Mydesignworks

My Understanding of Art History and the
fundamental shift from a dominant western culture to the
rise of a native fine art movement in a Global Community

Academic experiences have taught me that the humanities-social science theories of modern western art history was the foundation for most of the professional curators, art historians, and critics who are working today. They were all taught from one point of view designed to support the modern art movements as we know it. In retrospect we understand that identity politics theory developed during the early 1970s to the mid 1990s involving native versus colonial political theories evolved as more people became educated and asked questions and understood the dynamics of the world we live in. National and local debates involving public-funded art and political alignments of artists and the art world institutions have negatively impacted the local/native art acquisitions and financial support for native art here in Hawaii and in North America.

A review of the contemporary art work being created today confirms the presence of Native people at the forefront of the visual arts, they are addressing issues—such as identity, place, language and history—that have personal, cultural and universal relevance which makes their art very popular. (See Changing Hands II, Museum of Art and Design New York)

These artists often prefer to let their work speak for itself, believing that what is made of stone, wood, glass, steel, bone, rope, or any of dozens of other media should not be explained, or possibly undermined, by providing a meaning which could foreclose interpretation. It is not the job of the artist, some feel, to tell the viewer what to think or to provide a conclusion. All artworks are open to many interpretations, with the artist's being just one (albeit a privileged one, perhaps).
Yet, with all art (and not just "ethnic" art), there are possibilities of meaning which the artist can help us discover. There are personal and cultural dimensions interwoven in a work of art, dimensions which are so personal or so specific that only the artist's clarification can help us in the process of discovery. The artist can provide us with a map to guide our understanding, or better yet, a frame which offers a context for the individual vision that is manifested in a particular work.
Effective questions that I have struggled with while moving through history have included: the status/role/function of the material art object why make sculpture in a digital and post-Internet world where technology has eliminated the need for the artist? Where are the art/culture power centers today? What impact does cultural evolution play in Contemporary Global Art market? The old art world hubs of New York, Paris, Berlin, London have changed as more native people became educated, wealthy and started to support their own native artists. I noted the rise of Asian artists establishing international identity and museums like the Peabody Essex Museum embracing the fact that the native culture continues to evolve – linking dead art and living artists from the same culture is a good thing which has changed the way museums deal with art. I also experienced major transitions in the art world. The moving of art off the walls and pedestals and into the "living spaces" to achieve more interactions between the viewer and the art work, and the scale of sculptures based on anthropometric relationships became important features of my own art work. The traditional gallery model has been deconstructed from a formal gallery - exhibitions are not dependent on jurors and instead self regulated by artists, cultural rituals have become common place in native fine art exhibitions. (Te Waka Exhibt New York) I also noted the power of the major international art fairs, festivals, and biennials rethinking and reshaping the global art community so that there are now multiple venues all over the world to celebrate art such as Documenta, Santa Fe and the Sydney Biennial.

In January [1995] I went to New Zealand for two weeks with 80 contemporary fine artists from the U.S. , Pacific Rim and the Pacific Islands. They were from Australia and New Guinea, Hawaii, Japan, and the Pacific Northwest Coast. I met a friend named Harry Fonseca a Santa Fe artist of Nisenan Maidu, Hawaiian, and Portugese heritage and we talked about the state of art. It was a cultural exchange and symposium that was put on by Te waka Toi in New Zealand that is incredibly supportive of all artists and the arts on a global basis. We had a large tent to work in. The painters were in one area and the weavers were in one area and the carvers/sculptors in another area. We worked when we wanted to. There was more to it than just an exchange of ideas. As soon as we saw each other, we didn't have to say anything. We understood where we were with one another. All these artists working in one tent created some powerful Art. We both agreed that one of the things that was happening all over the world now, is that artists are paying attention to their backgrounds and their nationality and how it affects the fine art that they are creating. There is a tremendous amount of energy being spent in art history and the development of their ideas. That's something that I have been working with for a long time, and when you see that in so many other artists from different parts of the world and they are dealing with very similar issues you realize it's a beat that's going on and it is grounded in being a native person and contemporary artist existing in a Global Community.

