E U R O - P O P : T H E M E C H A N I C A L B R I D E S T R I P P E D B A R E I N S T O C K H O L M , E V E N by P A T R I K L A R S A N D E R S S O N B . A . , The U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h C o l u m b i a , 1991 M . A . , The U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h C o l u m b i a , 1993 A T H E S I S S U B M I T T E D I N P A R T I A L F U L F I L L M E N T O F T H E R E Q U I R E M E N T S F O R T H E D E G R E E O F D O C T O R O F P H I L O S O P H Y i n T H E F A C U L T Y O F G R A D U A T E S T U D I E S (Department of Fine Arts) W e accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F B R I T I S H C O L U M B I A February, 2001 © Patrik Lars A n d e r s s o n , 2001 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of ff^^ A^-T^ The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada DE-6 (2/88) A B S T R A C T The f o l l o w i n g dissertation concerns the emergence of a new 'open art' i n N e w Y o r k , Paris and Stockholm between the years 1954 and 1966. I look at three artists i n particular; N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Jean T i n g u e l y and P e r - O l o f Ultvedt, whose w o r k has v a r i o u s l y been categorized as N e o - D a d a , Assemblage A r t , N e w R e a l i s m , N o u v e a u Realisme and Pop A r t . In m y reconsideration of these movements, a number of 'different' interests emerge w h i c h challenge existing histories of this p e r i o d . By opening u p an international perspective from the m a r g i n of this c u l t u r a l discourse — specifically the fraught p o s i t i o n of a m u s e u m of m o d e r n art i n S w e d e n — I show that by 1962 a number of European and A m e r i c a n artists and intellectuals h a d not o n l y managed to construct a collaborative environment for international avant-garde art, but some h a d also begun to reject this institutionalization o n the grounds of difference. B y focusing o n the d y n a m i c curatorial strategies of Pontus H u l t e n at Stockholm's M o d e r n a Museet, I explore the difficulties inherent i n the institutionalization of P o p A r t . In this process, the reintroduction of M a r c e l D u c h a m p p l a y e d a crucial role i n establishing a n e w canon of m o d e r n art i n both Europe and the U n i t e d States. A s I reveal, it was i n S t o c k h o l m — what m a n y considered the p e r i p h e r y of the art w o r l d — where D u c h a m p ' s w o r k was most clearly a n d r i g o r o u s l y articulated for a larger discursive realm i n Paris and N e w Y o r k . T r a c i n g a range of p h i l o s o p h i c a l a n d p o l i t i c a l differences between artists, critics a n d curators, I show h o w the activities initiated at M o d e r n a M u s e e t were central i n rearticulating the postwar avant-garde for the centre. i i TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract i i Table of Contents i i i List o f Illustrations v A c k n o w l e d g m e n t s x Introduction 1 Chapter O n e Intending Utopia or Expressing Depression: H o w to F i n d M o v e m e n t i n A r t 8 O u t e r Spaces: D r e a m s o f C o l l e c t i v i t y i n P a r i s a n d S t o c k h o l m 8 I n n e r S p a c e s : I n d i v i d u a l E x p r e s s i o n s a n d t h e I d e o l o g y of P r e p a r e d n e s s 23 H u l t e n ' s A n a r c h i s t T h r e a d : S t i r n e r , D u c h a m p a n d T i n g u e l y 36 A N e w M u s e u m a n d a N e w R e a l i s m 60 Chapter T w o M o v e m e n t i n A r t Goes Pop 82 A r t i n M o v e m e n t a n d H u l t e n ' s A c a d e m y o f P l a y 83 S t o c k h o l m ' s N e w Y o r k C o n n e c t i o n a n d The Art of Assemblage 95 L a b y r i n t h s o r L a b o r a t o r i e s : C o l l a b o r a t i o n s a n d t h e Dylaby D i v i d e 114 A m e r i c a n i z i n g t h e N e w O p e n A r t : N e o - D a d a G o e s ' P o p ' 123 S p a c e s o f M a s q u e r a d e : G e t t i n g the S t o r y " S t r a i g h t " 135 i i i Chapter Three T h e Mechanical Bride Stripped Bare i n Stockholm, E v e n 143 L o v e and Despair: The C o m p r o m i s i n g Success of M o d e r n a Museet 1961-1965 144 N e u t r a l i t y , Independence, Internationalism: The C u l t u r a l F o r m a t i o n of C o l d W a r Politics i n S w e d e n 154 F o u r Articles: U l f Linde's C r i t i q u e of O p e n A r t 159 Icarus and Fighter Planes: T o w a r d s an Inner and Outer Space She: a Cathedral: The Striptease Begins 183 Epilogue Connections, Rejections and M o d e r n a Museet's Collection. 208 Illustrations B i b l i o g r a p h y 213 316 i v LIST O F I L L U S T R A T I O N S Fig. 1 Marcel Duchamp, Three Standard Stoppages, 1913 Mixed media assemblage, p. 213 Fig. 2 Gouache renditions by Rudolf Persson of Gunnar Asplund's Fairground at the 1930 Stockholm Exhibition, 1929. p. 214 Fig. 3 Otto Carlsund, Composition for the Einstein Observatory in Potsdam, 1924-25 Oil on Canvas 141x75 cm. p. 215 Fig.4 World Sports Exhibition, Stockholm, 1949. p. 216 Fig. 5 Olle Bonnier, Theme, 1949 Oil on Canvas 120x150 cm. p. 217 Fig. 6 Lennart Rodhe Paket i langa banor The Postal Office, Ostersund, 1952. p. 218 Fig. 7 Cover Design of Art d'aujourd'hui by Olle Baertling. p. 219 Fig. 8 V i k k i n g Eggeling, Diagonal Symphony, [detail] 1921, film-roll. p. 220 Fig. 9 Michel Ragon's article on Swedish and French Stamps in Cimaise. p. 221 Fig. 10 Torsten Renqvist, Windswept Bush, O i l on Canvas 31x51 cm. p. 222 Fig. 11 Martin Holmberg, Traffic Milieu: Human Near a Wide Stretching Boulevard with Heavy Traffic, 1952, Bronze Sculpture, p. 223 Fig. 12 Sebastian Roberto Matta Echaurren, The Being Opens Itself, 203x295 cm O i l on Canvas, p. 224 Fig. 13 Jean Fautrier, Otage, 1944 O i l and Mixed Media on Canvas, p. 225 Fig. 14 Pontus Hulten's balancing act. p. 226 Fig. 15 Le Mouvement, Galerie Denise Rene. p. 227 Fig. 16 Bruno Munari, Useless Machine, 1951 Mixed Media, p. 228 Fig. 17 Jean Tinguely, Meta-Malevich, 1955. p. 229 Fig. 18 Kasmir Malevich, Suprematist Composition, ca. 1915. p. 230 Fig. 19 Henri Michaux Bataille, 1952. p. 231 Fig. 20 Jean Tinguely, Meta-matic Drawing Machine, 1955. p. 232 v Fig. 21 Pontus Hulten and Hans Nordenstrom, Scenes from En Dag i Staden, 1955-58. p. 233 Fig. 22 Per-Olof Utlvedt, Geometric Mobile Ballet Decor, Spiralen, 1954. p. 2 3 4 Fig. 23 Per-Olof Ultvedt, Nam Ogat, Stills from film. p. 235 Fig. 24 The Exercise House, Moderna Museet. p. 236 Fig. 25 Moderna Museet, front facade, p. 237 Fig. 26 Sebastian Matta at Moderna Museet. p. 238 Fig. 27 John Cage performing at Moderna Museet, 1960. p. 239 Fig. 28 Jean Tinguely, Hommage a New York, 1960 Mixed Assemblage, p. 2 4 0 Fig. 29 Nouveau Realiste Manifesto, p. 241 Fig. 30 Jacques de la Villegle Boulevard St Martin, 1959 Decollage. p. 2 4 2 Fig. 31 Daniel Spoerri, The Trash Basket is Not Arman's 1 9 6 1 , Mixed Media Assemblage, p. 243 Fig. 32 Arman, Large Bourgeois Trash, 1960, Mixed Media Assemblage, p. 2 4 4 Fig. 33 Invitation Card/Can for Arman's exhibition Full-Up at Iris Clert Galerie. p. 245 Fig. 34 Yves Klein walking in Le Vide at Iris Clert Galerie. p. 246 Fig. 35 Jean Tinguely throwing his manifesto Fur Statik out an airplane window, p. 247 Fig. 36 N i k i de Saint-Phalle shooting/creating one of her paintings, p. 2 4 8 Fig. 37 N i k i de Saint-Phalle Tir Mixed Media Assemblage Painting, p. 249 Fig. 38 Bewogen Beweging at the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, 1 9 6 1 . p. 2 5 0 Fig. 39 Rorelse i konsten at Moderna Museet, 1 9 6 1 . p. 251 Fig. 40 U l f Linde and Marcel Duchamp putting the finishing touches to The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even, 1961. p. 2 5 2 Fig. 41 Oscar Reutersvard, U l f Linde, Carlo Derkert, Pontus Hulten and Marcel Duchamp. p. 253 v i Fig. 42 Robert Rauschenberg shooting one of Niki de Saint-Phalle's Tir paintings in Stockholm, 1961. p. 254 Fig. 43 Alexander Calder's giant mobile outside the entrance of Moderna Museet. p. 255 Fig. 44 Robert Miiller, The Bicyclist's Widow Mixed Media Assemblage, p. 256 Fig. 45 Harry Shunk Yves Klein, The Painter of Space Throws Himself into the Void, 1960 photomontage, p. 257 Fig. 46 Museum goers looking baffled at the opening of 4 Amerikanare at Moderna Museet, 1962. p. 258 Fig. 47 Robert Rauschenberg, Monogram, 1955-58. p. 259 Fig. 48 Robert Rauschenberg, Door, 1961. p. 260 Fig. 49 Ingemar Johansson and Floyd Patterson, Life Magazine, p. 261 Fig. 50 Concert/Performance at the Theatre de l'Ambassade des Etats- Unis, Paris, 1962. p. 262 Fig. 51 N i k i de Saint-Phalle and Jasper Johns at Saint-Phalle's opening at Galerie J . , Paris, 1962. p. 263 Fig. 52 Robert Rauschenberg, This is a Portrait of Iris Clert if I Say So, 1961. p. 264 Fig. 53 Edward Kienholz, The Psycho-Vendetta Case, 1960 Mixed Media 58.5x56.5x43 cm. p. 265 Fig. 54 Jean Tinguely, Study for the End of the World , No.], Performance/spectacle at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, 1962. p. 266 Fig. 55 Jean Tinguely, Study for the End of the World, No. 2, in the Nevada Dessert, 1962. p. 267 Fig. 56 N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Jean Tinguely, and John Cage exchanging pleasantries before Saint-Phalle's shooting performance, M a l i b u , California, 1962. p. 268 Fig. 57 N i k i de Saint-Phalle and Edward Kienholz, Malibu, California, 1962. p. 269 Fig. 58- Niki de Saint-Phalle, O.A.S., 1962, Mixed Media, p. 270 Fig. 59 Niki de Saint-Phalle, Autel du chat mort, 1962, Mixed Media, p. 271 Fig. 60 Participants in The Construction of Boston, 1962. p. 272 v n F i g . 61 S a i n t - P h a l l e , T i n g u e l y and a s s i s t a n t i n s i d e S a i n t - P h a l l e ' s s h o o t i n g g a l l e r y at Dylaby, S t e d e l i j k , A m s t e r d a m , 1962. p. 273 F i g . 62 N i k i de S a i n t - P h a l l e , King Kong, 1962, M i x e d M e d i a . p. 274 F i g . 63 The New Realists e x h i b i t i o n at S y d n e y Janis. p. 275 F i g . 64 L e t t e r f r o m S a i n t - P h a l l e and T i n g u e l y to U l t v e d t . p. 276 F i g . 65 P e r - O l o f U l t v e d t , Manhattan, 1962. p. 277 F i g . 66 P e r - O l o f U l t v e d t , C a r o l y n B r o w n and R o b e r t R a u s c h e n b e r g i n Pelican, 1962. p. 278 F i g . 67 N i k i de S a i n t - P h a l l e , Pirodactyl de New York (New York Alp), 1962, M i x e d M e d i a A s s e m b l a g e , p. 279 F i g . 68 N i k i de S a i n t - P h a l l e on the c o v e r o f Life Magazine. p. 2 8 0 F i g . 69 The Museum of Our Wishes, 1963-64. p. 281 F i g . 70 American Pop Art: 106 Forms of Love and Despair, M o d e r n a M u s e e t , 1964. p. 282 F i g . 71 Poster for American Pop Art: 106 Forms of Love and Despair, 1964. p. 283 F i g . 72 M e r c e C u n n i n g h a m ' s D a n c e C o m p a n y p e r f o r m i n g Summer space at M o d e r n a M u s e e t , 1964. p. 284 F i g . 73 R a u s c h e n b e r g p e r f o r m i n g i n The Elgin Tie at M o d e r n a M u s e e t , 1964.p. 285 F i g . 74 D e m o n s t r a t i o n a g a i n s t A m e r i c a n i n v o l v e m e n t i n V i e t n a m , S t o c k h o l m , 1965. p. 286 F i g . 75 A m e r i c a n H e l i c o p t e r L a n d i n g i n V i e t n a m , 1966. p. 2 8 7 F i g . 76 D e t a i l f r o m U l f L i n d e ' s first a r t i c l e i n Dagens Nyheter. p. 288 F i g . 77 A b s t r a c t d r a w i n g s b y Jean T i n g u e l y a n d Y v e s M i c h a u x . p . 2 8 9 F i g . 78 James R o s e n q u i s t , F-lll, 1965 28 x 2.5 m . , o i l on canvas and sheet m e t a l , p . 2 9 0 F i g . 79 P a b l o P i c a s s o ' s Guernica at M o d e r n a M u s e e t , 1956. p. 291 F i g . 80 The Inner and Outer Space: an Exhibition Devoted to Universal Art, 1965. p. 292 F i g . 81 N i k i de S a i n t - P h a l l e Nana Power seriegraph, 1970. p. 293 F i g . 82 N i k i de S a i n t - P h a l l e , Clarice, 1965. p. 294 v i i i Fig. 83 Jean Tinguely at work on Eureka 1964. p. 295 Fig. 84 Jean Tinguely, Dissecting Machine 1965. p. 296 Fig. 85 Per-Olof Ultvedt, Hommage a Christopher Polhelm, 1965. p. 297 Fig. 86 Robert Rauschenberg and Oracle, 1963-66. p. 298 Fig. 87 Cover of Marshall McLuhan's The Mechanical Bride: Folklore of Industrial Man, 1951. p. 299 Fig. 88 Niki de Saint-Phalle, Jean Tinguely, Per-Olof Ultvedt, Hon-en katedral, 1966 Mixed Media Assemblage, p. 300 Fig. 89 Jean Tinguely, Machine for the Production of Broken Glass, 1966 * Mixed Media Assemblage, p. 301 Fig. 90 Utlvedt working inside of Hon-en katedral, 1966. p. 302 Fig. 91 Three Spreads from Marshall McLuhan and Quentin Fiore The Medium is the Massage: An Inventory of Effects New York: Bantam Books, 1967. p. 303 Fig. 92 U l f Linde's Fake Paintings and art gallery inside Hon's leg. p. 304 Fig. 93 Exhibition catalogue/newspaper for Hon - en katedral, 1966. p. 305 Fig. 94 Duchamp's Plan and Elevation for The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even, 1913. p. 306 Fig. 95 Destruction of Hon-en katedral, 1966. p. 307 Fig. 96 Jean Tinguely, Radio Stockholm,\966 Mixed Media, p. 308 Fig. 97 Marcel Duchamp Given: 1. The Waterfall, 2. The Illuminating Gas, 1948-49, Painted Leather on plaster relief 50x31 cm Collection of the Moderna Museet, Stockholm, p. 309 Fig. 98 Marcel Duchamp The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even [reconstructed copy by U l f Linde, 1961. p. 310 Fig. 99 Martial Raysse Elle, 1962. p. 311 Fig. 100 N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Jean Tinguely and Per-Olof Ultvedt Hon - en katedral, 1966. p. 312 Fig. 101 Hulten removing Hon's head, 1966. p. 313 Fig. 102 Marcel Duchamp, Why Not Sneeze, 1921. p. 314 Fig. 103 N i k i de Saint-Phalle and Jean Tinguely, he Paradise fantastique on the roof-top of the French Pavillion at Expo '67 in Montreal, Canada, p. 315 i x A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S This dissertation owes its existence to the encouragement, insight and critical comments p r o v i d e d by numerous people. In particular, I w o u l d like to thank m y thesis advisor Serge G u i l b a u t for trusting a Swede to write his o w n bit of art history. Guilbaut's k n o w l e d g e of E u r o p e a n and A m e r i c a n postwar culture has been stimulating and crucial. This topic got its start i n a seminar class at the U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h C o l u m b i a taught b y John O ' B r i a n . O ' B r i a n ' s r i c h comments a n d patient support since this time has been u n w a v e r i n g . M a u r e e n Ryan's excellent advice and critical approach to d i s c i p l i n a r y questions of art history has equally kept me o n m y toes. I also want to thank m y colleagues i n the Fine A r t s department at U . B . C . for their h e l p f u l comments. In particular I want to thank Joseph M o n t e y n e and Shep Steiner for their ability to balance p h i l o s o p h i c a l rigor w i t h a critical sense of h u m o r w h e n reading earlier drafts of this paper. I am most grateful to J u d i t h Steedman for her support. N o t o n l y d i d she p r o v i d e valuable comments on each draft of the dissertation, but she kept me sane throughout the process. For their help and encouragement at early stages of this paper I w o u l d also like to thank G r a n t A r n o l d and S y l v i a M u s t o . I must also thank Mary-Jane C o w a n for her valuable comments at the last stage of this project, a n d special thanks to Josephine Jungic at C a p i l a n o College for first i n t r o d u c i n g me to this discipline w e call A r t H i s t o r y . M o s t of m y information regarding the subject was acquired d u r i n g m y visits to Stockholm i n 1992, 1993 and 1999. This research c o u l d never have been accomplished w i t h o u t M a r i e and A n d e r s Selin, along w i t h C h r i s t i n e R y d g r e n , w h o not o n l y p r o v i d e d accommodation, but friendship and support. I think ultimately it was because of them that I chose to write from the 'margin' rather than the 'centre.' A l s o i n S t o c k h o l m , the generous hospitality p r o v i d e d by A n n - M a r i e and P . O . U l t v e d t can not be overstated. I also want to thank U l f L i n d e for g i v i n g me his o w n 'inside' perspective i n t o - - D u c h a m p ' s w o r k . F i n a l l y , a n d b y far most importantly, I w o u l d like to thank m y parents, U l l a and C a r l - D a v i d , for their continued support. Patrik A n d e r s s o n N o v e m b e r 2000 x: I N T R O D U C T I O N Let us consider two important factors, the two poles of the creation of art: the artist o n the one hand, and o n the other the spectator w h o later becomes the posterity. To a l l appearances, the artist acts like a m e d i u m i s t i c being w h o , from the l a b y r i n t h b e y o n d time and space, seeks his w a y out to a clearing. (Marcel Duchamp The Creative Act, 1957) In 1914, M a r c e l D u c h a m p completed Three Standard Stoppages [fig. 1], a 'readymade' art w o r k w h i c h came to function as his o w n m e a s u r i n g system.. for future w o r k — i n particular The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even (1915-23). B y h o l d i n g a one meter l o n g thread i n a straight h o r i z o n t a l line at the height of one meter, and a l l o w i n g it to freefall three times onto canvas, each time p r o d u c i n g a slightly differently s w e r v i n g line, D u c h a m p illustrated his understanding of the 'creative act' w h i c h he called "the coefficient of art" — an arithmetical relation between the unexpressed but intended and the unintentionally expressed. M e t a p h o r i c a l l y speaking, the thread 'falls' into the w o r l d of representation m u c h as speech falls into language. P r o d u c i n g three chance configurations, Three Standard Stoppages afforded D u c h a m p the tension necessary to b u i l d a bridge between the rational w o r l d of scientific methods and the poetic accidents of everyday life. It is not b y accident, however, that D u c h a m p chose to repeat this creative operation three separate times. A s D u c h a m p once e x p l a i n e d , "For me the number three is important" ... "one is unity, t w o is double, d u a l i t y , a n d three is the rest."1 O r p u t another w a y : "1 a unit / 2 o p p o s i t i o n / 3 a series." 2 ^Francis M . N a u m a n n " M a r c e l D u c h a m p : A Reconciliation of Opposites" i n D e D u v e , T h i e r r y The Definatively Unfinished Marcel Duchamp C a m b r i d g e : M I T Press, 1991, p.55. 2 Ibid.. 1 The f o l l o w i n g dissertation is also b u i l t around the number three. This is partly intended, partly by accident. Just as D u c h a m p chose three threads i n order to question the accepted authority of the meter, m y three chapters act as threads that r u n parallel to accepted standard accounts of the emergence of a new 'open art' i n N e w Y o r k , Paris and Stockholm between the years 1954 and 1966. I look at three artists i n particular: N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Jean T i n g u e l y and Per-Olof U l t v e d t , a l l of whose w o r k has v a r i o u s l y been categorized as N e o - D a d a , Assemblage A r t , N e w R e a l i s m , N o u v e a u Realisme and P o p A r t . These artists and movements have, of course, been discussed by a plethora of art historians and biographers whose vocations range from connoisseurship to social criticism. W h i l e m y three chapters weave their w a y t h r o u g h m a n y of these accounts, i n the end, they arrive at a different historical understanding. In fact, some of m y readers may want to argue that I haven't got the story 'straight.' By rearranging the material found i n the archives of this history of art, as w e l l as i n t r o d u c i n g n e w material, m y account challenges existing histories of this p e r i o d b y o p e n i n g u p an international perspective from the edge of this c u l t u r a l discourse. B y stressing the centrality of the m a r g i n i n the formation of the center, this narrative reintroduces p h i l o s o p h i c a l a n d p o l i t i c a l tensions w h i c h have, u p u n t i l n o w , been reduced, covered u p , or s i m p l y ignored. A t the center of m y thesis is Stockholm's M o d e r n a Museet, an institution w h i c h , soon after opening its doors i n 1958 to its S w e d i s h p u b l i c , found itself at the center of a highly-charged contemporary debate about the post-war position of the avant-garde. B y fostering an 'open art' distinctly 2 m o d e r n and international i n character, the m u s e u m found itself f l y i n g straight into the bright spotlight of international recognition o n l y to find out, like Icarus, that the s u n can b u r n like napalm. B y piecing together the historical fragments this passage left b e h i n d , I show h o w and w h y M o d e r n a Museet, d u r i n g the early sixties, was transformed into a tightrope suspended between E u r o p e a n and A m e r i c a n c u l t u r a l institutions. It was o n this precarious 'string' that a European and A m e r i c a n postwar avant-garde w o u l d find an early meeting place but also discover its differences. In order to set the stage for the s u d d e n institutionalization of international avant-garde art i n Stockholm d u r i n g the early sixties, m y first chapter, entitled "Intending U t o p i a or Expressing Depression: H o w to F i n d M o v e m e n t i n A r t , " brings to the surface a thick discursive context w h i c h h a d , by the early fifties, a l l o w e d numerous intellectuals i n S w e d e n to enter into a cultural dialogue w i t h continental Europe — i n particular the P a r i s i a n art w o r l d . The central issue i n this exchange was art's ability to either be integrated into a collective social environment or w i t h d r a w n into an expression of the i n d i v i d u a l psyche. F o l l o w i n g this debate i n S w e d e n directly before and after W o r l d W a r II, the first part of this chapter gives an o v e r v i e w of the p r o v i n c i a l isolation w h i c h S w e d i s h as w e l l as other disenfranchised intellectuals i n Paris were forced to confront. But it was also w i t h i n this p o l e m i c a l context that independent positions were b r o k e n free. B y the m i d - fifties, the activities of S w e d i s h art historian a n d curator Pontus H u l t e n stood out as an exception. In fact, b y the early sixties H u l t e n , as director of a n e w and h i g h l y v i s i b l e m u s e u m of m o d e r n art i n S t o c k h o l m , managed to t u r n the S w e d i s h art w o r l d 'upside d o w n ' and open the door for anarchic artistic 3 practices that q u i c k l y s p i l l e d over into an international p u b l i c arena of m o d e r n art. Starting w i t h H u l t e n ' s s m a l l but significant 1954 e x h i b i t i o n Le Mouvement at Galerie Denise Rene i n Paris, and e n d i n g w i t h his first large- scale blockbuster e x h i b i t i o n Movement in Art at M o d e r n a Museet i n 1961, the second part of m y first chapter explains h o w and w h y an independent space managed to be carved out in between the art w o r l d ' s centre and periphery. In this process, the reintroduction of M a r c e l Duchamp's particular form of D a d a w o u l d serve as a genre-breaking tool box. H i s interest i n machines, movement, i r o n y a n d chance encouraged not o n l y H u l t e n , but artists such as T i n g u e l y , Saint-Phalle and U l t v e d t , to develop a dialectical framework in w h i c h their o w n i n d i v i d u a l identities c o u l d emerge against the state of m o d e r n art. This posturing, I propose, was historically g r o u n d e d i n the writings of M a x Stirner, a mid-19th century radical i n d i v i d u a l i s t whose obscure and o n l y book The Ego and His Own (1845) was an early a n d p o w e r f u l anarchist critique of representation. Just as this w o r k h a d become a s t u m b l i n g block for 19th century social Utopian thinkers such as M a r x and Engels, I show h o w Stirner's rejection of revolution i n favour of rebellion became the l i n k between D u c h a m p and a number of his 'bachelors.' M y second chapter, entitled Movement in Art Goes Pop, opens w i t h a c o m p a r i s o n of t w o 1961 exhibitions: Movement in Art, at Stockholm's M o d e r n a Museet, a n d The Art of Assemblage, at N e w Y o r k ' s M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t . Movement in Art w i l l be l o o k e d at as H u l t e n ' s first major attempt at m a k i n g p u b l i c i n d i v i d u a l forms of c u l t u r a l p r o d u c t i o n p r e v i o u s l y located in the 'gap' between art and life. This exhibition was v i t a l to b r i n g i n g 4 the private discourse of a small m a r g i n a l i z e d postwar avant-garde into the broader c u l t u r a l arena of international art. O f specific interest to me is the w a y this new 'open' art was defined and argued over i n S w e d e n a m o n g an ' o l d guard' at the S w e d i s h R o y a l A c a d e m y of A r t , an emerging y o u t h culture informed by the p o p u l a r press, and an increasingly v o c a l N e w Left. Contrasting this S w e d i s h institutionalization of open art w i t h N e w Y o r k ' s M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t ' s Art of Assemblage e x h i b i t i o n , I s h o w h o w these two p i v o t a l events, despite their similarities, were motivated by different p o l i t i c a l and p h i l o s o p h i c a l agendas. W h i l e exhibitions such as these brought A m e r i c a n s like Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg and John Cage into collaboration w i t h Europeans such as Saint-Phalle, T i n g u e l y and U l t v e d t , it also led to unresolvable conflicts w h i c h were rooted i n social, p h i l o s o p h i c a l and sexual differences. Just as M o d e r n a Museet and The M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t c o u l d be said to have entered into a battle over the 'gap' i n m o d e r n art, the aforementioned artists w o u l d find their i n d i v i d u a l a n d collective identities contested. A t the center of this chapter is the role these various forms of open art h a d i n the s u d d e n institutionalization of a distinctly A m e r i c a n P o p A r t i n 1962. M y t h i r d chapter, The Mechanical Bride Stripped Bare in Stockholm, Even, brings into clear relief the connection between this aforementioned O p e n A r t and C o l d W a r politics i n Sweden between the years 1962 and 1966. For artists like Saint-Phalle, T i n g u e l y and U l t v e d t , to balance o n the tightrope that had been suspended between E u r o p e a n a n d A m e r i c a n c u l t u r a l institutions i n 1961 w o u l d b y 1962 have become a h i g h l y precarious act. Just as these artists were forced to retreat back to their E u r o p e a n roots as a response to seeing their i n d i v i d u a l identities falling into collective positions 'fixed' b y 5 an increasingly N e w Y o r k centred art w o r l d , M o d e r n a Museet, under the leadership of Pontus H u l t e n , was pressured to change direction. W h i l e this institution appeared to have achieved reputable international attention and strong p u b l i c support from its S w e d i s h audience, the o p t i m i s m that h a d s u r r o u n d e d i n i t i a l exhibitions s u c h as Rorelse i konsten and Four Americans w o u l d soon be understood by insiders as a false start. A s we w i l l see, as the S w e d i s h - A m e r i c a n conflict over V i e t n a m began to heat u p i n 1965, M o d e r n a Museet found itself forced to reconcile its artistic activities w i t h the p o l i t i c a l reality outside its o w n doors. T a k i n g a particularly close look at four articles published i n the S w e d i s h press i n opposition to the N e w Y o r k avant-garde by art critic and D u c h a m p historian U l f L i n d e , I show h o w significantly different and strenuous the personal, p o l i t i c a l and p h i l o s o p h i c a l interests i n the avant- garde had become b y the spring of 1965. The second half of this chapter considers two exhibitions: Inner and Outer Space: An Exhibition Devoted to Universal Art a n d She - a Cathedral. A s I w i l l show, the former exhibition served as an attempt to 'clean house' after the false start H u l t e n recognized M o d e r n a Museet to have taken between 1961 a n d 1965. She - a Cathedral returns us to the collaborative w o r k of Saint-Phalle, T i n g u e l y and U l t v e d t w h o i n 1966 constructed their m o n u m e n t a l , albeit tongue-in-cheek, attack against collective A m e r i c a n experiments i n art and technology. M e a s u r i n g 23.5 x 6 x 10 meters, "She" [Hon] was a giant female figure that lay headless o n her back inside M o d e r n a Museet. W i t h her legs spread and knees pointed u p w a r d s , She was entered for a p e r i o d of three months by a continuous c r o w d that l i n e d u p to see and experience the 'spectacle' she embodied i n the form of a three-storied amusement park. 6 C e n t r a l to this discussion is the sexual politics She embodied. I use this sculpture n o t ' o n l y to show h o w these three artists, along w i t h M o d e r n a Museet, h a d engaged i n a critical masquerade i n order to reorient their i n d i v i d u a l identities, but also to show h o w Sweden had, i n embracing a new - set of sexual politics, by the mid-sixties managed to reconstruct its 'inner and outer spaces' towards a new sexualized c u l t u r a l image that made it distinct from an A m e r i c a n liberal ideology. In other w o r d s , this dissertation is as m u c h about sex and politics as it is about art. 7 C H A P T E R I I N T E N D I N G U T O P I A OR EXPRESSING DEPRESSION: H O W T O FIND M O V E M E N T IN A R T To set the stage for the s u d d e n institutionalization of international avant-garde art i n Stockholm d u r i n g the early sixties, I need to b r i n g to the surface parts of the thick discursive context w h i c h , by the early fifties, a l l o w e d numerous S w e d i s h intellectuals to enter into dialogue w i t h others from continental Europe and the U n i t e d States. W h i l e the idea of m o d e r n art may have been stolen by N e w Y o r k after the Second W o r l d W a r , Paris remained for Europe the p r o u d centre for an art tied to both historical avant-gardism and p o l i t i c a l resistance. Sweden may not have h a d such a grand part i n either this historical or heroic history, but by the fifties it was being u p h e l d as a m o d e l by m a n y o n the Left for h a v i n g established a strong economy and international perspective under a Socialist government a n d it was also recognized for a m o d e r n art and architecture representing a functioning collective space. U s i n g m y o w n critical searchlight, I illuminate a history w h i c h w i l l s h o w that there were intellectuals i n Sweden w h o were part of this dialogue, but w h o also p u t into question this colourful picture. Outer Spaces: Dreams of C o l l e c t i v i t y i n Paris and S t o c k h o l m A s early as 1949 A l v a M y r d a l , one of the more influential social engineers of folkhemmet (The Peoples' Home), went so far as to argue that Sweden h a d , since the late-nineteenth century, always i m p r o v e d its "culture and education before ... [it] i m p r o v e d ...[its] i n d u s t r i a l m e t h o d s . " 3 A l t h o u g h 3 A l v a Myrdal, "Development of Population and Social Reform in Sweden" in Th.Plaenge Jacobson and Sven Silow (Eds.) Ten Lectures on Swedish Architecture, Stockholm: Victor Petterson's Bokindustriaktiebolag, p.19. During the 1930s, under the Social Democratic 8 this might be a rather extreme argument, slogans such as vackrare vardagsvara (more beautiful things for every day use) h a d by the late forties been inscribed into a national m y t h o l o g y that was historically g r o u n d e d and internationally revealed i n such welfare state rhetorical gestures as the 1930 Stockholm exhibition. Here, under the leadership of Gr e gor y Paulsson, the S w e d i s h A r t s and Crafts A s s o c i a t i o n Svensk Form h a d p r o v i d e d international m o d e r n i s m w i t h an architectural breakthrough b y p r o d u c i n g a functionalist fairground designed by G u n n a r A s p l u n d [fig. 2]. A large part of this e x h i b i t i o n was devoted to an exploration and experimentation i n such social aspects as full sized apartment solutions designed by numerous S w e d i s h architects. A s one architect put it, " F r o m h a v i n g been generally l o o k i n g b a c k w a r d and socially passive, architecture i n Sweden l o o k e d to the future and l o o k e d socially f o r w a r d . " 4 . leadership of Per Albin Hansson, the term 'folkhemrnet' was used to express a future vision of social democracy and became synonymous with national social reforms in Sweden which sought to create equality through a social security system and better housing accomodations. Alva and Gunnar Myrdai became the main spokesmen for this utopic vision with books such as Kris i befolknignsfrdgan [Crisis in the Population Question] (1934) in which they addressed Sweden's low population. A better society, they proposed, could only be formed by increasing the national birth rate and establishing a modern socially engineered collective living environment. The central place where these reforms could take place was the 'home.' There was a dark subtext to this optimistic vision of collectivity. In the last few years, critics of this social democratic legacy have gone back to the writings of the Myrdals and looked at the consequences of the collectivism and social engineering that manifested itself. For example, numerous historians point at the eugenics practiced and espoused by this idea of folkhemmet. In these inflamatory studies, the Left is shown to have practiced eugenics on a scale matched only by the Fascists in Germany. For a cursory overview of this issue, see Samuel Siren's web article "Konsekvenser av social ingenjorskonst" [The Consequences of the Art of Social Engineering] at www.algonet.se/~stampede/socmg.htrnl. For a more detailed analysis, see Maija Runci's doctoral dissertation Sterilization Policy in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland Michigan: Michigan State University Press, 1996 and Gunnar Broberg och Mattias Tyden's Odnskade i folkhemmet Stockholm: Gidlunds, 1991. ^Hakan Ahlberg quoted in G.E. Kidder Smith Sweden Builds London: The Architectural Press, 1957 (2nd edition), p.16. As Eric Hobsbawm has stressed, after the Socialists came to power in 1932, Sweden's economy "roared ahead" and reached almost twice the pre-slump level of production by the end of the 1930s. See Eric Hobsbawm The Age of Extremes: The Short History of the Twentieth Century. London: Abacus, 1995, pp.101-104. It should also be mentioned that 9 http://www.algonet.se/~stampede/socmg.htrnl Partly as a result of Sweden's ability to sustain social and economic o p t i m i s m throughout the depression and Second W o r l d W a r , its welfare state architecture c o u l d be u p h e l d to the external w o r l d as an image of a functioning socialist Utopia and thereby w o u l d r e m a i n the international architectural and social p a r a d i g m w e l l into the fifties. 