As society has changed and developed over the last several hundred years with the integration of new ideas and technologies, so has the role of art in society. Where once upon a time most viewed art as strictly portrait paintings of nobles, art has now taken on a larger meaning to include things like architecture, product design, virtual reality, and video games. The creation of the internet and computer software has not only shaped the way we now connect and network as a society, but have dramatically changed the way that artists create, communicate, and collaborate with other artists, their clients, and their fan base.
Left: Portrait of Louis XIV by French painter Hyacinthe Rigaud, painted in 1701 and commissioned by the king himself. Right: Modern day artist Abdalla Omaria in his painting of Donald Trump in his “Vulnerability Series”, painted as a direct response to the Syrian refugee crisis.
So what provoked these changes? How did we get from one point to another? And, perhaps more importantly, how did technology and media have to do with these changes?
Back in Rembrant’s day, art wasn’t accessible to everyone. Only the wealthy could afford to commission and purchase art. Because of this, artists most often worked in palaces under royalty as court painters. As such, they didn’t have much artistic voice or freedom to create what they wanted to. Instead, they lived at the whim of their commissioners, largely painting beautifully rendered portraiture, landscape paintings, and religious alter pieces. Often, depending on the country and origin from which an artist was from, they would incorporate various traditions, cultural beliefs, or symbolic representations resided within these works of art. Although the artist had freedom over the composition of their work, they were heavily restricted by the way in which they were allowed to create things. Art had a structure, and that structure was not meant to be broken if those with financial influence had anything to say about it.
One of Rembrant’s more famous pieces, The Night Watch, painted in 1642, currently located in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. This piece is an example of a historical painting, depicting militia company of Captain Frans Banning Cocq and Lieutenant Willem van Ruytenburgh.
As society moved forward and various technologies were invented, art moved along with it. Artists began questioning the way their craft had been implemented into society, and began seeking for ways for their work to become more accessible to the common man, integrated into society at large. Perhaps one of the most innovative technologies that allowed this to happen as through the the invention of the printing press, which suddenly allowed for mass media and to be published, produced, and spread throughout society to both the commoner and the noble. Durer certainly saw this as an opportunity for the spreading of ideas and media, creating woodblock prints and etchings that could be spread throughout the country and into the homes of every individual regardless of rank in society.
Both of these images examples of work created by Albrecht Durer. On the left we see a woodblock print, The Four Horsemen from Durer’s “The Apocalypse” series, etched in 1498. On the right is Durer’s Melencolia I, created in 1514. Both of these works follow the strict rules of pictorial realism and accurate depiction of religious symbolism that were emphasized in Durer’s lifetime and culture. However, both of these pieces were unique and revolutionary in that they were made widely accessible to the public through the invention of the printing press.
This progression of technology with art innovation has continued for hundreds of years, morphing into the ever changing and continuously growing world of what modern art is today. With the creation of the internet and various different media technologies, the context and definitions of art has not only grown, but the way that artists connect, network, and grow have changed as a result. Now, it is not only recommended for artists of the 21st century to have a personal website, blog, and social media- it’s mandatory. After all, how can one take another seriously as an artist of the 21st century if they are not creating new content of their conceptualizations, thought processes, and progress behind each piece of their work? Suddenly, we care a lot more about the personal expression, reflective contemplation, and strenuous research that artists of the 21st century use to make a statement.
It is with this note that I want to highlight two modern day artists: Banksy and The Most Famous Artist, both who use media integration in a very interesting way that has inspired many artists after them. Both artists are geniuses in their own right, actively protesting social norms and integrating their art in interesting and exciting ways through the use of technology, specifically social media. Not only has technology helped each artist gain the recognition that they have today in the modern art world, but one could argue that neither artist would be noticed by the art world if it weren’t for the sensationalization of their work on the internet and the followings they have gained online as a result.
Left: An example of one of Banksy’s street murals. In it, we can see the integration of the environment (the cracking paint on the side of the building) working with the imagery to create the art piece. One is left questioning: what is the maid sweeping under the curtain? Right: An example of one of The Most Famous Artist’s pieces. The position of the colors and way they are arranged reminds me of SMPTE color bars. How does this piece, in relationship to the rest of TMFA’s work, push forward to create a social commentary?
Through the use of genius marketing and commentary on larger social issues and constructs that the population cares about, both Banksy and The Most Famous Artist have created a fan base that has quite literally changed the way that the modern art world values and critiques art work. Suddenly, it isn’t necessarily solely up to art historians, curators, and collectors to decide what work is put in museums and makes the cut. With access to the internet and the continuous content artists are uploading, the general public suddenly has a lot more power over the modern art world. Because images, videos, articles, and text can suddenly be reposted, shared, and go viral on social media, sensational, provocative, and meaningful work suddenly has a way of making its way out there into people’s news feeds. And with more exposure to this type of work, a higher demand for this material is created, pushing the art world to take notice and make appropriate changes to their infrastructure. It is networks like this that create interesting connections within the modern art world, proactively changing it and causing artists and historians to think about new ways to engage, interact, and make meaning out of different works.
