an artistic statement, not a 
political statement.  therefore their position is self-contradictory and 
self-annhilating.

	...but I should back off from this discussion without reviewing the 
historial specifics, since I think that things only make sense when read 
in context.
> 
> Hee hee, I don't know if it goes without saying.  What do you mean by
> "nihilist"?  It is not a word distinguished by univocality of meaning. 
> 
> 
	by nihilism, I simply mean following a course of thought or 
action that is self-destructive, self-annhilating etc.
	There's an interesting distinction betweeen passive and active 
nihilisim found in Nietzsche and interpreters like Deleuze ...also in 
Dostoyevski ....whose work I was once particularly fascinated with. 
Active nihilism is sort of conscious self-cancellation which results 
in some kind of "re-birth" or dawn of  a more highetened/awakened experience.

	forgive my spelling today, I had to  telnet to my mail account 
and the connection was slow...


cheers,
George


     --- from list avant-garde-AT-lists.village.virginia.edu ---
   

Driftline Main Page

 

Display software: ArchTracker © Malgosia Askanas, 2000-2005