5 The F i n n i s h architect A l v a r A a l t o described this o p t i m i s m i n rather p u r i f y i n g terms, s a y i n g that Sweden's image at the Stockholm E x h i b i t i o n was: ...not a c o m p o s i t i o n i n stone, glass and steel as the Functionalist-hating e x h i b i t i o n visitor m i g h t imagine, but rather a c o m p o s i t i o n in-houses, flags, searchlights, flowers, fireworks, happy people and clean tablecloths—a w h o l e new k i n d of j o y . 6 In other w o r d s , the fair stood as an announcement for a n e w type of International Style architecture that presented itself as social rather than technocratic. W h i l e architectural m o d e r n i s m stood relatively t r i u m p h a n t at the 1930 Stockholm E x h i b i t i o n , the attempt to catapult S w e d i s h modernist art alongside it left a more shattered and embarrassing legacy. The year p r i o r to the exhibition, the S w e d i s h painter Otto G . C a r l s u n d , together w i t h the D u t c h Theo v a n D o e s b u r g a n d French H e l i o n , founded " A r t Concret," a modernist the Stockholm Exhibition was the first of a series of major international expositions during the Depression years that, as Susan Buck-Morss has noted, was "seen as a means of enhancing business, creating jobs for the unemployed, and providing state-subsidized, mass entertainment that was at the same time public 'education.'" Susan Buck-Morss The Dialectics of Seeing: Walter Benjamin and the Arcades Project. Massachussetts: MIT Press, 1989, p.323. ^Richard Weston. Modernism London: Phaidon, 1996, pp.183-184. Sweden was the first country to work itself out of economic depression in the 1930s. This achievement, largely attributed to the Social Democrat's willingness to embrace the large social reforms associated with folkhemmet, provided the Social Democratic government with a legacy that helped keep them in power until the 1970. 6 Ibid.. 1 0 project a i m e d at p u s h i n g p a i n t i n g past the ontological confines of N e o - Plasticism and p u r i s m i n order to integrate pure abstraction w i t h architecture [fig. 3]. A s art historian and critic H a n s L . C . Jaffe has pointed out, the importance of the Manifeste de Vart concret, was its p r o n o u n c e d rejection of dominant forms of new nationalism and the i d o l i z a t i o n of b l o o d and s o i l w h i c h expressionist and figurative art frequently represented. 7 W i t h its roots i n M a l e v i c h ' s Suprematism and M o n d r i a n ' s N e o - P l a s t i c i s m , a "social" contract was understood to be inherent i n Geometric Abstraction. Because of his considerable reputation w i t h i n these types of avant-garde circles, and the promise of a somewhat more international and Bauhaus style fair, C a r l s u n d managed to convince some of Europe's most renowned contemporary artists to send their w o r k to an International Exhibition of Post-Cubist Art that was to be h e l d at A s p l u n d ' s fairground. W i t h o u t consulting the artists, w h o i n c l u d e d Leger, A r p , Ozenfant, M o n d r i a n , Pevsner, M o h o l y - N a g y , v a n Doesburg, H e l i o n , T a u b e r - A r p and Vantogerloo, C a r l s u n d used their artwork as collateral for loans necessary to fund the event. 8 Things d i d not fare w e l l for C a r l s u n d . In the w o r d s of the art critic E u g e n W r e t h o l m , w h e n the creditors came a r o u n d , - " C a r l s u n d was a dead m a n i n P a r i s . " 9 W h i l e the larger circumstances for this failure of collective u n i t y of artistic creation were financial, for Sweden the devastating consequence of this fiasco was that its ^Hans L . C . Jaffe "Geometric Abstraction: its Origin, Principles and Evolution" in Art Since Mid- Century: The New Internationalism Vol.1 Abstract Art; Greenwich, Connecticut: New York Graphic Society, 1971. ^The one artist who seemed to forgive Carlsund was his former teacher and friend Fernand Leger who in 1934 spent considerable time with Carlsund during his visit to Stockholm for his exhibition at Galerie Moderne. Along with Andre Lhote's school of cubist painting, Leger's school became a very popular educational retreat for Swedish modern artists. Karin Bergqvist Lindegren, Carlo Derkert, K . G . Hulten Leger. Stockholm: Tryckeri A B Bjorkmans Eftr, 1964. ^Eugen Wretholm Svenska konstndrer frdn 1940, 50 och 60-talet Uddevalla: Bokforlaget Forum AB,1969, pp.4-5. 1 1 artists w o u l d again f i n d themselves m a r g i n a l i z e d from international debates and exposure. W i t h the exception of a few s m a l l exhibitions such as Ferdinand Leger at Galerie M o d e r n e and the more significant s h o w i n g of Picasso's Guernica and graphic w o r k s i n 1938, it was not u n t i l after the second w o r l d w a r that Swedes re-emerged i n the modernist discourses centralized a r o u n d Paris. W i t h M o n d r i a n ' s death i n 1944, C a r l s u n d felt it necessary (and possible) to come out of h i d i n g and present i n 1947 a series of compositions intended as m u r a l designs for restaurants and bars w h i c h inspired a number of younger S w e d i s h artists to p i c k up geometric abstraction as a viable m o d e r n expression of a social v i e w of the postwar w o r l d . A s was the case i n continental European discourses, i n the context of S w e d i s h Socialism, Geometric Abstraction, like Bauhaus architecture, meant a possibility to reorganize Europe o n a n o n - i n d i v i d u a l foundation based o n Socialism rather than A m e r i c a n l i b e r a l i s m . 1 0 In the fall of 1947, the contemporary e x h i b i t i o n space Farg och F o r m presented Ling Konst (Young Art), an e x h i b i t i o n w h i c h critics were quick to h a i l as a t u r n i n g point i n S w e d i s h art. A s the d a i l y newspaper Svenska Dagbladet reported: 1 0 A f t e r the war, as a result of its role in the resistance movement against Fascism, Socialism and Communism had a very different popular appeal in Europe than in the United States where it was socially and politically suppressed. A n insightful discussion of the economic, military and diplomatic tensions between the United States and Europe directly after the Second World War is found in Pascaline Winand's Eisenhower, Kennedy and the United States of Europe New York: Saint Martin's Press, 1993. In particular Winand considers the idea of a 'united Europe' which was started under the Roosevelt administration and continued by Truman as a means to develop a multilateral economic plan to pave the way for liberalized trade which favoured the United States. The most visible outcome from these plans were the 1947 Truman Doctrine, which provided economic and financial aid to Europe, the Marshall Plan and the North Atlantic Pact. Both these helped to establish a divided Europe. 1 2 W h a t strikes us w h e n standing i n front of this first group gathering is that we stand i n front of a n e w generation.... A feeling w e haven't had as strong since the early thirties...." 1 1 A t this time, the d o m i n a n t discussion a r o u n d non-figurative geometric abstraction w o u l d also become localized around a s m a l l group of artists w h o , despite their differences, shared a preoccupation w i t h issues of space, movement and the perception of time. Increasingly referred to as Konkretisterna (The Concretists), the painters and sculptors i n this g r o u p , w h o i n c l u d e d O l l e Bonnier, Lage L i n d e l l , E g o n M o l l e r N i e l s e n , Pierre Olofsson and Lennart Rodhe, sought to make art a part of the l i v i n g environment, or as the Functionalists w o u l d say, "adapt art to the r o o m . " 1 2 It was to be an objective art subjectively created for a collective environment that was international i n character. This latter aspect was crucial i n order to break the isolation i n w h i c h they saw regional expressionist and figurative art to be. In 1949, it was a number of these artists' turn to collaborate w i t h architects to construct an exposition g r o u n d , this time for the S t o c k h o l m — W o r l d Sport E x h i b i t i o n [fig. 4] w h i c h , architect E r i k Thelaus succinctly described i n the L a b o u r organ Byggmastaren : The W o r l d Sports E x h i b i t i o n ... w i t h its h a p p y color scheme and its p l a y f u l symbols ... returns, just as the Stockholm E x h i b i t i o n , directly to international sources of inspiration, a n d i n that sense they are v e r y closely related despite the time gap.... The Sport E x p o s i t i o n is especially noteworthy for its collaboration between architecture, sculpture and painting... It is the first time that a more or less a l l embracing and a l l 1 1 I b i d . , p.6. 1 2 L o u i s e L y b e r g A History of Swedish Art: 1880-1980 U d d e v a l l a : B o h u s l a n i n g e n s B o k t r y c k e r i A B , 1987 p.229. 1 3 encompassing collaboration of this k i n d has taken place... One w o u l d like to see these collaborations between different artists, that have been tried w i t h fluctuating but considerably good results w i t h i n the experimental frame of an exhibition, continue i n less temporal c i r c u m s t a n c e s . . . " 1 3 W i t h this optimistic appraisal of the exhibition, Thelaus also o u t l i n e d some of the tendencies w h i c h he understood w o u l d make or break this i n t e r d i s c i p l i n a r y environment: ...profitable collaboration is always g o i n g to be dependent o n the w i l l i n g n e s s a m o n g i n d i v i d u a l practices to try n e w w o r k i n g methods and treat a l l artistic problems. A m o n g m a n y of the l e a d i n g artists i n question exists certain paradoxical inhibitions and rejections of the artistic field of v i s i o n such as material judgments and a dogmatic embrace of the "picturesque," even w h e n it is inappropriate. It is at the very least a l i v i n g interest i n the m e d i u m r a n g i n g from colour pigment to the u n b o u n d m e d i u m of sculpture and the artworks' new roles and functions w h i c h is necessary for a successful collaboration w i t h a r c h i t e c t u r e . 1 4 In other w o r d s , Thelaus was not naive enough to ignore the conflicts that w o u l d arise i n this type of gesamtkunstwerk. Nonetheless, for Concretist artists such as O l l e Bonnier, the possibility of w o r k i n g i n p u b l i c spaces meant a chance to set i n m o t i o n a relationship between the picture plane's stable surface (form and movement set i n a state of e q u i l i b r i u m ) a n d the perceptive v i s i o n of social beings. In his murals, as w e l l as canvases such as 2950 Theme (1950), Bonnier set up a d y n a m i c p r i s m a l intersection for the street-like forms of M o n d r i a n ' s Boogie-woogie paintings a n d the kinetic plasticity of M o h o l y - N a g y ' s constructions [fig. 5]. A s k e d to define the purpose of this artistic project, Bonnier responded s i m i l a r l y to other Concretists b y stating that 1 3 " 1 0 ars k o n s t l i v i S t o c k h o l m " Konstrevy 1 (1957), p.7. 1 4 I b i d . . 1 4 "there can be no other w a y to understand this type of picture than as a creation of t i m e . " 1 5 By pictorially and verbally breaking up the concrete surface of the canvas to introduce the more metaphysical aspect of time, these artists met fierce opposition. After a l l , geometrical abstraction favored universalized concepts such as time and space over chance and i n d i v i d u a l circumstances. One of the critics of this "cold" abstraction was G o t t h a r d Johansson w h o s e article Ren och oren konst (Pure and Impure Art) i n Svenska Dagbladet (a liberal/conservative S w e d i s h daily) w a r n e d that these artists "want to r i d art of i n d i v i d u a l i t y and replace it w i t h a language that is reduced, objective and geometrical...." 1 6 In other w o r d s , they wanted to "replace [art] w i t h a mystical v i s i o n based i n the phenomenology of t i m e . " 1 7 In a w a y , this argument was n o t h i n g n e w or s u r p r i s i n g as it had p r e v i o u s l y been leveled - internationally against M o n d r i a n a n d nationally against modernist artists such as G A N (Gosta A d r i a n - N i l s s o n ) . 1 8 But it was insistent. D u r i n g that same year, the liberal left d a i l y Dagens Nyheter p u b l i s h e d its c r i t i c i s m , simultaneously d e n o u n c i n g and defending the Concretists under the same rubric of " R e n och oren konst." In this exchange, V i l h e l m Bjerke-Petersen, himself a S w e d i s h Concretist painter, argued w i t h Torsten Bergmark, the editor of the Goteborg based art journal Paletten, w h o h a d accused these " y o u n g " artists of being n o t h i n g more than "pretentious mystics" espousing ^Sydhoff, Beatte Bildkonsten i Norden: Var Egen Tid Lund: Berglingsta Boktryckeriet, 1973, p.84. l 6 I b i d . . 1 7 I b i d . . 1921 G A N had encouraged this link between geometric abstraction and mysticism in his book Den Gudomliga Geometrin. His paintings of this period can be said to be typical of Swedish modernist paiting in that it mixed Cubism and Futurism. What made GAN's work rather sureal was his interest in Kandinsky's writings on the spiritual in art. See Louise Lyberg's A History of Swedish Art Uddevalla: Bokforlaget Signum, 1987, p.209. 1 5 universal values associated w i t h the c o l d rationalism of S w e d i s h social e n g i n e e r i n g . 1 9 To some extent these critics were right. Concretist art was increasingly used as if it was the 'modern' look. By the fifties, Concretist murals were spread a l l over Sweden i n places as diverse as factory l u n c h rooms, post offices, schools and apartment houses [fig.6]. This was an aesthetic w h i c h increasingly signified the social and collective v i s i o n of Sweden's People's H o m e (Folkhemmet).20 W h i l e being criticized i n the press, these artists not o n l y discovered their brand of M o d e r n i s m forefronted i n public debates about art, but they also received a p p r o v a l from a number of art critics and historians such as R o l f Soderberg, Bo Wennberg, and the freelance writer U l f L i n d e w h o must have figured that a 'public' art that c o u l d generate a debate about international issues to this degree and s t i l l be labeled mystic and pretentious c o u l d not be a l l that b a d for Sweden's cultural life. In fact, this new w o r k seemed to break through the i n v o l u n t a r y isolation from the continent that Swedes h a d found themselves i n d u r i n g the Second W o r l d W a r . 2 1 In 1951, i n an attempt to strengthen the Concretists' l i n k to continental aesthetic discourses a n d make a p i t c h for geometric abstraction at home, a number of S w e d i s h architects, artists, curators and professors organized a l^Sydhoff, p.85. Like Gotthard Johansson's article, this one was also titled "Ren och oren konst." 2 0 A s OUe Granath has pointed out, Folkhemmet's vision was partly spread by the distribution of cheap 'quality art' affordable to most people. The most common media was lithography and the most common artists were those who had made a name for themselves between the wars. In return, Concretists who were asked to produce murals received one percent of the cost of their projects. See Olle Granath Another Light: Swedish Art Since 1945 Malmo: Svenska Institutet, 1975, p.14. 2 1 D u r i n g the forties and fifties, Paris was a pilgrimage site for a large number of Swedish artists trying to learn contemporary techniques. Going to study with modern masters such as Fernand Leger or Andre Lhote became, as in other countries, the thing to do. See Granath, p.10. 1 6 committee to produce a contemporary survey of m o d e r n art to be h e l d i n S t o c k h o l m at Liljevalchs konsthall. Klar Form, (Clear or Pure Form), as it was named, opened i n M a r c h of 1952 w i t h Parisian support from Galerie Denise Rene and the magazines Art d'Aujourd'hui and XX:e Siecle. W i t h critical texts written by the French art historians and critics L e o n D e g a n d and R . V . Gindertael, Klar Form introduced w o r k by an international array of artists i n c l u d i n g H a n s A r p , A n d r e Bloc, A l e x a n d e r Calder, J.Dewasne, Cicero Dias, Auguste H e r b i n , Robert Jacobsen, L e Corbusier, Fernand Leger, A . M a g n e l l i , Robert Mortensen, Serge Poliakoff, M a r i e R a y m o n d , Sophie T a e u b e r - A r p , and V i c t o r Vaserely. Despite the l u k e w a r m reception at home, the e x h i b i t i o n was extremely important i n p r o v i d i n g inroads into continental debates for S w e d i s h a r t i s t s . 2 2 Klar Form also represented a glimpse of new hope, a "northern light," for someone like L e o n D e g a n d whose attempts at spreading the gospel of International style geometric abstraction had since 1946 consistently been short circuited. For example, Degand-'-s distancing from Socialist R e a l i s m and the School of Paris i n favour of contemporary forms of abstraction b y w r i t i n g numerous articles a r g u i n g against what he v i e w e d as an anemic crisis i n both camps, h a d as early as 1947 left h i m sacked from the C o m m u n i s t Party journal Lettres frangaises.23 Serge G u i l b a u t has described i n detail the pathetic nature of Degand's attempt to b r i n g m o d e r n art to B r a z i l i n 1947. If his c u l t u r a l i n v a s i o n into South A m e r i c a h a d the look of a "failed firecracker," then his support of Klar Form represented one of his last attempts at 2 2 T h i s less optimistic response from gallery goers has been noted by Teddy Brunius in Baertling: mannen, verket Uddevalla: Bohuslaningens boktryckeri, 1990, p.87. 2 3 Serge Guilbaut How New York Stole the Idea of Modern Art: Abstract Expressionism, Freedom, and the Cold War Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1984, pp.131-132. 1 7 p r o v i d i n g a spark for geometric abstraction and the collective v i s i o n it stood to represent. 2 4 In his catalogue text for Klar Form, D e g a n d took the opportunity to pronounce that the "crisis i n belief, of a plastic conception and of language from w h i c h it is appropriated" stemmed from a lack of participation i n "a larger creative b i r t h process." 2 5 Here, Sweden c o u l d heroically represent a new frontier for the k i n d of "conquering art," as he called it, that w o u l d ultimately redirect preoccupations w i t h the past and the stasis of "laboratory art" t o w a r d a contemporary "acceptable formal l a n g u a g e . " 2 6 Degand's optimistic and militant s o u n d i n g appraisal of S w e d i s h geometric abstraction s h o u l d not o n l y be read against the C o m m u n i s t Party's support of Socialist Realism. B y the time D e g a n d had vacated his office at the C o m m u n i s t press, a larger threat to his p o s i t i o n h a d emerged i n the form of gestural abstraction. A s early as 1947 w h i l e Degand was busy sending his "conquering art" to B r a z i l , a series of groundbreaking exhibitions h a d taken place i n Paris w h i c h p r o v e d the a r r i v a l of "informal" p a i n t i n g i n close connection w i t h existentialist literary m o v e m e n t s . 2 7 By the late forties the Parisian art scene resembled more of a battlefield than a unified center for m o d e r n art. B y the early fifties, "cold" geometric abstraction was not o n l y a 2 4 Guilbaut, Serge "Dripping on the modernist parade: The failed invasion of abstract art in Brazil, 1947-1948" in Patrocinio, coleccion y circulation de las artes, XX coloquio Internacional de Historia del Arte, U N A M , Instituto de Investigaciones Esteticas, 1997, pp. 807-817. 2 5 T h e catalogue for Klar Form came in the form of an entire issue of Art d'aujourd'hui devoted to it. This was published a few months prior to the exhibition opening in Sweden. See Leon Degand "Klar Form" Art d'aujourd'hui no.l (December 1951), p.2. 2 6 I b i d . . 2 7 See Guilbaut, Serge "Postwar Painting Games: The Rough and the Slick" in Reconstructing Modernism: Art in New York, Paris, and Montreal 1945-1964 Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1990, pp.30-79. 1 8 stance against the "hot" gestural abstraction and the somewhat luke w a r m Ecole de Paris, but it had to contend w i t h an Abstract Expressionist p u s h from accross the A t l a n t i c . 2 8 F a m i l i a r w i t h this p o l e m i c a l atmosphere and particularly aware of the contemporary state of S w e d i s h art, curator and art historian Pontus H u l t e n was quick to nurture a potential sud-nord alliance. H a v i n g recently finished his graduate studies i n art history w i t h a thesis o n Vermeer and S p i n o z a , H u l t e n was spending as m u c h time i n Paris as he was i n S t o c k h o l m d u r i n g the early fifties. A w a r e of the Parisian art scene centred a r o u n d its a n n u a l Salon des Realities, and perhaps recognizing attempts b y D e g a n d and Rene to promote a Geometric International Style abstraction i n Paris b y t y i n g it to remote exotic locales such as L a t i n A m e r i c a and Scandinavia, H u l t e n managed to f i n d his w a y into the inner circle of Galerie Denise Rene. This k i n d of connection was indeed important for anyone interested i n n o n - figurative abstraction. The A m e r i c a n painter J o h n - F r a n k l i n K o e n i g , w h o was an intimate part of this scene, describes it thus: The gallery scene, i n the early 1950s, was v i r t u a l l y closed to nonfigurative art and especially to younger artists d o i n g this type of art.... Denise Rene was certainly the most important nonfigurative gallery. A s early as 1946 she h a d a s h o w entitled La Jeune Peinture Abstraite w i t h H a r t u n g , Schneider, D e y r o l l e , Dewasne, Jacobsen, and M a r i e R a y m o n d (mother of Y v e s K l e i n ) . In 1948 she s h o w e d M a x B i l l , G o r i n , M a g n e l l i , Schneider, Dewasne, Jacobsen, H e r b i n , M o n d r i a n , K a n d i n s k y , Mortensen, and Marcelle C a h n . V i c t o r Vaserely was her 2 8 B y 1954 it was p a r t i c u l a r l y S a m Francis a n d Jean-Paul R i o p e l l e w h o d o m i n a t e d this discussion. A c c o r d i n g to H u l t e n , P o l l o c k was not really k n o w n outside very specific circles u n t i l later. See Pontus H u l t e n Jean Tinguely: A Magic Stronger than Death N e w Y o r k : A b b e v i l l e Press Publishers, 1987, p.27. 1 9 chief advisor. A n d r e Bloc, the editor of Architecture d'aujourd'hui and Art d'aujourd'hui, was a p o w e r f u l a l l y of Denise R e n e . 2 9 Himself, K o e n i g was closely connected to this scene as he helped edit the increasingly important art journal Cimaise w h i c h was started by the b i b l i o p h i l e Jean-Robert A r n a u d whose a i m was to m a i n t a i n an organ through w h i c h artists on the fringes of this scene c o u l d become k n o w n . N o t only d i d H u l t e n become familiar w i t h this c r o w d , but by 1953, together w i t h Rolf Soderberg and the artist/critic Oscar Reutersvard, H u l t e n had managed to be o n friendly enough terms w i t h Denise Rene to suggest a f o l l o w - u p e x h i b i t i o n to Klar Form. Exposition d'Art Suedois Cubiste, Futuriste, Constructiviste, as it became k n o w n , opened at Galerie Denise Rene i n the fall of 1953 w i t h each of the three curators contributing substantial texts to a special S c a n d i n a v i a n issue of Art d'aujourd'hui, the gallery's unofficial mouthpiece [fig. 7]. W i t h a "hard edge" composition b y O l l e Baertling o n its cover, the magazine directed the reader through a history of S w e d i s h abstraction starting w i t h first and second generation S w e d i s h Futurists and Cubists such as G A N , S i r i Derkert, Otte S k o l d and Otto G . C a r l s u n d l e a d i n g to a younger generation of contemporary artists such as R o d h e , Bonnier, and Baertling. W h i l e the texts by Soderberg and Reutersvard rationalized contemporary geometric abstraction v i a the purist tendencies of C u b i s m and F u t u r i s m , H u l t e n discerned a less obvious heritage i n the w o r k of painter and filmaker V i k i n g E g g e l i n g w h o , before his death i n 1925, managed to produce his o w n r e v o l u t i o n w i t h i n the D a d a movement: 2 9 J o h n - F r a n k l i n K o e n i g " A b s t r a c t i o n chaude" i n G u i l b a u t , Serge E d . Reconstructing Modernism: Art in New York, Paris, and Montreal 1945-1964 C a m b r i d g e , Massachusetts: The M I T Press, 1990, p.8 (pp.1-16) 2 0 It seems that V i k i n g E g g e l i n g w o u l d be the first representative of m o d e r n art to consciously put his images i n direct relationship w i t h time.... the first artist of images i n the history of film..., E g g e l i n g broke w i t h the tradition of the image l i m i t e d b y the rectangle. 3 0 A s H u l t e n ' s expose made clear, w i t h f i l m rolls such as Diagonal Symphony (1921) [fig. 8], E g g e l i n g had realized his idea of moving images by u s i n g images non-figuratively and w i t h real movement: By methodical w o r k , he tried to free the rules of plastic counterpoint from an abstract syntax. H i s f i l m rolls are composed like pieces of music, isolated images resemble measures, variants o n a theme, m u l t i p l e measures constitute a phrase i n w h i c h certain parts can be found i n other phrases.... B y the gradual transformation of different figures he a r r i v e d at creating an uninterrupted movement and a continuous transformation of stages of non-figurative movements. The f i l m made the beauty of i n d i v i d u a l images disappear, to be replaced b y those of real movement i n a l i v i n g f o r m . 3 1 W h i l e p o i n t i n g to Eggeling's attack o n the cult of 'beauty,' it was H u l t e n ' s ability to foreground Eggeling's kinetic sensibility as an early example of both S w e d i s h and international abstraction that must have pleased Denise Rene as w e l l as her advisor V i c t o r Vaserely whose o w n interests i n movement needed historical g r o u n d i n g and contemporary currency. A l t h o u g h Eggeling's commitment a n d experimentation w i t h a n e w v i s u a l syntax h a d i n m a n y ways been as strict as M o n d r i a n ' s or M a l e v i c h ' s , his w o r k also broke d o w n this structure w i t h an obsession w i t h movement. A s w e w i l l see, this dialectical p o s i t i o n of flux w o u l d become a central aspect of H u l t e n ' s movement. 3 0 K a r l G . [Pontus] H u l t e n " V i k i n g E g g e l i n g " Art d'Aujourd'hui serie 4, no.7 ( O c t - N o v , 1953), p.3. 3 l I b i d . . 2 1 A picture from 1954 of Denise Rene s m i l i n g and p o i n t i n g enthusiastically at a tension point i n one of O l l e Baertling's compositions characterizes the general excitement m o u n t i n g i n 1954 t o w a r d Scandinavia, where non-objective art was increasingly supported by the state. 3 2 M a k i n g an even stronger caricature of these Franco-Swedish relations, M i c h e l Ragon, i n an article p u b l i s h e d i n Cimaise entitled "Aesthetique actuelle d u timbre- poste," described France as retrograde i n its "official" reluctance to integrate non-figurative abstract art into utilitarian objects such as money and stamps [fig. 9]. C o m p a r i n g the conservative figurative representations o n three French stamps w i t h three futuristic designs o n S w e d i s h stamps (produced to celebrate the national telegraph company's c o m m u n i c a t i o n capabilities), Ragon observes that the electro-geometric abstractions o n the latter stamps can be referenced to S w e d i s h Concretist artists such as Bonnier or Rhode: ...we salute w i t h pleasure the stamp series put out b y the S w e d i s h post system. If two of them are content to make telephone lines and l i g h t n i n g bolts look abstract, then the [third] is b y contrast authentically composed of abstract forms [reminicent] of a truer expression of S c a n d i n a v i a n non-figurative a r t . 3 3 It seems ironic that w h i l e Scandinavian artists and curators were desperately l o o k i n g south to Paris for a p p r o v a l and stimulus, a part of Paris was projecting its desires n o r t h t o w a r d Sweden (as w e l l as the rest of Scandinavia) as an assurance that socialism and non-figurative art c o u l d function i n a collective state. For defenders of geometric abstraction such as Denise Rene, 3 2 T h i s abstract art's tie to a social democratic architecture was noted in both L'Architecture dAujourd'hui and Art d'Aujourd'hui. See the section on Sweden in the special nordic issue "Pays Nordiques" L'Architecture d'Aujourd'hui 54 (May - June 1954), ppl8-37. Also, "Synthese des Arts: L'art est un service social" Art d'Aujourd'hui no.4-5 serie 5 (June 1954), pp.19-31. 3 3 M i c h e l Ragon "Esthetique actuelle du Timbre-Poste Cimaise (March 1955), p.25. It should be mentioned that Ragon was by this time also a main supporter of gestural abstraction. 2 2 the ability to stay "cool" despite the onslaught of gestural abstraction was becoming difficult enough that she saw the need to open up n e w curatorial possibilities for someone like H u l t e n . Inner Spaces: I n d i v i d u a l Expressions and the Ideology of Preparedness N o t o n l y w o u l d H u l t e n take advantage of this precarious situation i n Paris, but he may very w e l l have filtered his o w n socio-political ideas about art through the concerns of another S w e d i s h intellectual. C h a l l e n g i n g the u t o p i a n i s m of a socialist collective culture that was increasingly being read i n the majority of non-figurative abstractions, the surrealist poet and critic Ilmar Laaban had, since 1952, written a series of articles p u b l i s h e d i n the S w e d i s h popular press and leftist journals, arguing for an artistic p o s i t i o n not o n l y distinct from the dogmatism of Social Realism, but also from the three potential "traps" he saw i n the geometric (non-organic abstraction that is calculated: eg. M a l e v i c h , M o n d r i a n ) , the non-geometric (organic, instinctual and chance r i d d e n : eg. A r p , Brancusi) and the emotive (emotional expressions: eg. K a n d i n s k y ) . In his 1952 articles "Abstract or Concrete" and " A n a l y s i s and Synthesis i n M o d e r n A r t " Laaban observes that artists i n v o l v e d i n neo-plastic abstraction have painted themselves into a cul de sac, and the best that the post-war school of neo-expressionism can d o is " r u n around i n a s n o w y l a n d s c a p e . " 3 4 W a r n i n g that even surrealist a n d anarchist d y n a m i s m can t u r n as c o l d and calculated as abstraction was b e c o m i n g mechanized, Laaban points toward a potential art able to speak about both an inner and outer reality w h i c h constantly interpenetrate, re-form and i n f o r m each other. 3 4 I l m a r Laaban " A n a l y s och syntes i m o d e r n konst" Samtid och Framtid ( A u g u s t 1952), p. 49. 2 3 A c c o r d i n g to Laaban's prognosis, artists needed to produce a "psycho- p h y s i c a l " space of resistance b y returning to the "chance-ridden dynamics" of D u c h a m p ' s readymades and Surrealism's found objects, where the form found i n the everyday, he felt, had been "undressed" of its functional qualities. For Laaban, an intellectual choice connected to chance c o u l d offer a d y n a m i c position that w o u l d p u s h beyond the i m m o b i l i t y he saw facing artists. C h a l l e n g i n g the abstract geometric e x h i b i t i o n Klar Form, L a a b a n observed that "the Concretises sole interest appears to be i n concretizing something w h i c h is b y nature not concrete," a fact that he found paradoxically located next to their c l a i m to " p u r i t y , integrity, logic, etc. w h i c h ... depends and plays o n the fancy of the beholder through its 'decorative' q u a l i t i e s . " 3 5 Artists such as Baertling, he continues, w h o resist a direct l i n k w i t h architecture i n favour of something more 'pure,' consciously or unconsciously produce decorative w o r k that is i n the end technically tied to the very technocratic society from w h i c h their constructive " o p e n " forms c l a i m to escape: Just as the technocratic w o r l d does not o n l y organize w o r k camps and construct atom bombs, but also attracts people w i t h its evangelical chrome and soft plastic, so does the technocratic art have b o t h its aggressive and comfortable side. If at times it does not accept this type of abstraction it is because it reveals its logic m u c h too c l e a r l y . 3 6 If Laaban's argument maintained that the language of geometric abstraction was being turned into a technocratic language of industry, the F u n k t i o n a l i s t architects' c l a i m had always been not to forefront specific aesthetic agendas or 3 5 I l m a r L a a b a n "Abstrakt eller konkret" Samtid och Framtid ( A u g u s t 1952), p.42. 3 6 I b i d . , p.46. 2 4 artistic problems i n their modernist d r i v e to produce 'machines to l i v e i n . ' L i k e w i s e , Laaban observed, most of the Concretist artists refused to discuss a move towards the 'zero degree' (noli laget) and discuss a future. Artists like Jacobsen and Dewasne (both represented by Denise Rene) refused to talk about a future 'move.' To Laaban, this suggested that art was i n need of a major catharsis. But despite Laaban's warnings, by the mid-fifties, a fertile meeting ground between geometric abstraction and modernist architecture had been established both p h y s i c a l l y and intellectually i n S w e d e n . 