Banksy is a fascinating modern artist in that he is world renown yet many parts of his identity and artistry remain a mystery. He creates highly charged imagery that concentrates on larger social, political, and cultural issues, deeply reflecting on them and intelligently inserting themselves back into daily life. Banksy forces the public to confront the social issues we would like to ignore and humanizes society by reminding us of our fragility. His work is so popular that he common media causally references him, as seen here in this episode of the The Simpsons.
In this work by Banksy, we see three images juxtaposed together. We automatically recognize the two on either side of the young girl as Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald. The figure between them, less recognizable by many, is the infamous ‘Napalm Girl’, from a photo artist Phan The Kim Phuc took on June 8th, 1972 after a South Vietnamese Air Force attacked her village. We see her at age nine, running and screaming in pain as the napalm burns her skin. With this politically charged imagery appropriated and juxtaposed alongside two figures that highly symbolic of American consumerism, what might Banksy be making a commentary on?
Most well known for his street art, Banksy is known to (often illegally) produce controversial and provocative imagery on public structures. These works quickly gain notice of locals and go viral on social media and local news stations. Although his work is often taken down, painted over, or repurposed to be more socially appropriate or to meet city regulation, the damage has been done. Because social media is so prevalent and integrated into our society, and because Banksy so expertly creates art disruptions through the confrontation of large, often unspoken social issues, it seems that almost all of his work goes viral.
Yet for such a famous artist, we know so little about him. With works selling consistently for six figures and as high as $1,093,400, he is one of the wealthiest artists in the modern art world today. He is continuously pumping out work that both appeals to and satisfies his fan base, yet leaves his work vague enough to leave his audiences wanting more. And the best part? We don’t know who he is. Over the past two decades of his career there have been many guesses and accusations as to who the man behind the mask is, but Banksy has somehow maintained his identity and kept himself hidden in society. Even more impressive, many of his art disruptions, such as his Disneyland surprise or MOMA addition occurred broad daylight. Banksy’s ridiculous methods for creating his work gives a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘hiding in plane sight’, further sensationalizing him as the man who got away with art terrorism and making him some of the hottest news in the art world today.
In stark contrast to Banksy’s anonymity, The Most Famous Artist thrives on his cultivated fame as an artist. Matty Mo, the man behind the not-so mask of TMFA, is a graduate from Stanford with a background in communications. This connection is clear as he expertly uses social media to promote and exploit his work. Like Banksy, TMFA creates sensational and charged work that forces viewers to reconceptualize the placement of art integration in society today. In pieces like his $100,000 sculpture (below), he brings to question the worth and validity of an art piece: is it worth more simply because it was handled by the artist? Less? Or is the art piece worth merely what the material is worth?
An image of The Most Famous Artist’s $100,000 Sculpture. Yes, it is literally $100,000.
In other pieces like his selfie wall and the pink house, Mo engages in the millennial social media culture by creating spaces for his fans to go and take selfies. Think about it: people go see the work, take some selfies, post the images to Instagram with the encouraged hashtag- further promoting, marketing, and sensationalizing his work. The Most Famous Artist is so famous because he is good at what he does: he creates communal spaces to bring people together, which they then promote on their personal social media pages, which thus spreads his work into more communities and networks than he could on his own. It is this genus way of connecting and collaborating with the public that TMFA has been able to create a name for himself and shake up the art world with his connection to the real world.
The above two images are examples of The Most Famous Artist’s expert use of social media. They were found on Instagram by searching #thepinkhouse.
With both Banksy and The Most Famous artist, it is important to note that their social media presence has formed organically based off clear intentionality from the artists. Banksy strives to create provocative art disruptions that cause people to halt and think about larger social and political issues. TMFA is more intentional about creating spaces for which people would want to come and take images to post on social media. While both artists deal with a wide arrangement of powerful social, political, and cultural commentary, neither would be as successful or as disruptive to the art world without their strong media following.
As an artist myself, I am inspired by both Banksy and The Most Famous Artist with the way that they create art disruptions that cause their fan base to rethink about how art plays a role in society and their daily lives. I specifically appreciate how Banksy very intentionally uses controversial issues to create a reaction and stir social action and discussion, as this is an approach I like to take in my personal work with socially engaged art practices.
These images are from my art disruption art installation “Underlining Consent” displayed in the ASU Center Community dorms in May of 2017. This disruption targeted first year students and encouraged them to think about the impact of sexual violence on their campus. For more information on this project, the collaborations, and the statistics around sexual violence at ASU, please go here.
This presentation was created by Kaela Meyer, a senior student at the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts at Arizona State University. Kaela is an artist, activist, and educator who is passionate about the rights of marginalized groups the use of art to knit communities together.
Art and Technology 