Column

Writer

Real Existing Capitalism

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Economy

Money

The article discusses Adam Lindemann’s book Collecting Contermporary (Taschen, 2006), the art market, auction houses, and the notion of art market stars.

Views: Art Market Education

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Curatorial practice

This article probes into the curatorial practice of Astria Suparak, the former director of The Warehouse Gallery in Syracuse, and why is was considered so controversial. The article states that Suparak comes from the DIY culture of Riot Grrrls and zines, and that she carried this both conceptually and aesthetically into her curatorial work. The article discusses Suparak’s exhibitions, including: Embracing Winter; Networked Nature; and Come On: Desire Under the Female Gaze.

Views: The Politics of Cool

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Federation of Canadian Artists 1

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Varley 1

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Editorial

For the theme of this issue, _Real Existing Capitalism_, I have to thank Montreal writer and dramaturge, and frequent C contributor, Jacob Wren. Having agreed with Jacob that his theme was a good one, I spent some time with him puzzling over what exactly was meant by the term _real existing socialism_, with which our capitalist version is intended to resonate. Did it refer to the socialism that had already been achieved, to the extent that this had actually happened? Or did it refer to the socialism to come, back when it was still a possibility? My own thoughts on the question were vague. We were like archaeologists contemplating the mysteries of the last century. _Perhaps we should consult the Internet?_

From the perspective of today, the idea that communism was once considered achievable is a genuinely weird thought to contemplate. It was a political program, the premise of which-the equal distribution of wealth-is more agreeable than the reality of its rather imperfect implementation. Despite this, Marxist ideas were at one time the engine that fired great artistic projects-notably, the Marxist-informed films of Jean-Luc Godard, such as _Le Vent d’est_ (1969) and _Tout va bien_ (1972). During this phase of his career, Godard often worked with Jean-Pierre Gorin, under the communitarian moniker of the Dziga Vertov Group, an homage to the Russian constructivist filmmaker. An artist almost without peers in the 20th century, Godard devoted years of his life to exploring what a Marxist aesthetic would look like in film.

Today, one can scan the cultural landscape in vain for a similar artistic engagement with a big-idea political program. Perhaps it is because the big ideas are all gone; more likely, through they exist in a form that is not yet recognizable to us, just waiting to be made manifest. The cultural moment we are currently in has the inescapable feeling of hanging on a precipice of change. Somehow, everything is different now, but it’s a reality that has yet to fully sink in. Maybe it is only the prospect of impending global recession speaking; still, certain conditions-most obviously, the monumental changes being wrought by the Internet, allow us to experience a dynamic of change in capitalism that is relentless. At the very least, this we know. It is a state of affairs that brings to mind the phrase, _“All that is solid melts into air,”_ which, of course, comes from Marx.

The concept of Real Existing Capitalism is less difficult to ponder. It’s the school of political thought that currently dominates, in part because its advocates have worked so hard and so successfully to marginalize the plausibility of all the others. As part of his artistic practice, Austrian artist Rainer Ganahl- interviewed in this issue by Christine Martin-conducts reading seminars on Marxist texts. As Martin notes, Ganahl is both “enlightened and repulsed by Marxist-Leninist theory;’ and this ambivalence informs his practice, which, in addition to reading Lenin’s writing, includes the artist’s “book destructions” of those same texts.

Ganahl notes that Lenin speaks about imperialism “as a … system that destroys itself.” Again, this is a phenomenon we seem to be in the midst of but can’t quite recognize. Making things visible is the role of art, but it is often the fate of certain artworks to be, in this respect, misunderstood. In Ryan English’s interview this issue with Francesco Vezzoli, the Italian artist asks if “contemporary art … has become more like an entertainment:’ It is a question Vezzoli dramatizes in his work, which mimics certain aspects of the entertainment industry. By doing so, he risks accusations of indulging in the superficiality of celebrity and fashion, a problem he discusses in the interview. Vezzoli makes clear, however, that he is more interested in making evident the pressures placed on art by the wider global spectrum, especially the process of capital accumulation, in which it plays a part. Talking about the trend of the artist-celebrity, Vezzoli asks, “to which degree has the artist suffered the price of exposing himself more than he would want to?”

In a third interview in this issue, Steve Kado, founder of the inimitable Blocks Recording Club, speaks with Toronto artist Brian Joseph Davis. Notorious for refashioning Theodor Adorno’s _Minima Moralia_ (1951) into a punk-rock song, Davis comments that when “artists try to keep pace with … the culture at large … they just end up looking like idiots.” In a way, this is the same problem that Vezzoli addresses in his work. Even though Davis acknowledges the overpowering effect that today’s mass entertainments can have on an artist, he nothing less does a remarkable job of engaging with, and making art from, that behemoth that used to be called the culture industry. Davis’ works include synchronizing all of Whitney Houston’s hits to play simultaneously and adapting the BGM end-user licence agreement to be sung by a choir. As Kado asks the artist, “there’s more to the world of culture than Jennifer Lopez. Why do you pick the stuff that you do?” To this question, Davis provides the almost perfect answer: “my duty is to the world we are actually in.” For better or for worse, this world is all we have; how well we are able to understand it is another question entirely.

On another note, special thanks go out to Rebecca Gimmi, C’s outgoing manager, for the excellent job she did besting the considerable challenges she faced while running this organization; and to Rebecca Roberts, our excellent long-time copy editor, who is now living and working in New York.