3 7 To a large extent this was the result of the construction of F o l k h e m m e t under the country's Social Democratic government. In 1954 the art j o u r n a l Konstrevy p u b l i s h e d "Farg over stan—en enkat," a series of articles set up as a forum to address the sudden, and what some considered "shocking," interest i n geometric abstraction by government authorities, large i n d u s t r i a l corporations and "daring private businesses." Here, seven artists and architects were asked to present their v i e w s o n the subject of the painted facade. C o m m e n t i n g o n this relationship between m u r a l p a i n t i n g a n d architecture, E r i k a n d Tore A h l s e n , two architects k n o w n for c o m b i n i n g their functionalism w i t h decorative m u r a l experiments at suburban s h o p p i n g centres such as Arsta outside of Stockholm, suggested that p a i n t i n g c o u l d indeed function w i t h i n the p s y c h o l o g i c a l area that the technological and economic side of functionalist architecture had so far failed to address: "Where as i n past epochs of Stockholm, red or y e l l o w c o l o u r functioned 3 7 S t a f f a n H o g b e r g . Stockholms Historia: Smdstaden, Fabrikstaden, Storstaden. S t o c k h o l m : Bonniers, 1987, pp.267-268. 2 5 a r c h i t e c t o n i c a l l y , n o w a d a y s the m u r k y g r a y has b e c o m e the w o r t h l e s s l y d e p r e s s i n g whatever."38 R e j e c t i n g w h a t t h e y s a w as a b o u r g e o i s t r a d i t i o n o f " d e t a l j - k r i t i k u t a n h e l h e t s s y n " ( d e t a i l c r i t i c i s m w i t h o u t o v e r s i g h t ) , the A h l s e n s a r g u e d for a t o t a l a r c h i t e c t u r e b u i l t o n a n u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f t e c h n o l o g y , e c o n o m y a n d p s y c h o l o g y . A s a r e s p o n s e to t h i s i n t e g r a t i o n a l o p t i m i s m ( g e s a m p t k u n s t v e r k ) , a r c h i t e c t a r i d p r o f e s s o r S v e n I v a r L i n d b e g a n h i s a r g u m e n t b y a c c u s i n g the A h l s e n s of b e i n g c a u g h t u p i n r o m a n t i c e n l i g h t e n m e n t i d e a l s . L i n d p r o p o s e d that, l i k e the p u r i s t t e n d e n c i e s f o u n d i n the Klar Form e x h i b i t i o n , the a t t e m p t to i n t e g r a t e g e o m e t r i c a b s t r a c t i o n i n t o a r c h i t e c t u r e c o u l d be n o t h i n g m o r e t h a n " a n i n t e r n a t i o n a l f a s h i o n p h e n o m e n a : " M a n y s e e m to be c o m p l e t e l y a c c e p t i n g o f the " s o d e r o r t s a r k i t e k t e r n a s " w a y s o f u s i n g the p a i n t e r l y m e d i u m as a w a y to k i l l b o r e d o m w i t h a n a r t i f i c i a l r e c y c l a b l e m a t e r i a l w h i c h i s a k i n d o f aesthetic d r u g l i k e m u s i c [by a] c o n v e y o r belt. T h i s f u n c t i o n is " p u r i s t " p a i n t i n g s c u r r e n t l y b i g c h a n c e , w h i c h t h e C o n c r e t i s t s h a v e n o t b e e n late to p i c k u p o n . . . . 3 9 A l t h o u g h L i n d d i d n o t see a p r o b l e m w i t h the i n t e g r a t i o n o f the arts as a m e a n s t o w a r d s a f u n c t i o n a l e n d , h e d i d fear a r c h i t e c t u r e m i g h t f a l l i n t o the s e r v i c e o f a r t r a t h e r t h a n v i c e v e r s a . T h e c o n c l u s i o n d r a w n f r o m t h i s b e c a m e that the g o a l i t s e l f " s h o u l d n o t be to i n t e g r a t e the s e v e n arts w i t h e a c h o t h e r a n d c e r t a i n l y n o t to h a v e aesthetic j u d g m e n t d o m i n a t e t h e t h e o r e t i c a l o r r a t i o n a l as i n a k i n d o f u n r e a l i s t i c r o m a n t i c e n l i g h t e n m e n t . " 4 0 B a l a n c i n g these t w o a r c h i t e c t s ' o p i n i o n s , f o u r artists r e s p o n d e d w i t h t h r e e d i s t i n c t p o s i t i o n s o n t h e subject. P i e r r e O l a f s s o n w h o h a d just f i n i s h e d a n 8 m e t r e 3 8 E r i k and Tore Ahlsen "Farg over stan—en enkat" Konstrevy nr.2 (1958), p.78. 3 9 S v e n Ivar L i n d "Farg over stan—en enkat" Konstrevy nr.2 (1958), p.77. (pp.77-81) 4 0 I b i d . . 2 6 m u r a l for Sandvikens L a r o v e r k (Sandviken's School Board) argued that the artist s h o u l d subordinate h i m / h e r s e l f to the form of the b u i l d i n g : C o l l a b o r a t i o n between architects and artists s h o u l d naturally not begin u n t i l the b u i l d i n g has taken form.... If the artist has based his c o m p o s i t i o n o n the architecture's r h y t h m and construction he w i l l be able to play more w i t h line and colour w i t h o u t an effect that is w o r r i s o m e or anti-architecture. 4 1 O l l e Bonnier, o n the other hand, was more optimistic about collaboration based o n equal status and proposed a combined effort by aesthetic and architectural specialists. The most vehemently opposed to this integration of the arts, as Laaban noted i n 1952, was O l l e Baerling. T a k i n g a h i g h modernist stand, Baertling argued that the different arts must first meet o n a " s p i r i t u a l " level w h i c h only then w o u l d have the potential to eventually lead to the k i n d of integration he saw being espoused b y the Belgian G r o u p e E s p a c e . 4 2 W h i l e he was not necessarily excited about a general ' p o p u l a r i z a t i o n ' of geometric abstraction, he d i d consider its potential i n reaching a broader p u b l i c . It was this o p t i m i s m that he, perhaps more than any other S w e d i s h Concretist, shared w i t h Denise Rene a n d the group around Art d'Aujourd'hui. 4 1 Pierre Olafsson "Farg over start—en enkat" Konstrevy nr.2 (1958), p.79. 4 2 A n d r e Bloc, director of Art d'Aujourd'hui and Edition de VArchitecture d'Aujourd'hui, urged painters like Baertling to take serious Group Espace's attempts to set up collaborations between specialists in architecture and art: "If painting and sculpture often suffer from a complex of inadaptability in the face of architecture, it is also true that architecture is often handicapped by a terrible misunderstanding of the plastic arts." In this debate, Bloc, with his journals and connections to architecture and art, had put himself in the positioned of advisor and assessor for this 'synthesis.' See, E. Pillet "Groupe Espace" Art d'Aujourd'hui no.8 serie 4 (December 1953), p.18; and Pierre Gueguen "Une demonstration du Groupe Espace: l'exposition 'architecture couleur formes' a Biot (Cote d'Azur) Art d'Aujourd'hui no.6 serie 5 (September 1954), pl8. 2 7 If Klar Form had p r o v i d e d S w e d i s h Concretists w i t h a Cartesian o v e r v i e w and context i n w h i c h to appear contemporary a n d continental i n 1952, the f o l l o w i n g year 12 Contemporary American Painters and Sculptors (also h e l d at Liljevalchs konsthall) w o u l d help S w e d i s h Neo-Expressionists - legitimize a more psychoanalytically g r o u n d e d international art. The loss of subjectivity and techno-optimism, that both Johansson and L a a b a n had accused h a r d edge abstraction of h a v i n g fallen v i c t i m to, n o w found its expression i n an art that was figurative and often informel as the French art critic M i c h e l Tapie w o u l d say. One of the strengths b e h i n d this 'neo- expressionism' (nyexpressionism) was that it was not a l l that n e w but h a d strong roots i n the w o r k from the 30s of S w e d i s h artists such as S i r i Derkert and V e r a N i l s s o n as w e l l as more obvious ties to i n d i v i d u a l i s t forms of abstraction abroad ranging from Fautrier, P o l l o c k , W o l s , K l i n e , Dubuffet and the various artists tied to C o B r A . In fact, it was u p o n his return from Denmark, where he h a d been loosely i n v o l v e d w i t h C o B r A , that a y o u n g S w e d i s h painter b y the name of Torsten Renqvist w o u l d trigger the anti-Concretist debate to w h i c h I have alluded. Paintings such as Windswept Bush (1950) [fig. 10] were read as both aggressive, subjective and i n t r o s p e c t i v e . 4 3 It seemed to connect more w i t h the angst and anger found in the existentialist w r i t i n g s of a group of writers k n o w n as Fyrtiotalisterna (The M e n of the Forties) than with the constructive o p t i m i s m found in architectural circles. In fact, the Utopian social welfare state that was being concretized both as surface and structure was to find its counter culture in expressionist p a i n t i n g , existentialist w r i t i n g and f i l m 4 3 T o r s t e n Bergmark, editor of Paletten up u n t i l 1954, was the most voiciferous supporter of neo- expressionism. H e credited Torsten Renqvist w i t h h a v i n g created w o r k w i t h b o t h " o r i g i n a l i t y " and " i n d i v i d u a l i t y . " See his r e v i e w of Renqvist's w o r k i n Paletten N r . 2 (1954), p.60-62. 2 8 w h i c h r e v e a l e d itself as w e e d s g r o w i n g t h r o u g h the c o n c r e t e c r a c k s of these c o l l e c t i v e spaces. Just as S t o c k h o l m a n d P a r i s w e r e b o t h a n c h o r i n g g e o m e t r i c a b s t r a c t i o n i n e a c h o t h e r ' s i m a g e , n o r d i c e x i s t e n t i a l i s m f o u n d its w a y s o u t h v i a K i e r k e g a a r d ' s r e l i g i o u s o v e r t o n e s a n d n o r t h v i a Sartre's m o r e C a r t e s i a n r a t i o n a l i s m a n d p h i l o s o p h y o f resistance. O n e c o u l d s a y that e x i s t e n t i a l i s m r e t u r n e d to S w e d e n i n the forties as a s p r e a d i n g v i r u s g e r m i n a t i n g as a g u i l t r i d d e n c o m p l e x a s s o c i a t e d w i t h the c o u n t r y ' s so c a l l e d n e u t r a l i t y status d u r i n g the w a r a n d the n e w f o r m s o f a l i e n a t i o n a c c o m p a n y i n g a s t r u c t u r a l t r a n s f o r m a t i o n o f S w e d e n i n t o a c o l d e r , m o r e r a t i o n a l l i v i n g a n d w o r k i n g e n v i r o n m e n t . A s T h u r e S t e n s t r o m h a s s u g g e s t e d i n h i s s u r v e y o f e x i s t e n t i a l i s t w r i t i n g i n S w e d e n , Existentialismen i Sverige: mottagande och inflytande 1900-1950 ( 1 9 8 4 ) , h a v i n g b e e n c u t off to a l a r g e d e g r e e f r o m c o n t a c t w i t h c o n t i n e n t a l t h o u g h t d u r i n g the s e c o n d w o r l d w a r , m a n y S w e d e s felt a n e e d to " t a k e - b a c k " the lost y e a r s after the b o r d e r s r e o p e n e d for c u l t u r a l e x c h a n g e . T h e r i g o r w i t h w h i c h this " e n g a g e m e n t " t o o k p l a c e w a s often f u e l e d b y the g u i l t o f h a v i n g to o w e u p to the c o m p r o m i s e s m a d e d u r i n g the w a r w h i l e c l a i m i n g n e u t r a l i t y . H e r e i n lies the attempt, to m a r k o u t a n a d h e r e n c e w i t h the R e s i s t a n c e i n the w i n n i n g d e m o c r a c i e s : . T o p l a y Sartre i n a S w e d i s h theatre c o u l d i n t h i s s i t u a t i o n b e c o m e a w a y to ease one's c o n s c i e n c e , a s i g n that d e s p i t e G e r m a n - S w e d i s h t r a d e to N a z i w e a p o n s factories i n the R u h r — o n e c o u l d n e v e r t h e l e s s s t a n d o n the r i g h t e o u s s i d e . 4 4 4 4 T h u r e Stenstrom Existentialismen i Sverige: mottagande och inflytande 1900-1950 Uppsala: University of Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell international, 1984, p.15-16. 2 9 One of the writers w h o projected this feeling of S w e d i s h neutrality guilt was Stig Dagerman w h o expressed pessimism and skepticism through his discovery and engagement i n the w r i t i n g s of Sartre and K i e r k e r g a a r d . H i s 1945 debut n o v e l Ormen (The Snake) struck a nerve w i t h m a n y Swedes w h o read it as a critique of the "ideology of preparedness" (beredskapsideologi) wherein the country's social body was understood as circumscribed by an idealization of bravery and harmony of the soul i n an attempt to account for the m o r a l and psychological fiber of neutrality politics. The major tenor of w o r k s such as Ormen and Dom dodas 6 was motivated b y the existentialist claustrophobia he shared w i t h authors such as Lars A h l i n . 4 5 D r a w i n g from the Fyrtiotalisterna, Ingmar Bergman w o u l d produce existentialist films w h i c h indeed gained currency outside of Sweden. One aspect of this success was the p u s h i n g of n u d i t y and sex boundaries. Despite their 'artistic intentions' and lack of complaints from the S w e d i s h board of censors, films such as Summer with Monica (1953) helped spread the r u m o u r of S w e d e n as a society not o n l y intellectually forward, but sexually l i b e r a l i z e d . 4 6 A s w i l l be s h o w n , i n the sixties, this new image of Sweden w o u l d be fully exploited o n various social, p o l i t i c a l and artistic fronts. But most important to remember about the fifties is that Sweden was becoming envied abroad because of its open embrace of both Capitalist a n d Socialist collectivity. F o r B e r g m a n this social democratic m i l i e u bred films w h i c h sought to p r o v i d e an outlet for a 4 5 L a r s Ahlin's book title Om (If) most literally calls up this psycho-social idea of 'prepardness.' See also Stig Dagerman's Ormen Stockholm: Vingforlaget, 1964. 4 6 B y 1961 Bergman had won two Oscars for best foreign film and established his international reputation. Despite these credentials, films such as The Silence (1961) were cut in several countries. But it was not until 1967, with films such as Vilgot Sjdman's I'm Curious - Yellow, that Sweden's sexualized liberal identity was in full bloom. See Henrik Emilson's "Full Frontal Nudity" Merge No.9 (Summer 2000), pp.19-22. 3 0 more i n d i v i d u a l , reclusive and repressed social p s y c h e . 4 7 In the process he managed to create a stereo-typed S w e d i s h existentialist. W h i l e there is always a portayal of class differences i n his films, there is never 'productive' class conflict depicted. A s Bergman w o u l d comment i n the seventies w h e n asked about his relationship to social democracy: O u r social behaviour pattern — both o u t w a r d and i n w a r d s — has p r o v e d a fiasco. The tragic thing is that we have neither the ability nor the w i l l , nor the energy to change direction. It is too late for revolutions, and i n m y heart I no longer believe i n their beneficial effects. A r o u n d the corner there is an insect w o r l d w a i t i n g , and one day it w i l l w a s h i n over our h i g h l y i n d i v i d u a l i z e d existence. Otherwise I'm a good social d e m o c r a t . 4 8 Dagerman w o u l d not be catapulted out of obscurity and into the dark collective psyche of S w e d i s h culture and international acclaim to the same extent as Bergman, but he w o u l d become nationally recognized after his suicide i n 1954. A s a fragment from his last written w o r d s announce, not everyone was r i d i n g the optimistic w a v e of technology, i n d u s t r y and s o c i a l i s m : I leave s o l i d dreams and loose connections. I leave a p r o m i s i n g path that has offered me self-despise and c o m m o n recognition. I leave a poor reputation and the promise of an even worse. I leave a few h u n d r e d thousand w o r d s , some w r i t t e n i n rapture, most w r i t t e n i n b o r e d o m a n d for money. I leave a lousy economy, a w a v e r i n g stand towards the questions of the day, a better used doubt and a hope of l i b e r a t i o n . 4 9 4 7 A s Leif Furhammar has observed: "It is amazing to see how almost every meaningful film produced in the post-war period in Sweden has to do with the individual in conflict with the collective (family, class, gangs or society). Leif Furhammar Filmen i Sverige Stockholm: Wiken, 1993, p.229. 4 8 Q u o t e d in Maria Bergom-Larsson Film in Sweden: Ingmar Bergman and Society trans, by Barrie Selman London: The Tantivy Press, 1978, p.8. 4 9http://hem.passagen.se/iblis/dagerman.html 3 1 http://hem.passagen.se/iblis/dagerman.html Shortly after his death, the S w e d i s h government, through the traffic c o m m i s s i o n , w o u l d help canonize Dagerman and capitalize o n this i n d i v i d u a l angst i n as socialist and collective a manner as possible by p u b l i s h i n g his short story Att dbda ett barn (To Kill a Child) i n h i g h s c h o o l text books. M e a n t as a campaign against reckless d r i v i n g , To Kill a Child urges people to " s l o w d o w n " by telling three parallel stories set i n the context of a sunny Sunday m o r n i n g i n three villages. The three narratives tragically meet w h e n a m a n from the first village goes for an innocent d r i v e to the seaside w h e n he by chance meets a c h i l d i n the third village w h o has been asked by its mother to r u n across the street to b o r r o w sugar from a neighbour. D r i p p i n g w i t h emphatic realism, the story is as p o w e r f u l as any Expressionist or Social Realist p a i n t i n g c o u l d hope to become at this moment, and poetically cries out for a collective social conscience: Afterwards it is a l l too late. Afterwards a blue car stands o n the road and a screaming w o m a n removes her h a n d from her m o u t h and the hand is bleeding. Afterwards a m a n opens a car door and tries to stand upright a l t h o u g h he has a p i t of horror w i t h i n himself. A f t e r w a r d s a few l u m p s of sugar lie r a n d o m l y scattered i n b l o o d and gravel and a c h i l d lies u n m o v i n g o n its b e l l y w i t h its face tightly pressed against the ground. Afterwards two pale-faced people w h o have not yet had their coffee r u n out of a gate and see a sight o n the road that they shall never forget. F o r it is not true that time heals a l l w o u n d s . T i m e does not heal a dead child's w o u n d and it heals very p o o r l y the p a i n of a mother w h o has forgotten to b u y sugar and sends her c h i l d across the road to b o r r o w some and just as p o o r l y does it heal the grief of the once h a p p y m a n w h o has k i l l e d it. For he w h o has k i l l e d a c h i l d does not go to the sea. H e w h o has k i l l e d a c h i l d goes quietly home and beside h i m he has a silent w o m a n w i t h her h a n d bandaged and i n a l l the villages they pass they see not one happy person. A l l the shadows are very dark a n d w h e n they part it is s t i l l under silence and the m a n w h o has k i l l e d the c h i l d k n o w s that this silence is his enemy and that he w i l l need years of his life to defeat it by shouting that it wasn't his fault. But he k n o w s that is a lie and i n 3 2 his nights' dreams he shall instead w i s h his life back so he c o u l d make this single minute different. But so uncaring is life against the m a n w h o has k i l l e d a c h i l d that everything after is too l a t e . 5 0 A year after this story was p u b l i s h e d nationwide, Picasso's Guernica returned to Stockholm for a second time i n two decades. To be sure, Guernica c o u l d be read as a reminder and counterpoint to Sweden's supposedly passive neutrality d u r i n g the w a r w h i c h had left S w e d i s h intellectuals out i n the c o l d , w h i l e the 'popular front' fought a hot resistance battle; v i s u a l l y , verbally and literally. A n d just asurely, one c h i l d r u n over by a car c o u l d not compare to the death of an entire village i n Spain (not to speak of the atrocities of W o r l d W a r II). But this time, Swedes had at least some k i n d of c l a i m of their o w n to existentialism. In its call for 'prepardeness,' a short story l i k e Dagerman's To Kill a Child c o u l d , after a l l , also be read as an attempt of a nation to b a n d together against social 'accidents.' W h i l e informed b y both Sartre and Kierkegaard, this stance w o u l d be m a r k e d b y a difference that replaced resistance w i t h a s o c i o - i n d i v i d u a l responsibility. It was the responsibility of the citizen i n this social welfare state to be constantly prepared. After a l l , if one c o u l d have asked "what if?" before the c h i l d ran across the street to be k i l l e d b y a car, then the accident m a y not have happened. B y s l o w i n g d o w n , rational behavior m a y have defeated chance. The idea of defeating chance is of course ridiculous. Accidents do happen. A fitting image for this n e w S w e d i s h social-psyche w o u l d therefore be the Rodin-and-Giacometti inspired bronze sculpture b y M a r t i n H o l m b e r g , e x h a u s t i b l y t i t l e d Trafikmiljo. manniskan nara vidstrdkt boulevard med tung 5 0 h t t p : / / h e m . p a s s a g e n . s e / i b l i s / d a g e r m a n . h t m l 3 3 http://hem http://passagen.se/iblis/dagerman trafik [Traffic Milieu: Human Near a Wide Stretching Boulevard with Heavy Traffic] (1952-53).5 1 L i k e its title, the w o r k is i n the end laboriously o v e r w o r k e d [fig. 11], a kitschy attempt to make v i s u a l a s o c i o - i n d i v i d u a l angst that makes us responsible if something happens. D e v o i d of Utopian spirit and lacking any sense of self-conscious i r o n y , there is no r o o m for the k i n d of energetic movement H u l t e n was l o o k i n g for — a movement reliant o n chance. Despite the failure of H o l m b e r g ' s sculpture to "move" us, the new social psyche it tried to express w o u l d nonetheless become appropriate for a socialist country increasingly asked to define itself between C a p i t a l i s m and C o m m u n i s m . 5 2 A s we w i l l see i n Chapter three, just as Picasso had been asked if he was a card-carrying C o m m u n i s t i n the forties, the S w e d i s h state w o u l d soon be asked b y its public to declare its allegiances w i t h i n international politics and be forced to define its o w n p o s i t i o n between the superpowers of the C o l d War. ^See Lars-Erik Astrom "Manniskari i nuet" Konstrevy Nr.2 (1957), pp.60-62. As Astrom's article points out, Holmberg was mainly concerned with the human subject's predicament in a mechanized urban environment, depicting automobile and vespa drivers as "human beings caught up in hard machine-forms made of glass and metal" pointing to a "new vital contact between abstract and human forms." p.60. 5 2 A l r e a d y in 1948, in an article entitled "Sartre and the Concept of Responsibility," literary critic Osten Sjostrand argued in the Western daily Goteborgs Morgonpost that Sartre's attempt to link individualism with a concept of responsibility fails as it miss uses the word 'tradition': "Tradition is not only that which is orally passed from generation to generation. It is also the deep under currencies of blod relations which are to a large part unconscious. It is in the now that we are united with past and future generations. The feeling of responsibility which comes out of this human experience is a completely different one from Sartre's. The responsibility which tradition determines, allows the individual to realize that culture's essential sacrifice is not the obstacle for his ability to live, but on the contrary, the condition why; the sacrifice of culture, what is it other than a consideration of our fellow-being! This responsibility is capable of realizing people and thereby culture, it is a responsibility which in most cases makes a person conservative. This is after all the goal to make the sacrifices of culture connect with tradition. It is this tradition which must be delivered and carried on if culture shall survive. But just as much as this culture can be misused by individuals, it can also be missused by a power hungry state. In this sense, to be conservative is foremost to be conscious of the personal responsibility over the protection of culture. A n d it is here where where we distance ourselves as far as possible from Sartre." Osten Sjostrand "Sartre och ansvarsbegreppet Goteborgs morgonpost (February 14, 1948), p.4. 3 4 In terms of v i s u a l art, what we see s l o w l y d e v e l o p i n g i n S w e d e n by the mid-fifties is a set of attitudes towards the inner and outer spaces of a "new c ity" w h i c h ranged from expressed depression to a belief i n a concretized utopia. A s a l l u d e d to earlier, for Ilmar Laaban, the psycho-physical space of resistance to both these "traps" was to be found outside the partisan polemic. In 1952, the artist w h o Laaban saw come closest to his o w n interest i n everyday life, space and mass culture was the C h i l e a n Surrealist Sebastian Roberto M a t t a Echaurren w h o by 1954 w o u l d become i n v o l v e d w i t h the International M o v e m e n t for an Imaginist Bauhaus together w i t h the D a n i s h C o B r A artist Asger Jorn [fig. 12]. Here, some felt, the struggle between aesthetics and politics were carefully elaborated. In an interview for the N e w Y o r k based magazine Reality that year, M a t t a defined his o w n collective a n a r c h i s m : A r t serves to arouse one's i n t u i t i o n to the emotion latent i n e v e r y t h i n g a r o u n d one, and to show up the emotional architecture w h i c h people need i n order to be and to live together. Important emotion is a menace to those w h o l i v e for their o w n selfish interest; so they have invented the p h i l a n t h r o p i c lie, a n d w i t h that p h i l a n t h r o p i c lie have reduced the artist to the c o n d i t i o n of a hostage. They have instituted an " A r t P o l i c e , " a police w h i c h operates against deep-rooted h u m a n emotion. I identify myself w i t h this hostage. The philanthropist-masters' comfort is menaced and they "shoot" the hostage. This new poet-hostage is always c o n s p i r i n g against their selfishness. To be this hostage one must p u t poetry at the center of one's life. True poetry is deeply h u m a n . A n d the true poet is stubborn about not forgetting that " m a n " is at the center of everything a n d that a l l d e v i a t i o n towards anti-human action s h o u l d be denounced. To revive the k i n d of m a n that a poet always was. (Byron d i e d for the liberty of the Greeks.) I k n o w that an artist w i l l o n l y be actual if his w o r k enters the t w o - w a y traffic of receiving from h i s people the consciousness of needs they have detected i n themselves, a n d , as an artist, charges this consciousness w i t h an i n t u i t i o n of important emotion, thus sending it back to w i d e n their picture of reality. For the 3 5 r conscious painter the "subject" is the same as for Cimabue—to make the m a n of his time think w i t h s e n t i m e n t . 5 3 For Laaban, Matta's paintings represented a progressive step out of Fautrier's heavy informel lead-clad hostages [fig. 13] but not necessarily into the seductive co lo u red structures of technocratic urban environments. Instead he saw i n them a responsive dialectical play between an inner and outer architecture — a hint of "movement" that c o u l d represent an escape from philantropic prisons i n A r t and life. Hu lte n's A n a r c h i s t Thread: Stirner, D u c h a m p a n d T i n g u e l y Laaban's cry for an art able to set free this "hostage" and p u t i n m o t i o n dialectical p l a y must have been heard by Pontus H u l t e n w h o was f i n d i n g his w a y out of a s i m i l a r l y perceived cultural crisis. L i k e Laaban, H u l t e n was attempting to stay out of the cross-fire between communists and anti- communists. But u n l i k e h i m , H u l t e n w o u l d d o w n p l a y Surrealist and C o B r A inspired interest i n folk and popular traditions. H u l t e n instead energetically focused his attention o n a more pop oriented critique of contemporary life's throw-away culture a n d machines as w e l l as locating " m o v e m e n t " i n an art intellectually a n d aesthetically situated between the social(ist) Utopian ideals of A r t Concrete (and its Bauhaus variants) and the more romantic i n d i v i d u a l i s t positions f o u n d i n Neo-expressionism. I n the fall of 1954 H u l t e n o r g a n i z e d Le Mouvement at G a l l e r i e Denise Rene, an e x h i b i t i o n 5 3 Echaurren (also known as Sebastian or Roberto) Matta "On Emotion" Reality No.2 New York (Spring 1954), p.12. The fact that Matta published this statement in the New York based journal Reality is noteworthy as it positions his paintings in an awkward relation to both 'Realism' (his work is abstract), and Abstract Expressionism (this journal stood in oposition to Gestural Abstraction). 3 6 w h i c h was to show both an aggressive, d y n a m i c and ironic side of contemporary art that refused to "slow d o w n . " Rather than be bogged d o w n by peasant culture a n d / o r internal existential conflicts, H u l t e n appropriated the dynamic side of F u t u r i s m as a springboard for his o w n ideas w h i c h , unlike C o B r a , for example, s h o w e d a renewed interest i n m o d e r n urban culture — the future is i n the city! H u l t e n was by no means the o n l y curator attempting to establish his o w n post-war canon. M i c h e l Tapie's Art Autre and Charles Estienne's Tachisme were but a few of the "movements" w o r k i n g alongside H u l t e n ' s trajectory. A photograph taken of H u l t e n i n Paris d u r i n g the mid-fifties shows h i m precariously balanced o n a chair as if to metaphorically hint at his carefully staged curatorial activities [fig. 14] w h i c h aimed to support an art tied to an historical avant-garde that was neither nihilistic nor n a i v e l y optimistic about an engagement w i t h p o p u l a r culture a n d / o r h i g h art. It also points to his resistance to being represented as a " f i x e d " identity. A s H u l t e n himself w o u l d later comment: W h a t d i s t i n g u i s h e d Le Mouvement from other exhibitions a n d earned it widespread p u b l i c i t y was its presentation of a n e w outlook i n art. A great deal of the art of the 1950s h a d been pessimistic, defeatist and passive. A lot of people were surprised to learn that there was another k i n d of ' m o d e r n ' art, d y n a m i c , constructive, joyful, deliberately b e w i l d e r i n g , ironic, critical, teasing a n d aggressive. 5 4 ^4Ponrus Hulten Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: Moderna Museet, 1972, p.35. Hulten has also described the art situation at the time as "still dominated by the opposition between abstract and naturalistic art, figurative and non-figurative. Along with this antagonism came the constructive, abstract art and the 'informel.'" This 'unformed' art was at this time a mainly American product. Although it did exist in Paris, Sam Francis and Jean Paul Riopelle were the most discussed 'drip painters' (peintres degoulinants). Pollock was still relatively unknown except inside a very small circle of people. Fautrier and Dubuffet seem to have received more attention in New York than Paris at this time. This was probably because they were still considered 'figurative,' which was seen as old and traditional. Ibid., p.28. 3 7 This "play" w h i c h H u l t e n claims was initiated by Le Mouvement, was carefully orchestrated. The exhibition consisted of three elements: an historical section w i t h m o v i n g sculptures b y A l e x a n d e r C a l d e r and M a r c e l D u c h a m p , contemporary w o r k by V i c t o r Vasarely and Robert Jacobsen, and w o r k by four younger artists [fig. 1 5 ] . 5 5 A s anchors i n Denise Rene's elegant stable of international kinetic art, C a l d e r a n d Vasarely were n o doubt i n c l u d e d as m u c h for their experiments w i t h movement as they were i n c l u d e d to massage Rene's ego. But C a l d e r and Vasarely's w o r k h a r d l y offered H u l t e n m u c h conceptual weight. S a n d w i c h e d between Calder's c h i l d - like naivite and Vasarely's pseudo-scientific arrogance, H u l t e n i n c l u d e d D u c h a m p w i t h his Rotary Demisphere (1925), an o p t i c a l experiment w h i c h a l l o w e d h i m to open up an intellectual avant-garde direction rooted i n the anarchism of D a d a . If Calder's and Vasarely's organic a n d geometric abstractions set i n m o t i o n the viewer's b o d y (either w i t h p h y s i c a l or v i s u a l tricks), Duchamp's optical w o r k destabilized the m i n d i n order to activate the intellect. F r o m an array of international backgrounds came some of the younger artists i n the exhibition such as Yaacov A g a m (Israel), P o l B u r y (Belgium), Jesus-Rafael Soto (Venezuela) and Jean T i n g u e l y (Switzerland). For someone like B u r y , w h o h a d exhibited w i t h C o B r A u p u n t i l that group's breakup earlier i n that same year, H u l t e n ' s n e w "movement" was distinctly more international than the School of Paris. This was no doubt the case for the rest of them. M o r e than Vasarely and the other household names at Galerie Denise Rene, these four y o u n g artists seemed to p u s h k i n e t i c i s m past the 5 5 A . J . A r n a u d " L e M o u v e m e n t " Cimaise ( M a y 1955), pp.17-18. 3 8 confined borders of p a i n t i n g and sculpture into a more ambiguous realm of sound and movement as perceived by the spectator. 5 6 A g a m went as far as to try to dissolve form and matter altogether b y setting up a series of visible stages for the v i e w e r that led to an optical effect similar to D u c h a m p ' s Rotary Demisphere. W h i l e the effects of these "metapolyphonic p a i n t i n g s " are i n many ways comparable w i t h both B u r y and Soto's kinetic reliefs i n c l u d e d i n the show, it was T i n g u e l y ' s w o r k w h i c h H u l t e n w o u l d find most "free" i n its particular embrace of Dada's ability to sustain a critical edge through h u m o u r and irony. U n l i k e the pseudo-scientific seriousness exhibited by the majority of the artists at Denise Rene, T i n g u e l y seemed to share D u c h a m p ' s pataphysical playfulness. W h i l e exhibiting i n M i l a n at Studio d'architettura b.24 i n December of 1954, T i n g u e l y encountered the Futurist designer and artist B r u n o M u n a r i w h o appears to have p r o v i d e d h i m w i t h an early v i s i o n of h o w he c o u l d direct his o w n art a w a y from functionalism towards movement. Since the early thirties, M u n a r i h a d been p r o d u c i n g what he described as "theoretical constructions of i m a g i n a r y objects" and Useless Machines [fig. 1 6 ] . 5 7 In 1952, M u n a r i h a d p u b l i s h e d a w h o l e series of manifestos such as Macchina-arte Macchinismo, Arte Organica, Disintegrismo, arte totale, w h i c h argued that: artists are the o n l y ones w h o can be truly interested i n machines; ... they have to learn to k n o w the mechanical anatomy, the mechanical language, must understand the nature of the machines a n d preoccupy themselves w i t h machines b y m a k i n g them function i n an irregular 56Some of these younger artists w o u l d r e m a i n tied to the circles a r o u n d Denise Rene's gallery. For example, Soto w o u l d have his first solo show i n Paris i n 1956 for w h i c h L e o n D e g a n d w o u l d write a catalogue i n t r o d u c t i o n . See L e o n D e g a n d Mouvement, Nouvelle Conception de la plastiaue, Aujourd'hui, P a r i s , 1956. 