Reading Response 7: Due TUESDAY November 23

Please note due date, not due before class this week but by Tuesday of next week (to compensate for the late posting).

1. First, as requested earlier, post your response to Peggy Awhesh's Martina's Playhouse.

I really enjoyed "Martina's Playhouse", it definitely had a home movie feel to it, this gave it that Punk vibe. Where they grabbed super 8mm cameras and most with little or no training and made films quickly and cheaply. It also reminded me Fluxus in the way that anyone can make a film or art and of Warhol how he set up the camera and let whatever happened just unfold in front of it.

Keller and Ward, "Matthew Barney and the Paradox of the Neo-Avant-Garde Blockbuster"

2. What has changed in the gallery art world that allows Barney to describe his work as “sculpture”? In other words, how has the definition of sculpture changed since the 1960s, and why?

Since the late 60's,performance art has developed out of and in relation to sculptural practices- principally minimalism-leading to the destabilization of sculpture as an object both (physical and discursive). this dissolution of sculpture has been enormously productive of and for performance, so while Barney's claim to his films generative effects relies rhetorically on the instability of sculpture as a category, to claim performance-and film- as sculptural, and to see them as " a family of objects", as Barney doe, might be curiously retrograde. Also, The props that Barney crafted for his "films" are sold as sculptures to collectors or Museums such as the Guggenheim.


3. Tricky but important question: Why was minimalist sculpture seen as a reaction against the “modernist hymns to the purity and specificity of aesthetic experience”? In other words: Why do they say that minimalist sculpture is post-modernist?

Minimalist sculpture is minimalist in a similar way of Warhol or Fluxus. They all believe in the process being more important than the actual art itself, but in different ways. Sculpture is more about the emphasis on physicality and endurance and what it takes to actually accomplish a finished piece, which in turn makes the art making process more important than the art. Warhol and Fluxus filmmakers were about setting up the camera and letting things unfold naturally in front of it.

4. Describe the role of the body in the works of Vito Acconci and Chris Burden. You may wish to consult the following links to supplement the descriptions in the readings:

The role of the body in the works of Acconci and Burden were part of the art itself. They sought to push there bodies to limit while making art. Such as getting shot in the arm in "Shoot" and sitting on the ladder for 6 hours in an attempt
to save themselves from electrocution like seen in "220". Their works were mediated performances that emphasized duration and endurance over commodificaton.

http://www.ubu.com/film/acconci.html

http://www.ubu.com/film/burden.html

5. In the opinion of the authors, what are the key differences between performance art of the 1960s/1970s and Barney’s Cremaster cycle? What do they mean by the term "blockbuster" in relation to the gallery art world?

They call their works "Blockbuster" in relation to the gallery art world because of the
high production cost and the elaborate, eye popping sets and props used in the making of these films. Also the protagonist of these films goes through many struggles and pains in their films to end up victorious in the end like seen in the Cremaster films. This is similar to the blockbuster films of Hollywood.


Walley, "Modes of Film Practice in the Avant-Garde"

6. What is meant by “mode of film practice”? Give two well known examples of non-experimental modes of film practice. Why does Walley argue that the concept of the mode of film practice can help distinguish between the experimental film and gallery art worlds?

The term "mode of film practice" refers to the cluster of historically bound institutions,
practices and concepts that form a context within which cinematic media are used.
The authors note that a mode of film practice is not limited tot he aims and methods of production, but extends to distribution, venues of exhibition and viewing strategies that characterize each mode and distinguish one from another. Art cinema and Hollywood films are two famous examples of non-experimental modes of film practice. The contrast between the two modes extends to the aims behind behind the aesthetic and circumstances under which they can be seen and understood.

7. What are some of the key differences between the experimental and gallery art worlds in terms of production and distribution?
As far a production goes for Experimental the projects are more personal, independent, amatuer, or artisanal. Film historian Ed Small calls experimental filmmakking "radically acallaborative" meaning the filmmaker not the director, writer or cinematographer controls every aspect of the films production. Beginning with the initial idea all the way through post, basically the filmmaker is in control.In Avant-Garde cinema, film is the center of the artistic practice.Artists' film production has become increasingly collaborative since it emerged as a recognizable category of film art in the 1960's. Some work even approaches the the scale of mainstream filmmaking,such as Matthew Barney's, Cremaster series.
In artists' cinema, film is one medium among many, they are often part of a body of related works in a variety of media. Like sculptural objects, photographs, drawings, woven pieces and musical recordings just to name a few.
In regards to distribution Experimental uses some commercial practices of distribution, like rentals, which don't bring in much money for the filmmakers. Art gallery films are more aimed at being sold rather than rented, which can lead to the economic success of these artists.

