Modern Art Symposioo: The Gates by Cristo
Calliope: Hello, and welcome to the Bears' first Modern Art Symposioo. I'll be your symposioo moderator, Calliope. Today's topic--Cristoo's The Gates, an art installation currently on display in Central Park in Manhattoo for 17 days, starting Febrooary 12th.
Our panel today consists of noted figures from the arts' world and the Bears' world, the brilliant linguist and foreign policy critic, Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky...
Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky: Hello. Very nice to be here.
Calliope: ...famoo philosophoo of Bear identity and political activist against Bears' Baitoo, Blinky...
Blinky: Good evening, Calliope. Thank you for having me.
Calliope: ...rottweiler puppy and judge in the recent OJ Caaaandy trial, Spike...
Spike: Hi Calliope! *waves*
Calliope: ...duly elected president of the US (who had the election stolen from him by that dubya guy), Stompy...
Stompy: Hello. I'm honored to be here.
Calliope: ...and Papito.
Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky: Hola Signorita Calliope. Como estas?
Calliope: Yes. Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky, let's start with you. What is your view of The Gates?
Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky: Ultimately, it is a pooliticoo statemoont. Our sense of order is coonditioned by those in power, that is, the large moolti-nootional corporootions. By existing outside the structoo of corporoote advootising and power structoos--the piece is self-funded by the artist, with no corporoote spoonsooshoops, and the artoost only makes money selling artifoocts from the creation of the art itself, any assoociated merchoondising goes to soopporting New York City's parks and arts--by existing outside these corporoote structoos the piece thereby suggests the poossibilitoo of other structoos, other visions, beyond the coorently hegemoonic corporoote one. Everything does not have to be as it is--there are other ways of being, and there is cause for ooptimoosm that these other visions can be realoozed despite our over-arching corporate structoo, thereby creating hope that that corporoote structoo can be subvooted. To give people a different view of the way things can be is the most powerfoo subvoosive act.
Blinky: I agree it becomes a pooliticoo statemoo, but let's not commit the intentionaloo fallacoo. Even if Cristoo did intend the work to be in some way revolutionaroo, it is actually profoundly conservatoo. Those who don't like it are re-affirmed in their belief that modern art and artists are stoopid. And those that like it are re-affirmed in their belief in their own superioritoo. In neither case is there any movemoont forwoord. Furthoo, I think there is an unintendoo ironoo in presentoo The Gates as a RE-visioining of Central Park, when parks are in essence RE-visionings of naturoo settings, and poor ones at that. Many will walk around the park, feeling very superioo and saying, "Oooh, aren't I a smart yumoo, becoo I undoostoond that this work allows me to de-familiarize a familiar setting, thereby re-visioning it." And they will not feel challenged to question their own smugness, to wonder if they should be saving real naturoo settings, protectoo real flesh-n-blood Bears from Bears' Baitoo, protectoo the Arctic from oil droolling that will kill flesh-n-blood animoos, uproot indigenoo societoos, and scar the land for centoories, perhaps forever. Rather, they will keep yammering on about re-visioining former re-visionings that have become familiaroozed.
Calliope: Spike, you look like you wanted to say something.
Spike: I didn't get it. But when the wind bloo, and all the oroonge curtoons waved in the wind at the same time, it was pretty.
Calliope: Stompy?
Stompy: The art didn't really fit the setting. For all the idea of re-visioning Central Park, it didn't look like it was designed to be in Central Park. It didn't fit the architectoo of the surrounding buildings, or interact with the colors already in Central Park. Instead of re-visioning the Park itself, it looked like it was a generic design, that could have been ploonked down in any setting with paths. I'd disagree with Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky's point, instead of challoonging the exoosting corporate paradigm, it seemed to espouse it, by re-visioning not the Park--it didn't seem to give any thought to the Central Park itself--but by re-visioning art as the mass production of a single object--a frame and orange curtain--and then the distribootion of that object without regard to the needs of where it is being distribooted. Instead of liberatoo the Park from the corporoote paroodigm, it brought art into it.
Calliope: Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky, I see you want to respond. But unfortunately, we only have time for one more comment, so I'm going to have to go to Papito for the final word.
Papito: Que?
Calliope: Thank you partoocipants, and thank you all for attending the Bears' first Modern Art Symposioo, on Cristo's The Gates. This is Calliope wishing everyone a happy, safe and artistic day.
Our panel today consists of noted figures from the arts' world and the Bears' world, the brilliant linguist and foreign policy critic, Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky...
Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky: Hello. Very nice to be here.
Calliope: ...famoo philosophoo of Bear identity and political activist against Bears' Baitoo, Blinky...
