Did Law Force Dave Hickey to Quit the Art World?

Pretty much, at least according to the writer of Invisible Dragon and Air Guitar. Hickey notes that…

… his change of heart came when he was asked to sign a 10-page contract before he could sit on a panel discussion at the Guggenheim Museum in New York.

I can certainly understand the frustration, but I’m willing to bet Hickey’s decision to parachute out of a plane in flames comes more from the dire status of the current “art world” than from the requirements promulgated by a museum’s legal department.

Simply put, and as a teacher of art and director of residencies, I’ve been privy to recent art grads and current artistic practices. To say that I’ve been surrounded by stupidity would be a bit harsh, but not completely off mark. Just this year I’ve heard artists mutter — more than once — that they don’t care as much about ideas and history as they do about making “sellable objects.” This mind-set, along with the lack of art historical awareness mixed with anti-intellectual proclivity leads to nothing but a dire cocktail of mindless entertainment and retardation.

Over lunch yesterday, a few of us wondered what art students were being exposed to; what their critiques and reviews were like. This led me to make a list of what I think the problems are with current art school pedagogy and artistic practices. Here’s my (ongoing) list:

1. Equating being an artist with having gallery representation and participating in gallery exhibitions

2. A complete lack of art historical and cultural knowledge

3. A belief — promulgated by political correctness — that everyone has something important to say

4. Resume building: it’s all about being in a show; not the quality of the project and/or exhibition

5. A belief that one needs money to make art

6. A belief that art is a career

7. Equating theory with practice (“I’m against power, therefore I am”)

Unlike Hickey, I’m not quite ready to quit. With the recent passing of Mike Kelley and Michael Asher, it is crucial that one not abdicate to the mindless powers of commerce and stupidity. In fact, the time calls for an even louder and stronger stance against those that wish for a fashion-conscious art practice. The “art world” might suck, but art making does not. At least not all of it.

Tags: art, dave hickey, Education, law, michael asher, mike kelley, practice