Page 28 - Studio International - May 1969

Corres ondence An old New York letter readers i make reference to nigel gosling's observer
p
25 hungerford road london n7 column, march 30 'creative doldrums'-and suggest
the creative bit goes on if only it can be seen and
february 1st 1967. put over, after all the shape of his words has no
dear k : bearing on the state of the economy. that profes­
i just bought three books published by thames & sional non sound is yet another vote of no con­
hudson 'modern movements' covering pop, sur­ fidence the london artist must get through on his
realism & dada. having glued my busted specs to own account, and it reflects badly right the way
the forehead i'm just ½ the way through pop art, through. with all the art schools geared to the
whether or not i make the other two books only creative potential of its entire intake these last
time will tell. years there is a lot coming on. the creativity thing
you introduced me to claes oldenberg's work is more to do with ideas and less to do with economy
virtually, by giving me the catalogue of the show and no middle man has any business blaming by
you did for him. i find him most interesting aside implication the creative participants as well as the
from the pop attitude, or in between the pro­ economy of a locality because he sees nothing to
pounds of the attitude. report on. things do not come along blessed by a
working & making things in the wake of movements generation of age, style, new york or dusseldorf
(such as pop), characterised by a 'solidarity' and any more; smothered by the convenience of the
didactic exposure of one sort or another, through father-son credit role which is the first and often
the press and large social networks, can be embar­ the only thing understood by london observers.
rassing when there is reference to it due to a
resemblance of a superficial kind. now however, as things happen in the realm of ideas and action
which promotes turnover, the balance of which is
far as references to oldenberg (i too claim original­ your economy with or without your decimal
'
ity -i invented my whole art thing when in system/common market or whatever the hell makes
.,
adolescence) concerning my own work, 1 m very the headache better. the art creative thing is
pleased to detect for myself some quite basic sy ­ catered for here at source, the next thing is to plant
i:n
pathies; in a perspective the references seem qmte a crop of new shape cantolds to give the talkers
legitimate. better people to talk to (and someone tell me who
first and foremost there is a similarity in the 'fond­ they save their pearls of wisdom for while out for
ness' or response ot materials. safety and a comfortable ride?). this place is a bad
when i saw oldenberg's london show the cigarette situation for artists, and i'm interested in turnover
butts struck me most of all. (after some faulty starts) and not takeover, and i
when i had my show there was a pile of sand (no­ wonder what tactical genius lies behind the gallant
body reported it or found anything to say about it studio's move to cause action in these pages from
to my knowledge, although it caused some interest). new york placed artists, literary trained and anxious
it was just dry sand poured on the floor, and worked to expound, and trace the historic trail for them­
by flattening the top, penetrating the centre and selves. well so long as referees are no.t needed, fail­
scouping four times from the centre. ing the wit of london based observers, and a further
it was actually sand, and worked not to be of any invitation and opportunity is extended to new york
particular shape but worked with (subject to my observers to sort out the winners, and hand out the
own system, or way, arbitary by agreement), in a bon bons. if it can be done within some turnover of
way realistic to the situation with no mb � tion � or ideas from the correct premise and be an art
�
the visual to be art, or to have any histonc/soc1al growth situation within the bankrupt literary cul­
dialogue therein. the working of it was the real art ture.
dialgoue in itself. and political blood and thunder aside (i'm re­
with these notions about that kind of thing in mind minded of the local cultural sunday press having
one may understand my response to the butts as i tired, through their own lack of structure and pro­
tell it. fessional content, and gone through angry young
i saw oldenbergs butts, simply, saw them, and they men, satire from the ½ world of entertainment),
were really beautiful; for them (the art diolague swinging london (from the avaricious world of
rendered obsolete,) simply beautiful. p. r.) empty stuff when the tub is empty of ideas
the pop attitude (as reported in the book) aside, can only carp at the creative nature of a com­
perhaps even then there is a fundamental differ­
ence as i would rather introduce sand into the real munity, one eye somewhere else, on whom they
can lean needing to be fed. its about time the public
world rather than seperate it as art, as perhaps communicators and institutions strata took on
oldenberg did with his butts. some creative responsibility, instead of operating
anyway my rather british and questionable isola­ within the safe untouchable historic 'professional'
tion has been dented or even penetrated and i think cocoon. it is creative participation in these areas
oldenberg the most regular of sculptors subject to that is problematic not the economy.
characteristic qualifications. i'm learning to under­ signed in general
stand his work and only my admiration may be harry flanagan.
unqualified-i admit to only one forebear and he london nw3
is my father, my 'adolescent' art movement chal­
lenged him we fought and parted, as is the pattern,
fight no more and have mutual regard.
these mere words form a skeleton of a communica­ Thank God for minimalism
tion to you, who has seen fit to have a pi ce of Dear Sir,
�
sculpture of mine, it seemed a jolly good thing to Painting is a sensory communication system. As
do, and i was absolutely in favour of the trans­ such, it may be subjected to cybernetic description.
action! Painting has self-regulating attributes, e.g., the
harry flanagan. limitations of the medium itself. As an organism,
its prior responses operate upon contemporary
while regurgitating this unanswered letter and stimuli in order to adapt them or to reject them.
while thinking on the difficulties which surround The ancillary systems, painter and viewer, react
the autonomous art activity, i am amazed now at in a similar manner. There are two basic types of
this last paragraph-coy/flattered and ingratiat­ servo-mechanisms: ( 1) where the goal or answer is
ingly british; within the terms of the letter not able known and the objective is to reach it, the mechan­
to put myself over with any seriousness and ism responds only to negative feedback through a
confidence in the literary form, then, at the time corrective device; and (2) where the goal or
indeed a reflection of the london malaise. for home answer is unknown and the objective is to discover

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