No Critical Attitude Allowed Regarding This Piece of Work

NO CRITICAL ATTITUDE ALLOWED REGARDING THIS PIECE OF WORK

is a critical attitude in itself. Apart from restricting a basic act of art
appreciation, the Aluminium and PVC custom-made road sign,
deliberately installed outside an art gallery, stands for paradoxical
promoting of critical thinking. The resistance of this likely intangible
work, both physical and rational, counterpoints the efficiency of
questionable long lasting and non-critical processes of making work in
the art students' environment. Bringing continuity to previous
approaches to art education, the installation defines a defensive
strategy against a supposed 'art student wannabe artist' symptom.

A p a r a d o x o f a r t s c h o o l a t t e n d a n c e :
wasting time while claiming sufficiency
My first ideas for a project at Dartington College of Arts were connected to the art audience interests that I am currently considering. Starting from hypothetical proposals of audience interventions and performances and from repeated observations regarding audience attitude, I have developed a neutral position towards attending art events and shows. By trying to personally experience instances of a viewer, the London gallery chasing unofficial performance (details in a previous post) that I had undertaken as part of an experimental research process was an unexpected turn towards a critical position regarding the agencies of art worlds.

One of the ideas that inspired NO CRITICAL ATTITUDE ALLOWED REGARDING THIS PIECE OF WORK was the concern of producing an excessive amount of work. Aiming at identifying symptoms that question the sustainability of art schools and their products (students and works produced by students), the issue of contextualization appeared: “Locating and evaluating our own practice: a necessary process, particularly in an era where the in art has been replaced by consumer capitalism and a state of excess and intensification of the production of the art object.” 1

This is why, keeping this in mind, I have figured out a way to represent this process by proposing a simple iconic image of a road sign.

1. Is a statement of restriction - as a form of personal resistance to the laissez faire, laissez passer structure that empowers art students to produce excessive amounts of work under an easy to get label of 'artistical practice.'

2. Is an attempt to release the significance / nature / value of the work from as many contextual limits as possible. (English still remains a context). Despite the geographical and institutional circumstances involved, it tends to be a 'context free' work.

3. Exemplifies in a relevant manner my personal preoccupation regarding the issues of investing time in research as a key component in approaching a project deadline.

4. Leads to a discursive conclusion (at least partial) of a long, questionable, dispersed and provocative process of adaptation within a context. (Dartington)

5. Is a critical attitude in itself. (paradox)

6. Suggests critical thinking.

7. Resumes clearly my concern of wasting time as it doesn't involve long term working for its final form.

8. Brings continuity to my previous approaches to art education.

9. Is a defensive strategy against a supposed 'art student wannabe artist' symptom.

Feedback: OK Rob, so now that I finally have something CLEAR and SIMPLE and STRONG to think about, haven't I just stepped on the other side of the threshold and joined the group of art students that are confident and relaxed about their work without too much questioning? With no anticipated intention, I have gradually become a patient for the psycho-therapy sessions that are provided in art 'counseling.' As long as the patient goes home happy after the session, everything is fine. And so was I.
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So please critique this project! Tell me that it's crap and tell me what's wrong with it! Tell me that it doesn't work, that it is mis-conceived, that it has no objective value or that it undergoes any previous expectations..tell me that! and explain me why!

(Post - inspiration or maybe just a Celebration of the idea)
Erosie, Germany, 2004