Why Your Five-Year-Old Could Not Have Done That: From Slashed Canvas to Unmade Bed, Modern Art Explained
Category: Books,Arts & Photography,History & Criticism
Why Your Five-Year-Old Could Not Have Done That: From Slashed Canvas to Unmade Bed, Modern Art Explained Details
Review “An indispensable, well-organized guide that employs impartial examination of modern works of art.” ―School Arts Magazine Read more From the Inside Flap Come on, you know you’ve thought it―while viewing a “masterpiece” of abstract art, you mutter, “A kid could do that.” Here Susie Hodge, author of How to Survive Modern Art, explains why the best examples of modern art are actually the result of sophisticated thought and serious talent Read more
Reviews
I believe that most modern art is simply a clever exercise to extract money from those with too much money and no sense of what makes good art. Having confessed to my bias, I strongly recommend this book.The author exposed me to new artists and shared her rich understanding of modern art in its historic and artistic context. She shares the often less than obvious message that the artist is attempting to communicate. For example, the author provides the following about Artist's S*** by Piero Manzoni: "The work parodies inflated values of art and also exploits consumerism, particularly the developing preoccupation with packaging and possessions. Meanwhile, the contents of the can represent the ultimate use of waste as an art material." (p. 116-7). I would not be willing to purchase the art priced at the equivalent of its weight in gold, but I can better appreciate the multi-layered message and the creative process that generated the idea for this piece of art.The most valuable contribution for me was making explicit the implicit assumptions about art that some of the artists are challenging. For example, the author provides the following about the Fountain by Marcel Duchamp: "The most famous provocation of the art world began when the Frenchman Marcel Duchamp bought a standard urinal from a New York hardware store... (W)ith one simple but outrageous act, Duchamp proved that the modern artist is not sovereign, and that institutions such as museums also do much to determine what is art... Duchamp posed other questions about art, among them, what are the characteristics and conditions that define an object as a work of art? Should art appeal primarily to the eye (not primarily to the mind), and should it involve some transformation of materials or can a pre-made object be considered for its merits? (p.102-3)With more books like this one, perhaps we will all be less judgmental and more appreciative of modern art and the artists who share their messages with us.