Reading Response 6: Due Nov. 3 @ 5 p.m.

Michael Zryd, "The Academy of the Avant-Garde : A Relationship of Dependence and Resistance"

1. What changes in the American avant-garde are associated with the rise of structural film and the creation of Anthology Film Archives in 1970? How does these changes affect:

a. The participants (filmmakers, critics) in the avant-garde community?

The artists' authenticity clashes with the pretentiousness of critics and academics. In this respect, the complaint against academization is directed less against the fact that avant-garde films are taught in universities that an the language of that instruction, especially the rise of theory and it's specialized terminology in the 70's and 80's, which many artists saw as an intimidating barrier to institutional recognition. There was a struggle between those who wee embraced by universities and those who were not.

b. Canon formation (which films are considered “important,” and taught in classes).

Seen as a force of old guard filmmakers and those favored by academic institutions at the expense of young, developing artists many of which were emerging from art schools.


c. Distribution and exhibition practices.

Distribution and exhibition was on a move from the theater to the classroom. the dominant percentage of rentals switched from nan-academic to academic sites.

2. Briefly explain the debate between autonomy and engagement within the avant-garde. How does this debate play out in the 1980s?

The autonomy or self governing of avant-garde became one that bred discontent due to the fact that only certain films were highly regarded and programmed at academic institutions leaving the filmmakers that were not programmed upset with the institutions.

3. What are the negative aesthetic connotations of the “academic avant-garde film”? What is the major critique from new filmmakers who emerged in the 1980s?

The negative aesthetic connotations were that the academic avant-garde filmmakers were making films that were becoming repetitive or copy catting form and structure instead or being creative and coming up some with something new and fresh of their own devices.

4. What are the five legacies of the academicization of the avant-garde?

1) The maintenance (to the point of dependence) of distribution co-ops, as the classroom became the dominant site of exhibition.

2)Regionalization, as centers of avant-garde film activity expanded beyond New York to multiple regional sites.

3) Publication mechanisms for the writing, and dissemination of the history, criticism, and theory of avant-garde.

4) Employment for filmmakers as faculty or technical personnel.

5) Development of 2nd and 3rd generation students becoming critics, teacher, programmers, and archivists.

Marc Masters, “The Offenders: No Wave Cinema”

5. Name at least three similarities between the punk music scene and the punk/no-wave filmmaking scene, in terms of technology, style, and community.

1) The musicians and the filmmakers both exhibited their works at the same places like CBGB's.

2) They would both switch up roles or jobs in their art making processes.

3) Both would learn their tools of their particular trade as as they go.

6. What were the exhibition venues for punk/no-wave films such as those by Beth B. and Scott B., and how did the venues affect film content and style?

The exhibition venues for the punk/no wave films were clubs like CBGB's and Max's Kansas City, the audience members consisted of punkers who were usually drinking. They could be loud and belligerent and if they were interested in the film the filmmakers knew they were doing something right.

7. What are some similarities and differences between the American avant-garde we have studied so far and the Punk or No Wave filmmaking in the late 1970s? Address the following areas:

a. Aesthetic similarities and differences (which filmmakers do the cite as influences, which filmmakers do they reject?)

They were trying to blur the line between reality and performance (sometimes by using non- professional actors) like a throwback to Warhol's films as well as using low grade fimstock like Jack Smith.

b. Technological similarities and differences

They both went for quick production of their art. The No-Wavers used Super 8 so they could shoot quickly and screen instantly.

c. Economic similarities and differences

They both went for cheap means of production for instance using the Super 8 camera.

d. Social similarities and differences

They both came from the same social scene one that was anti conformist with a feeling of angst.


Janet Cutler, “Su Friedrich, Breaking the Rules”

8. In what ways does Friedrich “break the rules” in terms of mixing filmmaking practices? How have different critics approached her different films? What kinds of avant-garde sub-genres has she explored?

She shot her versions of the psychodrama/ trance film, structural film and her diary film. She also did narrative and documentary films. She broke the rules by employing methodology from various genres and styles of avant- garde films and made them her own in her own unique way.

9. What are some of the distinguishing characteristics of “Sink or Swim”?

In "Sink or Swim" Friedrich employs music for the first time (the Shubert song and the ABC ditty) also 26 scenes which parallel the letters of the alphabet in reverse order, some have wound and some are silent, and some include autobiographical voice-over.The film was a chronicle of her life and her feelings towards her father.