5 7 T a n c h i s , A l d o Bruno Munari: Design as Art Massachusetts: M I T Press, 1987, p. 35. 39 manner. Thereby creating w i t h these same machines and w i t h their o w n methods an art w o r k . 5 8 A p p r o p r i a t i n g both the anarchic aesthetic and propagandistic language he found i n M u n a r i , T i n g u e l y ' s activities were met w i t h enthusiasm b y H u l t e n w h o q u i c k l y realized h o w similar their i n d i v i d u a l practices were i n relation to the long-standing conflict between idealists and materialists i n p h i l o s o p h y as w e l l as politics. For both, this translated into a contemporary polemic about intentionality and spontaneity i n art w h i c h H u l t e n w o u l d later reflect u p o n : A n a r c h i s t theory had to face [this] dialectic. The assumption that h u m a n beings freed from the constraints of a r i g i d system possessed enough judgment and insight to choose what is right contradicts C h r i s t i a n teaching, founded o n the p r i n c i p l e of o r i g i n a l s i n . W a s n ' t it absurd, moreover, to deny the value of any intentional expression of the w i l l whatsoever, the w a y P o l l o c k h a d done, equating m o r a l i t y w i t h life and m a k i n g chance the o n l y v a l i d form of b e h a v i o r ? 5 9 A l t h o u g h H u l t e n ' s dialectical understanding of a crisis i n m o d e r n art w o u l d be particular, it was b y no means unique. A s the historian of the Left, M a r k Poster has commented, the immediate post-war years i n France were a k i n d of " H e g e l Renaissance." Whereas o n l y off-beat intellectuals like the surrealists and y o u n g Marxists appear to have been interested i n H e g e l before the war, post-war France was revitalized by a reintroduction of H e g e l b y such i n d i v i d u a l s as A l e x a n d e r Kojeve and Jean H y p p o l i t e w h o translated, p u b l i s h e d and lectured o n H e g e l . Whereas for m a n y M a r x i s t s H e g e l represented a renewed p o s i t i o n able to fight S t a l i n i s m , Existentialists found 5 8 H u l t e n (1972), p. 16. 5 9 Pontus Hulten "The Man and His Work" Museum Jean Tinguely, Basel. Berne: Basel and Benteli Publishers Ltd., 1996, p.36. If this reading of Pollock's work as lacking intention appears naive, it should be remembered that the myth constructed around Pollock was that his work represented a 'freedom of expression' that relied on his individual relation to chance. 4 0 H e g e l i a n dialectics a means by w h i c h to fight N e o - K a n t i a n i s m . Ironically, theologians such as M . A . C o u t u r i e r i n France and Reverend Walter H u s s e y i n E n g l a n d w o u l d also use Hegel's dialectic to set up a mystical u n i o n between m a n and the absolute. 6 0 Reading H e g e l not o n l y p r o v i d e d a p h i l o s o p h y of alienation i n history, but a dialectical p h e n o m e n o l o g y of consciousness. By understanding history as a continually u n f o l d i n g dialectic meant that one c o u l d not o n l y ask ' W h o is man?,' but ' H o w d i d m a n become s o c i a l ? ' 6 1 Since H e g e l , m a n y conflicting attempts had been developed to answer questions about the relation of the i n d i v i d u a l to society. F o r S i g m u n d F r e u d , such questions c o u l d o n l y be answered through a consideration of his p r o p o s i t i o n that c i v i l i z a t i o n is based o n the permanent repression of h u m a n instincts. B y stressing the importance of the pleasure principle (pleasure, joy, the absence of repression), the Surrealists had since the 1920s tried to release the i n d i v i d u a l from this 'cage' w h i c h F r e u d h a d called the reality principle (restraint of pleasure, t o i l , productiveness, security...). A r g u i n g against this "permanent repression," b y the 1950s Neo-Freudians such as Herbert M a r c u s e and N o r m a n O . B r o w n , w o u l d for different reasons, approach the relationship between these two principles b y focusing o n Freud's meta- psychology, the d y n a m i c struggle between b i o l o g i c a l a n d sociological 60Rev. Hussey was the first commissioner in England to recruit contemprary avant-garde artists into English Church services. In France, there was a modernist movement within the Dominican Church led primarily by M . A . Couturier who commissioned artists such as Fernand Leger, Le Corbusier, Henri Matisse, and others. These commissions took place as a result of the Church's post-war rebuilding programs. See M . A . A . Couturier's Sacred Art Austin: University of Texas Press, 1989) and Patrik Andersson's "The Dialectical Cross: Graham Sutherland, Herbert Read and The Modern Churchman" Collapse no.l (1995), pp.37-57. 6lFor a historical and philosophical overview of the French Communist Party, see David Caute's Communism and the French Intellectuals: 1914-1960 New York: Macmillan, 1964, and Mark Poster's Existential Marxism in Postwar France: from Sartre to Althusser Irvine: University of California Press, 1975. 4 1 i n s t i n c t s . 6 2 Parallel to these projects, a disenfranchised member of the Left, H e n r i Lefebvre, w o u l d develop his concept of everyday life through a meta- philosophy of l i n k i n g theory and practice. Interestingly enough, it was i n this context of 'meta-languages' that H u l t e n was p o n d e r i n g his o w n w a y out of the polemical spell he understood contemporary art to be under. But for H u l t e n it was M a r c e l D u c h a m p w h o was the central p h i l o s o p h i c a l figure w h o a l l o w e d h i m to break free a flexible avant-garde position from art w o r l d polemics. The central artist he found able to activate this new d y n a m i c position was Jean Tinguely. In T i n g u e l y ' s ' m o v i n g machines,' w h i c h b y 1955 i n c l u d e d a large b o d y of mechanically and h a n d - d r i v e n reliefs, sculptures a n d paintings, H u l t e n saw what seemed like a perfect u n i o n of the different artistic positions available. O n H u l t e n ' s recommendation, T i n g u e l y , from this point f o r w a r d , decided to name his sculptural machines "meta-mechanics" analogous to metaphysics, metaphor and m e t a m o r p h o s i s . 6 3 A w o r k such as Meta- Malevich [fig. 17] p u t constructive open forms i n a movement unpredictably determined b y a motor d r i v e n cycle of cogs and wheels h i d d e n b e h i n d the surface of the w o o d e n stretcher. E m b r a c i n g chance (something w h i c h was not readily embraced b y the rationalism of Bauhaus pedagogy), T i n g u e l y produced w o r k s w i t h similar ironic gestures as D u c h a m p ' s assisted readymades and m o b i l i z e d the mechanomorphic language of the D a d a painter Francis Picabia. In a l l of Tinguely's w o r k , the v i e w e r was asked to participate b y activating or freezing the abstract compositions and resulting 6 2 S e e i n p a r t i c u l a r H e r b e r t M a r c u s e ' s Eros and Civilization: A Philosophical Inquiry into Freud N e w Y o r k : V i n t a g e Books, 1955 and N o r m a n O . B r o w n Life Against Death N e w Y o r k : Vintage Books, 1959. 6 3 H u l t e n (1972), p.16. 4 2 concrete music. By p u s h i n g a button or s i m p l y m o v i n g a r o u n d the w o r k , the viewer became part of the creative process i n a more literal w a y than both Picabia and D u c h a m p ' s works afforded. By p u t t i n g chance-ridden mechanical movement into w o r k s such as Meta-Malevich (1954) and Meta-Kandinsky (1956), this early w o r k b y T i n g u e l y set i n m o t i o n geometric and gestural abstraction, activating a dialogue that could be read against the grain of Bauhaus rhetoric. A s early as 1938, L a s z l o M o h o l y - N a g y , i n his book The New Vision, had set forth to " w o r k out an educational p r i n c i p l e w h i c h strives for the closest connection between art, science, and t e c h n o l o g y . " 6 4 C o n t i n u i n g this project after the w a r w i t h renewed rigor, and concentrating o n the w o r k p r o d u c e d at the n e w Bauhaus Institute of A r t i n C h i c a g o , M o h o l y - N a g y p u b l i s h e d Vision in Motion, a survey of m o d e r n art's ties to i n d u s t r i a l m o t i o n w h i c h served both as an argument for k i n e t i c i s m i n contemporary art and a w a y to centralize Russian constructivism and Bauhaus pedagogy w i t h i n a history of the avant-garde. 6 5 Read by H u l t e n , as w e l l as a number of younger artists such as T i n g u e l y , Vision in Motion opened u p an important alternative history to the School of Paris w h i l e at the same time it "whetted" their curiosity for D u c h a m p , whose w o r k was more or less t r i v i a l i z e d by M o h o l y - N a g y w i t h w h a t H u l t e n recently described as "the nastiest [of] r e m a r k s . " 6 6 6 4 Q u o t e d from Benjamin H.D. Buchloh "Cold War Constructivism" in Serge Guilbaut, ed. Reconstructing Modernism: Art in New York, Paris, and Montreal 1945-1964 Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1990, p.85. ^Laszlo Moholy-Nagy Vision in Motion Chicago: Paul Theobald, id Book, 1947. ^Pontus Hulten "The Blind Lottery of Reputation: or The Duchamp Effect" Marcel Duchamp: Works and Life Cambridge Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1993, p.14. 4 3 H o w nasty M o h o l y - N a g y ' s remarks were can be debated, but he d i d d o w n p l a y Duchamp's central role i n debates about the creative act by o n l y briefly m e n t i o n i n g his name and referring to his ready-made objects t h r o u g h the voices of critics w h o saw them as "debasing" and " t r i v i a l . " 6 7 A s he made clear i n his foreword, M o h o l y - N a g y was foremost interested i n presenting his o w n 'standards' w i t h w h i c h to measure and balance "the interrelatedness of art and l i f e . " 6 8 The m a i n thrust of his argument was that since the i n d u s t r i a l r e v o l u t i o n , c i v i l i z a t i o n had not managed to cultivate intellectual and emotional standards to the same degree as its technological progress. A s a result, d i v i s i o n s of labour and general alienation had steadily been on the increase and was leading to the decline of c i v i l i z a t i o n : These i l l s , w i t h their resultant monopolistic and fascist tendencies, finally led to repeated w o r l d wars w h i c h were cruel attempts to w i n capitalistic competition and to check the u p w a r d spiral of the social progress so v i g o r o u s l y undertaken b y the A m e r i c a n and French revolutions. O u r generation must stop the recurrence of these wars b y understanding the hazards of a planlessly expanding i n d u s t r y w h i c h , b y the b l i n d dynamics of competition and profit, automatically leads to conflicts o n a w o r l d s c a l e . 6 9 Just as someone like Piet M o n d r i a n had d e v o l p e d a pseudo-scientific p i c t o r i a l blue-print from w h i c h to e n v i s i o n a more balanced society, M o h o l y - N a g y saw a potential reduction of conflict and e q u a l i b r i u m reached b y reconnecting intellectual and emotional spheres w i t h industry's technological a n d economic developments. The artist, he argued, s h o u l d stand at the crossroad 6 7 Q u o t e d from footnote i n M o h o l y - N a g y , p.58. S u r p r i s i n g l y , i n this book w h i c h e m p h a s i z e d experimentation i n a l l m e d i u m s , but especially f i l m , there was no discussion of D u c h a m p ' s f i l m i c experiments such as Rotary Relief or Anemic Cinema. 6 8 M o h o l y - N a g y , p.5. 6 9 I b i d . , p.14. 4 4 of the different disciplines — experimenting u n t i l a "sociobiological sythesis' is r e a c h e d . 7 0 O n the one h a n d , M o h o l y - N a g y ' s interest i n m o d e r n culture and enthusiastic support for the contemporary artist must have appealed to i n d i v i d u a l s such as H u l t e n and T i n g u e l y , w h o were t r y i n g to define their own dialectical positions w i t h i n the same post-war terrain. O n the other hand, the r i g i d p l a n n i n g of M o h o l y - N a g y ' s new society and the m y t h i c role the artist p l a y e d i n this planned social Utopia must have appeared rather doctrinal to them as it was increasingly becoming an academic formula in rationalized social welfare states such as S w i t z e r l a n d and Sweden: It is the artist's duty today to penetrate yet-unseen ranges of the b i o l o g i c a l functions, to search the new dimensions of the i n d u s t r i a l society and to translate the new findings into emotional orientation. The artist unconsciously disentangles the most essential strands of existence from the contorted and chaotic complexities of actuality, and weaves them into an emotional fabric of c o m p e l l i n g v a l i d i t y , characteristic of himself as w e l l as of his epoch. This ability of selection is an outstanding gift based u p o n intuitive p o w e r a n d insight, u p o n judgement and knoweledge, and u p o n inner responsibility to fundamental b i o l o g i c a l and social laws w h i c h p r o v o k e a reinterpretation i n every c i v i l i z a t i o n . This i n t u i t i v e p o w e r is present i n other creative workers, too, i n philosophers, poets, scientists, technologists. They pursue the same hopes, seek the same meanings, and — although the content of their w o r k appears to be different — the trends of their approach and the b a c k g r o u n d of their activity are identical. They a l l must d r a w from the same source, w h i c h is life i n a certain society, i n a certain c i v i l i z a t i o n . This basic identity is the c o m m o n denominator, the desire today to f i n d and investigate the fundamentals i n every field so that they can become constructive parts of a new c i v i l i z a t i o n . The p r o b l e m of our generation is to b r i n g the intellectual and emotional, the social and technological components into balanced play; to learn to see and feel them i n r e l a t i o n s h i p . 7 1 7 0 I b i d . , p.31. 7 1 I b i d . , pp.11-12. 4 5 A s anarchists, not o n l y w o u l d H u l t e n and T i n g u e l y have reacted against this idea of the artist being used as a "tool" to normalize society, but n o t i c i n g M o h o l y - N a g y ' s subtle exclusions of pataphysical strands w i t h i n avant-garde history, they must also have wanted to rebel against his reconstruction of a new c i v i l i z a t i o n based o n the h o m o g e n i z i n g notion of "balanced play." A t t e m p t i n g to distance his o w n project form this deterministic Vision in Motion, H u l t e n w o u l d shift the terms of the discussion ever so s l i g h t l y from motion to the more metaphorical possibilities of movement. S l o w l y d e v e l o p i n g his o w n concept of "movement i n art," H u l t e n d i s t i n g u i s h e d the difference between the two w o r d s i n his o w n l i m i t e d edition anarchist j o u r n a l Kasark p u b l i s h e d i n S t o c k h o l m i n 1955. W h e n y o u want to talk about movement, S w e d i s h is an unpractical language. E n g l i s h is m u c h more convenient since it distinguishes between motion and movement. M o t i o n appears to i m p l y m o v e m e n t i n general; for example a body's transfer from one place to the next, movement i m p l i e s movement itself; for example the m o v e m e n t of the fingers i n relation to each other w h e n u s i n g a type writer. This belongs to this century's b i g events to a l l o w an art w o r k to move w i t h i n itself like a motor or the w a y a tree moves i n the w i n d . 7 2 D e v e l o p i n g his o w n history of "movement art" p a r a l l e l to M o h o l y - N a g y ' s history "motion art," H u l t e n increasingly understood M a r c e l D u c h a m p ' s v i s u a l and conceptual experiments to function as a genre- breaking toolbox w h i c h "messed up" the rational and technocratic o p t i m i s m of Bauhaus r h e t o r i c . 7 3 For this reason, as T i n g u e l y w o u l d later recall, H u l t e n 7 2 H u l t e n , Pontus " D e n stallforetradande friheten" ["The Substitutive Freedom"] Kasark N r . 2 (October 1955), p . l . 7 3 H u l t e n d r e w a c u r i o u s historical lineage starting w i t h the t u r n of the century Italian Ettore Bugatti's automobile to the Futurists' interest i n speed, D u c h a m p and A l e x a n d e r Calder's kinetic experiments, the constructivist tendencies of G a b o , Pevsner, T a t l i n and the early w o r k of 46 "had to fight for D u c h a m p at Denise Rene" as his tongue-in-cheek critique of scientific rationalism was read, if not always appreciated or u n d e r s t o o d . 7 4 Perhaps it was this resistance from Rene, Vasarely, D e g a n d and others w h i c h made H u l t e n realize that his interest i n D u c h a m p c o u l d be used to define his o w n position as both different and powerful. After a l l , w i t h the help of intellect and h u m o u r , D u c h a m p forged a path between naive o p t i m i s m and expressed depression; a road less travelled but full of opportunity. A s mentioned, d u r i n g preparations for he Mouvement, H u l t e n had discovered that his interest i n D u c h a m p was shared by the Swiss kinetic sculptor T i n g u e l y . W h i l e w o r k i n g i n Z u r i c h directly after the war, T i n g u e l y had been intensely i n v o l v e d i n the anarchist circle a r o u n d H e i n e r K o e c h l i n whose dissertation o n the Paris C o m m u n e he designed a cover for (this was p u b l i s h e d by the K o e c h l i n ' s private p u b l i s h i n g house, D o n Q u i c h o t t e ) . 7 5 N o t only was he l i v i n g i n the city k n o w n for its historical connection to D a d a , but he, like H u l t e n i n Sweden, began to formulate his o w n p o l i t i c a l position by reading an array of p h i l o s o p h i c a l tracts: — . I read Stirner, M a r x , Bachofen, H e g e l , K r o p o t k i n , B a k u n i n , P r o u d h o n and others; I pondered certain questions a n d discussed them w i t h friends w h o were p o l i t i c a l refugees and others w h o were students of K a r l J a s p e r s . 7 6 Moholy-Nagy, to the Italian Bruno Munari to finally arrived at Tinguely's metamechanical sculptures. 7 4 Q u o t e d from a 1988 interview with Dieter Daniels in Violand-Hobi, p.41. 7 5 H u l t e n (1996), p.262. 7 6 T i n g u e l y quoted in Heidi E.Violand-Hobi Jean Tinguely: Life and Work. New York: Prestel, 1995. Niki de Saint Phalle has also referred to Tinguely's interest in Max Stirner: "At that time you were reading Max Stirner's The Individual and His Property[sic]. You wanted me to read it too... You were also influenced by the Austrian philospher Wittgenstein. You told me about his life. He was the richest man in town. He decided he didn't want to be rich anymore and thought a long time about what he should do with his money. He decided to give it to the next richest man of the city, because he didn't want to disturb the lives of the poor. He then 4 7 By the fifties it was M a x Stirner's w r i t i n g i n particular that fascinated T i n g u e l y , and most l i k e l y H u l t e n w h o w o u l d have appreciated his emphasis o n a freedom tied to both w i l l and instinct rather than reason. A s a Y o u n g H e g e l i a n d u r i n g the mid-19th century, Stirner had advocated a r a d i c a l i n d i v i d u a l i s m based o n the p r i n c i p l e of rebellion rather than r e v o l u t i o n . A s a subjectivist defense against the p o w e r of state authority, The Ego and His Own (1845), Stirner's o n l y major p u b l i s h e d w o r k , is an early formulation of an attack o n representation w h i c h anticipates not just Freud's stress o n the force of the desires to influence the intellect, but also the challenges to Enlightenment epistemology offered u p b y the poststructuralist. 7 7 P u t t i n g forward the idea that the i n d i v i d u a l loses uniqueness i n the face of being understood w i t h i n a generalized and fixed concept of " M a n , " Stirner argued against the k i n d of ontological culture of "being" proposed b y other anarchists and y o u n g Hegelians where human nature was i d e a l i z e d . 7 8 For example, whereas Peter K r o p o t k i n attacked the idea of the nation state and the economic logic of capitalism t h r o u g h an evolutionary u n d e r s t a n d i n g of went penniless and installed himself in Sweden as a gardener." quoted in N i k i de Saint Phalle. "A Little of M y Story with You, Jean" in Hulten (1996), p.25. 7 7 F o r a close study of the relationship between Poststructuralism and the anarchist attack on representation offered up by Stirner's Der Einzige und sein Eigenthum (the German title of Stirner's book), see Andrew M . Koch's "Poststructuralism and the Epistemological Basis of Anarchism" Philosophy of Social Sciences Vol.23, No.3 (September 1993), pp.327-351: "Rather than focus on a competing model of human nature, Stirner was concerned with showing the linkage between ideas and the context in which they are generated. This method is similar to that labeled "genealogy" by Nietzsche and the poststructuralists." p.333. 78ln one of the most comprehensive accounts of anarchist thought, Peter Marshall has discussed Stirner as "the conscious egoist" who "offered a root-and-branch attack on existing values and institutions. Like Kierkegaard, he celebrated the unique truth of the individual and sought to liberate him from the great barrel organ of Hegelian metaphysics. In his attack on Christian morality and his call for the self-exaltation of the whole individual, he anticipated Nietzsche and atheistic existentialism. But while there are nihilistic and existentialist elements to his work, Stirner is not merely a nihilist, for he does not set out to destroy all moral and social values. Neither is he, strictly speaking, a proto-existentialist, for he rejects any attempt to create a highter or better individual." See Peter Marshall's Demanding the Impossible: a History of Anarchism London: Fontana Press, 1993, p.220. 4 8 cooperation rather than a D a r w i n i a n m o d e l of competition, and P r o u d h o n proposed liberty, as a form of social organization to be constructed out of a rational scientific i n q u i r y , Stirner rejected a l l forms of social organization and revolutionary processes for their ability to " b r i n g u p against us a w h o l e army of fixed ideas such as morals, C h r i s t e n d o m and nationalism" w h i c h he refered to as "spectres:" M a n , y o u r head is haunted; you have wheels in your head! Y o u imagine great things, and depict to yourself a whole w o r l d of gods that has an existence for y o u , a spirit realm to w h i c h y o u suppose yourself to be called, an ideal that beckons to y o u . Y o u have a fixed idea! (my i t a l i c s ) 7 9 For Stirner, if the w o r l d as we k n o w it (representation, thought, and ideas) is i n a constant state of flux due to its constructed aspect (as L u d w i g Wittgenstein w o u l d later name it), truth has to be understood as n o t h i n g more than a fleeting moment. S h o w i n g the l i n k between ideas and the context i n w h i c h ideas are generated, Stirner's project rejects a l l grand narratives of his day and is at the very heart of later attempts b y philosophers to formulate what Nietzsche (and post-structuralists after him) w o u l d label a "genealogy." A s Roberto Calasso has proposed i n his anarchic fiction The Ruin of Kasch: They [the universities] pay no attention to these facts. They have forgotten that it was Stirner w h o disfigured them once and for a l l w i t h his strokes. They consider his w o r k a good dissertation topic. But to treat M a x Stirner o n l y w i t h i n one of the countless histories of the neo- Hegelians or of anarchism is already an i n v i t a t i o n to the w r i t e r to a v o i d this monstrosity. Stirner then becomes a " p o s i t i o n , " always an ^ S t i r n e r , p.45. T h i s quote is taken from a section i n The Ego and His Own entitled "Wheels i n the H e a d . " N o t o n l y is this v i s u a l l y l i t e r a l i z e d i n T i n g u e l y ' s machines, b u t w e can also think of the m e c h a n o m o r p h i c wheels i n Francis Picabia's w o r k a n d M a r c e l D u c h a m p ' s readymades. Both these artists h a d been i n t r o d u c e d to Stirner's w r i t i n g s as early as 1912. 4 9 extreme one, the ultimate of something.... Stirner announces them, explains them. A n d immediately he becomes ghostly. Stirner's presence is thus clearest i n two authors, the first of w h o m does not mention h i m at all and the second of w h o m speaks of h i m i n a text he w i l l never p u b l i s h : Nietzsche and M a r x . 8 0 W h i l e Nietzsche carefully e m p l o y e d silence to a v o i d being accused of h a v i n g plagiarized Stirner, M a r x and Engels, i n the first draft of The German Ideology, spent two-thirds of their thesis tackling the p r o b l e m of "Saint M a x " whose argument against revolutionary socialism was decisively based i n a critique of l a n g u a g e . 8 1 In a private letter to M a r x dated N o v e m b e r 19, 1844, Engels went as far as to admit that: what is true i n his principles w e , too, must accept. A n d what is true is that before w e can be active i n any cause we must make it our o w n , egoistic cause — and that i n this sense, quite aside from any expectations, we are communists i n virtue of our egoism, that out of egoism w e want to be h u m a n beings and not merely i n d i v i d u a l s . 8 2 SORoberto Calasso The Ruin of Kasch. Harvard: Harward University Press, 1994, pp. 259. 8 l A p r o p o s Nietzsche's silence, Calasso quotes Ida Overbeck, a close friend of Nietzsche: "Once, when my husband was out, Nietzsche stayed and talked to me for a while, telling me about two strange characters he was dealing with at that time—people with whom he felt a certain kinship. As is always the case when one finds some internal rapport, he was animated an happy. Some time later he found a book by Klinger in our house. M y husband had not found Stirner in the library. ' A h , ' said Nietzsche, T was mistaken about Klinger. He was a Philistine; I feel no affinity at all with him. But Stirner—with him, yes.' A grave expression darkened his face. A n d as I looked attentively at his features, they changed again. He waved his hand, as if to drive away or repel somethin, and murmured: 'Now I've told you, and I didn't want to speak of it. Forget it all. They will talk of plagiarism, but I know you won't." quoted in Calasso, p.278. For Duchamp, Hulten and Tinguely, Stirner must have appeared as an alternative to the Nietzchean 'superman' Picasso (for example) had embraced. This different genealogy allowed them to embrace Alfred Jarry's 'supermale' instead. See Alfred Jarry's The Supermale Cambridge, M A : New Directions Publishing Corp., 1999. I would argue that this text was the basic inspiration for Duchamp's mechano-sexual readymade, the Bicycle Wheel (1913). 8 2 Q u o t e d from Sidney Hook's From Hegel to Marx: Studies in the Intellectual Development of Karl Marx Ann Arbor: Ann Arbor Paperbacks, 1961 (orig. pub. 1950), p.173-174. 5 0 A l t h o u g h "Saint M a x " w o u l d be edited out of the p o p u l a r i z e d versions of The German Ideology, Stirner's impact o n its conception can not go unmentioned i n m y study as a specific group of i n d i v i d u a l s i n the 1950s attempted to find a s i m i l a r p h i l o s o p h i c a l m o b i l i t y . In Stirner, T i n g u e l y w o u l d find a w a y towards auto-critique i n the most mechanical sense of that w o r d . In w o r k s such as Meta-Malevich an attempt is made to a v o i d 'fixed' readings b y c o n t i n u o u s l y creating uncertainties. These m a c h i n e - d r i v e n forms move repetitively (like the wheels Stirner describes), albeit inconsistently, s t r i v i n g c o n t i n u o u s l y to communicate, to become. The moment their verbality cease and their forms are announced as signs, symbols, shapes and objects, these beings fall into the very language trap Stirner h a d discovered a century before: If the point is to have myself understood and to make communications, then assuredly I can make use o n l y of human means, w h i c h are at m y c o m m a n d because I a m at the same time man. A n d really I have thoughts o n l y as man; as I, I a m at the same time thoughtless. H e w h o cannot get r i d of a thought is so far o n l y man, is a thrall of language, this h u m a n institution, this treasury of h u m a n thoughts. Language or "the w o r d " tyrannizes hardest over us, because it brings up against us a w h o l e a r m y of fixed ideas. Just observe yourself i n the act of reflection, right n o w , a n d y o u w i l l f i n d h o w y o u make progress o n l y b y becoming thoughtless and speechless every moment. Y o u are not thoughtless and speechless merely i n (say) sleep, but even i n the deepest reflection; yes precisely then most so. A n d o n l y b y this thoughtlessness, this unrecognized "freedom of thought" or freedom from the thought, are y o u y o u r o w n . O n l y from it do y o u arrive at p u t t i n g language to use as y o u r property %3 W e can hereby look at T i n g u e l y ' s meta-mechanical sculptures b u i l t l i k e entropic i n d u s t r i a l ruins out of the throw-away excesses of an automated 8 3 S t i r n e r , p.364-65. 5 1 universe, as rationally constructed attempts to produce portraits of " m a n , " or perhaps more accurately, as different versions of " m o d e r n m a n . " If, as Nietzsche had suggested, "truth is a mobile a r m y of tropes," by 1955, T i n g u e l y had assembled his o w n mechanomorphic troops constructed out of the shadows cast by C a l d e r ' s organic mobiles, M a l e v i c h ' s geometric Suprematism [fig. 18], as w e l l as H e n r i M i c h a u x ' s gestural 'diagrams of the soul' [fig. 19]. R i s k i n g to remain an outsider i n a Parisian art w o r l d l o o k i n g for s o l i d or gestural 'truths,' T i n g u e l y w o u l d go o n creating and p a r a d i n g his parodies like D u c h a m p i a n bachelors set free from the Large Glass or the spectres of truth Stirner h a d once confronted: Truths are phrases, ways of speaking, w o r d s ; brought into connection, or into an articulate series, they form logic, science, p h i l o s o p h y . For t h i n k i n g and speaking I need truths and w o r d s , as I do foods for eating; w i t h o u t them I cannot think nor speak. Truths are men's thoughts, set d o w n i n w o r d s a n d therefore just as extant as other things, although extant o n l y for the m i n d or for t h i n k i n g . They are h u m a n institutions and h u m a n creatures, a n d , even if they are g i v e n out for d i v i n e revelations, there s t i l l remains i n them the quality of alienness for me; yes, as m y o w n creatures they are already alienated from me after the act of creation.84 T i n g u e l y found a brief escape from the confined space of this Parisian art w o r l d i n the fall of 1955 b y traveling n o r t h w i t h H u l t e n to S t o c k h o l m where he was i n v i t e d to set u p a w o r k s h o p i n the office of Blandaren, an anarchist j o u r n a l p u b l i s h e d b y architecture students at Stockholm's R o y a l Institute of T e c h n o l o g y . 8 5 Stirner's i n d i v i d u a l i s t b r a n d of anarchism h a d been introduced into S w e d e n t h r o u g h the Y o u n g Socialist Party (Ungsocialistiska Partiet) as early as 1908 but h a d soon come into conflict w i t h socialists and 8 4 I b i d . , p.367. ^Blandaren was p r o d u c e d b y students as a response to the institute's pedagogical focus o n Bauhaus t h i n k i n g . 5 2 c o m m u n i s t a n a r c h i s t s w h o u n d e r s t o o d this r a d i c a l i n d i v i d u a l i s t s t a n c e to r e p r e s e n t a threat to state d e v e l o p m e n t . 8 6 A s a r e s u l t o f the s u c c e s s o f s o c i a l i s m , b y the fifties, r a d i c a l i n d i v i d u a l i s m h a d to a l a r g e extent g o n e u n d e r g r o u n d w i t h a few e x c e p t i o n s , s u c h as H u l t e n . 8 7 I r o n i c a l l y , T i n g u e l y ' s i n c r e a s i n g l y s e l f - d e s t r u c t i v e m a c h i n e s w e r e n o w t r u l y p l a y i n g a r o u n d w i t h base a n d s u p e r s t r u c t u r e as t h e y w e r e b e i n g c o n s t r u c t e d i n the b a s e m e n t o f the S w e d i s h B a u h a u s . B y this t i m e , T i n g u e l y h a d f u l l y d e v e l o p e d h i s m e t a - m e c h a n i c d r a w i n g m a c h i n e s w h i c h w o u l d act as g e o m e t r i c r o b o t i z a t i o n s o f abstract p a i n t e r s [fig. 2 0 ] . B y the p u s h o f a b u t t o n , the artist o r a u d i e n c e c o u l d set i n m o t i o n a n e v e r p r e d i c t a b l e , a l w a y s o r i g i n a l , p r o d u c t i o n o f abstract d r a w i n g s . U n d e r s t a n d i n g b o t h g e o m e t r i c a b s t r a c t i o n a n d abstract e x p r e s s i o n i s m as a d e c o r a t i v e a n d m e c h a n i z e d e x t e n s i o n o f a t e c h n o c r a t i c w o r l d , H u l t e n p r o v i d e d T i n g u e l y w i t h a n e x h i b i t i o n at the s m a l l , b u t n o t e w o r t h y , G a l l e r i S a m l a r e n o w n e d a n d o p e r a t e d b y A g n e s W i d l u n d . F o r the o c c a s i o n , H u l t e n c o n t r i b u t e d a l e n g t h y c r i t i c a l text i n h i s l i m i t e d c i r c u l a t i o n j o u r n a l Kasark, w h i c h c a r e f u l l y o u t l i n e d T i n g u e l y ' s ties to b o t h a n h i s t o r i c a l a v a n t - g a r d e (by w a y o f D a d a a n d D u c h a m p ) a n d the s u s t a i n e d c r i t i q u e o f r a t i o n a l i s m o f f e r e d t h r o u g h a n a r c h i s m . ^6htt^://www.gro.o.se/arkiv/ana/sti/stimer2.h1ml "Egoister: Max Stirner och individualanarkism i den ungsocalistiska rorelsen. The most contemporary history of the Young Socialist Party and Stirner published at the time of Tinguely's stay in Stockholm was Tage Lindbom's Den socialdemokratiska ungdomsrorelsen i Sverige. Stockholm: Tidens forlag, 1952. ^ 7 In an interview conducted on May 18,1999, Ulf Linde confirmed my suggestion that Stirner was a powerful philosophical figure in Sweden for individuals like himself and Hulten who were interested in defending individuality without falling into the trap of "individualism." In fact, in this interview, Stirner functioned as a 'key' to open up a dialogue about Duchamp's relationship with Linde. 