To be straight forward, the first part of this reading didn’t make much sense to me. However, the second and third parts made quite a bit of sense and were enlightening.
The second part, Jiro Yoshihara’s Gutai Manifesto, was about how Gutai art was about not changing materials but bringing then to life. He says that in Renaissance art, there is no more life. There used to be “magnificent life,’ however, because of the change in time and society, the life has died. He says, “They [the art works] already belong to a world of the past.” He goes on to talk about what Gutai art was. “Gutai art attaches the greatest importance to all daring steps which lead to an as yet undiscovered world.”
What Yoshihara is saying in the first part is basically that representational art is murdering or corrupting the materials or mediums that are used to create it. The artist is trying to make something out of something that already has meaning and “spirit.” The art that is produced will someday not mean anything and not create an emotional experience for the future viewers because the meaning will eventually have no context. The only thing it will be good for is technical observation and archeological existence. I completely disagree with these ideas. I feel a connection to work from the past and not just to the techniques within the works but to the meanings and life in the work. However, I do believe that there is a good point in that abstract art is about the life within materials. They have so much potential and energy in them. I think that its essential for every artist to explore abstraction in the sense that the exploration will lead to a better understanding of their materials.
The third part, Mierle Landerman Ukeles’s ‘Maintenance Art Manifesto,’ was very interesting. It made me think about every action I take and every thought I have. It opened my eyes up to how little of my day is actually about “development” or creative work. It showed me how much monotony there is in life, and it showed me that I should continue to be more mindful of my actions and thoughts so that I can be more productive.
This reading has shown me once again how amazing people are. I would have never thought to think about the ideas that these three authors wrote about. It has shown me that I need to continue to think about every single thing in life and art to fully understand what’s around me and in my head.
Savanna Eleanoire 