As our world of art continues to evolve it is important to take note of major historical developments in art by reviewing the trends occurring in three periods of time as follows:

Modern Art Period (1920-1950s)

Economics: art markets are small, few artists are known. Galleries and dealers are making a market in modern art works mainly in NY and Paris. Wealthy collectors are establishing the market value of new artists by buying their work. Museums began establishing collections of "modern" works of art. Post-war economic boom lead to increased sales of art work and the art world hub shifted in power from Europe/Paris to New York.

Artist struggled with traditions that evolved out of the European art evolution, eventually overcoming tradition but new work was understood in the context of grand narrative of art and cultural history of Europe.

Art was formal and focused on material problems of the mediums. Abstraction was privileged over representational art in New York and was an artistic revolution which was embraced by wealthy collectors.

Artists as visionary outsiders provided their point of view about the world around them and they relied the art business world for survival and their communication of ideas patronage was vital to their continued development. Many artists identified with the spiritual or transcendental teaching and philosophies. Others engaged in political resistance to capitalist economics and class system and each group had their own patrons and support systems.

Baby Boom Art Period (1950-80s)

Economics: art market expands with growth in demographics in art world players and growth of commercial art market. More aspiring artists entering the art scene, colleges churning out thousands of BFAs / MFAs looking for market validation and a patron base attracted to the romance of being an artist but the demographics made it very difficult.

Many artists challenged the "Western Art" paradigms; which lead to the deconstruction of traditional art media and genres.

Continuation of art works that question the underlying foundation of art, new media and art spaces evolved including performance art and conceptual art. New Creative media including Photography, video, lighting, landscape installations displace the traditional fine art of painting and sculpture.

Clash of movements in establishing the identity and goals of art and artists leads to fragmentation and pluralism. Art is seen as performance acts by artists more than finished objects for business transactions.

Contemporary1990s - today

Economics: art market declines in recession artists take on real jobs and continue to engage in art making. Patron base is diminished. Artists access institutional funding, grants, funded shows and festivals, rely on museum purchases. High end art market auction business and upper tier galleries flourish. International art world museum-institutional sectors becoming closely aligned in an effort to control artistic development.

Internationalization and globalization of art world "industry" contiues to clash with unresolved identity politics native versus mainstream. National and ethnic identity tensions impact the achievement of international standing and global market value.

Adoption of computer and mechanical techniques impact commercial image styles, effectively removing the visible artist’s "hand," there is increased use of industrial materials and art work execution is altered. Patrons embrace the acceptance of photography and video in "high art" contexts.

Artists continue to rely on grants, media attention, gallery shows, and museum exhibitions. (avant-garde) artists exist outside of the mainstream and are not accountable to the public or the marketplace.

A working definition of Art

The most common usage of the word "art," is understood to denote skill used to produce an aesthetic result. It is "the use of skill and imagination in the creation of aesthetic objects, environments, or experiences that can be shared with others." By any of these definitions of the word, artistic works have existed for almost as long as humankind: from early pre-historic art to contemporary art; however, some theories restrict the concept to modern Western societies. Theories are subject to change and we are witnessing it now with the evolution of contemporary native art movements.

Art is often intended to appeal and connect with human emotion. It can arouse aesthetic or moral feelings, and can be understood as a way of communicating these feelings. Artists express something so that their audience is aroused to some extent, but they do not have to do so consciously. Art explores what is commonly termed as the human condition that is essentially what it is to be human. Effective art often brings about some new insight concerning the human condition either singly or en-mass, which is not necessarily always positive, or necessarily widens the boundaries of collective human ability. The degree of skill that the artist has, will affect their ability to trigger an emotional response and thereby provide new insights, the ability to manipulate them at will shows exemplary skill and determination.

Closing note we live a a dynamic world and it is important to acknowledge the past, present and future and it just depends on whose point of view you are looking at.