5 3 http://www.gro.o.se/arkiv/ana/sti/stimer2.h1ml R e a l i z i n g the potential connection between Tinguely's art and his o w n reading of the history of ideas, H u l t e n formulated his o w n Stirner-inspired i n d i v i d u a l freedom v i a D u c h a m p : Jean T i n g u e l y ' s art is b u i l t around the idea of the wheel. The wheel's circular movement is i n its continuity an eternal repetition. But it is also an eternal renewal.... In practical machines the goal is to reduce irregularities as m u c h as possible. T i n g u e l y seeks the opposite. H e seeks mechanical disorder. The cogs i n his wheels are made as to constantly produce inconsistent chance r i d d e n movement. H i s connections lack a l l precision except that of chance, his wheels have kept their character as symbols for an eternal transformation. They are chance i n function. They are a new and o r i g i n a l formulation of M a r c e l D u c h a m p ' s idea to use chance intentionally.... These new creatures of the art w o r l d live i n an enviable freedom. They stand outside a l l laws a n d are not b o u n d by systems. This art exemplifies pure anarchy w h e n it is most beautiful. It is an art w h i c h is thoroughly revolutionary, t h o r o u g h l y d y n a m i c , freer than we c o u l d ourselves ever hope to become.... It is a piece of pure existence, forever changing, that doesn't need to mean or hint at something just as a flower or a rat doesn't have to mean.. But one is mistaken to believe that their artistic message is innocent or harmless. It is, actually, loaded w i t h a freedom like a bomb w i t h trotyl. It is a s m a l l latent attack against a l l established order, it is a s y m b o l for an enormous freedom and s h o u l d scare a l l righteous thinkers if they c o u l d understand its power. It is a s y m b o l for an absolute, d i z z y i n g and unbelievable freedom. It personifies a freedom w h i c h otherwise w o u l d not exist, and therein lies its value. These machines are more anti-machines than machines.... M i l i t a r y technology and scientific knowledge is constantly a direct threat against our i n d i v i d u a l existence.... A l r e a d y w i t h D a d a w e saw a clear skepticism against the technological w o r l d . D u c h a m p ' s ready-made, the artwork chosen from mass reproduction, contains m u c h i r o n y against machines, and gets its potency not u n t i l it is p a r a d o x i c a l l y freed from its function. A s I see it, [Tinguely's w o r k ] represents one of the most conscious expressions for a n e w type of m o d e r n art.... This art is an anti-social expression. One has to attack machines i n their o w n territory[my italics].... The w e a p o n of T i n g u e l y ' s machines is i r o n y . 8 8 ^Pontus Hulten "Den stallforetradande friheten eller om Rorelse i konsten och Tinguely's Metamekanik" ("Vicarious Freedom: or Movement in Art and Tinguely's Metamatics") Kasark #2 (October 1955), pp.26-31. In a 1982 interview on Belgian radio, Tinguely would clarify his own position by saying that: With Dada I... have in common a certain mistrust toward power. We don't like authority, we don't like power. To me art is a form of manifest revolt, total and complete. It's a political attitude which doesn't need to found a political party. It's not a 5 4 In this rather lengthy quote it is clear that H u l t e n had enough "wheels" i n his o w n head to understand Tinguely's w o r k as a tongue-in-cheek gesture against the constructive social goals of A r t Concrete, but i n more general terms representing a Stirnean attack o n "established order." A s Francis M . N a u m a n n has significantly suggested, d u r i n g a stay i n M u n i c h i n 1912 D u c h a m p had also discovered M a x Stirner's w r i t i n g s . N a u m a n n goes as far as to propose that Stirner's w r i t i n g s " m a y have p r o v i d e d the most extensive theoretical basis for his n e w f o u n d artistic f r e e d o m . " 8 9 In a M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t questionnaire filled out i n the late fifties regarding his Three Standard Stoppages [fig. 1], D u c h a m p recalled Stirner's book as h a v i n g specifically influenced its p r o d u c t i o n . Just as Stirner's w o r k can p r o v i d e significant inroads into D u c h a m p ' s t h i n k i n g , Three Standard Stoppages is central to u n l o c k i n g key aspects of D u c h a m p ' s ceuvre as it functioned as a measuring device i n his systematic formulation of an "art coefficiency" — the arithmetical relationship between the intentionally unexpressed a n d expressed unintentionality. For D u c h a m p , the "creative act" existed i n this 'gap' or 'difference' between a rational and irrational side of the equation. This was the abstract reality of movement, chance and i r o n y . In this sense, D u c h a m p creative act took into account the accidental chance encounters w h i c h d o m i n a n t artistic a n d scientific 'reason' matter of taking power; when you are against it, you can't take it. We're against all forms of force which aggregate and crystallize an authority that oppresses people. Obviously this is not a characteristic of my art alone—it's much more general, a basic political attitude. It's a clear intention, more necessary today than ever, to oppose all forms of force emanating from a managing, centralising political power." Violand-Hobi, p.16. 8 9 Francis M . Naumann "Marcel Duchamp: A Reconciliation of Opposites" in Thierry de Duve, ed.. The Definitively Unfinished Marcel Duchamp. Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1992, pp. 54. 5 5 refused to a c k n o w l e d g e . 9 0 C o m i n g from Sweden and S w i t z e r l a n d , two exemplary rational societies, H u l t e n and T i n g u e l y no doubt appreciated Duchamp's "standard joke." C o m m e n t i n g o n the i n d i v i d u a l artists role i n relation to this type of collective society, D u c h a m p w o u l d i n 1963 say that: . . . M u c h as he w o u l d like to, the artist cannot help another m a n . It's each one for himself, for I don't agree at a l l w i t h the a n t h i l l that waits for us i n a few h u n d r e d years. I still believe i n the i n d i v i d u a l and every m a n for himself, like i n a s h i p w r e c k . 9 1 V i e w i n g themselves as s h i p w r e c k e d outsiders i n a Paris, H u l t e n and Tinguely were busy b u i l d i n g a raft of their o w n i n S t o c k h o l m o n w h i c h they sought to escape the p o l e m i c a l , and often generic, debates i n contemporary art. A s it turned out, by the early sixties, the seeds planted i n Stockholm i n the form of exhibitions, debates and contacts w o u l d soon become a part of an internationally recognized c u l t u r a l phenomenon k n o w n as N e o - D a d a and Pop A r t . In S t o c k h o l m T i n g u e l y was g i v e n a number of opportunities to poke fun at myths about the creative artist. Besides exhibiting his meta-matics at G a l l e r i Samlaren, T i n g u e l y w o u l d also contribute 40,000 " o r i g i n a l paintings" to a special box e d i t i o n of Blandaren. P r o d u c e d b y p o u r i n g and s p u r t i n g paint over a p r i n t i n g press r u n n i n g at top speed, each p u b l i s h e d print was i n d i v i d u a l l y treated w i t h hands and feet and placed i n a k i n d of Boite en 9 u A c c o r d i n g to Jacques D e r r i d a , this is exactly the arithmetical series of oppositions M a r x h a d reproached Stirner for. See Jacques D e r r i d a Specters of Marx: The State of the Debt, the Work of Mourning and the New International. L o n d o n : Routledge U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1994, p.134. 9 1 D u c h a m p q u o t e d i n Jean-Marie Drot's f i l m feu d'echecs avec Marcel Duchamp (1963) w h i c h contains interviews g i v e n i n N e w Y o r k and Pasadena o n the occasion of D u c h a m p ' s retrospective. I have taken this quote from M o l l y Nesbit's "Last W o r d s ( R i l k e , Wittgenstein) (Duchamp)" i n Art History V o l . 2 1 N o . 4 (December 1998), pp.556-557 (546-564). 56 Valise.92 W h i l e art historian and critic O l l e G r a n a t h has p o i n t e d out its D u c h a m p i a n reference, I propose that it was also a direct response to the "nasty remarks" M o h o l y - N a g y s l i p p e d into Vision in Motion. Referring to Duchamp's box of notes, M o h o l y - N a g y brushed it off as a "typical" Dadaist gesture i n w h i c h D u c h a m p had "emptied the contents of his desk — notes, drawings and photographs of the last twenty-five years — into a cardboard box.... L e a v i n g the 'mess' to be disentangled by the reader." 9 3 W h i l e M o h o l y - N a g y seemed uninterested i n this process, H u l t e n , T i n g u e l y , a n d a few others, understood this reconstructive act as a means to a new end. The notes, i n other w o r d s , were 'open' for i n d i v i d u a l , rather than collective, interpretation. But perhaps the most ambitious project T i n g u e l y w o u l d become i n v o l v e d i n d u r i n g this Stockholm residency was the m a k i n g of En dag i staden [A D a y i n the C i t y ] , a f i l m p r o d u c e d b y Pontus H u l t e n and H a n s N o r d e n s t r o m i n w h i c h T i n g u e l y p l a y e d the role of police officer [fig. 21]. W h i l e N o r d e n s t r o m has ascribed the title to the M a r x Brothers, one m a y more poignantly describe it as a l y r i c a l sabotage of A r n e Suckdorff's 1946 d o c u m e n t a r y Manniskor i stad (People in the City) w h i c h presents a " c i t y s y m p h o n y " p i c t u r i n g Stockholm street life i n a h y b r i d of post-war angst and v i s u a l i m p r e s s i o n i s m . 9 4 In fact, at the v e r y same time and place that En dag i staden was being montaged together as a dadaistic travelogue of S t o c k h o l m (ending i n total destruction), Suckdorff was editing a nature documentary 9 2 G r a n a t h (1975), p.50. 9 3 M o h o l y - N a g y , p.338. 9 4 S i e g f r i e d K r a c a u e r Theory of Film: The Redemption of Physical Reality. P r i n c e t o n : Princeton U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1997 (originaly p u b l i s h e d 1960), p.246. See also L e i f F u r h a m m a r Filmen: Sverige S t o c k h o l m : W i k e n , 1993, p.229: "It is m i n d b o g g l i n g to see h o w almost every considerable f i l m d u r i n g the post-war era deals w i t h the i n d i v i d u a l i n confict w i t h the collective (family, class, gangs, or society), p.229. 5 7 next d o o r . 9 5 Included i n the Brussels W o r l d ' s Fair f i l m festival i n 1958, En dag i staden gained a substantial amount of notoriety from critics such as A m o s V o g e l w h o , w r i t i n g i n Evergreen Review, noted: The A n g r y Y o u n g F i l m Makers: H u l t e n - N o r d e n s t r o m ' s A Day in Town (winner of the 1958 Creative F i l m F o u n d a t i o n A w a r d for exceptional merit) is a w i l d , dadaist explosion that starts as a typical Fitzpatrick travelogue of Stockholm and ends i n the city's total destruction b y fire and dynamite i n one of the most hilarious and anarchic f i l m experiments of r e c o r d . 9 6 What these critics m a y also have recognized was the close p r o x i m i t y this film had to D z i g a Vertov's 1929 Man with a Movie Camera w h i c h also presents a day i n the city. Redirecting Vertov's productivist montage techniques a w a y from narrative towards a more fractured Dadaist picture, En Dag i Staden shows an acute awareness of the historical, conceptual and aesthetic p l a y i n g field into w h i c h its key participants were entering i n their specifically urban dialogue about modernity. P l a y i n g the central character i n En dag i staden was the F i n i s h b o r n Swede P e r - O l o f U l t v e d t , an artist whose o w n w o r k embraced sabotage as a starting point for creation. P r o d u c i n g geometric mobile ballet decor such as Spiralen (1954) [fig. 22] and i n d i v i d u a l art w o r k such as Collage (1957), U l t v e d t , t h r o u g h v a r i o u s dysfunctional methods of movement, d i s s o l v e d more or less a l l of his w o r k into a territory of total formal anarchy. H a v i n g met T i n g u e l y i n Paris at H u l t e n ' s he Mouvement e x h i b i t i o n , U l t v e d t f o u n d both the chance a n d w o r k i n g class sensibility he was l o o k i n g for i n T i n g u e l y ' s technically crude meta-mechanic embrace of movement. B y 1957 U l t v e d t had ^ H a n s N o r d e n s t r o m " P r e l u d e r pa 50-talet" i n Moderna Museet 1958-1983, p.26. 9 6 A m o s V o g e l " A D a y i n T o w n " Evergreen Review nr 6 (1958). 5 8 fully developed his o w n formal vocabulary not s i m p l y out of T i n g u e l y ' s meta-matics and D u c h a m p ' s coefficiency of art, but also Soto's mobile reliefs, Eggeling's symphonies and his o w n barn m e n t a l i t y . 9 7 A s Sandro K e y - A b e r g was to describe Ultvedt's practice i n 1958: P . O . [Per-Olof] has learned from many and does not try to deny it—it w o u l d not be a good idea. H i s ability to learn is great but so is his ability to place a l l forms of k n o w l e d g e under a new light. E v e r y t h i n g w h i c h is v i t a l and m o v i n g , that fight i n time and the w o r l d , interests h i m . F u t u r i s m ' s celebration of speed and movement and w h o l e hearted s u s p i c i o n against a l l institutions and authorities interests h i m . D a d a i s m and surrealism is for h i m a huge joy as w e l l . But what he has appropriated is not the angst and s u i c i d a l thoughts from the dead nor the grotesque and literary of Surrealism. Their attempt to gestalt the unconscious is for h i m estranged. It is their revolt, mockery and grimace against the accepted, against social and artistic conventions and judgments w h i c h engages h i m m o s t . 9 8 In L u c r e t i a n fashion similar to D u c h a m p and T i n g u e l y , U l t v e d t ' s "freedom" . was founded o n an artistic m i s p r i s i o n . 9 9 H i s 1957 short f i l m Nara ogat (literally "close to the eye" but also meaning "to have just missed the target") [fig. 23] is a perfect example of h o w U l t v e d t tackled the formal influence of Eggeling's r e d e m p t i o n d r i v e n " c o m m u n i c a t i o n machines" w i t h i r o n y , w i t and entropic c o n s t r u c t i o n s . 1 0 0 H e r e , geometric forms are brought together not so m u c h as a s y m p h o n y , but to fall into a p l a y f u l formal chaos. B y the late 97T use the word "barn" as it means "child" in Swedish but also references Ultvedt's 'farmhand' vernacular in English. 9 8 S a n d r o Key-Aberg "P.O. Ultvedt" Konstrevy Nr.4 (1958) " H a r o l d Bloom book The Anxiety of Influence: A Theory of Poetry. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1973 outlines a theory of misprision that can be applied to artistic practice. Calling up the Atomistic model of Lucretius' "clinamen principle," Bloom embraces influence and misreading so as to clear an imaginative space for the poet/artist. lOOj^jg "communication machines" were meant to make visible a transcendental, metaphysical state of existence through a dialectically structured composition. A most comprehensive study of Viking Eggeling is Louise O'Konor Viking Eggeling 1880-1925: Artist and Film-maker, Life and Work. Stockholm: Tryckeri A B Bjorkmans Eftertradare, 1971. 5 9 fifties then, U l t v e d t had developed an artistic vocabulary of his o w n w h i c h brought h i m into a particularly close w o r k i n g relationship w i t h H u l t e n and Tinguely. By the early sixties, this relationship w o u l d p r o p e l h i m into the international arena of contemporary art. In 1958, Ndra ogat, Diagonal Symphony a n d En dag i staden were a l l i n c l u d e d i n Apropa Eggeling: Avant-Garde Film-Festival, an event conceptualized by H u l t e n , N o r d e n s t r o m a n d the A m e r i c a n a r t i s t / f i l m a k e r Robert Breer for the opening of a new m u s e u m of m o d e r n art i n S t o c k h o l m . 1 0 1 U s i n g his curatorial reptuation at home and abroad, and opening a door into M o d e r n a Museet by o r g a n i z i n g this f i l m festival, H u l t e n w o u l d find himself i n a position to start f i l l i n g the intellectual c u l t u r a l gap he had perceived i n Stockholm and Paris as early as 1954 w i t h artists such as T i n g u e l y and U l t v e d t . W h i l e interested i n the ephemeral side of collage, montage and the readymade, as an art historian H u l t e n also saw the need for a new k i n d of m u s e u m able to retain and maintain a d y n a m i c sense of p l a y and anarchic v i t a l i t y . The important t h i n g was to make this p u b l i c m u s e u m his own property. W h i l e H u l t e n managed to convert M o d e r n a Museet into a v i t a l center of his o w n , he and his artists w o u l d , i n the end, f i n d their w o r k p l u n g e d into the center of discourses o n contemporary international art i n w h i c h Duchamp's w o r k and legacy was increasingly b e c o m i n g "invaded, c o l o n i z e d lOlover forty films were screened at Avant-Garde Film Festival and included work by an international array of artists such as Jean Epstein, Germaine Dulac, Rene Clair, Peter Weiss, Marcel Duchamp, Hans Richter, Robert Breer, Bruno Munari, Jean Cocteau, Fernand Leger, Norman MacLaren, Luis Bunuel, and others. For more details, see Pontus Hulten Apropa Eggeling: Avant-garde film festival. Stockholm: Moderna Museet, 1958. This catalogue was designed and edited by Hulten. 6 0 and exploited" (to quote A m e r i c a n critic H i l t o n K r a m e r ) . 1 0 2 A s H u l t e n and these artists w o u l d find out, they were b y no means the o n l y ones d i s c o v e r i n g D u c h a m p at this t i m e . 1 0 3 A N e w M u s e u m and a N e w R e a l i s m D u r i n g the 1930s, a large s u m of money was donated to the N a t i o n a l M u s e u m i n S t o c k h o l m by philanthropist E m m a Spitzer i n order for a m o d e r n m u s e u m to be built. The reason given for this donation was not that she appreciated m o d e r n art, but that she wanted to see it removed from the N a t i o n a l M u s e u m . 1 0 4 Throughout the 1930s and 40s n o t h i n g was done w i t h the money, or the idea. But b y the mid-50s the N a t i o n a l M u s e u m was r u n n i n g out of storage space for i n c o m i n g art. A t this time, a reorganization of the S w e d i s h m i l i t a r y system began a process of decentralization whereby its training grounds, p r e v i o u s l y located inside the capital city, were relocated to the outskirts of Stockholm. In this process, a former n a v a l g y m n a s i u m , b u i l t i n the m i d d l e of the nineteenth century and located o n the i s l a n d of Skeppsholmen i n the central part of Stockholm, was made available to house m o d e r n art [fig. 24]. A l t h o u g h the museum's first exhibition took place under construction i n 1956 w i t h a two m o n t h s h o w i n g of Picasso's Guernica, the official opening w o u l d not occur u n t i l M a y of 1958 w i t h K i n g G u s t a v V I A d o l f i n ceremonious attendance. M o d e r n a Museet, as it was n a m e d , hereby 1 0 2 H i l t o n K r a m e r "Pop A r t S y m p o s i u m " Arts ( A p r i l 1963), p p , 35-45. 1 0 3 I n 1959 U l t v e d t w o u l d even travel to Paris where he w o u l d be further aquainted w i t h D u c h a m p through Robert Lebel's D u c h a m p exhibition at L a H u n e Bookstore. H e w o u l d also help introduce D u c h a m p ' s w o r k to a S w e d i s h p u b l i c v i a exhibitions a n d lectures. A l o n g w i t h U l f L i n d e he w o u l d also begin to produce replicas of Duchamp's w o r k . 1 0 4 P o n t u s H u l t e n "Fern fragment ur m o d e r n a museets h i s t o r i a " i n G r a n a t h , O l l e a n d N i e c k e l s , M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983, p.30. 6 1 restocked its former army barracks with an increasingly powerful arsenal of contemporary art [fig. 25]. The museum's early form took shape under the supervision of the aging cubist painter Otte Skold. While the inaugural exhibition lacked the contemporary direction that the museum would become known for by the sixties, showing only Nordic and international work transferred over from the National Museum's collection, Hulten's avant-garde film festival Apropa Eggeling made an important connection with Stockholm's non-commercial film club which since the mid fifties had grown into a few thousand members.105 The first large exhibition of international modern art, however, opened in August, 1958 with a large retrospective of Le Corbusier's work as architect, painter and sculptor. Unlike the museum's film festival, the exhibition did not show much initiative from the part of the museum as it was purchased readymade from a Swiss architecture firm. It was, nonetheless, an important success in that it gained a substantial number of visitors and a great deal of attention in the popular press.106 A big asset was the fact that Corbusier himself came to Stockholm for the occasion, seduced north by the promise of a life-time achievement medal awarded by the King of Sweden.107 When Skold died a few months later, his widow Arna Skold, along with Pontus Hulten, was given the task of organizing a retrospective of her husband's work to open in January, 1959. By the end of that year, having showed his skill for curating exhibitions at commercial galleries throughout 1 0 5 H u l t e n (1983), p.35. ! 0 6 A f t e r the L e C o r b u s i e r exhibition, M o d e r n a M u s e e t c o u l d boast that 41,000 visitors h a d found their w a y t h r o u g h their doors. See L i n d e , U l f "Memoarer" i n G r a n a t h , et al., p.76-78. 1 0 7 p o n t u s H u l t e n "Fern fragment u r m o d e r n a museets h i s t o r i a " i n G r a n a t h , N i e c k e l s , et al. eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983, p.32. 6 2 the fifties, H u l t e n was hired o n a shoe-string budget as the first director of M o d e r n a Museet. O n the advice of the N a t i o n a l M u s e u m ' s director C a r l Nordenfalk, H u l t e n was sent to Paris to find out from its galleries w h i c h direction contemporary art was taking. K n o w i n g full w e l l that Paris was no longer the centre it once had been, H u l t e n w o u l d instead find out where and h o w to acquire his o w n place i n the history of m o d e r n art. In October 1959, Stockholm was g i v e n a taste of H u l t e n ' s history and the m u s e u m was p r o v i d e d w i t h a new trajectory. Interestingly it was to be the "psycho-physical" spaces Illmar Laaban h a d described earlier i n that decade w h i c h H u l t e n used to p u t the M u s e u m back o n course. Sebastian Matta: Fifteen Forms of Doubt was the C h i l e a n artist's first large solo e x h i b i t i o n and showed commitment and initiative o n the part of M o d e r n a M u s e e t to redirect itself away from Paris-centered discourses (represented b y L e Corbusier) towards an art that suggested the centrality of the m a r g i n [fig. 26]. It is noteworthy that Matta had w o r k e d for Le Corbusier i n the 1930s before rejecting architecture i n favour of his painted p s y c h o l o g i c a l morphologies, or "inscapes," as he called them. D u r i n g the thirties he h a d also discovered D u c h a m p whose w o r k he was obssessed w i t h to the point of p u b l i s h i n g w i t h Duchamp's p h i l a n t h r o p i c friend and collector Katherine Dreier an " A n a l y t i c a l Reflection" o n the Large Glass.108 B y 1959, Matta's w o r k must have represented an important post-war intersection for H u l t e n — a site situated somewhere just outside the collective movements d e v e l o p i n g out of C o B r A and the M o v e m e n t T o w a r d s an Imaginiste Bauhaus. A s w e w i l l see, 1 0 8 K a t h e r i n e S. D r e i e r a n d M a t t a E c h a u r r e n , Duchamp's Glass: La Mariee mise a nu par ses celibataires, meme. An Analytical Reflection. N e w Y o r k : Societe A n o n y m e , Inc., 1944. See also John Tancock's "The Influence of M a r c e l D u c h a m p " i n D ' H a r n o n c o u r t , A n n e and M c S h i n e , K y n a s t o n , Eds.. Marcel Duchamp. P h i l a d e l p h i a : P h i l a d e l p h i a M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t , 1973, pp.160-178. 6 3 H u l t e n and others w o u l d end up favouring collaborative experiments that stopped short of the collective revolutionary Situationist dreams. W h i l e there w o u l d be compromises and confusion i n their early agenda, M o d e r n a Museet d i d produce throughout 1959 and 1960 a series of exhibitions w h i c h further articulated the institution's foundation and direction. A l o n g w i t h retrospective exhibitions of S i r i Derkert and A n n a Kasparsson (two S w e d i s h w o m e n w i t h ties to continental as w e l l as local m o d e r n i s m but w h o h a d remained m a r g i n a l i z e d w i t h i n a male d o m i n a t e d art w o r l d abroad and at home), H u l t e n u t i l i z e d his friendships from Paris to produce large scale exhibitions of Robert Jacobsen as w e l l as Sam Francis, whose w o r k was s h o w n alongside m u s i c a l performances by John Cage, K a r l H e i n z Stockhausen, and D a v i d T u d o r [fig. 27]. This aggressive move towards a contemporary avant-garde focus secured an important audience for the m u s e u m w i t h the help of the experimental music society F y l k l i n g e n , w h i c h i n c l u d e d such important members as p o e t / p a i n t e r O y v i n d Fahlstrom. In many ways, F y l k l i n g e n p r o v i d e d H u l t e n w i t h a ready-made audience for avant-garde activities. In turn, M o d e r n a Museet p r o v i d e d avant-garde art to an entirely n e w generation of museum-goers whose interests were rooted i n art as w e l l as p o p u l a r culture. It was this enthusiastic y o u t h audience w h o w o u l d eventually convince f u n d i n g agencies to sponsor H u l t e n ' s m u s e u m . 1 0 9 A n early example of h o w the n e w activities of the m u s e u m were catching the attention of funding agencies was the decision i n 1960 b y the ! 0 9 I refer to M o d e r n a Museet as 'Hulten's museum' i n order to emphasize h o w m u c h the m u s e u m had become associated w i t h his v i s i o n . 6 4 S w e d i s h Institute to turn to M o d e r n a Museet for help i n b r e a k i n g the isolated position i n w h i c h it saw S w e d i s h contemporary art to be caught. S p o n s o r i n g a collection of S w e d i s h w o r k s to be sent to the Sao Paulo Biennale, the S w e d i s h Institute put their trust and money i n H u l t e n w h o used this trip not o n l y to exhibit w o r k s by Fahlstrom and others, but also to make an important stop- over i n N e w Y o r k . Here he made a number of significant connections w i t h N e w Y o r k artists such as Robert Rauschenberg, Jasper Johns, A l f r e d Leslie and Richard Stankiewicz a n d others t h r o u g h his friendship to the S w e d i s h engineer B i l l y K l i i v e r . A t this stage of his career, the ideas of the N e w Y o r k avant-garde K l i i v e r introduced h i m to must have represented an interesting alternative to the stagnating debates H u l t e n had confronted i n Europe. W o r k i n g for B e l l Laboratories d u r i n g the day and collaborating w i t h artists o n art w o r k d u r i n g the evenings, K l i i v e r p r o v i d e d H u l t e n w i t h an 'inside' v i e w into an art w o r l d that c o u l d balance that of Continental E u r o p e a n discourses. W i t h this k n o w l e d g e , H u l t e n c o u l d t u r n Stockholm's M o d e r n a M u s e e t into a centre o n the margins where a cross-Atlantic avant-garde c o u l d emerge out of collaborations. For T i n g u e l y , H u l t e n ' s connection w i t h K l i i v e r turned out to be crucial, as he was i n v i t e d to N e w Y o r k i n January of 1960 for a solo exhibition at the Staempfli G a l l e r y . In N e w Y o r k T i n g u e l y was reacquainted w i t h M a r c e l D u c h a m p ( w h o m he h a d p r e v i o u s l y met i n Paris) and travelled w i t h h i m to the P h i l a d e l p h i a M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t to look at and discuss the w o r k s i n its D u c h a m p c o l l e c t i o n . 1 1 0 H e also introduced himself to K l i i v e r , w h o h a d p r e v i o u s l y helped Johns and Rauschenberg realize w o r k s a n d n o w offered to help T i n g u e l y construct his largest assemblage to that date. T i n g u e l y h a d been 1 1 0 H u l t e n (1972), p.126. 6 5 approached by Sam H u n t e r from the M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t i n N e w Y o r k to b u i l d an assemblage i n their sculpture garden. This p r o v i d e d T i n g u e l y w i t h an o p p o r t u n i t y to produce his first m o n u m e n t a l auto-destructive meta- mechanic — Homage a New York [fig. 2 8 ] . 1 1 1 W h i l e K l i i v e r offered T i n g u e l y technical advice o n constructing his destruction, his largest contributions were the visits to the d u m p s of N e w Jersey to p i c k up bicycle wheels; for T i n g u e l y a s t r i k i n g l y Stirnian and -- D u c h a m p i a n motif. Homage a New York., as the seven b y eight meter giant sculpture w o u l d become k n o w n , was assembled out of everything from a bathtub to a piano to Robert Rauschenberg's Money-thrower that released and scattered silver d o l l a r s . 1 1 2 A s Rauschenberg w o u l d later recall, he felt " p r i v i l e g e d to be able to h a n d [Tinguely] a screwdriver. There were so m a n y different aspects of life i n v o l v e d i n the b i g piece. It was as real, as interesting, as complicated, as vulnerable, and as gay as life i t s e l f . " 1 1 3 W h i l e the i r o n y i n this statement w i l l become increasingly apparent, at this point i n m y narrative the important thing to note is the collaborative atmosphere T i n g u e l y was afforded i n N e w Y o r k , because of the connections that H u l t e n was establishing th o u g h the M o d e r n a Museet i n Stockholm. A s w e w i l l see, b y 1962 the perspective artists such as T i n g u e l y thought they h a d o n this collaborative international scene w o u l d t u r n out to be a devastating i l l u s i o n . Between 7:30 and 8:00 p m o n M a r c h 17th, Homage a New York made the transformation from an assembled heap of rubbish to an entropic suicide machine desperately struggling to produce abstract paintings b y the metre, but m I b i d . . 1 1 2 B i l l y K l i i v e r " G a r d e n Party" i n H u l t e n (1972), p.130-143. 1 1 3 V i o l a n d - H o b i , p.37. 6 6 falling short. Painted white to stand out against the night sky like a mechanical ghost, T i n g u e l y ' s magnum opus became, for a brief moment, a spectacularized meditation o n a circumscribed spectre that w o u l d come back to haunt modernist and avant-garde artists alike throughout the sixties' m a n y failed r e v o l u t i o n a r y m o m e n t s . 1 1 4 A s a l i v e l y , ephemeral, and pathetic, m o n u m e n t to this spirit i n the form of an i n d u s t r i a l r u i n , Homage a New York returned, u n l i k e Raushenberg's w o r k , to the garbage d u m p from w h i c h it had materialized. W h i l e dematerialized through engineered chance, l o u d noise, smoke and movement, Homage a New York collapsed into an allegorical state(ment) of its Self, but also larger C o l d W a r anxieties and abstract expressions. In this act, N e w Y o r k ' s new found c u l t u r a l and p o l i t i c a l identity and p o w e r is stripped bare to reveal its internal hubris. Recalling his homage to N e w Y o r k i n 1971, T i n g u e l y c o n c l u d e d that the assemblage: remained a good thing because it was p u r e l y ideological, w i t h o u t commerce. The o n l y m e m o r y is the photo, but the picture guarantees another transformation, because...there is also the m y t h , what people tell w h o saw it or w h o d i d n ' t see it, or w h o read a n d think they saw it or w h o see the photos and imagine h a v i n g seen it. There are inevitable transformations. It's a form of treason w h i c h takes place, a n d that's a l l r i g h t . 1 1 5 his 1968 essay, "The Death of the Author," Roland Barthes critiques representation on the basis of a refusal of authorship and originality. As Abigail Solomon-Godeau has pointed out: "For Barthes, the refusal of authorship and originality was an innately revolutionary stance 'since to refuse to fix meaning is, in the end, to refuse God and his hypostases—reason, science, law.' Similarily, the dismantling of the notion of unique subjectivity Barthers understood as a salutary blow struck against an ossified and essentially retrograde bourgeois humanism." M y suggestion is that Tinguely had by this time formulated a simular critique of representation while salvaging "his own" to use a Stirnean phrase. After all, Tinguely, with his proper name, keeps his own career "moving" within his dialectically formulated construction-destruction. Abigail Solomon-Godeau "Photography After Art Photography" pp.75-87 in Brian Wallis, ed. Art After Modernism: Rethinking Representation. New York: David R. Godine, Publishers, 1984. p.81. 1 ^Quoted from a 1971 lecture at the Georges Pompidou Centre, Paris. See Violand-Hobi, p.40. 6 7 W i t h Homage a New York, T i n g u e l y had not o n l y gained a great deal of international press but had also actualized auto-destruction o n a new monstrous s c a l e . 1 1 6 R e t u r n i n g to Paris, T i n g u e l y was as obsessed as ever w i t h D u c h a m p , p r o d u c i n g , a m o n g other w o r k s , his Homage a Marcel Duchamp, a k i n d of updated v e r s i o n of M u n a r i ' s Useless Machines. But b y this time, T i n g u e l y was not alone i n his D u c h a m p i a n obsession. N o r was H u l t e n the o n l y curator w h o had seen the appropriation of D u c h a m p i a n strategies as c a r r y i n g w i t h it a potential for opening u p a conceptual space out of the c u l t u r a l stalemate percieved b y many i n the late fifties. W i t h the help of Robert Lebel's catalogue raisonne p u b l i s h e d o n D u c h a m p i n 1959, access into the logic of this p r e v i o u s l y obscure figure was made more a c c e s s i b l e . 