U! S! A! U! S! A! - Competitive Art?
Posted in BLATHER & DRIVEL on 06/07/2009 02:33 pm by admin
The results of the 53rd Venice Biennale are in. Bruce Nauman got the Golden Lion, an odd mix of symbols that suggest that he is the King of Contemporary Art. Nauman got famous for his neon words on walls, but he has since progressed into video and more traditional sculpture.
I should be proud. Naumann spent much of his career in California at the San Francisco Art Institute, UC Davis and UC Irvine. Moreover, John Baldessari - a real Los Angeleno - won a Lifetime Achievement Award.
I can’t help but feel a bit awkward and suspicious about the competitive nature of the whole construct, though. One my favorite artists, Jack Smith, noted that “art is not democratic. Some [artists] have it. Some don’t.” Fair. Ultimately though, don’t prizes serve to reinforce the credibility of the judges more than the credibility of the artists?