Page 18 - Studio International - December1996

Excerpts from selected papers

presented at the 1966 Destruction in Art

Symposium

ance to reveal their understanding of their All of these destructions and infinite numbers more
are all adjustments inherent in the evolutionary stage
activity is usually in the interest of con-
of our own physical and biological universe. They serve
tinuing productivity. no distinct species survival or stabilizing purpose.
An audience responding to destructive art Our tragic dilemma is that because of our limited
psychological evolution we have unwittingly insti-
is potentially of great interest to the psycho-
tuted our biological and physical limitations. We have
logist. It is not difficult to make snap instituted the ultimate destruction of our species. Our
assessments of the effects of violent art science, our laws, our education, our economics all
reflect our physical and biological evolutionary limita-
forms on the spectator. It is more desirable
tions. Evolution is a destructive adjustment, there is
to study the reality by means of cameras, no concern for survival in evolution, only adjustment.
tape-recording of audience reactions imme- Survival is an abstraction made possible through psy-
chological evolution.
diately after the event, followed by long-
It is through the advantage of a psychological evo-
term research. The value of such studies lution beyond that of our biological and physical
The Destruction in Art Symposium, held would not be confined to psychology. universe that mankind can realize the necessary
in London this September, was attended Aesthetics, in its slow progress to becoming compensations and adjustments in destruction and
thereby secure that unnatural but most humane
by a number of artists and writers from a science, would benefit by joining in this ideal, the survival of the species.
abroad, and attracted a great deal of atten- research. It is within this framework that I perceive a value for
tion. Much of the attention was directed to Gustav Metzger destructivist art. I believe destructivist art gives our
destructive instinct its essential expression while
the 'events' organized around the sympo- coming to terms with destruction's most primitive,
sium—Ralph Ortiz's piano-smashing, John maladaptive aspects—aspects that ordinarily would
Destructivism can only be misunderstood prove to work for the destruction of the species
Latham's burning of towers of books, the
and abhored by a confused civilization rather than its survival.
proposal to stage 'ritual' killings of chic- It is because art is a symbolic synthetic process that
anxious and self-conscious of its own
kens and animals (a proposal which was it can become the means by which to further human-
powers of total annihilation. Destructivist
abandoned), etc. ize our species. By bridging the gap between the
Art could easily be interpreted as the final good and the evil art absorbs the evolutionary limita-
We publish here, as documentation, tions of our species without threatening its biological
aesthetic realization of a nihilism that will
excerpts from selected papers read at the or psychological survival.
engulf us all. Destruction can be Good or That we have been timid in exploiting these possi-
Symposium, with an introductory statement
Evil. bilities is best expressed in the difficulty most of us
by Gustav Metzger, secretary of DIAS. will have in accepting Destructivism as Art or for that
It is generally understood that destruction
matter assign such purposes as I do to Art.
is essential to the nature of things and that Ralph Ortiz
without it nothing could be. Destruction is
In the context of the possible wipe-out of
built into our species. If we could not des-
civilization, the study of aggression in man,
troy we would not survive for one moment. Three kinds of obsolescence are defined in
and the psychological, biological and
Our species destroys in the most funda- V. Packard's Waste Makers:
economic drives to war, is possibly the most
mental sense to live, we destroy in the more 1. Functional obsolescence: a technical
urgent work facing man. A central idea of
human sense to realize ourselves. Our improvement replaces an older product.
Destruction in Art Symposium was to iso-
lungs destroy, our blood destroys, our 2. Psychological obsolescence: changes of
late the element of destruction in new art
stomachs destroy. We slaughter cattle, cut styling are forced in products, so that they
forms, and to discover any links with des-
down forests and smash atoms all in order look out of date quickly—womens' fashions
truction in society. A glance at the list of
to be. as studied by Detroit Motors.
headings for Symposium papers makes this
clear. ART: Architecture, film, Happenings,
language, music, plastic arts, theatre.
Gustav Metzger Stateless, born 1926; studied paint- Gallery, Museum of Modern Art, N.Y., and Washing-
SOCIETY: Atmospheric pollution, creative
ing and drawing with David Bomberg; published ton Gallery of Modern Art.
vandalism, destruction in protest, planned
first auto-destructive manifesto in 1959; auto-creative
obsolescence, popular media, urban art manifesto 1961. José Luis Castillejo, Juan Hidalgo, and Walter
sprawl/overcrowding, war. SCIENCE: Bio- Marchetti members of the Spanish group ZAJ. The
group was founded about two years ago by Madrid-
logy, economics, medicine, physics, psy- Ralph Ortiz American, born 1914; represented in based Spanish artists, writers, and composers.
Museum of Modern Art, N.Y., and Whitney Museum
chology, sociology, space research. (These
of American Art; has published manifestos on des-
subjects were to be treated in specific relation Joseph H. Berke, M.D. American; psychotherapist
tructive art. and poet; helped found Free University of New York.
to destruction and aggression.)
It was hoped that artists would discuss Ivor Davies British, born 1935; artist; has participated *DIAS hopes to organize a second symposium in
their reasons for engaging in art forms that in many group exhibitions; lecturer in Department of the summer of 1967.
Fine Art, Edinburgh University; made first destruc- **The Happenings in Prague illustrated in the
include the actual destruction of materials.
tive art demonstration using explosives in Britain. October issue of Studio International (pages 210-211)
Of course it is difficult for artists to probe the
were organized by Milan Knizak; photographs of the
motive power of their art, and any reluct- events were exhibited by DIAS.