The Changing Social Status of the Artist

 

The changing social status of the artist over time provides an interesting discourse on the nature of popular art and its driving ideologies.

Albrecht Durer Self Portrait in Fur Coat 1500

To begin let us look to the Renaissance:

In 1500 Albrecht Durer produced a piece titled Self Portrait in Fur Coat. The work depicts the artist as an idealized Christlike figure and has been said to be intended to remind viewers that an artist’s creative spirit is God – given. (Smith, 2002) This divine idealisation of the self evidences the artists changing view about himself as an individual. During the Renaissance artists sought to elevate their social status by petitioning for their profession to be included in the Liberal Arts. The Liberal Arts included: Grammar, Rhetoric, Logic, Arithmetic, Geometry, Music and Astronomy, they were practised by learned individuals and nobles .In contrast painting was considered a profession for mere craftsmen and was thought to be manual art devoid of intellectual merit. (Blunt, 1962) With this information in mind it becomes clear that Durer’s portrait is rather controversial for the period and demonstrates Durer’s conviction that his role as the artist was to be respected and celebrated. Renaissance society focused on the skill of hand or mastery of illusionism required to execute a work, a skill that could be mastered by practice. While the artists themselves, emphasized the inborn talent or creative power needed to conceive the work in the first place, which could not be learned. They supported this with promotion of the idea that painting was informed by the intellectual discipline of mathematics. (Barker et al, 1999) In depicting himself as Christ, Durer evidences this while by adorning himself with fur, an expensive commodity of the time, he establishes himself, the artist, as a wealthy individual referencing the fact that he considers art is not a profession reserved for the working class but maybe be practiced by a learned and free individual.

The Ideals conveyed in Durer’s portrait are indicative of the fact that the artist’s social status increased during the Renaissance. As mentioned above this was due to the way in which artists petitioned for their profession to be recognized as a liberal art. This subject provoked much intellectual debate throughout the period and certainly raised the profile of art. Learned individuals, such as Leonardo Da Vinci, did much to support this movement by promoting the idea that art was an intellectual occupation, linked to mathematics that had in previous times been held in great respect. (Blunt 1962) However this was not the only orchestrating factor in the rise of the social status of the artist: The expanding power and wealth of Italian rulers played a crucial role in transforming artistic patronage during the Renaissance. The increased wealth of rulers provided funding for large artistic projects, such as the Sistine Chapel, and according employment opportunities provided artists with a means to escape from control of the guilds responsible for governing the profession at the time. As Guilds were the governing system for all crafts in Renaissance society, escaping this system in favor of being employed by a ruling court made significant   progress towards dissociating art from the manual crafts.

(Barker et al, 1999)

To further this discussion let us now look to   more recent examples, which demonstrate current ideologies regarding the social status of the artist, many of which stem from the early ideals established during the Renaissance period discussed above.

To develop on the theme of the artist as a divine individual, portrayed by Durer, it would be appropriate to consider Gavin Turk and his works relating to individualism.

Turk is a somewhat notorious British artist, his works center around the ideas of authorship and identity, engaging in modernist debate concerning the myth of the artist.

Turk failed his MA from the royal college of arts after his final degree show piece, an empty studio devoid of work bar the installation of an English Heritage Plaque bearing the inscription "Borough of Kensington/GAVIN TURK/ Sculptor/Worked Here 1989-1991.” failed to impress. (“Gavin Turk Biography”, 2007)

Gavin Turk,Cave 1991-97

This work and the response to it are intriguing especially when considered in terms of individualism: “a social theory favoring freedom of action for individuals over collective or state control.” (“Individualism”, 2011) In presenting such a work as the culmination of his MA Turk clearly set out to provoke a response from and question the idea of collective or state control in this case the Royal college of Arts. If we compare this work with that of Durer’s self portrait we see an entirely contrasting context of the artists social status yet similar ideological, individualistic motivation. Durer is an artist who is challenging common conception of the role of the artist by attempting to promote the idea, to a society who does not appreciate art on an intellectual level, that his craft is valid and a divine gift to be celebrated. While on the other end of the spectrum centuries later Turk also challenges common conception of the role of the artist, in a society which has a long standing culture centered around intellectual appreciation of art, by questioning the establishments definition of what is defined as art/ great art and the identity of the artist. (“Gavin Turk Biography”, 2007) Turks work invokes similar themes to that of Marcel Duchamp's ready mades and I thoroughly enjoy and appreciate the humor in the way he has used his career debut to present a rather post-humus object that through thee use of current social ephemera classifies him as a great artist worthy of celebration.

Gavin Turk Knob 1997

Another ideology, which is evident in Turks work, is egotism:  “the fact of being excessively conceited or absorbed in oneself”(“Egotism”, 2011) this conceit is evident in Turks series of works depicting his own signature and explores the idea of the value that an artists name adds to a work. (“Gavin Turk Biography”, 2007)  Egotism is a common theme relating to the social status of the artist in recent times. I believe that a long history of veneration and celebration of the artist as a divine individual has led to many artists engaging in avant-garde debate and works which concurrently poke fun at and perpetuate the image of the artist as genius while questioning surrounding ideas as to what may be classified as art.