1 1 7 B y the late fifties a s m a l l number of galleries h a d begun s h o w i n g D u c h a m p as w e l l as a younger generation of artists w o r k i n g w i t h i n this intellectual ' g a p . ' 1 1 8 O n e of the most energetic and dramatic figures to p i c k u p o n this D u c h a m p i a n renaissance was Pierre Restany, a Frenchman w h o emerged o n the curatorial scene i n the early sixties to embrace this new attitude m a n y labelled "Neo-Dada." W o r k i n g out of Paris, Restany h a d spent the latter half of the fifties searching for his o w n p o s i t i o n from w h i c h to establish "the next b i g l-^As Allan Kaprow has noted, while this work could be read as a critique of M o M A ' s activities, "Homage to New York, a marvelous contraption of junk that partially and intentionally destroyed itself in performance, was, besides being a work of art by a known innovator, a publicity gesture on the part of the Museum of Modern Art that benefited both parties." Allan Kaprow "The Artist as a Man of the World" (1964) published in Allan Kaprow Essays on The Blurring of Art and Life. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1993. 1 1 7 S e e Robert Lebel Marcel Duchamp New York: Grove Press, 1959. 118po r example, a gallery such as Galerie Rive Droite was by 1959 showing Jasper Johns alongside Jackson Pollock, Sam Francis, and Marcel Duchamp. 6 8 movement" not too d i s s i m i l a r from Hulten's. By the late fifties, Restany had established himself as a k i n d of provocateur w i t h i n the French art scene, w r i t i n g articles such as " U . S . go home and come back later" for Cimaise, w h i c h precariously encouraged the radical i n d i v i d u a l gestures of Abstract Expressionists such as Jackson Pollock and the 'spirituality and mysterious inwardness' of someone like M a r k Tobey, w h i l e t r y i n g to a v o i d a wholesale support of a distinctly A m e r i c a n i z e d form of m o d e r n art. In a d u a l attempt at c r i t i c i z i n g A m e r i c a ' s reluctance to acknowledge Paris as an artistic centre and Europe's stubborn refusal to recognize that N e w Y o r k had managed to steal the idea of m o d e r n art from Paris, Restany reviewed the t r a v e l l i n g exhibition Jackson Pollock and the New American Painting: ...from here o n , h o w can w e help but to repeat a l o n g w i t h P o l l o c k that 'the fundamental problems of contemporary p a i n t i n g are not the prerogative of one single country.' This Yankee rendez-vous was not useless. It gave proof to those w h o didn't k n o w or w h o didn't want "to k n o w , that from n o w o n there exists o n the other side of the A t l a n t i c a s p i r i t u a l climate that is capable of b r i n g i n g some o r i g i n a l solutions to the essential necessitites of A r t . So go back home, A m e r i c a n s , a n d come back to see us w h e n y o u have something n e w to astonish us w i t h : for instance, a second P o l l o c k . 1 1 9 W i t h a " D o n K i n g " curatorial attitude and support of an internationally- reconfigured post-war avant-garde, Restany's support of cross-Atlantic project's such as Tinguely's Homage a New York was w e l c o m e d b y a b r o a d range of otherwise ignored artists. R e t u r n i n g from N e w Y o r k to Paris after h a v i n g taken the piss (as D u c h a m p m i g h t say) out of A m e r i c a n Abstract Expressionism, T i n g u e l y was n o w w i d e l y embraced b y artists and critics w h o saw a w i d e r , more open, arena available to them. 1 1 9 P i e r r e Restany " U . S . G o back home a n d come back later" Cimaise V I no.3 ( M a r c h 1959), pp.37. 69 The collaborative spirit T i n g u e l y had encountered i n N e w Y o r k was n o w more than ever before evident u p o n his return to Paris. W i t h encouragement from Restany, a number of p r e v i o u s l y disenfranchised members of the Paris art scene w o u l d get together to sign a manifesto w h i c h at the time must have read as a 'collaborative' act. Whereas H u l t e n had been careful to 'choose' artists that c o u l d support his o w n interests, Restany w o u l d briefly overshadow his activities by q u i c k l y assembling as m a n y of these artists as possible under one roof. In the fall of I960, the " N o u v e a u Realiste Manifesto" was signed b y Restany and the artists A r m a n , Dufrene, R a y m o n d H a i n s , Y v e s K l e i n , M a r t i a l Raysse, D a n i e l Spoerri, T i n g u e l y , and Jaques de la V i l l e g l e , w i t h the joint, but ambigous, declaration that "Thursday, October 27, 1960 The N o u v e a u x Realistes became conscious of their collective singularity. N o u v e a u Realisme = new approaches to the perception of the real." [fig. 29] A l t h o u g h the group was centered i n Paris and was p r e d o m i n a n t l y made up of French ( K l e i n , Raysse, Dufrene, V i l l e g l e , and of course, Restany himself), the group soon became more international i n character. The B u l g a r i a n C h r i s t o , Italian M i m m o Rotella a n d F r a n c o - A m e r i c a n N i k i de Saint-Phalle were soon a d d e d to the roster. A r m a n , Dufrene, H a i n s , K l e i n , T i n g u e l y and V i l l e g l e h a d already i n M a y of that year participated i n an exhibition curated b y Restany under the title of Les Nouveaux Realistes, a n d were n o w b e i n g 'packaged' as a distinctly n e w E u r o p e a n art movement. F o r Restany, these artists, joined b y association w i t h D u c h a m p i a n w i t and a Dadaist anti-art attitude, represented a third generation School of Paris s t r i v i n g to be released from the confined 7 0 problematics of hot and c o l d a b s t r a c t i o n . 1 2 0 W h a t I do not think m a n y of them realized at the time of signing the manifesto, was h o w h o m o g e n i z e d and fixed their identities w o u l d become under the 'collective singularity' (rather than collaborative diversity) Restany h a d labelled N o u v e a u Realisme. In this regard, H u l t e n w o u l d have the upper h a n d i n securing a w o r k i n g relationship w i t h T i n g u e l y and Saint-Phalle b y affording a space where i n d i v i d u a l desires c o u l d be accomodated w i t h o u t a collective goal. A s we have seen w i t h the case of T i n g u e l y , many of these artists had, despite Restany's c l a i m to h a v i n g 'discovered' them, been p r o d u c i n g a n d exhibiting w o r k for quite some time. To discern just h o w problematic this 'naming' w o u l d become for artists like T i n g u e l y and others, it is necessary to consider just h o w differently i n d i v i d u a l artists were w o r k i n g . V i l l e g l e , H a i n s and Dufrene, for example, had, since the late forties, been e v o l v i n g their o w n form of dialectical attacks o n both h i g h art and mass culture. Their acts of artistic intervention of lacerating advertisements to produce decollages brought attention to the seemingly endless urlandscape made u p of the debris of a commercial spectacle that enveloped q u o t i d i a n life [fig, 30]. Benjamin B u c h l o h has argued that these lacerated billboards were embraced i n a surrealist attraction to the o u t m o d e d . 1 2 1 In reading these decollages as originating i n urban spaces left open as ruins as a result of the a r r i v a l of a new, A m e r i c a n i z e d , c o m m o d i t y spectacle, B u c h l o h fails, despite his insightfulness, to account for their p o l i t i c a l effectiveness as open rebellion. A s Thomas M c D o n o u g h has noted, these spaces were not fully evacuated a n d 1 2 ^ S u s a n H a p g o o d Neo-Dada: Redefining Art 1958-62 N e w Y o r k : The A m e r i c a n Federation of A r t s i n association w i t h U n i v e r s e P u b l i s h i n g , 1994, p.49. 1 2 1 S e e Benjamin Buchloh's " F r o m D e t a i l to Fragment: Decollage A f f i c h i s t e " October (1988), pp.99-110. 7 1 were open to "ludic-constructive behaviours" such as those of V i l l e g l e and H a i n s . 1 2 2 A s a deconstructive 'gesture,' these decollages d i d map the city i n a new allegorical manner. A s Walter Benjamin h a d understood the process of collage earlier i n the century: The m e m o r y of the ponderer holds sway over the disordered mass of dead knowledge. H u m a n knowledge is piecework to it i n a particularly pregnant sense: namely as the heaping up of arbitrarily cut up pieces, out of w h i c h one puts together a puzzle.... The allegoricist reaches n o w here, n o w there, into the chaotic depths that his k n o w l e d g e places at his disposal, grabs an item out, holds it next to another, and sees whether they fit: that m e a n i n g to this image, or this image to that meaning. The result never lets itelf be predicted; for there is no natural m e d i a t i o n between the t w o . 1 2 3 In this sense, just as by the late fifties R o l a n d Barthes, w i t h his Mythologies, had developed a semiotics able to deconstruct French c o l o n i a l i s m i n A l g e r i a , the decolagistes were able to m i l i t a r i l y , through language, take-back the streets. U n l i k e the Situationists w h o w o u l d attack the streets w i t h collective zeal, these artists, w o r k i n g collaboratively w i t h a n o n y m o u s v a n d a l s , w o u l d wait u n t i l later i n their studios to sign their fragments of "dead knowledge." A s it often turned out, these trapped compositions revealed a most immediate history of subjective and collective fantasies. One of the most dramatic (and dangerous) of these archeological 'openings' took place i n 1961 at Galerie J. i n Paris under the name of Affiches lacerees marouflees sur toile. Here, H a i n s ' strategically returned his decollages to p u b l i c w a l l s where they became unified b y references to A l g e r i a . A t a moment w h e n bombs planted b y the O . A . S . c o u l d be heard e x p l o d i n g i n the washrooms of the Paris Stock 1 2 2 T h o m a s M c D o n o u g h "Situationist Space" October 67 (Winter 1994), p p . 59-77. 1 2 3 S u s a n B u c k - M o r s s The Dialectics of Seeing: Walter Benjamin and the Arcades Project. M a s s a c h u s e t t s : M I T Press, 1989, pp.240-241. 7 2 Exchange, a decollage such as Paix en Algerie — w h i c h title derives from the torn out remains of graffitti — c o u l d semiotically turn typographic fragments into h a n d - g r e n a d e s . 1 2 4 E v e n more i n v o l v e d i n language games p l a y e d out i n the urban streets, the R u m a n i a n artist D a n i e l Spoerri turned his attention t o w a r d the debris of Capitalism's throw-away culture w h i c h he used to construct typographies of chance. Initially trained as a classical dancer i n Z u r i c h before a r r i v i n g i n Paris i n the early fifties, Spoerri concocted q u o t i d i a n "traps" that w o u l d interest both H u l t e n and Restany. B y the late fifties Spoerri was m a k i n g what he termed "tableaux-pieges" (snare-pictures) w h i c h i n Rousselian fashion turned tables into tableaux, t r a p p i n g f o u n d debris w i t h fixatives and cutting the legs off the tables before hanging them o n the w a l l [fig. 31]. A s psycho-geographical mappings of the everyday, these assisted readymades engaged indifferently i n a meta-philosophy of everyday life similar to that argued for b y H e n r i Lefebvre. If M a r x , through H e g e l , h a d focused o n the mastery of nature and the external w o r l d ( w h i c h for them defined the h u m a n being), and Nietzsche h a d turned i n w a r d s to the transformation of self through desire a n d 'jouissance,' then Lefebvre was b y the sixties a r g u i n g for a combination of M a r x i s t and N i e t z c h e a n construction of k n o w l e d g e i n order to promote a "connaissance" that i m p l i c a t e d agency and reflexivity i n the p r o d u c t i o n of k n o w l e d g e b y the subject. 1 2 5 V i a these Trappings of the l i v e d , phenomenological traces, Spoerri managed to 1 2 4 A s H u l t e n has discussed i n reference to T i n g u e l y ' s Baluba sculptures, d u r i n g 1960 A f r i c a gained seventeen n e w independent states through the process of decolonization. In response, the r i g h t - w i n g terrorist organization O . A . S . (Organisation armee secrete) began to explode bombs a l l over the country. See H u l t e n (1972), p.231. 1 2 5 S e e Introduction b y Elenore K o f m a n a n d E l i z a b e t h Lebas, Trans, and Eds. i n Henri Lefebvre: Writings on Cities O x f o r d : B l a c k w e l l P u b l i s h e r s , 1996. 7 3 produce a p u b l i c image through anon-fixed and h i g h l y self-reflexive system of knowledge. By the early sixties, Spoerri w o u l d collaborate o n various projects w i t h H u l t e n , Saint-Phalle, T i n g u e l y and U l t v e d t . C o m m e n t i n g o n the N e w Realist label that Restany h a d placed o n this diverse group of artists, T i n g u e l y w o u l d later distance it from his o w n practice by suggesting that "the true N e w Realists are D a n i e l Spoerri and A r m a n . E v e n Y v e s -Klein d i d not really belong t h e r e . " 1 2 6 For A r m a n , accumulation h a d become a serious strategy as he p r o d u c e d archeological displays of people's d a i l y d y i n g , i n the form of vitrines filled w i t h consumer trash [fig. 32]. M e e t i n g Yves K l e i n i n N i c e i n the early fifties, A r m a n h a d mustered u p his o w n m y t h o l o g y i n w h i c h the universe was d i v i d e d between himself and K l e i n . Y v e s supposedly l o o k e d into the blue v o i d of the Mediterranean s k y a n d took possession of an i m m a t e r i a l w o r l d , w h i l e A r m a n was to embrace a material one through a process of accumulation and destruction. The strategic reference point here seems to once again have been D u c h a m p as they each took positions w i t h i n the larger picture — The Large GlassM7 This n e w generation of artists became m a i n l y supported b y an intimate and new gallery scene i n Paris centered around Galerie J. (owned a n d operated b y Restany's partner Jeanine Goldschmidt) as w e l l as the Iris C l e r t Galerie w h i c h exhibited some of the more 'difficult' w o r k b y the younger generation of artists. In A p r i l of 1960 she helped A r m a n i n s t a l l Le Plein (Full 1 2 6 V i o l a n d - H o b i , p.43. 1 2 7 T h e Large Glass, or The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even is d i v i d e d i n t w o halves: the b o t t o m representing the m a t e r i a l r e a l m of the bachelors, a n d the i m m a t e r i a l realm of the bride. 7 4 Up), an exhibition w h i c h consisted of garbage accumulated from a one block radius of Iris Clert's gallery [fig. 33]. F i l l e d w a l l to w a l l , floor to ceiling, this materialist excrement filled the gallery to the point of k e e p i n g visitors from being able to enter the gallery. Le Plein was presented i n dialectical oposition w i t h Y v e s K l e i n ' s Le Vide: La sensibilite picturale a Vetat de matiere premiere, an e x h i b i t i o n two years p r i o r i n w h i c h K l e i n presented n o t h i n g but "immaterial space" [fig. 34]. A s T i n g u e l y w o u l d report the event to H u l t e n i n a letter sent to Stockholm, the event was an enormous m e d i a stunt: Yves K l e i n had an enormous opening at Iris Clert betwen 21:00 and 24:00. The republican garde—firebrigade, thousands of people (entrance fee of 1.500 franc) and a l l white walls! It was very beautiful and w i l l continue for fifteen days. People drank a " c o c k t a i l " and t o m o r r o w m o r n i n g w i l l piss blue!!! Y v e s also wanted to i l l u m i n a t e the O b e l i s k but due to its announcement leaking out o n radio and i n newspapers it d i d n ' t w o r k out. The first opening I have e n j o y e d . 1 2 8 W h a t T i n g u e l y and K l e i n shared w i t h each other (perhaps more than w i t h the other N o u v e a u x Realiste artists) was an interest i n the dematerialization of the object to such a degree that it went against the o p t i m i s m of C o n s t r u c t i v i s m and the Bauhaus school. If A n t o i n e Pevsner a n d N a u m Gabo h a d i n the twenties claimed to have freed themselves from the idea of art as "static rhythms," a n d the Bauhaus teacher M o h o l y - N a g y h a d w a n t e d to "put i n the place of the static principle of classical art the d y n a m i c p r i n c i p l e of universal life," then T i n g u e l y w o u l d twist their tongues, so to speak, and introduce his o w n understanding of movement a n d "static." W r i t i n g against the grain of these past manifestos, T i n g u e l y wrote his o w n manifesto Fur Statik [For Statics] w h i c h was disseminated b y being t h r o w n out of an airplane h i g h above Diisseldorf to announce his exhibition i n 1959 [fig. 35]: 1 2 8 L e t t e r quoted i n H u l t e n (1972), p.63. 7 5 E v e r y t h i n g moves continuously. I m m o b i l i t y does not exist. Don't be dominated by out-of-date concepts of time. Get r i d of hours, seconds and minutes. Stop resisting change. L I V E I N T I M E — B E S T A T I C — B E S T A T I C W I T H M O V E M E N T . For Statics, for a present t a k i n g place i n the Present. Resist anxious spells of weakness to halt m o v i n g things, to petrify moments and to k i l l what is alive. Stop c o n t i n u o u s l y setting up 'values' w h i c h cannot but break d o w n . Be free, l i v e ! 1 2 9 This gesture of d r o p p i n g the manifesto from an airplane was no doubt an exagerated hommage to D u c h a m p ' s Three Standard Stoppages. After a l l , he had no idea w h o their audience w o u l d be. This spectacular self-advertisement was also something that interested Y v e s K l e i n . H a v i n g collaborated w i t h T i n g u e l y o n the e x h i b i t i o n Vitesse pure et stabilite monochrome [Pure Speed and M o n o c h r o m e Stability] a year prior, K l e i n gave a lecture i n D i i s s e l d o r f i n w h i c h he stressed the importance of their "collaboration" and rejection of the Utopian goals set forth by the Bauhaus: I w i s h to propose to those w h o w i s h to hear: C O L L A B O R A T I O N . C o n s i d e r the etymology of the w o r d . To collaborate is to w o r k i n c o m m o n o n the same project. The project for w h i c h I propose collaboration is Art....This evening, I am p r o p o s i n g collaboration to artists w h o already k n o w about it, and w h o perhaps already k n o w that they s h o u l d mock their possessive, egotistical, egocentric personalities by the aggravation of the M e i n a l l their 'portrayals' i n the theater — like the w o r l d (the tangible, p h y s i c a l , ephemeral w o r l d ) where they k n o w very w e l l h o w to exist b y p l a y i n g a part. I propose to them to continue to say ' m y work,' each separately, w h e n s p e a k i n g to the l i v i n g dead (who surrounds us i n everyday life) of the c o m m u n a l w o r k w h i c h was realized through collaboration. I propose that they continue joyously to say M e , I, M y , M i n e , not the hypocritical U s , O u r — but o n l y after solemnly s i g n i n g the pact of C O L L A B O R A T I O N . . . . I p u s h the point to this perhaps eccentric extreme to make it clear that the collaboration w h i c h I a m p r o p o s i n g means p l a y i n g y o u r w a y out of the psychological w o r l d i n order to make yourself really free. I do not speak as a U t o p i a n this evening i n p r o p o s i n g this n e w form of collaboration and t r y i n g to get a new and perfect ' B A U H A U S ' u n d e r w a y i n 1959; 1 2 9 H u l t e n (1972), p.112. 7 6 rather, I speak from experience.... Jean T i n g u e l y and I, w o r k i n g together for the last six months, have m i n e d a constantly new and w o n d e r f u l thing, the c o m m o t i o n of 'the fundamental static movement of the universe.' In conclusion, i n p r o p o s i n g C o l l a b o r a t i o n i n art to artists of the heart and head, I am i n fact propos ing that they bypass art altogether and w o r k i n d i v i d u a l l y o n the return to real life, the life i n w h i c h a m a n no longer feels that he is the center of the universe, but where the universe is the center of every m a n . W e w i l l then k n o w a magical honor [prestige] where i n the past we k n e w o n l y vertigo [vertige]. In this w a y , we w i l l become aerial men; we w i l l k n o w the force of u p w a r d attraction toward space, t o w a r d nothing and everything at the same time; the force of terrestrial attraction h a v i n g been mastered, we w i l l literally levitate i n total p h y s i c a l and s p i r i t u a l f r e e d o m . 1 3 0 A t t e m p t i n g to suspend themselves between the past and the future, the material and the immaterial, K l e i n and T i n g u e l y concocted this "hyper- Futurist" language as a rhetorical gesture to counter both the o p t i m i s m and pessimism of the post-war w o r l d . C o n s i d e r i n g Franco-German relations at this time, the speech reads as a reactionary return to the conservativism of the Futurists. A l o n g w i t h their s i m i l a r interest i n machines, movement, a n d destruction, K l e i n and T i n g u e l y saw i n the Futurists an u n r e m i t t i n g defence of the Ego. K l e i n was, perhaps even more than T i n g u e l y , obsessed w i t h "his own," as Stirner w o u l d say. If F r e u d h a d located h u m a n consciousness i n a state of vertigo due to a dialectical struggle between Eros, the life force, and Thanatos, the death w i s h , then K l e i n proposed to suspend his o w n Ego w i t h the help of "magical honor [prestige]." Despite the fact that K l e i n h a d , like T i n g u e l y , tried to balance his ego- maniacal approach w i t h the introduction of chance a n d i r o n y , even his 1 3 0 Y v e s K l e i n "Discourse o n the Occasion of T i n g u e l y ' s E x h i b i t i o n i n Dusseldorf, January 1959" i n Yves Klein 1928-1962 A Retrospective H o u s t o n : Institute for the A r t s , Rice U n i v e r s i t y , 1982, p.233-234. 7 7 closest friends often failed to see the h u m o u r i n his w o r k . This was something w h i c h was m u c h more apparent i n Tinguely's w o r k . D u c h a m p w o u l d later comment o n Tinguely's h u m o u r : "I feel w i t h h i m a closeness and a rapport that I have felt w i t h few other artists.... H e has this great thing, a sense of h u m o r — something I have been preaching for artists a l l m y life. Painters u s u a l l y think they are the last w o r d i n d i v i n i t y ; they become like grands pretres. I believe i n h u m o r as a thing of great d i g n i t y , and so does T i n g u e l y . " 1 3 1 T i n g u e l y and K l e i n were i n the end quite different as K l e i n i n many ways took o n this 'divine' role of a painter to the n t h degree. F o r m a n y of the other N o u v e a u x Realistes, K l e i n ' s "extreme" r a d i c a l i n d i v i d u a l i s m became almost unbearable as he even went so far as to declare himself leader of their g r o u p . 1 3 2 A s Restany w o u l d say, "he d i d n ' t paint to paint, but to reveal his truth....To grasp it, one has to ...enter into his g a m e . " 1 3 3 For the most part, K l e i n ' s game i n v o l v e d an embrace of a l l of the art w o r l d ' s inner truisms. A l t h o u g h this game was u s u a l l y p l a y e d w i t h a D u c h a m p i a n tongue- in-cheek attitude, b y the late-fifties it had developed into an intricate labyrinth of myths tied not o n l y to the art w o r l d but also to associations w i t h 1 3 1 C a l v i n Tomkins The Bride and the Bachelors: Five Masters of the Avant-Garde: Duchamp, Tinguely, Cage, Rauschenberg, Cunningham New York: Penguin Books, 1981 (orig. 1965), p. 168. ^ ^ A r m a n has commented on Yves Klein's "big ego" did get in the way of a unified movement, but this was not the only problem keeping them together: "Klein excommunicated Restany in the same Surrealist manner experienced earlier by Andre Breton by his peers. Now, remember, the New Realists was made up of three groups of artists: the Parisians, or poster artists; the Swiss, including Jean Tinguely, Daniel Spoerri, and by association to Tinguely, Niki de Saint Phalle; and the Nicois, to which Klein tacked on Martial Raysee. Raysse did not really fit in with the group at the beginning. There was a big brouhaha about him. The poster artists, especially Raymond Hains, did not want to accept Raysse because they were not familiar with his work. They went to the attic of the house where Martial lived to see his work and they shouted, "This is Surrealism not New Realism. We do not accept it!' This turned into a heated discussion and Klein struck Hains. The movement was dissolved twenty minutes later, after everyone had signed the manifest by Restany stating New Realism equals new perspectives and approaches to the real." Interview with Arman in Hapgood, Susan Neo-Dada: Redefining Art 1958-62 New York: The American Federation of Arts in association with Universe Publishing, 1994, p.108. 1 3 3 Q u o t e d in Thomas McEvilley "Yves Klein: Conquistador of the Void" Yves Klein 1928-1962 A Retrospective: Houston: Institute for the Arts, Rice University, 1982, p.20. 7 8 the M a s o n i c Rosicrucian O r d e r of Saint Sebastian — o n l y by d y i n g (and w i t h a lot of help from the art market) i n 1962 w o u l d K l e i n be elevated into the p o s i t i o n of Sainthood. Despite expected questions and quarrels w i t h i n a group of diverse "individuals" such as these, and despite his willingness to let K l e i n p l a y their "leader," Restany's salesman-like approach to the art w o r l d d i d h o l d them together to some degree b y p r o v i d i n g a significant international platform and exposure. O n February 12, 1961, Restany incorporated the F r a n c o - A m e r i c a n artist N i k i de Saint-Phalle into the group [fig. 36]. A s the first and o n l y w o m a n i n the group, the 'gun carrying' member Saint-Phalle must have h a d a difficult time putting u p w i t h the general patriarchal structure of the group, and the misogynist activities of K l e i n i n particular. By this time Saint-Phalle was l i v i n g w i t h T i n g u e l y w h o m she first met i n 1956. The occasion that triggered her i n c l u s i o n into the N o u v e a u x Realistes was her spectacular p r o d u c t i o n of n e w w o r k i n v o l v i n g e m b e d d i n g cans of spray paint and s m a l l p o p or soup containers (filled w i t h l i q u i d paint) into plaster o n w o o d w h i c h w o u l d subsequently be fired at w i t h a rifle, either b y herself or an i n v i t e d audience member, p r o d u c i n g the effect of a bleeding or an abstract expressionist p a i n t i n g [fig. 37]. If before the shooting these unexpressed assemblages resembled Jean Fautrier's i n f o r m e l Hostages, afterwards, they made a s t r i k i n g reference to N e w Y o r k school abstraction a l a Jackson P o l l o c k . T h r o u g h the r i t u a l act of shooting these figures, t h r o w - a w a y consumer culture was transformed into the latest h i g h art currency. M a s q u e r a d i n g as a tomboy w i t h i n Restany's arsenal of D u c h a m p i a n bachelors, N i k i aimed her phallic g u n at her o w n abstracted forms of Self. 7 9 T h r o u g h this transformative act, Saint-Phalle not o n l y staged her o w n passage from her previous career as a m o d e l to artist, but catapulted herself into the international art w o r l d of the 1960s. A s early as 1959, Saint-Phalle had been introduced to w o r k b y Jasper Johns, W i l l e m de K o o n i n g , Jackson P o l l o c k and Robert Rauschenberg at the Musee d ' A r t M o d e r n e de la V i l l e de Paris. A m a l g a m a t i n g these different approaches into her o w n h y b r i d iconography consisting of targets, drips, disgarded objects and rhetorical 'actions,' Saint-Phalle set up a representational dialogue i n w h i c h her o w n gendered and sexualized identity c o u l d challenge the m y t h of masculinity dominant not o n l y i n Abstract Expressionism but also i n Restany's army of artists. L i k e Johns and Rauschenberg, Saint-Phalle w o u l d a r m herself not o n l y w i t h artistic tropes, but also w i t h a D u c h a m p i a n tongue-in-cheek wit. Pontus H u l t e n seems to have appreciated Saint-Phalle's strategy considerably more than Restany d i d . Introduced to her by T i n g u e l y i n 1960, H u l t e n d e c i d e d to include Saint-Phalle i n the most significant e x h i b i t i o n he was w o r k i n g o n to that date. Since being h i r e d o n the staff of M o d e r n a Museet, H u l t e n h a d been busy p l a n n i n g a large scale 'thematic' exhibition of contemporary international art to f o l l o w the f o r m and function of his 1954 e x h i b i t i o n Le Mouvement at Galerie Denise Rene. T h i s larger e x h i b i t i o n was g o i n g to give Stockholm's new m u s e u m its real kick-start. Rorelse i konsten (Movement in Art) opened i n S t o c k h o l m i n M a y of 1961 w i t h a w o r k i n g committee consisting of the museum's energetic docent C a r l o Derkert, D a n i e l 8 0 Spoerri, and B i l l y K l i i v e r w h o under H u l t e n ' s s u p e r v i s i o n organized 230 art works by 72 artists to be i n c l u d e d i n M o d e r n a Museet's first b l o c k b u s t e r . 1 3 4 A s this first chapter has s h o w n , by 1961 M o d e r n a Museet h a d been equipped w i t h a director deeply entrenched i n continental p h i l o s o p h i c a l and aesthetic discourses, a l l o w i n g S w e d i s h art and its public to confidently engage w i t h a broader international art scene. If Sweden had i n the fifties been looked up to for its rationalist and socialist embrace of time and space through art and architecture, i n the sixties we see a shift t o w a r d a v i s i o n of Sweden as an open space for an avant-garde art not o n l y tied to a consumer culture but a new sexualized liberal identity. The alternative artistic positions w h i c h defined themselves t h r o u g h anarchism and avant-gardism i n the fifties, w i l l i n the sixties merge w i t h larger institutional and p o l i t i c a l attempts to define culture. In this new context, M o d e r n a Museet p l a y e d an important role as it not o n l y pushed definitions and p u b l i c boundaries of contemporary art, but also created a forum w h i c h highlighted a v i t a l dialogue between the centre and the periphery. O f the ups and d o w n s to follow for M o d e r n a Museet and the artists i n question, Hulten's Movement in Art was to be the most optimistic s i g n of this n e w f o u n d collaborative environment. 1 3 4 A s i n A m s t e r d a m , the e x h i b i t i o n i n S t o c k h o l m broke attendance records w i t h seventy- thousand vistors. Derkert, the museum's docent, w o u l d from this point f o r w a r d become a crucial and p o p u l a r mediator between the m u s e u m a n d its p u b l i c ; k n o w n for his o d d b a l l tactics of teaching and h a n g i n g exhibitions such as h a n g i n g soft w o r k s to the left a n d h a r d w o r k s to the right as a s u b l i m i n a l association w i t h left a n d right w i n g politics. 8 1 C H A P T E R II M O V E M E N T IN A R T GOES POP C o n t e m p o r a r y art is often pessimistic, defeatist and passive; quite a natural phenomena, one c o u l d argue. But there is also another type of m o d e r n art. It is some of this that [the Movement in Art E x h i b i t i o n ] wants to show (dynamic, constructive, exciting, confusing, ironic, critical, j o k i n g , aggressive...). It is also definitely of our time. D u r i n g the 19th century, art exhibitions were visited b y the same curious and interested mass audience w h o are n o w g o i n g to automobile expos. But can they i n the end find what they seek? A p o l l i n a i r e wrote i n 1913 i n regards to M a r c e l D u c h a m p that o n l y an art w h i c h is freed from being v i e w e d aesthetically and w h i c h is i n v o l v e d w i t h energy as a pictorial material can stand a chance to 'reunite art w i t h people.' The camera is a p i c t u r e - m a k i n g machine w i t h i n everyone's reach. But there are also other art machines, more independent perhaps, w h i c h also speak to us and tells us w h o we are. They appear i n m a n y forms and material; sometimes they come close to science or disguise themselves as toys. K i n e t i c art has d u r i n g the 20th century developed i n m a n y different directions, taking at least as many v a r y i n g forms as static art. To use p h y s i c a l movement as a means of expression p r o v i d e s an u n b o u n d freedom (obundenhet) w h i c h art has l o n g strived for. Pontus Hulten introduction to Movement in Art Exhibition, 1 9 6 1 1 3 5 Let us consider that some opinionated persons, whose interests are i n fine peculiarities, agree to make some p u b l i c exhibitions. Besides people w h o can afford the expenses, there is also a need for those w h o can constantly come u p w i t h n e w inventions. But since too m a n y people i n charge w o u l d w i t h o u t doubt create chaos, I think it w o u l d be best to o n l y have two or three conspirators g i v e n special priveleges, a n d that the others are p a i d b y them or are received against certain conditions, or were designated certain assignments for a certain time, or for as l o n g as their supervisors find fit, or u n t i l one h a d satisfied them according to their investment. The people w h o w o u l d be engaged s h o u l d be painters, sculptors, clockmakers, etc.. M o r e o v e r , one c o u l d assign mathematicians, engineers, jugglers, charlatans, musicians, poets, book sellers, typographers, etchers and others, a l l eventually i n due time. 135 pontus H u l t e n " I n t r o d u c t i o n " Rorelse i konsten Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1961, p . l . 8 2 The exhibitions s h o u l d , for example, include magic lanterns...fireworks, water arts, ships i n strange forms,... rare plants. O d d and rare animals... C a v a l r y Excercises. M i n i a t u r e sea battles i n a canal. Rarely seen concerts. U n u s u a l instruments. Speaking trumpets. A hunt... One c o u l d have m a r c h i n g figures, i l l u m i n a t e d from inside, too be able to see what they became... A r t machines, such as the ones I have seen i n G e r m a n y . Demonstrations of b u r n i n g mirrors. Gregois de C a l l i n i c u s fire. A new k i n d of chess game w i t h m e n o n a theatre... F l y i n g fire dragons, etc. They w o u l d consist of o i l e d and painted paper. W i n d m i l l s w h i c h rotate w i t h a l l w i n d s . Boats w h i c h cruise against the w i n d . . . Attempts to make a glass crack by screaming... The use one c o u l d have of this k i n d of company is m u c h greater than one imagines, both for the general audience and the i n d i v i d u a l . . . . A n y o n e w h o h a d made an i n v e n t i o n or a thoughful construction w o u l d come there to earn their keep, make their i n v e n t i o n k n o w n , profit from it; the w h o l e w o u l d be a public address administration for inventors... A l l curious w o u l d come there... distinguished ladies w o u l d ask to be taken there (more than one time).... I almost forgot one last thing: one c o u l d also establish the A c a d e m y of P l a y there. O r more generally, a Pleasure A c a d e m y . . . . 