In this essay I am discussing, materialism and time in this society and how it makes us wonder.
The world is double, it is both visible and invisible . This is reflected in the difference between the things we see the other world and the thought in an mind remarkable architecture and chaos of some peoples minds. The chaos of our soul is lost in the hands of those who have power. I will comment on my process of creation and the importance of the time in materialist society. Also in doing so, I will mention artists that have a similar way of thinking and who are an inspiration to me.
Creation is in human nature. I create because I find it necessary and fullfilling. We don’t know exactly what and who we are but we seem to become someone when we create a piece and see our emotions and feelings come to life.
Through objects that humans create , memories are created and sometimes remain forever . In fact, through the objects that human beings surrounding themselves with, they both define and destroy themselves. That’s why this year my work is about objects, found objects. I used to use walking on the street, photography and resin as my main mediums. The images I took help me to remember the places where I found the objects, in which streets, at which time and on which days. I developed and carefully glued these images into small blacks books. For the time that I glue them in they are secretly mine. This part of my work is the part where I can see my materialistic behaviour. But this point of view given to me by our society. When we have something material we like to say “this is mine”. Is it a proof of power? Maybe or maybe not. I have collected over 300 objects but without becoming, by this process, rich! But “my” objects have been rejected objects deposited or thrown into the street. Maybe this makes a difference?
Recycling was born with Humans, it is part of humanity’s practical sense. There is a strong creative capacity and willingness to transform through in an informal, magical or poetic way. Artists have always been able to update the quality of inferior or used plastic material.
At the beginning of the 20 century, the materials were fully integrated and even composed work of art. Picasso uses old newspapers and oilcloth for his collages. The Dadaism and Surrealist, between 1920-1930, were very interested in objects. They used than in collage and assemblage. Interpreting the found objects different ways (1).
At this point, Andre Breton ‘mad love’ comes into my mind in this book he idealized found object. The object is the starts of the narrative and unconscious thoughts. I do love this idea. That objects can be an excuse to go and explore the city, in some accident way, and then, meeting its inhabitants.
It is also to the 1960s with the advent of the New Realist group that everyday consumption objects go to recycling. Objects are for the artist a critical issue, it makes an ironic comment on the taste and the art of an era.
So my work is what the Human has always done. I invented nothing but I created something for sure personal to my own story or the one that I want you to hear. The thing is with this society, that people think you are cool because you do have an I-pod or because your shoes have three band! Noemi Klein discus about this brainding , firms, used for make the customer buy them products and believe he need it.(2)
This society make us addictive to objects. Having such or such object is a clue of who we are trying to be. But like I say before does one human know exactly who he is? Where he is going? Probably not. But with consumer goods he think he knows. The danger with these objects is to lose our own identity for a global one. And it’s already the case. I can see that with objects I found on street. I can found the same object in London, Limerick, Paris or Berlin. I don’t mean that these cities or their citizen don’t have identities. But we can easily see the globalisation of consumer objects.
I chose to work around the materialism and the capitalism because for me it makes no sense in this world and in this society that continue to grow. I do have some empathy for this materialist world. And I wish a critical poetry of this world will help us change (c).
The global crisis showed us the absurdity and the irrationality of our system. One of the main questions today is; what does Future means? Humans live again in a hostile environment because he destroyed its preceding environment. Human are disoriented. But we know we need each other to create a better future.
Our economic system has always been a key in humans living together . How do we today, lives with this dominant economic format; The globalizing capitalism it is outdated. The development of generalized western lifestyles (like I say before, I can found the same object in many place in Europe) it offers promising accelerated destruction of terrestrial ecosystem and, on the long term, threatens the existence of human life (3).
It is why, for me, walk to find these objects become a good way to listen and pay attention to the world. I travelling alone, I walk alone. I need to be alone. When I walk I do not think or just thinking of walking. In the same time, I am much more careful to sound or things around me. When I stop walking it is because an object attract me, or, because my mind it’s full of images, noises and smells. I know it is sound like behave like an animal. But we are first animals.
Walk is helping me to think and find my own body time. I do agree with Schelle (4) when he considered that the walk is not a simple body movement. It’s mind movement as well. One step, one thought. It’s in fact opposite to the hyperactivity of our contemporary life. People are scare to be alone. People are scare to don’t have plan for few hours. And the society asked us to be busy. But it is normal we are alive! People can just look on my Facebook pages, or other social network, and they can see how much I am alive!!
Where is the present in this society? Did people feels alive or they just playing? I do think the time in this society it’s just absurd.
Well I don’t guess it. Each object I found helping me to have a vision of time. With this process I can feel the time, touch it. The concept of time is something we all know if no people ask we. But if some people ask to us what the concept of time it is start to be hard to explain! (5)
what I want exactly. I’m still unsatisfied with my work. the statement:
« The concept of time and archaelogy has become a major influence in my work this year.
My work is to show one way to recycle and make precious negkleted human-made objects which forced to integrate our environment .The aim is to ask questions about our consuming society that as many objects. The importance of products , their environmental effects and time. »
I would say my work in general, fit into the era of Postmodern art world. Postmodernism it’s originally used, in the middle 1970, for architecture (6). According to philosopher Marc Jimenez; Postmodernity is not a movement . It’s more the expression of a momentary crisis of modernity. Who, affect more the western society ,which is the more industrialized of the planet (7). Postmodernity refuses to consider the future. In opposition to the modernity, postmodern highlights changes, movement and renegotiations of values. The postmodern artist is full of disillusionments. It comes after the modern revolution of aesthetic and after the fact the culture can’t save the world. I do love the work of some artiste relevant to the postmodernity. Mark Dion is on of those.
People like Marcel Duchamps, of curse I would like say, inspire my work with him readymade. I don’t do readymade, but he inspire me more to work with found object. He was the not the only one, Daniel Spoerri with recycling remains of a meal, Armand, Jeff Koons taking banal object reproduce them with changing the sizes (8). He’s work is kitsch, playing with the word of commerce. It is a non aggressive work such as Rabbit, 1999. But Koons ask us so many question about we society with is work. I like this. The Arte povera movement and as well the life still of the Fluxus one inspire me a lot.
©Mathilda Herve
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(1) “Le musee et le recyclage des objets”
L’experience de l’art_www.crdp-strasbourg.fr/cddp68/experience
Jean-Jacques Freyburger and Anne-Marie Parcelier.
(2)“No logo”, Noemie Klein.
(3) “Penser ce qui vient” Jacques Derrida, in Derrida pour les temps a venir, sous la direction de Rene Major, l’autre pensee. Stock,2007 (p.28).
(4) “Marcher, creer. Deplacements, flaneries, derives dans l’art de la fin du
XXeme siecle”, Thierry Davila, Regard, (2002).
(5) “The confessions” by Saint Augustin, chapter 14 and 20 of the book XI.
(6) “Postmodernity”,second edition, David Lyon, open University Press.
(7) “Art, le present, creation plasticienne au tournant du XXIe siecle, Paul Ardenne, Edition du Regard, p.8.
(8) “conceptual Art” Peter Osborne, Phaidon (2002).