While we are on the topic of individualism and egotism the work of Damien Hirst begs for discussion.

Hirst’s use of his work and the media for self-promotion provide an interesting example of Individualism and egotism in practice.

Through a combination of his shock-horror works (often dealing with distilling real animals in formaldehyde), marketing stunts, television appearances, court cases, business investments, a music video and having one of his paintings included in a British spacecraft dispatched to Mars, Damien Hirst has well and truly established himself as one of Britain’s most talked about artists. (Walker, 2001)

Since the 1990’s,Hirst’s work, aptitude for self promotion and patron the marketing great Charles Saatchi have developed quite a reputation, Damien Hirst certainly walks the fine line between brand and artist. The sensation of such an identity is infinitely intriguing and gathers quite an audience. Hirst eloquently combines the art world with that of marketing, his work is informed by a clear sense of marketing practice and the knowledge of what must be done to gain a desired reaction. Though his works do maintain artistic sensibilities some are explicitly motivated by the desire for self-promotion.

Damien Hirst Hymn 2000

 For example, the work Hymn, 2000 A 20 foot high statue replicating a Young Scientist Anatomy Kit, an educational toy that was designed by Norman Emms and sold by Humbrol Ltd. (Walker, 2001), was created with the intention of provoking a lawsuit for plagiarism in order to generate publicity.  This work was inspired by Jeff Koons work Puppy that had previously sparked a similar lawsuit. . (Walker, 2001)  The combination of art and marketing can certainly be a powerful tool in generating personal wealth and Hirst’s works often sell for considerable sums.  Though some people feel Hirst’s credibility as an artist is devalued through his blatant self-promotion and media use, I feel Hirst is a thought provoking and talented conceptual artist. I enjoy the way he combines marketing with art, engaging with the fact that the commercial world and art world are not mutually exclusive entities.

To continue the thematic discussion regarding the relationship between the art world and the commercial world who better to discuss than Andy Warhol.

Andy Warhol, Mick Jagger 1975/76

Warhol was an exceedingly influential artist and had a dramatic effect on many ideological conceits discussed in this post.  Warhol’s portraits two of which are displayed here are some of his most recognized works. I find them intriguing in terms of the ideas of individualism and egotism not only because they became something of a status symbol among the star characters and upwardly mobile individuals of the time but because although each portrait is of an entirely different subject they all portray Warhol’s signature style, and I feel that it is this style that is the most prominent feature communicated by the works. This makes for an interesting dialogue on the themes mentioned as on one hand we are viewing works which serve to confirm and validate the sitters social station in life while on the other hand the same works act as a series depicting the very essence of Warhol’s style and character. 

Andy Warhol, Red Liz 1962 

Warhol was something of an auditor of taste, he was essentially an observer utterly fascinated by life and interested in creating situations simply so he could watch how people would react. Warhol was also a fantastic promoter of his work, interacting with the booming commercial world of his time to such an extent that his work is now often perceived as an embodiment of the commercial style and success of the era. These two features combined to afford Warhol rather a great deal of fame and it was therefore a great honor to have your portrait done by Warhol. The thing I find most fascinating about these portraits is that although the subjects are for the majority largely famous themselves they become dwarfed by Warhol’s signature style. The portraits communicate the artist’s style more prominently than the subjects themselves and in this way completely flip the coin on the historical function of portraiture. This is an incredible portrayal of the individualism and in sense egotism of the artist and a most poignant comment on the social position of the artist as the Supreme Being.

To attempt to conclusively conclude this discussion would be futile, as it appears that the social status of the artist is a forever-changing phenomenon influenced predominantly by the prevailing ideologies and social context of the time.

I will however venture to make a comment on the current status of the artist in our western society today.

In our Post-Modern era the status of the artist is I believe at a point of some stagnation. The idea and role of the artist as an Individual to be celebrated has been a long established cultural given in our current society. Ideologies such as humanism and individualism have supported this status while the contextual environment of mass consumerism has funded and validated such a profession. I am interested to see how the status of the artist in society changes and develops in the future as to me it seems that the status of the artist is taken for granted like so many facets of life in our current society. Reaction to this given status is a focus of much of postmodern art and I feel this reaction may be indicative of looming change.

References:

Smith. A. (2002). Dürer, Albrecht: Self-Portraits.

http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/durer/self/

Blunt, A. (1962). Artistic Theory in Italy 1450-1600.

Oxford; Oxford University Press.

Barker, E, Webb, N, Woods.K (1999). Historical introduction: the idea of the artist. London: Open University.

Gavin Turk Biography (2007)

http://www.skny.com/artists/gavin-turk/

  

“Individualism”. (2011). In Oxford Dictionaries.London:Oxford University Press.

“Egotism”. (2011). In Oxford Dictionaries.London:Oxford University Press.

Walker, A. (2009). Damien Hirst: Art in the age of mass media.

http://www.artdesigncafe.com/Damien-Hirst-media-celebrity-2001