Editor

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Politics

The editor discusses the term “real existing socialism,” Marxism and its influence on artistic projects, the hegemony of capitalism, as well as the contents in this issue: the Italian artist Francesco Vezzoli and Toronto artist Brian Joseph Davis.

Feature

Jon Davies is a Montreal-based curator and writer. He recently received his PhD in Art History from Stanford University.

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Performance art

Video

Film

International

Family

The article discusses the Israeli artist Guy Ben-Ner and his artistic practice, including his interest in the dynamics of the domestic home and the nuclear family. The article mentions the inclusion of his family members in the performances in his videos. The article discusses Ben-Ner’s sculpture and video work Treehouse Kit (2005), and his various video works, including Elia – A Story of an Ostrich Chick (2003); House Hold (2001), Berkeley’s Island (1999), Wild Boy (2004), and Stealing Beauty (2007).

Family Romance

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Memory

The article discusses Lebanese artist Walid Raad (sometimes known as the Atlas Group) and how he uses fiction to help audiences understand political issues Lebanon, including its 20-year civil war. The article discusses his project The Atlas Group Archive, ongoing since 1990, which consists of documents in the form of films, videotapes, photographs, notebooks and other objects. The article discusses the ways in which Raad’s work probes the politics of the representation of trauma within the framework of globalization and its currency of images.

Conflict Studies

Interview

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Representation

Gender

The article features and interview the Italian artist Francesco Vezzoli on the occasion of his exhibition Francesco Vezzoli: A True Hollywood Story! at the Power Plant in Toronto. The artist discusses Hollywood movie stars, fashion, and entertainment.

Crashing Fashion

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Philosophy

This article presents an interview with Austrian artist Rainer Ganahl, who offers Marxist reading seminars as part of his practice. They discuss Ganahl’s work DADALENIN (2007), as well as Lenin and his book Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism. Ganahl also talks about his view of the bicycle as a utopian vehicle of past and future modernities and an invitation to rethink urbanism and transportation.

Lenin, Bicycles, Theory and Love; Rainer Ganahl

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Canadian

Music

This article features a team interview between Toronto artist Brian Joseph Davis and founder of Blocks Recording Club Steve Kado.

Megatron: Team Interview with Brian Joseph Davis and Steve Kado

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Designer

Publisher

Artist Project

Artist

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Drawing

The centrefold presents artist Devon Knowles’ work High Dispersion of Light #2, 2007, coloured pencil and ink, 30.5 cm x 40.6 cm.

High Dispersion of Light #2

Review

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Installation

The article presents a review of Kai Schiemenz’s solo exhibition at Fahnemann Projects in Berlin.

Kai Schiemenz

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The article reviews the exhibition Auto Emotion: Autobiography, Emotion and Self-Fashioning held at the Power Plant, The exhibition explored the mechanisms by which emotion, rather than simply occurring spontaneously or naturally, is produced, packaged and performed. Artists exhibited include Sophie Calle, Rafael Lozano-Hammer, Rodney Graham, Marina Abramovic, and Christian Jankowski.

Auto Emotion: Autobiography, Emotion and Self-Fashioning

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Public art

This article reviews the third edition of Artefact, Montreal’s tri-annual exposition of public art. The theme for the year’s exposition was the 40th anniversary of Expo 67\. Artists on show included Mathiew Beausejour, BGL, Diane Borsato, Aganetha Dyck, Stephen Schofield, and Martha Townsend.

Artefact Montreal 2007 - Urban Sculptures

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Activism

The article reviews Mark Wallinger’s exhibition State Britain, which was held at Tate Britain’s Duveen Galleries.

State Britain: Mark Wallinger

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Social

The article reviews the exhibition Been Up So Long It Looks Like Down To Me, held at Presentation House Gallery in Vancouver, curated by Mark Soo. Artists in the show included Henrik Hakansson, Jonathan Monk, William Hunt, Bruce Nauman, Simon Dybbroe Moller, Kay Rosen, and Sam Durant.

Been Up So Long It Looks Like Down To Me

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Painting

This article review Woodlot: The 3rd KW/AG Biennial held at the Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, curated by Sally McKay. Artists in the show include Kelly Borgers, Janet Morton, Susan Detweiler, Annie Dunning, Jefferson Campbell-Cooper, and Niall Donaghy.

Woodlot: The 3rd KW/AG Biennial

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Photography

This article reviews Emmanuelle Leonard’s exhibition Une sale affaire at Optica gallery in Montreal.

Emmanuelle Leonard: Une sale affaire

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Sculpture

Found

This article reviews Matthew Burbidge and Jaro Straub’s exhibition Patterns Why held at Spesshardt & Klein in Berlin.

Patterns Why: Matthew Burbidge and Jaro Straub

Header

C Mag

Issue 96

Real Existing Capitalism

Credits

Editorial

Real Existing Capitalism

Features

Family Romance

Conflict Studies

Artist Projects

High Dispersion of Light #2

Columns

Views: Art Market Education

Views: The Politics of Cool

Reviews

Kai Schiemenz

Auto Emotion: Autobiography, Emotion and Self-Fashioning

Artefact Montreal 2007 - Urban Sculptures

State Britain: Mark Wallinger

Been Up So Long It Looks Like Down To Me

Woodlot: The 3rd KW/AG Biennial

Emmanuelle Leonard: Une sale affaire

Patterns Why: Matthew Burbidge and Jaro Straub

Interviews

Crashing Fashion

Lenin, Bicycles, Theory and Love; Rainer Ganahl

Megatron: Team Interview with Brian Joseph Davis and Steve Kado