Page 39 - Studio International - November 1973
P. 39
Feedback discipline of art has become more CONTENTS
chaotic the trend has been to cater for
an increasingly small public. If he
hopes to make his role clear to Feedback/Clive Phillpot 187
himself and make sense of the Vision/Malcolm Le Grice 188
problems involved with such a Graphics/Andrea Adam 189
socially and psychologically Books/John Walker
189
fragmentary audience, the conscious News and notes
189
190
interest in the relevant studies, be Nice Style Pose Band
they socially psychology, cybernetics, Fine-art ceramics/David Hamilton 192
philosophical logic or whatever, seems Letter from San Francisco/Jerome
necessary and inevitable; and this is Tarshis 192
not a position evident within Prospect '73/Rosetta Brooks
194
existing systems of art education'. New at the Tate/R. J. Rees 194
Germany/Gunther Wirth 195
Following on from this point, John Interview with Oppenheim/Lynn
Stezaker, in writing about 'Two Hershman 196
instances of institutional determinacy Reviews/Hubert Dalwood, Sarah Kent,
CONTROL of art' in Control Magazine, refers to Duncan MacMillan, Judy Marie, Tony
the necessity for alternative Rothon 197
MAGAZINE categorization of art within art Selected Gallery Guide 201
ISSUE SEVEN institutions, in view of 'the way in Three/Lucy Lippard
202
which the content of the so-called
"plastic arts" in recent years has Andrea Adam is London Correspondent for
found itself at odds with the Oui magazine ... Rosetta Brooks is a
institutional structures which were free-lance writer .. Hubert Dalwood is a
designed to accommodate such sculptor ... David Hamilton teaches at
activity'. This conclusion is the result Portsmouth Polytechnic ... Lynn Hershman
of considering the latter of a pair of is an artist in San Francisco ... Sarah Kent
truisms ; the former is concerned with teaches at the London College of Printing ...
The latest issues of two 'little the position of art-theory vis-à-vis Malcolm Le Grice is a film-maker and
magazines' published in Britain have philosophy, and suggests that there is teaches at St Martin's School of Art ... Lucy
appeared almost simultaneously and a rift between the two which 'the Lippard is a writer, critic and art historian ...
as well as having a contributor in development of different institutional Judy Marie teaches art history at the
common they also share a concern structures to deal with the theory and Norwich School of Art ... Duncan
with the nature and function of art, practice of art' obscures. MacMillan teaches in the Fine Art
or more precisely, of art theory and Department at the University of Edinburgh ...
art practice. The two magazines are : The most lucid piece of writing in Clive Phillpot is Librarian at Chelsea School
Control Magazine, issue seven Frameworks Journal is 'Conflicting of Art ... R. J. Rees is a painter and teaches
(£0.75 plus postage from the aesthetics : social processes and the at the Central School of Art ... Tony Rothon
Editor, Steve Willats, Control arts' by Philip Virden. Once again a has recently graduated from the Slade ...
Magazine, 5 London Mews, problem of concern to art Jerome Tarshis is the San Francisco
Paddington, London, W.2) and educationalists as well as to 'some correspondent of Art News and Art Forum . . .
Frameworks Journal, vol. 1, no. 2, especially socially aware artists' is John Walker is assistant Librarian at
June 1973 (£1.00 plus postage from confronted : that of 'the many Hornsey College of Art ... Gunther Wirth is
the Editor, Frameworks Journal, 185 different and incompatible a German art critic.
Archway Road, Highgate, London, conceptions people have about what
N6). Both magazines require from the is, or is not, aesthetically meaningful'.
reader at least an acquaintance with Running through the article is a
various specialized vocabularies, and concern for communication and it is
most of the contributors to Frameworks therefore of some relevance to
Journal, in particular, tend to assume writing about art, as well as art itself.
that one is already conversant with An important element in the article is
current art theoretical discourse. the application of a schematization
However, in spite of having to wade of Basil Bernstein's theory regarding
through some demanding argument 'restricted and elaborated codes' and
and prose, the effort to understand 'object and person orientation' to art,
the present postiton is worthwhile. In so that the coordinates become
parallel with some recent British art- instead 'restricted and elaborated
historical and critical writing, there symbolization' and 'order and
is an increasing seriousness and ambiguity' respectively. This would
complexity (and sometimes obscurity) seem to be a genuinely helpful
in writing about art in this country; framework for considering the
this is partly due to the artists production and appreciation of art
themselves taking responsibility for works ; the author also provides sharp
the direction of the discussion of art insights into post-war social and
(a majority of the writers in these two cultural processes.
magazines are artists), partly to a new
rigorousness of attitude and to the Bernstein's work has also been of
refusal to be confined to art history interest to Stephen Willats whose
alone. What Kevin Lole has to say in 'Prescriptions for task orientated
Control Magazine (p.5) seems to methodologies in constructing
contain ideas now relevant to artists operational models of art practice' in
both as theoreticians and Control Magazine are opposed to the
practitioners. prevailing passive methodologies of Items for inclusion or review in the
artists. However, as well as language 'Review' section should be sent to
'It becomes increasingly more (and meta-language) he has Studio International, 14 West Central
difficult for the artist to operate concerned himself with the Street, London WC1, with the
intuitively, except perhaps in behavioural sciences in order to envelope marked 'Feedback, 'Vision,
following a fashion, and hope to attempt to break through the 'Graphics, 'News and notes, 'Focus,
predict the effect of his work. As the limitations on the social effectiveness as appropriate,
187