1 3 6 Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz, 1675 A r t i n M o v e m e n t a n d Hulten's A c a d e m y of P l a y For Pontus H u l t e n , what better text c o u l d there have been than Leibniz's description of an A c a d e m y of P l a y to p h i l o s o p h i c a l l y g r o u n d Movement in Art, his o w n large scale anarchic exhibition? Together, Hulten's a n d L e i b n i z ' s texts read to sanction historically the embrace of a discursive chaos into the p u b l i c realms of A m s t e r d a m , S t o c k h o l m a n d H u m l e b a e k . A l o n g w i t h its u n u s u a l a n d impressive catalogue, the exhibition's i n a u g u r a t i o n at W i l l e m Sandberg's Stedelijk M u s e u m h a d a t w o f o l d function. First of a l l , it anchored H u l t e n ' s v i s i o n of a triangular institutional l i a i s o n between M o d e r n a Museet, the Stedelijk, a n d K n u d 1 3 6 G o t t f r i e d W i l h e l m v o n L e i b n i z i n " D r o l e de pensee touchant une n o u v e l l e Sorte d e representation" [ A n U n u s u a l Idea R e g a r d i n g a N e w F o r m of Representation] p u b l i s h e d i n journal des Scavans 25 Oct. 1675 and quoted i n H u l t e n , et al. Rorelse i konsten S t o c k h o l m : M o d e r n a Museet, 1961, p.2. 8 3 Jensen's n e w l y opened L o u i s i a n a M u s e u m . Secondly, it a l l o w e d H u l t e n to introduce his i n d i v i d u a l i s t i c anarchist convictions into a status quo liberal public sphere i n Sweden. A s H u l t e n w o u l d later comment, "to s h o w it to an unprepared S w e d i s h p u b l i c at Stockholm's M o d e r n a Museet as its o w n product w o u l d have been too s h o c k i n g . " 1 3 7 A n o t h e r fact w h y the connection w i t h Sandberg's anarchic m u s e u m was so important was that it stood out as a particularly p o w e r f u l counter m o d e l to N e w Y o r k ' s M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t . A s H u l t e n p o i n t e d out i n his catalogue Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam besoker Moderna Museet Stockholm, a collection exchange between the two museums i n 1962, M o M A "may have come to existence before Sandberg arrived at the Stedelijk, but d i d not manage before the w a r to completely break d o w n the w a l l of money, elitism and great deal of snobbery w h i c h it has to thank its existence f o r . " 1 3 8 Since b e c o m i n g director of the m u s e u m i n 1945, Sandberg, trained as a typographer and graphic designer, had established a v i t a l discursive space for experimental music, dance, cinema, discussion, readings, demonsrtations, and art i n w h i c h emphasis was placed o n the contemporary rather than the p a s t . 1 3 9 H i s strong support of C o B r A , for example, emphasized for H u l t e n the possibility to m o b i l i z e rather than paralyze radical anarchist expressions w i t h i n an i n s t i t u t i o n that h a d an international s c o p e . 1 4 0 S i m i l a r i t y , K n u d i^Tpontus Hulten "Fern fragment ur Moderna Museets historia" in Granath, Olle and Nieckels, Monica eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: Moderna Museets Press, 1983, p.p.36. The risk factor in showing this radically individualist work in the context of a museum located in a country known for its social democratic embrace of collectivism. 1 3 8 p o n t u s Hulten Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam besoker Moderna Museet Stockholm. Stockholm: Moderna Museet, 1962, p.5. 1 3 9 M a f a l d a Spencer "Willem Sandberg: Warm Printing" Eye Vo.7 (Summer 1997), pp.70-77. 140per_oiof Ulvedt has confirmed and emphasized the important role played by Sandberg as a model for Hulten. Like Sandberg, Hulten would stress the importance of good catalogue designs 8 4 Jensen had inititiated an ambitious contemporary m u s e u m i n H u m b l e b a e k , Denmark, w h i c h opened i n 1958 w i t h a similar artistic v i s i o n . In a collaborative spirit, Stedelijk and the L o u i s i a n a i n v i t e d H u l t e n to organize Movement in Art. In A m s t e r d a m Bewogen Beweging (as Movement in Art w a s translated) broke attendance records w i t h an audience a l l too h a p p y to be physically able to participate i n m u c h of the art [fig. 38]. A s the first large scale international historical survey of kinetic art, the e x h i b i t i o n brought into contact a broad range of artistic v a l u e s . 1 4 1 A s T i n g u e l y biographer H e i d i E . V i o l a n d - H o b i has noted, this range was so broad that a "serious d i v i s i o n occurred among the contemporary artists i n c l u d e d i n the s h o w . " 1 4 2 M o s t noteworthy was the conflict "between the neo-dadaists and those i n c l i n e d to C o n s t r u c t i v i s m . T i n g u e l y ' s status as primus inter pares was a t h o r n i n the side of the Constructivist f a c t i o n . " 1 4 3 W h a t must have stood out as a distinct and posters to function as a communicative expansion of the museum's activities. Interview with Per-Olof Ultvedt. Lidingo, Sweden, June 10,1992. 1 4 1 Works by the following artists were represented (number of works in brackets): Yaacov Agam (12), Giovanni Anceschi (1), Jon Gunnar Arnason (1), Roy Ascott (1), Giacomo Balla (1), Hans Bellmer (2), Harry Bertoia (1), Davide Boriani (1), George Brecht (1), Robert Breer (3), Camille Bryen (1), John Burnside II (1), Pol Bury (5), Alexander Calder (32), Gianni Colombo (1) , William N . Copley (1), Siegfried Cremer (1), Carlo Cruz Diez (1), Narciso Debourg (1), Gabriele Devecchi (1), Marcel Duchamp (10), Raymond Duchamp-Villon (1), Viking Eggeling (2) , Enguerrand (2), Yolande Fievre (2), Naum Gabo (1), Herbert Gesner (1), Alberto Giacometti (3) , Rube Goldberg (4), Gloria Graves (1), Raymond Hains (1), Hans Hellstrom (1), Philippe Hiquily (1), Einar Hoste (1), Robert Jacobsen (1), Jasper Johns (1), Allan Kaprow (1), Yasuhide Kobashi (1), Gyula Kosice (1), Harry Kramer (3), Alfred Leslie (1), Walter Linck (3), El Lissitsky (1), Len Lye (1), Heinz Mack (1), Kasimir Malevich (1), Franck J. Malina (3), Enzo Mari (1), Marisol (1), Kenneth Martin (2), Lazlo Moholy-Nagy (1), Ira Moldow (1), Robert Muller (4), Bruno Munari (7), Jack Nelson (1), Erik-H. Olson (3), Julio Le Pare (1), Francis Picabia (3), Otto Piene (1), Robert Rauschenberg (1), Man Ray (10), George Rickey (1), Jose de Rivera (1), Diter Rot (7), Niki de Saint Phalle (1), Nicolas Schoffer (7), Jesus Raphael Soto (11), Richard Stankiewicz (1), Shinkichi Tajiri (2), Takis (4), Paul Talman (1), A . Van Tienen (1), Jean Tinguely (27), Luis Tomasello (1), Gunter Uecker (1), Per-Olof Ultvedt (4), Isabelle Waldberg (1), Stan Vanderbeck (1), Grazia Varisco (1), Robert Watts (2), Mary Vieira (1), Thomas Wilfred (1), Yvaral (1). 1 4 2 V i o l a n d - H o b i , p.50. l 4 3 I b i d . . 8 5 canonical reframing at the time, was Hulten's decision to insert a twenty- eight piece retrospective of Tinguely's w o r k w h i c h not o n l y dominated the m u s e u m entrance and its interior exhibition halls, but was matched only i n numbers by veteran artist A l e x a n d e r Calder's thirty-two w o r k s o n display. In contrast to C a l d e r ' s quietly p l a y f u l mobiles, T i n g u e l y ' s machines, along w i t h large w o o d e n contraptions by U l t v e d t , produced, through the participation and movement of the spectators, concrete music that was v e x i n g i n contrast to the more 'pure' or 'constructive' w o r k i n the show. The most insightful, although at times too literal, critique of the exhibition came from A m e r i c a n art critic George Rickey w r i t i n g for Arts Magazine. For h i m , Hu lten 's succes de scandale h a d managed to trick not just the exhibitions artists, but also its audience: Instead of the comprehensive and objective survey one m i g h t fairly expect of a famous m u s e u m i n such an international exhibition, what met the eye outside the front door i n A m s t e r d a m was a fifty-foot machine b y T i n g u e l y , i n the p o o l outside the back door, a twenty-five foot fountain b y T i n g u e l y , and o n the title page of the catalogue... none other than — y o u guessed it — Tinguely. N o r is that a l l : inside was a complete gallery of T i n g u e l y pure, and another gallery of T i n g u e l y m i x e d half-and-half w i t h others. The catalogue listed twenty-eight Tinguely's a n d — noble gesture! — twenty-nine Calders (out of w h i c h twenty were very small).... O f seventy-five contemporary exhibitors, forty-five, some of w h o m are world-famous, were represented b y one w o r k each.... The fraudulent conversion of this international to a v i r t u a l one-man s h o w is scandalous enough. But worse yet is the h i g h h a n d e d and erroneous i m p l i c a t i o n that neo-Dada w o r k s ( w h i c h h a p p e n sometimes also to move, though m a n y i n the e x h i b i t i o n emphatically do not!) must be accepted as the characteristic and important aspect of contemporary kinetic a r t . 1 4 4 1 4 4 G e o r g e Rickey "The Kinetic International" Arts Magazine (September 1961), p.16 (16-21). 8 6 But as Rickey apparently realized, it was too late to put a stop o n Hulten's "trick" as he had already managed to elevate T i n g u e l y and so called "neo- Dada" into the canon of m o d e r n art by s h o w i n g at the reputable Stedelijk museum. A s he was even forced to admit, " H u l t e n is an historian ... and i n that role a good one. This shows i n the pains he has taken to assemble a thorough documentation of kinetic art over the last h a l f - c e n t u r y . " 1 4 5 In M a y of 1961, the same exhibition opened i n S t o c k h o l m as Rorelse i konsten, an event w h i c h domestically activated a l i v e l y p u b l i c debate about Sweden's role i n contemporary art but also catapulted M o d e r n a Museet into the bright spotlight of the international art w o r l d [fig. 3 9 ] . 1 4 6 H e l p i n g to initiate this discussion, Konstrevy, a m o n t h p r i o r to the e x h i b i t i o n , devoted its entire issue to N o u v e a u Realisme, i n v i t i n g D a n i e l Spoerri to w r i t e the i n t r o d u c t i o n : W i t h this selection of pictures, biographical information a n d texts, the S w e d i s h public is presented w i t h a group of artists w h o have existed independently for many years, but have recently p r o d u c e d a more cohesive association t h r o u g h the initiative of Pierre Restany w h o also named it. Besides the fact that their different experimental forms can be exceptionally distanced from each other, these artists agree o n two points: the i n t r o d u c t i o n of raw reality into their w o r k a n d the avoidance of essentializing i n d i v i d u a l creation. W i t h reality they mean the w o r l d that surrounds us, but instead of c o p y i n g a la trompe l ' o e i l i n two dimensions (ie. an abstraction), they are h a p p y to expose it and have it expose itself. The consequence of this idea is that everything can be v i e w e d as an art work.... The v i e w e r finds himself standing eye to eye w i t h everyday reality w h i c h s u d d e n l y forces h i m to discover this through the perspective of an artistic w i t n e s s . 1 4 7 1 4 5 I b i d . , p.18. 1 4 6 T h i s debate extended b e y o n d the m u s e u m a n d art journals and into the pages of N e w Left literary journals l i k e Bonniers Litterdra Magasin, newspapers s u c h as Dagens Nyheter, Stockholmstidningen, Svenska Dagbladet, Aftonbladet, Expressen, as w e l l as r a d i o . 1 4 7 D a n i e l S p o e r r i "Les N o u v e a u x Realistes: E n sarnmanstallning av D a n i e l S p o e r r i " Konstrevy no.2 (1961), p.42. 8 7 Spoerri's endorsement of an 'open' objectivity tied to collaborative subjectivities paralleled the structure of the exhibition at the m u s e u m . O p e n i n g its doors to what w o u l d turn out to be a rather naive readymade notion of "everything can be v i e w e d as art," M o d e r n a Museet, under the supervision of Spoerri and H u l t e n , set out to realize a v e r s i o n of L e i b n i z ' s 'academy of play.' Importantly, this academy w o u l d not o n l y reorient the history of m o d e r n art i n Sweden, but it w o u l d reconfigure the history of N o u v e a u Realisme, as it had p r e v i o u s l y been defined, to an international audience b y Pierre Restany. This was partially achieved b y i n t r o d u c i n g p r e v i o u s l y m a r g i n a l i z e d Scandinavian artists such as P e r - O l o f U l t v e d t and Hans N o r d e n s t r o m into his' international avant-garde. A n o t h e r means was to d o w n p l a y Restany's idea of a ' N e w Realism' i n favour of a broader category of 'open art.' In a strategic sense, Rorelse i konsten presented H u l t e n w i t h an opportunity to construct his o w n story of m o d e r n art a i m e d at securing a new contemporary direction centralized and read through a perspective from the margins. In order to 'unfix' existing canons of m o d e r n art, a n d introduce his o w n ideas concerning i n d i v i d u a l movements i n art, art history a n d contemporary studio practices, H u l t e n set out to strip them bare of what he saw as sentimentalizing r o m a n t i c i s m and i n s t i t u t i o n a l i z e d bourgeois illusions. A s was the case i n 1954 i n Paris, it was D u c h a m p w h o p r o v i d e d the standard measurements necessary to reinvent the wheel. W i t h an i n v i t a t i o n from the m u s e u m , D u c h a m p a r r i v e d i n Stockholm a few days p r i o r to the exhibition opening to put the finishing 8 8 touches to a number of replicas produced b y art critic U l f L i n d e of his readymades and the Large Glass [fig. 4 0 ] . 1 4 8 A few weeks later i n Paris, D u c h a m p w o u l d praise L i n d e ' s effort: U l f L i n d e , an art critic w h o isn't a painter at a l l , undertook to make an exact copy of La Mariee [The Large Glass] ... o r i g i n a l size and i n color, o n two b i g pieces of glass set one above the other, as i n mine, and he copied it exactly (without h a v i n g seen the Glass i n P h i l a d e l p h i a ) , u s i n g the same technique that I used. H e took three months to do what I had done i n eight years. A n d I think what he d i d is very good, because the replica is a full-size replica, and it gives enough of an echo of the real thing, very close, to the point that I signed it on the back and added pour copie conforme.1^9 A s the enthusiasm of this quote suggests, and as a photograph [fig. 41] s h o w i n g D u c h a m p comfortably seated and surrounded b y a committee of S w e d i s h avant-garde "bachelors" confirms, D u c h a m p was more than w i l l i n g to p l a y the maternal father figure for this N o r t h e r n a v a n t - g a r d e . 1 5 0 N o t o n l y that, D u c h a m p was also w i l l i n g to double as a k i n d of secular messiah — blessing his reproduced Readymades w i t h his signature touch. F r o m this point forward, M o d e r n a Museet became a sanctified avant-garde pilgrimage 1 4 8 W i t h Duchamp's permision and the assistance of Per-Olof Ultvedt, Linde had not only produced a replica of The Large Glass, but also Duchamp's Bicycle Wheel, Fresh Widow, Rotary Glass Plates, Bottle Rack, Fountain, and more. Perhaps even more than Hulten, Linde had since the late fifties become obsessed with Duchamp's work. Through the initiative of Ultvedt and Hulten, Linde helped introduce Duchamp to Sweden by publishing seminal texts on his work and bringing Robert Lebel's 1959 Duchamp exhibition from La Hune Bookshop in Paris to Stockholm's Bokkonsum bookstore in 1960. • 1 4 9 Qutoed in Francis M . Naumann's Marcel Duchamp: The Art of Making Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction Amsterdam: Ludion Press, 1999, p.219. The quote originates from Alain Jouffroy "Une revolution due regard: a propos de quelques peintres et sculpteurs contemporains" Paris, 1964. 1 5 0 T h e "bachelors" surrounding Duchamp in this picture represent various strategic positions within Sweden's art scene at the time. Included are the artist Oskar Reutersvard, the docent Carlo Derkert, the critic Ulf Linde and the curating director Pontus Hulten. No doubt flattered by the serious attention given to his work in Stockholm, and aware of the precariously low budget Hulten had to work with, Duchamp helped defray some of the cost of bringing him to Scandinavia by signing 125 copies of his Fluttering Hearts, a limited-edition serigraph issued in commemoration of the exhibition. 8 9 site — relics and a l l . 1 5 1 For the audience of a s m a l l m u s e u m i n Sweden, this must have seemed like a miracle. A l t h o u g h D u c h a m p had by the late fifties achieved cult status w i t h i n avant-garde circles elsewhere, w i t h his appearance i n S t o c k h o l m he h a d finally come out i n public. This was two years p r i o r to his first retrospective i n the U n i t e d States at the Pasadena M u s e u m of A r t i n L o s Angeles. Thomas C r o w , i n his West Coast (rather than East Coast) A m e r i c a n perspective o n the history of N e o - D a d a and Pop art, has argued that "nowhere else w o u l d the connection l i n k i n g practice to the scholarly recovery of D u c h a m p ' s inheritance be nearly as close" as at Walter H o p p s ' Los Angeles exhibition. W h i l e s h e d d i n g a n e w light o n C a l i f o r n i a , he unfortunately casts yet another shadow o n the activities we have witnessed o c c u r r i n g i n Scandinavia. F r o m m y perspective, D u c h a m p had as early as 1961 received close p h i l o s o p h i c a l scrutiny and a considerable artistic f o l l o w i n g i n S t o c k h o l m . 1 5 2 A s w e w i l l see, the Pasadena exhibition w o u l d i n fact benefit greatly from the k n o w l e d g e and replicas accumulated by U l f L i n d e . 1 5 3 1 5 1 U l t v e d t had already in the fifties made a "reduced" copy of the Large Glass for an exhibition in Stockholm. The 1961 copy was signed "Certifie pour copie conforme Marcel Duchamp Stockholm 1961" by Duchamp himself. It could be argued that The Large Glass is the single most important piece in the Museum's vast collection of modern art. In May of 1992,1 "witnessed" the unveiling of a new, and "more precise" replica of the original copy. This copy was also produced by Linde, but this time it was authorized by Mrs. Tini Duchamp who was flown to Stockholm in place of her late husband. After this unveiling the copy was sent to Bonn, Germany where it was on loan for five years while Moderna Museet in Stockholm was being rebuilt. Thus, today the museum has two copies of the Large Glass, one that stays on site and one that travels. Duchamp's aura seems still very much alive and well. IS^Thomas Crow The Rise of the Sixties: American and European Art in the Era of Dissent New York: Harry N . Abrams, 1996, p.84. Crow's account of the fifties and sixties is significant in that it shifts the vantage point from which to read this history from New York to Los Angeles. While I find his position interesting and noteworthy, Crow's account is still limited by resources that are in the end very centred in the United States. Working in Vancouver, Canada, and utilizing archives in Stockholm, Sweden, my account aims to strike up a dialogue in tension with writers such as Crow, Benjamin Buchloh, Cecile Whiting, and others. i ^ T h i s is evident by the fact that Linde wrote the major text for Walter Hopps' exhibition catalogue. By 1961 Linde had written a series of interpretive texts on Duchamp's work for 9 0 B e s i d e s h i s m a n y articles o n D u c h a m p i n the S w e d i s h art p r e s s , L i n d e h a d i n 1960 p u b l i s h e d a s u r v e y o f m o d e r n art e n t i t l e d Spejare [Spies] w h i c h s o u g h t to d e f i n e " s o m e t h i n g other" [nagot annat] i n art t h a n that o f p u r e a b s t r a c t i o n : W h e n o n e d r i v e s the d o c t r i n e o f p u r e f o r m to its s h a r p e s t e d g e , o n e a r r i v e s at a c r i t i c a l p o i n t w h e r e o n e is either f o r c e d to a c c e p t that a n art w o r k is a p u r e t r i v i a l i t y , o r that the f o r m i n a p i c t u r e is n e v e r neutral [ o b e r o e n d e ] . T h a t is, the f o r m is a l w a y s r e a d as a s i g n . T h i s latter a l t e r n a t i v e is the o n l y o n e a c c e p t a b l e if w e w a n t to b e able to s p e a k a b o u t ' a r t . ' 1 5 4 L o o k i n g at art as a s e m i o t i c s y s t e m , L i n d e p r o p o s e d that b y u s i n g o n c e o w n c o n v e n t i o n s o n e c a n n o t o n l y alter the m e a n i n g o f s i g n s , b u t c o n t i n u e to p l a y a n e v e r e n d i n g g a m e o f r e p r e s e n t a t i o n : T h e s e t h o u g h t s c o m e c l o s e to [ L u d w i g ] W i t t g e n s t e i n ' s a n a l y s i s of v i e w i n g — b u t w e s h o u l d b e a w a r e that t h i s p h i l o s o p h e r ' s a r g u m e n t a r o u n d 'the d a w n i n g o f a n aspect' a l r e a d y e x i s t e d l o n g b e f o r e a n d w a s d e m o n s t r a t e d b y the p e c u l i a r D u c h a m p a n d h i s r e a d y - m a d e s — r i g o r o u s l y d i s c u s s e d i n The Green B o x . 1 5 5 In Spejare, L i n d e m a d e a n a r g u m e n t for a n a n t i - a e s t h e t i c v i e w o f art w h i c h rejects the " p r e t e n t i o u s n e s s " o f aesthetic j u d g m e n t w h i c h h e felt " r i s k s g e t t i n g s t u c k i n c o n v e n t i o n s w h i c h t h r e a t e n to s t e r i l i z e art t o d a y . " 1 5 6 C o n s i d e r i n g m o s t m o d e r n i s t t r a d i t i o n s " d r i e d u p " a n d artists l i k e V a s a r e l y Konstrevy, a magazine whose editors supported, to a large degree the activities of Moderna Museet. In the fall of 1961 they published an issue devoted to the art presented in Rorelse i konsten. Included was an interview with Duchamp by Linde, texts by John Cage and Oyvind Fahlstrom on Rauschenberg, and a review of the Museum of Modern Art's Art of Assemblage exhibition. As this issue of the magazine, along with every other issue at this time, suggests, there was a great deal of debate about Duchamp specifically, and contemporary international art in general. 1 5 4 U l f Linde Spejare Stockholm: Bonniers, 1960, p. 93. 1 5 5 I b i d . , p.94. 1 5 6 I b i d . . 9 1 "too serious," Linde proposed art more open to subjectivity which could escape both 'purism' and 'realism.'157 Important ingredient in this recipe was the irony, cynicism and silence he claimed to have found in artists like Picasso and Duchamp. What Spejare shows is that by the time Duchamp arrived in Stockholm in 1961, there had developed a substantial interest in and sophisticated discussion about his work. The activities around Duchamp at the Movement in Art exhibition not only provided a historical stability and public respectability, but also supplied local and international contingency . with an avant-garde license to return to anarchic play. In as puerile a manner typographically possible, the invitation card for Rorelse i konsten set the tone for the exhibition's reception, promising a "colossal party" consisting of anti-fireworks by Tinguely and Ultvedt, a boat cruise, theatre, drama, music, a formal dinner and most prominently, the production of abstract drawings by Tinguely's Meta-Matic #17. The exhibition as a whole included works by artists from twenty different countries ranging in scope from turn-of-the-century avant-gardism to contemporary works made on sight by, for example, Rauschenberg, Tinguely, Kaprow, Calder and Spoerri. For her part, Niki de Saint-Phalle produced the "world's largest abstract painting" by having the visitors dance on top of paint pellets carefully 1 5 7 I b i d . . 9 2 0 sandwiched between an area rug and a c a n v a s . 1 5 8 The f o l l o w i n g day, artists such as Rauschenberg collaborated i n shooting a number of her new paintings at a nearby quarry [fig. 42]. O v e r a l l the exhibition projected a great deal of o p t i m i s m for an international realignment of the post-war avant- garde into a " d y n a m i c understanding of art and life" (as H u l t e n w o u l d r e c o l l e c t ) . 1 5 9 The w a l l s of the traditional m u s e u m h a d been b r o k e n d o w n (or at least opened up) w i t h site-specific w o r k p r o d u c e d for public spaces around the city of Stockholm. T i n g u e l y , for example, excecuted his Narva w h i c h was installed at the central p u b l i c square of Nybrokajen. There were also films screened, light plays activated, happenings and concerts performed. A s the visitor approached the m u s e u m entrance, h e / s h e was greeted by The Four Elements, a m o n u m e n t a l mobile b y C a l d e r w h i c h h a d o r i g i n a l l y been designed for the 1939 W o r l d ' s Fair [fig. 4 3 ] . 1 6 0 W i t h its organic metal forms shifting r h y t h m i c a l l y against each other, the vertical shapes rotated and broke against the o v e r a l l horizontality composition. Indeed, l i k e this metaphorical w o r k i n metal, the m u s e u m was t r y i n g to catch a s u d d e n gust of w i n d to propel its w a y out of a p r o v i n c i a l i z e d c u l t u r a l maelstrom. A s the poet A r t u r 1 5 8 R e c o u n t e c j D y BiUy Kliiver and Robert Rauschenberg in "Rorelse i konsten - en kombinerad minnesbild" in Granath, Olle and Nieckels, Monica eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: Moderna Museets Press, 1983, p.148. !5 9 Hulten has also pointed out that Moderna Museet had through exhibitions such as Rorelse i konsten managed to "develop a new public who wished that the museum would continue in the proposed direction — ie. offer a broad offering of information in regards to contemporary art.... This new public was younger than the traditional museum going public, it was curious, innocent, dynamic, and it represented all the best things from the optimistic side of the sixties." Pontus Hulten "Det lilla museets stora roll" in Granath and Nieckels, eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: Moderna Museets Press, 1983, p.39. 1 6 0 B i l l y Kliiver and Robert Rauschenberg "Rorelse i konsten—en kombinerad minnesbild" in Granath, Olle and Nieckels, Monica eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: Moderna Museets Press, 1983, p.146. Hulten had been given the miniature model of this a decade earlier and asked Calder for the permission to actualize it in Stockholm. The large-scale sculpture was publically displayed outside the museum entrance until 1997 when questions arose regarding Calder's permission. 9 3 L u n d k v i s t w o u l d observe i n his r e v i e w of the e x h i b i t i o n for Bonniers Litterdra Magasin (BLM), C a l d e r ' s mobiles stood to represent the meeting place between organic and geometric abstraction i n a poetic, passive acceptance of the w a y interpretive winds b l o w , u n l i k e T i n g u e l y ' s machines w h i c h adhered to: the c h i l d w i t h i n all of us w h i c h plays w h i l e it destroys — creates through negation. O r they ignite a spark of i n d i g n a t i o n from the viewer, wake restricted temptations to erupt and devastate. Perhaps they speak of a secret, stored up hatred against machines, i n their misunderstood roles as tyrants and seductive symbols, or of a first seed to those machine storms w h i c h i n a g i v e n situation can break out u n c o m p a r a b l y more violent than those w h i c h appeared d u r i n g E n g l a n d ' s i n d u s t r i a l r e v o l u t i o n . 1 6 1 In m a n y w a y s , Rorelse i konsten acted l i k e a s u d d e n gust of w i n d w h i c h broke against the calm w h i c h had persisted a r o u n d the artistic activities i n Sweden to date. A s a result of this Movement in Art, debates w o u l d intensify a r o u n d the new international 'open' art to such a degree that S t o c k h o l m found itself centrally located w i t h i n a cross-Atlantic c u l t u r a l discourse. W h i l e the vernissage and exhibition broke attendance records a n d h a d the effect of successfully establishing a new, younger and energetic audience tied to an emerging international y o u t h culture, not everyone was h a p p y . H u l t e n has recalled that this L e i b n i z i a n orgy of mechanical entropy (many of the events p l a n n e d for the opening, such as T i n g u e l y ' s fireworks, failed), 1 6 1 A r t u r Lundkvist "Rorelse i konsten" BLM no.7 (September 1961), p.539. (pp.538-540). It is also worth noting how close this description sounds to Max Stirner's individual: "In childhood liberation takes the direction of trying to get to the bottom of things, to get at what is T âck of things; therefore we spy out the weak points of everybody, for which, it is well known, children have a sure instinct; therefore we like to smash things, like to rummage through hidden corners, pry after what is covered up or out of the way, and try what we can do with everything." Stirner, p.9. 94 brought "thunderous criticism" from the national n e w s p a p e r s . 1 6 2 Some of the voices w h i c h objected the most came from S w e d i s h modernist artists such as Sven E r i x s o n , an expressionist w h o felt that the e x h i b i t i o n was derogatory, not o n l y for the m u s e u m , but for art i n g e n e r a l . 1 6 3 E v e n more serious was the attempt b y the N a t i o n a l M u s e u m ' s chief superintendant C a r l Nordenfalk to close d o w n the exhibition altogether. In the end he was satisfied w i t h the r e m o v a l of a w o r k by Robert M i i l l e r ' s The Bicyclist's Widow [fig. 44], a w o r k consisting of a stationary bicycle whose seat is repetitively penetrated by a phallic object w h e n put into u s e . 1 6 4 But the nastiest assault against the M u s e u m was launched at the annual meeting of the S w e d i s h R o y a l A c a d e m y of A r t two weeks after the exhibition opening. In a speech delivered b y art historian Rabbe E n c k e l l entitled "Icarus and the Tightrope W a l k e r (in defence of classicism)," M o d e r n a Museet was accused of p r o m o t i n g art politics (konstpolitik) rather than 'art.' O b s e r v i n g that "today, the artist stands freer than ever before against tradition," E n c k e l l w a r n e d that the contemporary artist was also "more dependent o n aesthetic judgements w h i c h , i n the name of progress, demand h i m to be contemporary and n e w . " 1 6 5 For E n c k e l l , this external pressure posed a threat to the artist: "Radicals today have a noticeable 1 6 2 H u l t e n (1983), p.36. 1 6 3 I b i d . . 1 6 4 I b i d . . This work had also caused a great deal of trouble in Amsterdam. As George Rickey observed in his review for Arts Magazine, "In Amsterdam the vice squad was sent for by an outraged visitor, and, as reported in the city's Her Vaterland, 'an obscene instrument was removed from the exhibition.... Civil charges are being brought against the director of the museum, Mr. Sandberg.' The instrument was Robert Mueller's sculpture, The Widow of the Bicyclist. A review, headed 'Circus in Arts and Crafts,' said: "The Stedelijk Museum has finally succeeded in becoming the madhouse it has been called many times before.' Another described the bliss, in a museum, of being allowed at last to touch everything. Attendance exceeded even the record of 'Family of Man.' Rickey, p.16. 1 6^Rabbe Enckell "Ikaros och lindansaren (ett forsvar for klassicismen) BLM 31 No.7 (Summer 1962), p.550. (550-554) 95 position. Connoisseurs and critics are g i v i n g advance applause to art w o r k w a i t i n g to be executed." W h i l e there was some truth to this, Enckell's position failed to acknowledge arguments from the other side of the "open art" debate. In fact, Enckell's reluctance to accept the k i n d of post-war avant- garde offered up o n display by M o d e r n a Museet presents us w i t h a similar, albeit more reactionary, argument to that of future critics of this w o r k , such as Peter Burger. In his controversial Theory of the Avant-Garde (1984), Burger argues against what he calls the "neo-avant-garde," an artistic phenomena i n w h i c h he includes artists as diverse as D a n i e l Spoerri to A n d y W a r h o l . For Burger, artists w o r k i n g i n this neo-avant-garde m a y have critical intentions, but ultimately their claims do n o t h i n g but "institutionalize the avant-garde as art and thus negate genuinely avant-gardiste i n t e n t i o n s . " 1 6 6 H o l d i n g a rather romanticized n o t i o n of an avant-garde, Burger sets out to p r y apart this neo- avant-garde from an historical avant-garde w h i c h had the ability to shock through originality. W h i l e not sharing Burger's nostalgia for a once critical avant-garde such as D a d a , E n c k e l l d i d differentiate between a pre and post- w a r avant-garde: This understanding and attention [given b y an institution such as M o d e r n a Museet] was unthinkable d u r i n g the twenties w h e n the most radical art s t i l l bore the unpretentious, misunderstood, but honest, name " i n s a n i t y . " 1 6 7 1 6 6 p e t e r B u r g e r The Theory of the Avant-Garde trans. M i c h a e l S h a w M i n n e a p o l i s : U n i v e r s i t y of M i n n e s o t a Press, 1984 (originally p u b l i s h e d i n G e r m a n i n 1974), p.58. 1 6 7 K . G . H u l t e n " E n c k e l l s f o r v i r r i n g a r " BLM no.7 (September 1962), p.550 (550-554) 96 U s i n g the example of Yves K l e i n ' s 1960 photomontage Leap into the Void [fig. 45], E n c k e l l finds a v i s u a l demonstation of the k i n d of " d y n a m i c l e v i t a t i o n " contemporary artists and institutions try to maintain. FOr h i m , the hubris represented by the post-war avant-garde is n o t h i n g but a m i s g u i d e d o p t i m i s m i n the future; a senario, he points out, that the classics understood through the story of Icarus w h i c h they represented as a 'tragic' fall. This speech d i d not go unnoticed or unanswered for long. D u r i n g the summer of 1962, Bonniers Litterara Magazine, the mouthpiece for a g r o w i n g N e w Left i n Sweden (published by A l b e r t Bonniers F o r l a g ) 1 6 8 presented its readers w i t h a translation of Leo Steinberg's defence of " C o n t e m p o r a r y A r t and the P l i g h t of its P u b l i c , " followed i n the next issue w i t h a transcription of Enckell's speech along w i t h a critical response from H u l t e n w h o at this point i n time was b l i n d l y optimistic about the museum's 'leap' into this new open territory. A s k i n g if art academies must always function as reactionary institutions, H u l t e n presented his counter-argument: C a n one never change this? This is the second year i n a r o w that dirt has been t h r o w n at m o d e r n art from the speaker throne of the R o y a l A c a d e m y ' s annual meeting. I have read E n c k e l l ' s speech but not understood m u c h of it. It seems to me to be full of contradictions.... I felt a little sick, perhaps because of m y inexperience, this was, after a l l , not the k i n d of article one usual bothers to r e a d . 