Society of the Spectacle, Situationists Review

Situationists

            The Situationists included people in the movement in which the world around us, more so the modern world, is questioned. Technology, capitalism and predisposed ideas of how the world should be, are what gets this movement noticed. These are all ideas that spark and provoke the idea of revolution in mankind. By exposing the world around us for what it really is and showing what it is turning into, people are drawn to this and almost have the urge to join in.               

            Instead of accepting the world around us and adapting to it like we are always told to do from a young age, the Situationist’s idea is just the opposite. Question everything, expose it to the world and show what is really going on so that the world can make their own decisions. In, Perspectives for Conscious Alterations in Everyday Life, by Guy-Ernest Debord, he says, "To fail to criticize everyday life today means accepting the prolongation of the present thoroughly rotten forms of culture and politics, forms whose extreme crisis is expressed in increasingly widespread political apathy and neoilliteracy, especially in the most modern countries," (Debord). It is important to question the world around you, and not to accept everything but to have your own voice in society. One of the clearest examples and a personal favorite that we reviewed of this was the Yes Men. Although this movement began in the 1900’s, it is timeless in the fact that it can still be successfully done and relevant even now. The Yes Men, create websites that look like big actual companies that are in the wrong in some way or another usually. Then, people hire them to come speak at big hearings, conventions or even a very public news cast. Then, that is when their performance starts, throwing these companies under the bus, or exposing them. However, it is done in a hilarious way and witty. Although I am sure they have had many legal battles with what they are doing, some companies do not even want to fight back, because then they would have to discuss the point that the Yes Men hit on to begin with.

            The Situationists are needed in the world. Especially today where the modern world full of technology and capitalism are taking over. The idea of accepting and adapting is ignorant, the world should be questioned, and the Situationists take that leap and make others more comfortable with the idea as well.

Dada Manifesto

            The art movement Dada, is perhaps one of the most questioned and analyzed movements. It almost prides itself on being nonsensical and enraging half of the art world. Concept is what people beg for when looking at art works, however when it comes to a Dada piece, one can be very disappointed when they realize the point could possibly be to have no point. Not every art piece, has to have a meaning, although many people would rather force a meaning than accept this idea when viewing art.

            Dada took place in the early and mid-1900’s, however it is also a timeless art form. Marcel Duchamp’s, Fountain, made in 1917, is a clear example of Dada. This piece made many angry, and questioning Duchamp, however, it came to be realized, he just helped to create a new art movement that did not have to involve the intricacies from a paintbrush. Dada is about taking everyday objects, and presenting them in a new context and light that one might not have otherwise thought for that object. Another Dada artist, would be Morizio Cattelan. His work is much more recent, showing that even today Dada somehow still maintains its relevance. Cattelan’s, Him, made in 2001, is the body of a twelve year old boy, with Hitler’s head. Although so many meanings can be drawn from this when an audience views this, they will get no answer at all as to what it means. Cattelan, does not answer questions about his works, which perhaps makes him fit into the Dada movement more. Dada is full of strange ideas, however when they cannot even be explained is when it gives more of a sense of Dada overall.

            Dada is not just a movement that should be overlooked just because it may not appeal to all or meet the ideas and standards of many art critics. Today, this art form is much more respected, and many are often perplexed and just wishing they could force a meaning onto the works. However, when viewing Dada, one must keep in mind, that not everything they see has to mean something. It is almost as if Dada is there to make people uncomfortable, and really question what art is.

Collage Intervention "If You're a Bird, I'm a Bird"

"If you're a bird, I'm a bird," the famous saying from the film The Notebook that everyone seems to think describes true love or even their own love story as well. All over social media as well as everyday life people quote this love story. My piece however, has one bird murdering the other, showing that if one bird hurts the other, don't forget if you're a bird, I'm a bird. In the background are all of the classic ideas and images of a happy relationship, it can look so beautiful to others and like you are both love birds right out of The Notebook. In reality when it comes down to it, it has to be realized that behind closed doors relationships are not always what they seem. There are also negative images in the collage that show this idea as well. All of the images and quotes behind the birds were picked and taken from my own magazines, then scanned in and edited in Photoshop. The bird I had cut out of the original image and painted gold. Then I made my own bird, the dead bird and painted it gold as well. I then placed it over my background and spray painted the frame gold as well. My idea plays off of the overused quote from The Notebook, and hopes to transform it to a more realistic idea of relationships.

Performing for the Camera "Lipstick"

This video alone, is a statement that really asks, what are you getting ready for in life, for who, and what expectations are you trying to live by? When getting ready for anything, a woman can start with a positive mindset, having fun and embracing being a woman and adding that pop of color to her face. Then, as you are farther and farther, should you add that lipstick? What is it we are all going after? Why is it we get ready for some places, but not others. This piece also included a live performance portion as well, where the makeup is being striped off, what one would want to perhaps do when they contemplate what or who they are getting ready for. I did not want to perform, that was the biggest challenge, however I tried to find a happy medium, for some reason I felt more comfortable in person than on the camera. I also wanted it to be a black and white production, so I edited it appropriately, and wore black. But in both the video and in person, the pop, was the lipstick. Meeting your own expectations, and not others, is what this performance was made in hopes for.