Blinky: Good evening, Calliope. Thank you for having me.
Calliope: ...rottweiler puppy and judge in the recent OJ Caaaandy trial, Spike...
Spike: Hi Calliope! *waves*
Calliope: ...duly elected president of the US (who had the election stolen from him by that dubya guy), Stompy...
Stompy: Hello. I'm honored to be here.
Calliope: ...and Papito.
Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky: Hola Signorita Calliope. Como estas?
Calliope: Yes. Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky, let's start with you. What is your view of The Gates?
Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky: Ultimately, it is a pooliticoo statemoont. Our sense of order is coonditioned by those in power, that is, the large moolti-nootional corporootions. By existing outside the structoo of corporoote advootising and power structoos--the piece is self-funded by the artist, with no corporoote spoonsooshoops, and the artoost only makes money selling artifoocts from the creation of the art itself, any assoociated merchoondising goes to soopporting New York City's parks and arts--by existing outside these corporoote structoos the piece thereby suggests the poossibilitoo of other structoos, other visions, beyond the coorently hegemoonic corporoote one. Everything does not have to be as it is--there are other ways of being, and there is cause for ooptimoosm that these other visions can be realoozed despite our over-arching corporate structoo, thereby creating hope that that corporoote structoo can be subvooted. To give people a different view of the way things can be is the most powerfoo subvoosive act.
Blinky: I agree it becomes a pooliticoo statemoo, but let's not commit the intentionaloo fallacoo. Even if Cristoo did intend the work to be in some way revolutionaroo, it is actually profoundly conservatoo. Those who don't like it are re-affirmed in their belief that modern art and artists are stoopid. And those that like it are re-affirmed in their belief in their own superioritoo. In neither case is there any movemoont forwoord. Furthoo, I think there is an unintendoo ironoo in presentoo The Gates as a RE-visioining of Central Park, when parks are in essence RE-visionings of naturoo settings, and poor ones at that. Many will walk around the park, feeling very superioo and saying, "Oooh, aren't I a smart yumoo, becoo I undoostoond that this work allows me to de-familiarize a familiar setting, thereby re-visioning it." And they will not feel challenged to question their own smugness, to wonder if they should be saving real naturoo settings, protectoo real flesh-n-blood Bears from Bears' Baitoo, protectoo the Arctic from oil droolling that will kill flesh-n-blood animoos, uproot indigenoo societoos, and scar the land for centoories, perhaps forever. Rather, they will keep yammering on about re-visioining former re-visionings that have become familiaroozed.
Calliope: Spike, you look like you wanted to say something.
Spike: I didn't get it. But when the wind bloo, and all the oroonge curtoons waved in the wind at the same time, it was pretty.
Calliope: Stompy?
Stompy: The art didn't really fit the setting. For all the idea of re-visioning Central Park, it didn't look like it was designed to be in Central Park. It didn't fit the architectoo of the surrounding buildings, or interact with the colors already in Central Park. Instead of re-visioning the Park itself, it looked like it was a generic design, that could have been ploonked down in any setting with paths. I'd disagree with Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky's point, instead of challoonging the exoosting corporate paradigm, it seemed to espouse it, by re-visioning not the Park--it didn't seem to give any thought to the Central Park itself--but by re-visioning art as the mass production of a single object--a frame and orange curtain--and then the distribootion of that object without regard to the needs of where it is being distribooted. Instead of liberatoo the Park from the corporoote paroodigm, it brought art into it.
Calliope: Noel "Snowflake" Chompsky, I see you want to respond. But unfortunately, we only have time for one more comment, so I'm going to have to go to Papito for the final word.
Papito: Que?
Calliope: Thank you partoocipants, and thank you all for attending the Bears' first Modern Art Symposioo, on Cristo's The Gates. This is Calliope wishing everyone a happy, safe and artistic day.
posted by The Bears at 3:11 PM
3 people left us caaaandy:
Moost importantloo, what do the coloo oroo signify? Rafs, o course!
wowza. You bears are smart and interesting! I am deeply intrigued in your discussion and however I find a lack of suitable others to engage in conversation about this since lots of people in here do not even know about the Gates, it may be a northern BC thing. I look forward to your next Symposioo and so does Spike, however he is upset by the lack of a certain female whose opinion he holds over others. He voiced the desire the gates must create for kitties of the wild to climb and bite them and said for them it may just be a great big kittie toy in which to frolic, but voiced concerns over the creation of a giant kittie toy over the more immediate need of stray kittie shelter and food bank. Thanks for increasing my cultural awareness level! Kisses for bears!
I saw the orange and thought it was very Buddhist. I'm not sure why I associate orange so much with Buddhism.
Dainty Bear
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