Iconoclasm

Orthodox 'contemporary art' is, I have always felt, deeply iconoclastic , and almost puritanical in its refusal of contemplative pleasure. And now at last it seems to be under increasingly articulate analysis. There was a brilliant article by Barbara Herrnstein Smith in London Review of Books, Vol34 No5, 8 March 2012, reviewing Bruno Latour's 'On the Modern Cult of the Factish Gods". Discussing his chapter "What is Iconoclash?", she notes "Contemporary art seeks to complicate our reaction to representations and make us aware of images' status as images. This art is, at the same time, iconoclastic, smashing every traditional aspect of art: image, canvas, paint, colour, patron, museum and indeed our understanding of what it is to be an artist. Yet 'the more art has become a synonym for the destruction of art, the more art has been produced, evaluated, talked about, bought and sold, and yes, worshipped'."

It has often occurred to me that 'contemporary art' is a strangely institutional set up, somewhat similar to the established church of past times, riddled with dogma, defined by status and wealth.

Whilst it pretends to innovation, the 'cult of the new' actually offers a ritualised act in a ritualised space.

In fact the majority of practicing artists do not observe the cult at all, as their creative thoughts are embedded in the process of making rather than labelling their work. Most serious artists I know approach each new work as an exploration, a testing gound for the quality and value of decisions made in response to a proposal evolving in whatever medium they are using. But in the market context is all, it is what creates the brand: without the dominant clarity of an overarching manifesto, as it were, there is no easy leverage into commodification. Thus somebody ambitious for affirmation and status is obliged to conform by aligning themselves within the 'contemporary art' context and thus preconceiving their endeavour as an artist. In spite of the bluster of 'the new', this is a scenario hostile to creative imagination or, to put it another way, any genuine exploration of the potential of art to respond to life.