Lecture Notes- 01/02/2011 Avant-Garde

Dictionary definition: The adjective form is used in English, to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics. Avant-garde represents a pushing of the boundaries of what is accepted as the norm or the status quo, primarily in the cultural realm. The notion of the existence of the avant-garde is considered by some to be a hallmark of modernism, as distinct from postmodernism.

-Being Avant Garde in the work you do challenging innovating etc.

-Idea of doing art/design work that is progressive

-The concept of avant Garde has been used so much its meaning is basically meaningless.

Avant garde criteria from LCA old prospectus;

Innovation, (creating new stuff), experimentation, (process involved in order to achieve stuff), originality (to copy is bad, to be original is good) Creative genius, (to bring out a hidden creative depth held deep within the student)

Pushing boundaries/conventions.

We imitate others work to build up skills until we become accomplished to move on. Constantly developing rules to push forward in terms of talent. Style can be picked up through following others rules.

Art created for arts sake, not concerned for politics of the world. They're trying to create a system of aesthetic experimentation where we only think about things such as beauty or form. The more people look at these pure works of art the more they will culturally develop.

A major problem for the Avant Garde is that it seems to necessitate (ELITEISM)

Good design is invisible, but if your work is invisible then how can you ever get noticed?

What is Kitsch?

An inferior copy of work, or a worthless imitation of a piece of art.

Kitsch aspires to be like art but fails in some way. To call something kitsch you have to make a judgement of taste. But then who decides what is tasteful and what isnt?