Shocking art

 

[cubist fish*]

Most art in any form is commercially successful in its own time because it is line with current tastes. At the same time, some artists of all genres choose to take the road not taken and produce a creation whose raison d’être or, at minimum, its selling point is that it is shocking. Granted a few choose their form of expression due to a personal vision with minimal external influence. Yet, clearly, most such revolutionaries are quickly forgotten if even noticed. The interesting question is which of these pioneering works are actually appreciated by future generations.

Some artists turned their sails into wind and chose to challenge accepted taste. Henry Miller’s Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn are examples of deliberate breaking of accepted limits specifically on discussing sexuality. Almost a century earlier, Andrei Beli wrote a symbolist novel, Petersburg, in complete rejection of the classic Russan writers that preceded him, notably Tolstoy. In theatre, Victor Hugo produced Hernani knowing full well that the critics and public would find it overly extragenetic and absurd. Likewise, Ionesco in The Chairs wrote a tragic farce that went far beyond the capacity to appreciate of most theatre viewers of his day. In music, aside from the humoristic elements, P.D.Q Bach and Spike Jones shattered the serious intellectuality of classical music, albeit in rather different ways. Thus, every action does have a reaction even in art.

Admittedly, some artists created their own style mainly  because of their unique internal vision, not necessarily commercial interests. Clearly, James Joyce in Ulysses and Marcel Proust in In Search of Lost Time felt a need to express their reality whether or not anybody would appreciate it or even understand it. In theatre, Mother Courage and her children by Bertolt Brecht and Rhinoceros by Eugene Ionesco reflect the political view of their writers. Clearly, the first rappers sought self-expression, not riches. Thus, the seeds of some world-changing works came from the artists themselves.

Regardless of the motivation, most of these shocking works have lost their glean and are probably considered as impressive and appreciated as the collected works of Stalin (does anbyody still have a copy?. Which of these shining stars is still remarkable today is a matter of personal taste. Would you rather read On the Road by Jack Kerouac or Travels in Spain by Alexander Dumas? Would you rather see Sammuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot or Oscar Wilde’s Salome? Would you prefer a painting by Andy Warhol or Monet in your living room. At minimum, it can be said that at least these shocking artists are still known while most of their more popular peers have almost completely disappeared from the stage (or book store, if you will). Since fame is a fickle, as Oscar Wilde said, "the only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about."

 

 

* Picture captions help the blind fully access the Internet.

Picture credit