1 6 9 1 6 8 A great deal of support for the activities in the museum came from the Bonnier family who, it should be mentioned, not only donated a great deal of their own collection of modern art to its permanent collection, but own(ed) the daily newspaper Dagens Nyheter and the evening tabloid Expressen who gave the it much needed public exposure. The political affiliations between the Swedish press and political affiliations such as the Swedish Trade Union Confederation (L.O.) and the Social Democratic Party is discussed in Stig Hadenius Swedish Politics During the Twentieth Century: Conflict and Consensus Stockholm" Svenska Institutet, 1997, p.94. 1 6 9 K . G . Hulten "Enckells forvirringar" BLM no.7 (September 1962), p.554. 9 7 H u l t e n points out that a central thought i n Enckell's speech seems to be "the act of creation and the role of the audience's participation i n m a k i n g the art w o r k a p p e a r . " 1 7 0 If he can c l a i m this, H u l t e n charged, h o w can he at the same time entitle his talk "a defense of classicism:" W h a t does he mean by classicism? H e says that 'it is the idea and life decision as to where the essential are to be found w h i c h means the most.' It becomes just as clear w h e n one speaks of 'quality.' Is, for example, Ingres 'classic'? Is Rauschenberg 'classic'? U l f L i n d e , w h o E n c k e l l attacks has recently s h o w n i n an article h o w close Ingres and Rauschenberg, the originator of 'The M a d e Bed,' are to each other and h o w m u c h they have i n c o m m o n i n form, u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the h u m a n and i n their relation to objects i n the w o r l d . H o w does Icarus compare to a Sputnik? Does it become 'classic' w h e n one w r i t e about Icarus but not w h e n one writes about Sputnik?.... The sentence that surprised me the most reads as follows: 'It is the past, not the contemporary, that creates the largest space.' Isn't it, after a l l , the future w h i c h presents us w i t h the most s p a c e ? 1 7 1 By the time this defense was p u b l i s h e d , M o d e r n a Museet h a d fortunately managed to secure a y o u n g p u b l i c h u n g r y for change and movement w i t h i n c u l t u r a l institutions. After a l l , i n an economically prosperous c o u n t r y whose y o u t h culture was being defined between A m e r i c a n c o n s u m e r i s m a n d socialist democracy, M o d e r n a Museet, u n l i k e other state r u n art institutions at this time, appeared to be v i t a l l y engaged i n popular culture. Internally, however, M o d e r n a Museet was t r y i n g to set i n m o t i o n a critical awareness of pop culture. It was never interested i n a wholesale embrace of it. Stockholm's N e w Y o r k C o n n e c t i o n a n d The A r t of Assemblage 1 7 0 E n k e l l , p.555. 1 7 1 K . G . H u l t e n "Enckells f o r v i r r i n g a r " BLM no.7 (September 1962), p.554. 9 8 N o t o n l y d i d Rorelse i konsten entice a large y o u n g audience to the m u s e u m , but the e x h i b i t i o n p r o v i d e d a contemporary p o s i t i o n from w h i c h H u l t e n c o u l d continue to b u i l d bridges. Between M a r c h and M a y 1962, H u l t e n presented 4 Amerikanare, an e x h i b i t i o n devoted to paintings, sculptures and combines b y Jasper Johns, A l f r e d Leslie, Robert Rauschenberg and R i c h a r d Stankiewicz [fig. 46]. O r g a n i z e d alongside this e x h i b i t i o n was The New American Cinema — New York Film, featuring c o n t e m p o r a r y e x p e r i m e n t a l avant-garde films by Leslie, Robert Frank, Jonas M e k a s , John Cassavetes, Shirley C l a r k e , and others. To a d d to these activities, John Cage was i n v i t e d to the m u s e u m to give a talk ("Where are we going? and what are we doing?") for the presentation of New American Music and Poetry. F r o m this itinerary we can see that M o d e r n a Museet h a d w i t h i n a very short p e r i o d of time strengthened its ties to a N e w Y o r k avant-garde. W h i l e d r a w i n g a large audience, and despite the alternative nature of these activities, for many Swedes these activities read as an i n v a s i o n of A m e r i c a n activities. A s c o u l d be expected, this w o u l d initiate a heated p u b l i c d e b a t e . 1 7 2 In his catalogue essay for 4 Amerikanare, H u l t e n once again took a i m at E n c k e l l and other critics' attempts to position his post-war avant-garde as a d i l u t e d and repetitive form of Dada: But it is really just as unrealistic to speak of "neo-dada" (nydadaism) as to speak of, for example, "neo-parents" (nyforaldrar). D a d a was neither a style nor a sport. D a d a i s m d i d not exist o n formal grounds, even less so than, for example, cubism; it is a w a y of seeing, a v i s u a l i t y and for that matter, a v i s u a l i t y o n w h i c h a l l current aesthetics is based. One can l 7 2 A s k e d b y a reporter from Dagens Nyheter about the risk to s h o w the p u b l i c this n e w w o r k from the U n i t e d States, H u l t e n r e p l i e d that " W e t h i n k it is unnecessary to w a i t twenty years. After the second w o r l d w a r the biggest adventures i n v i s u a l art have p l a y e d themselves out i n the U n i t e d States; the most interesting p a i n t i n g takes place i n N e w Y o r k . " M e r a M a l i c e "konstigheter: N e w y o r k a r e t i l l M o d e r n a museet" Dagens Nyheter (13 February, 1962), p.2. 9 9 therefore not speak of a "neo-dada" because dada never ceased to f u n c t i o n . 1 7 3 But neither d i d H u l t e n want to label these contemporary artists " D a d a . " D u c h a m p , he felt, had done away w i t h the "art vs. anti-art" p r o b l e m w h i c h represented a c o m m o n g r o u n d for Dada: The Dadaists wanted to make anti-art and thereby crush traditional art. D u c h a m p makes his w o r k necessitate that "everything is art," and hereby dissolves the problem. It is from this new g r o u n d that Rauschenberg starts out. Rauschenberg says that he wants his artwork to teach us to v i e w everything around us artistically . But h o w does this happen? H e uses magic like a l l artists. H e takes an object and gives it new meaning, says its something else, and wakes our interest through a slippage. H e is a magician w h o transforms what w e see. But he is simultaneously the magician's assistant w h o comes out of the audience and delivers the utensils. A l l of w h i c h look l i k e the most regular of objects. 1 7 4 But not everyone likes a magic trick. Just as Rorelse i konsten h a d been heavily c r i t i c i z e d , 4 Amerikanare d i d not escape skepticism. W h i l e the m u s e u m as a w h o l e was accused of w e a r i n g the Emperor's n e w clothes, the w o r k that bore the brunt of criticism and indeed became the "scapegoat" i n the e x h i b i t i o n was Rauschenberg's Monogram [fig. 4 7 ] w h i c h a professor A r o n Borelius from L u n d used p u b l i c l y o n radio as an example of w h y m o d e r n art at the m u s e u m s h o u l d be b o y c o t t e d . 1 7 5 H a d he actually v i s i t e d the exhibition he w o u l d have realized that the artwork he had described as a " l i v e goat" was not o n l y taxidermied, but combined w i t h other discarded objects i n a complex allegorical c o m p o s i t i o n . 1 7 3 P o n t u s H u l t e n " F o r o r d " 4 Amerikanare S t o c k h o l m : M o d e r n a Museet, 1962, p.6. 1 7 4 I b i d . , p.7. 1 7 5 H u l t e n (1983), p.40 1 0 0 It was not o n l y the m u s e u m staff w h o was busy defending its institution against these ignorant, but harmful, p u b l i c attacks. Rauschenberg had already at the opening of Rorelse i konsten been confronted by reactions from audience participation i n combines such as Black Market and Door [fig. 48], but he treated this w i t h a great degree of i n d i f f e r e n c e . 1 7 6 B i l l y K l i i v e r described a situation d u r i n g the opening w h e n Rauschenberg was approached by a y o u n g w o m a n w h o , not k n o w i n g w h i c h w o r k was his, had pointed to his Door and said: "That one c o u l d have been done b y Ingmar Johansson" A s K l i i v e r tells the story: I saw Bob rush towards the painting w i t h a p e n i n his h a n d and he started to write i n the m i d d l e of the canvas: 'This is Johansson's...' The g i r l j u m p e d at h i m and pushed h i m aside. ' Y o u can't do that!' Bob d i d n ' t answer and they continued w a l k i n g . W h e n I l o o k e d at the p a i n t i n g the next day I saw that he h a d added the w o r d ' p a i n t i n g ' w i t h another p e n . 1 7 7 This Brechtian moment i n w h i c h the controlled intention of the artist was meant to give w a y to the participation of the audience was triggered as m u c h b y Rauschenberg's 'open' art as b y a S w e d i s h - A m e r i c a n encounter that h a d just taken place i n the U n i t e d States. G a i n i n g even greater international p u b l i c i t y than H u l t e n ' s exhibition, the S w e d i s h boxer Ingmar Johansson h a d just failed i n his attempt to defend the W o r l d H e a v y W e i g h t C h a m p i o n s h i p against F l o y d Patterson; an event described b y Life Magazine as a "historic ^^Black Market was made especially for the exhibitions in Amsterdam, Stockholm and Humlebaek and consisted of a painting attached to a suitcase lying on the floor, inside the open suitcase four objects had been placed with four rubber stamps with texts "Rauschenberg 1,2,3,4" and a stamp pad. According to instructions (written in various languages), the audience should/could choose an object and exchange it for an object of their own choosing. By opening night at the Stedelijk all the objects were gone and none replaced. 1 7 7 K l i i v e r quoted from a conversation between Billy Kluver and Robert Rauschenberg in "Rorelse i konsten — en kombinerad minnesbild, in Moderna Museet 1958-1983 Stockholm: Moderna Museet, 1983, p.148. 1 0 1 thriller" [fig. 4 9 ] . 1 7 8 L i k e this title bout, Movement in Art h a d engaged i n a bout of its o w n — the battle of the avant-garde. Stepping into center r i n g of international art from one s m a l l corner of the w o r l d , M o d e r n a Museet found its anarchic direction challenged by N e w Y o r k ' s M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t w h i c h i n October of 1961 opened its doors to The Art of Assemblage; a s i m i l a r l o o k i n g , but p h i l o s o p h i c a l l y different, p o s i t i o n i n g of contemporary art. Before we get to The Art of Assemblage, w e s h o u l d consider a few interesting collaborative off-shoots w h i c h had resulted i m m e d i a t e l y after Rorelse i konsten. After their trip to S t o c k h o l m , Robert Rauschenberg, Jasper Johns, Saint-Phalle, and T i n g u e l y were asked to take part i n a concert/performance by D a v i d T u d o r of John Cage's Variations II at the Theatre de l'Ambassade des Etats-Unis i n Paris [fig. 5 0 ] . 1 7 9 D u r i n g the event, Saint-Phalle shot her Tir de l'Ambassade Americaine, T i n g u e l y constructed a 'striptease machine' w h i c h lost a l l its various parts d u r i n g the performance u n t i l it was stripped bare to reveal the motor; Johns created a target made of roses (no doubt a homage to the F r a n c o - A m e r i c a n Gertrude Stein), w h i l e Rauschenberg w o r k e d o n a p a i n t i n g w h i c h the audience was kept from seeing. In this loaded context of the A m e r i c a n Embassy, each artist realized pictorially, or otherwise, a set of different socio-political attitudes towards the U n i t e d States' role i n E u r o p e . 1 8 0 W i t h international economics m o v i n g into 1 7 8 " p j c t u r e s Reveal Fight as a Historic Thriller" Life Magazine (March 24, 1961), p.148. 1 7 9 S e e Oyvind Fahlstrom's New York diary "En gata full av presenter" in Konstrevy no. 5-6 (1961), pp.176-181. l 8 0 W h i l e all these artists were in some way responding to the latest stage of capitalism (call it American capitalism), they were all negotiating their own very different identities through this socio-political and cultural landscape. Art historians such as Moira Roth and Kenneth Silver, for example, have argued that artists such as Johns, Rauschenberg and Cage were specifically trying to find a representational space in the gap between their own private social and sexual politics and a public life tied to the socio-economic reality of Cold War America. See, Moira Roth's Difference/Indifference: Musings on Postmodernism, Marcel Duchamp and John Cage Amsterdam: G+B Arts, 1998; and Kenneth Silver's "Modes of Disclosure: The 1 0 2 a distinctly A m e r i c a n capitalist phase, the consumer landscape was increasingly surveyed by different eyes and n e w intentions. Ten days after this " d i p l o m a t i c " staging of avant-garde art, Jeannine de G o l d s c h m i d t opened N i k i de Saint-Phalle's first one-woman e x h i b i t i o n , curated at her Galerie J. by her husband Pierre Restany. A g a i n , a set of Tir paintings were p r o d u c e d by the i n v i t e d audience w h i c h this time i n c l u d e d Johns, Rauschenberg, Leo Castelli, Jean Fautrier, Frank Stella, and others [fig. 51]. Saint-Phalle seems to have been particularly amused b y Jean Fautrier's interest i n her Tirs since they, i n m a n y ways, re-represented his Hostage series from the forties and f i f t i e s . 1 8 1 E v e n more significant for Saint-Phalle's immediate career was the interest p a i d to her w o r k by Robert Rauschenberg. B y n o w , Saint-Phalle and Rauschenberg h a d realized their shared contestation of the twin-towered bourgeois principles of autonomous art and expressive artist w h i c h extended into a sense of c o m m u n i t y and collaboration between other artists and Construction of Gay Identity and the Rise of Pop Art" in Hand-Painted Pop: American Art in Transition 1955-1962 Los Angeles: M o C A , 1993, pp.179-203. What is rarely discussed, and what my dissertation in the end touches on, is the very different sexual politics espoused by the Europeans involved in this dialogue. This, in the end, would lead to a decisive split in the international art community. 1 8 1 Saint-Phalle has recalled that: "An hour before the show opened an elderly man with a degenerate face came in and asked, "when can I shoot?" I explained he would have to wait a bit until we had finished hanging the show. "Why don't you come back in a little while?" "No, I'm not going to leave. I'm going to stay right here until I can shoot." Every ten minutes he would ask, "Can I shoot Now?" I finally got annoyed and went over quietly to Jeannine and implored, "Can't you find some nice way of getting rid of that guy. He's a nuisance." Jeannine declared, "Are you kidding? That is Fautrier!" I was a fan of Fautrier's work even though his preoccupation with paint and space were very far from mine. I came back to him and said, "O.K. you can start shooting." Later, when the crowd started arriving, he had difficulty giving up the gun. He kept shooting at the center and was trying to make one of his own paintings out of the shooting. When someone else was taking a shot he would scream, "The center, the center? Shoot at the center!'" Saint-Phalle quoted in Pontus Hulten's retrospective exhibition catalogue Niki de Saint Phalle Bonn: Verlag Gerd Harje, 1992, p.263. 1 0 3 curators w o r k i n g i n N e w Y o r k , Paris and Stockholm. For Saint-Phalle, the combine paintings by Robert Rauschenberg must have appeared to i n v o l v e similar aesthetic indifference t o w a r d material d r a w n from everyday life as her tir paintings a n d / o r T i n g u e l y ' s recycled meta-matics. C o n v e r s e l y , Rauschenberg seemed to have appreciated Saint-Phalle's ironic p l a y w i t h her Self as he went so far as to purchase one of her Tirs.182 One can say that a l l these artists h a d put a freeze frame around gestural abstraction w h i l e at the same time a d d i n g both a Brechtian and kinetic d i m e n s i o n to objective abstraction. Furthermore, they must have thought their interest i n D u c h a m p arrived from a m u t u a l understanding of artistic intentionality. The most direct D u c h a m p i a n gesture from Rauschenberg had, after a l l , come d u r i n g his stay i n Stockholm w h e n he sent off a telegram to his Parisian gallerist Iris Clert stating: "This is a portrait of Iris Clert if I say so—Robert Rauschenberg" [fig. 5 2 ] . 1 8 3 W i t h i n two years, it was their i n d i v i d u a l understandings of humor, play, and intentionality that w o u l d separate their projects. In October of that same year, shortly after their participation i n Bevaegelse i kunsten at the L o u i s i a n a (the final destination for the Movement in Art exhibition), these artists met u p o n the other side of the Atlantic to take part i n the Art of Assemblage e x h i b i t i o n o r g a n i z e d b y W i l l i a m Seitz at N e w Y o r k ' s M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t . O p e n i n g i n early October w i t h more 'academic' pretenses, this exhibition established an equally extensive history of some 252 heterogeneous w o r k s w h i c h fell under a 1 8 2 H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint Phalle B o n n : V e r l a g G e r d Hatje, 1992, p.288. 1 8 3 S u s a n H a p g o o d Neo-Dada: Redefining Art 1958-1962 N e w Y o r k : The A m e r i c a n Federation of A r t s , 1995, p.16. A s the title of this b o o k and e x h i b i t i o n suggests, the p r o b l e m w i t h most accounts of the p e r i o d a n d w o r k that I deal w i t h i n this dissertation is that they fail to complexify terms such as "Neo-Dada." T o give H a p g o o d some credit, her book does address the problematic nature of this term. Nonetheless she fails to reach a c o n c l u s i o n about the p o l i t i c a l and p h i l o s o p h i c a l differences that makes it such an a k w a r d label. 1 0 4 general category of a s s e m b l a g e . 1 8 4 A s art historian Rebecca Solnit has noted, the exhibition attracted considerable attention and controversy either because of its content or lack thereof. 1 8 5 A s Solnit suggests, Seitz was establishing an extensive history of assemblage techniques used i n the history of m o d e r n art i n order to pave an international a n d historical path for the distinctly N e w Y o r k p h e n o m e n o n that was soon to become k n o w n as P o p A r t . W i t h this agenda i n m i n d , Solnit suggests that the West Coast was relegated to the margins: Assemblage p a v e d the w a y for pop, and pop superseded it i n the hearts of N e w Y o r k dealers and curators. Casting about for a suitable successor to abstract p a i n t i n g i n the late fifties, they flirted w i t h art form a l l over the w o r l d — the Californians, the N o u v e a u x Realistes — then settled o n p o p , w h i c h emerged just about the time of the A r t of Assemblage exhibition. P o p was a N e w Y o r k phenomenon, w i t h precursors i n E n g l a n d , France, and the West Coast, and it seems N e w Y o r k was h a p p y to have the annointed avant-garde i n its o w n back y a r d again. After 1961, few M o M A curators came to C a l i f o r n i a l o o k i n g for new talent, a n d H e d r i c k , DeFeo, H e r m s , K i e n h o l z , Jess were left alone a g a i n . 1 8 6 1 8 4 A p p r o p r i a t i n g the t e r m i n o l o g y of Roger Shattuck's 1958 b o o k The Banquet Years, Seitz described the p h e n o m e n o n of assemblage as "the m o d e of juxtaposition" w h i c h he felt w a s an "appropriate vehicle for feelings of disenchantment w i t h the s l i c k i n t e r n a t i o n a l i d i o m that loosely articulated abstraction has tended to become, a n d the values that this situation reflects." W i l l i a m C . Seitz The Art of Assemblage N e w Y o r k : M o M A , 1961, p.87. l8!5Rebecca S o l n i t The Secret Exhibition: Six California Artists of the Cold War Era San Francisco: C i t y L i g h t Books, 1990, pp.83-88. 1 8 6 S o l n i t , p88. 1 0 5 But at least Seitz had showed an interest i n C a l i f o r n i a w h e n he was asked to curate his distinctly A m e r i c a n survey of contemporary international art. H e , like other A m e r i c a n curators, never d i d show u p i n S t o c k h o l m despite M o d e r n a Museet's interest i n activities occurring i n their back y a r d . For this reason, geographically m a r g i n a l i z e d artists such as U l t v e d t , N o r d e n s t r o m and Fahlstrom had to make their pilgrimage to the centre w h i c h h a d n o w shifted from Paris to N e w Y o r k . In 1961 the concrete poet, painter and performer O y v i n d F a h l s t r o m had emigrated to N e w Y o r k were he was not only p r o d u c i n g w o r k of his o w n , but participating i n H a p p e n i n g s and w r i t i n g art criticism for S w e d i s h journals and newspapers such as Konstrevy and Dagens Nyheter.187 In his review of The Art of Assemblage e x h i b i t i o n i n Konstrevy , F a h l s t r o m noted the h i s t o r i c i z i n g and stifling effect the exhibition had i n contrast to what he v i e w e d as the "path b r e a k i n g " potential of the Movement in Art e x h i b i t i o n : W h a t has been presented here is a l o n g w a y from b r e a k i n g n e w paths. The fact that this has not been made apparent is one of the exhibition's weaknesses. It is (like Seitz's book The Art of Assemblage) r i c h i n content a n d therefore important, but it is academic: historical, descriptive, chronological and somewhat meaningless. R a d i c a l seekers such as K a p r o w , D i n e , W h i t m a n and O l d e n b u r g are mentioned i n the text but left out of the exhibition. Europe is unevenly represented w i t h s m a l l objects b y T i n g u e l y and K a l i n o w s k i and n o t h i n g b y U l t v e d t . In this light, M o d e r n a Museet's Rorelse i konsten s u r p r i s i n g l y stands out as i n i t i a t i n g a n d 'up-to-date.' 1 8 8 C r i t i c a l responses to the exhibition were not l i m i t e d to disenfranchised Swedes w r i t i n g for m a r g i n a l art journals i n Scandinavia. W r i t i n g for Art ^ T h o m a s M . Messer, ed.. Oyvind Fahlstrom New York: The Salomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, 1982, p.110. 1 8 8 0 y v i n d Fahlstrom "Art of Assemblage" Konstrevy no.5-6 (1961), p. 227 (224-227). 1 0 6 News i n the U n i t e d States, Thomas B. Hess labeled M o M A a "collector- sanctifying bureaucracy [that] latches o n the past w i t h relish, tidies it u p , makes a package and covers it w i t h neat g u m m e d labels," and perceived The Art of Assemblage exhibition as a clever w a y for M o M A to legitimate a new vanguard by p l a c i n g it i n context w i t h more canonical art w o r k such as collages by Picasso, Schwitters, K l i n e , and D e K o o n i n g . 1 8 9 But i n the process, he claimed, "this exhibition seems censored" as the "healthy side of that release w h i c h collage triggered from the subconscious—from Ernst and D a l i to Rauschenberg to Conner—[was] b l a n k e d o u t . " 1 9 0 Bruce C o n n e r w o u l d later recall that Seitz, w h o had looked h i m up before the e x h i b i t i o n to familiarize himself w i t h the Bay A r e a , d i d not consider m a n y of the Beat assemblagists he was introduced to, such as Wallace B e r m a n more than "off-beat." 1 9 1 T r a v e l i n g south to L o s Angeles d i d , however, a l l o w h i m to 'discover' artists such as E d w a r d K i e n h o l z m a k i n g n e w figurative assemblages such as The Psycho-Vendetta Case (1960) [fig. 53] w h i c h h a d a distinct p o l i t i c a l edge to t h e m . 1 9 2 1 8 9 T h o m a s B. Hess "Collage as an Historical Method" Art News (Nov. 1961), p.31. 1 9 0 I b i d . , p.71. 1 9 1 S o l n i t , p.83. 1 9 2 A s Kienholz has suggested, this political edge was rooted in the very landscape of Los Angeles. "That's one of the reasons I like Los Angeles, because Los Angeles throws away an incredible amount of value every day. I mean, it's just discarded, shitcanned. From automobiles, to clothes, to desks, to paint a — to, you know, half-bags of concrete that are hardened up. I mean, whatever it is, there is an increadible waste in the city of Los Angeles, and if you are living on the edge of the economy like that, all the waste filters through your awareness and you take what you want." 1977 Kienholz interviewed by Lawrence Weschler quoted by Anne Barttlett Ayres in "Berman and Kienholz: Progenetors of Los Angeles Assemblage" Tuchman, Maurice Art in Los Angeles: Seventeen Artists in the Sixties Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum, 1981, p . . Work such as The Psycho-Vendetta Case point to a shared anarchist interest with Tinguely and Saint-Phalle. The work specifically refers to the 1927 execution of two Italian immigrants who had been wrongly convicted for their anarchist political beliefs. In the fifties and early sixties this particular history could address a contemporary Cold War reality in which individual expression was circumscribed. A good example of the implementation of this threat was the House of UnAmerican Activities Committee which sought to rid the United States of political (as well as socio-sexual) dissent. 1 0 7 The catalogue for the exhibition begins w i t h a careful historical chronicle of "the liberation of w o r d s " and "the liberation of the object" that took place p r i o r to W o r l d W a r II. This historical o v e r v i e w is f o l l o w e d b y a description of "the collage environment" out of w h i c h the w o r k is created. W h i l e g i v i n g historical credit to the "naturally a r r i v e d at... accumulation and agglomeration of materials...[by]...primitives and folk artists" (such as the immigrant tile setter S i m o n R o d i a outside Los Angeles), Seitz suggests that: nevertheless, from c u b i s m and futurism, D u c h a m p and Schwitters, to the present, the tradition of assemblage has been p r e d o m i n a n t l y urban i n emphasis... The city — N e w Y o r k above a l l others — has become a s y m b o l of m o d e r n existence. The tempo of Manhattan, both as subject and c o n d i t i o n i n g m i l i e u , has been instrumental i n f o r m i n g the art of our t i m e . . . . 1 9 3 In this formulation, not o n l y is N e w Y o r k u p h e l d as the natural creative environment for contemporary art, but for Seitz, the secret to the success of the best assemblage w o r k of the moment appears to be that it is locked into dialogue w i t h abstract expressionism: The connection of N e w Y o r k w i t h w o r l d art d u r i n g a n d after the second W o r l d W a r has become history. N e w Y o r k ' s vernacular power, its garish affront to tranquillity and taste, was a major component of abstract expressionism.... W h e n he placed a l i p s t i c k e d m o u t h c l i p p e d from a color advertisement i n the center of a sheet that was to become an o i l study, de K o o n i n g set the tone of the new collage.... In his totally committed battle between pure art and the street, i n his examination of h y p n o t i z i n g details i n tabloid photographs, and i n the transfer of newsprint to pigment, de K o o n i n g recorded the impact of c o m m e r c i a l culture o n postwar art. A l t h o u g h he was surely not an isolated voice, he intensified the interest i n "pop culture" — i n the expendable art and literature that became so important as a subject matter for Rauschenberg, Johns, Conner, and so m a n y subsequent, but u s u a l l y less s k i l l f u l , painters and assemblers. For a new generation and i n 1 9 3 S e i t z , p.73. 1 0 8 another spirit, de K o o n i n g ' s adulterative gesture may have h a d an effect not u n l i k e Picasso's i n 1 9 1 2 . 1 9 4 H a v i n g established this heroic rite of passage for an avant-garde art tied to international trends but g r o u n d e d i n the very "copious waste of an i n d u s t r i a l society" w h i c h even "non-artists" such as the i m m i g r a n t tile- maker S i m o n R o d i a h a d "naturally", discovered i n Watts, C a l i f o r n i a , Seitz went o n to d o w n p l a y the influence of Europe: Yet more than forty years after D u c h a m p ' s first "readymades" and Schwitter's discovery of the loveliness of refuse, b y an unconscious acceptance of the dada proposition of reversibility, the caustic portrayal of the city presented b y H e n r y M i l l e r ' s Air Conditioned Nightmare of 1945, has become, for a new generation of artists, a fulfillment of the glittering M E R Z environment of Schwitter's i m a g i n a t i o n . Such an inversion, from ugliness to beauty, can transpose sociological and u t i l i t a r i a n reformism into complete aesthetic acceptance. The w o r l d of artifacts can be seen (as M o n e t sought to see nature) w i t h a v i s i o n freed from conceptual p r e c o n d i t i o n i n g . The peeling decollage o n abandoned billboards i n the blighted neighborhoods of C h i c a g o or Jersey C i t y , accented b y the singing colors and clean edges of emblems intended to sell cigarettes and beer, or the rubble of fallen N e w Y o r k tenements p i l e d between w a l l s patterned i n flowered p i n k s and blues, can take o n an intense beauty more poignant than that of the lacerated posters and graffiti that cover the o l d w a l l s of Rome and P a r i s . 1 9 5 In this totalizing description, an abstracted taxonomic v i s i o n of A m e r i c a as a picturesque, natural, and continuously m o d e r n 'decollage' is defined against Europe's ransacked o l d w o r l d ruins aesthetically scavenged b y the decollagists. But as we saw earlier o n , if Seitz w o u l d have l o o k e d closer at the 'pictures' b y Dufrene, H a i n s and V i l l e g l e he w o u l d have discovered that these spaces represented a new, not an o l d , reality tied to an international and 1 9 4 S e i t z , p.74. 1 9 5 S e i t z , p.76. 1 0 9 domestic touristic g a z e . 1 9 6 In other w o r d s , Euro-trash s t i l l carried meaning despite the totalizing solicitation by the M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t w h i c h sought to v i t a l i z e its o w n hegemonic v i s i o n of post-war culture. Perhaps most surprising, and revealing, is the fact that Seitz turned a b l i n d eye to the obvious connection between Saint-Phalle's new w o r k and his o w n interest i n Abstract Expressionism, "copious waste," S i m o n R o d i a , and other things he had used to justify an art of assemblage. Saint-Phalle w o u l d later recall that Seitz h a d made the comment that her "attitude was harmful to art and that [she] h a d set back modern art b y 30 y e a r s ! " 1 9 7 Seitz appeared to have been s l i g h t l y more interested i n Tinguely's w o r k w h i c h he noted as h a v i n g been "influenced b y Rauschenberg and S t a n k i e w i c z . . . . " 1 9 8 Seitz academic remodeling of the avant-garde w o u l d not have been complete w i t h o u t a p u b l i c forum for discussion. The Art of Assemblage: A Symposium opened at M o M A o n October 19, 1961 w i t h an impressive list of panelists i n c l u d i n g Lawrence A l l o w a y , M a r c e l D u c h a m p , R i c h a r d Huelsenbeck, Robert Rauschenberg, and Roger Shattuck, w i t h W i l l i a m Seitz as the moderator. W i t h the exception of A l l o w a y w h o w o u l d soon j o i n the M o M A staff, a l l of the participants were at the time l i v i n g i n N e w Y o r k . Shattuck, the author of The Banquet Years (1958), w o u l d later recall that the s y m p o s i u m h a d the d u a l purpose of associating contemporary assemblage w i t h 'the ethos of D a d a ' before and after the W a r and reveal a 'coherent 1 9 6 T h i s is the line of argument taken b y Thomas M c D o n o u g h w r i t i n g against Benjamin Buchloh's m u c h more pessimistic account of this avant-garde. See his "Situationist Space" October 67 (Winter 1994), pp.59-70. 197Niki de Saint Phalle B o n n : V e r l a g G e r d Hatje, 1992, p.265. 1 9 8 S e i t z , The Art of Assemblage, p.89 1 1 0 theory' able to rationalize 'new developments' embraced by the m u s e u m . 1 9 9 These developments, one can argue, were necessarily serving to legitimize N e w Y o r k as the centre for avant-garde experiments and an avant-garde market place for art. W i t h i n d i v i d u a l s like Seitz and an institution like M o M A strongly b e l i e v i n g i n this v i s i o n , N e w Y o r k w o u l d , once again, steal the idea of m o d e r n art. W r i t i n g a history from D u c h a m p and Huelsenbeck to Rauschenberg the M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t p r o d u c e d an opportune environment for a new N e w Y o r k School independent from, but i n dialogue w i t h , p r e v i o u s l y dominant A m e r i c a n and E u r o p e a n artistic models. This w o u l d end up serving the function of a s p r i n g board for an emerging A m e r i c a n art rooted i n its o w n p o p u l a r consumer culture. In hindsight, the transcripts from the s y m p o s i u m clearly point to the reluctance of both Huelsenbeck a n d Rauschenberg to p l a y this game. U n l i k e H u l t e n , w h o i n his defense of Rauschenberg against E n c k e l l had argued that "dada never ceased to function," Shattuck considered the shock value that h a d existed for an historical avant-garde to n o w be neutralized, a thought w h i c h was not favorably received b y a l l s y m p o s i u m participants: Shattuck: The permanence of art was sacrificed for the excitement of a performance that w o u l d either shatter or repulse. It is this aspect of c u l t u r a l fireworks that cannot be recaptured today, a n d there are few new sparks to replace the o l d . To set side b y side w o r k s w h i c h shorted out years ago and w o r k s whose tension of forces w i l l not lessen w i t h the years damages both the historic interest of the former a n d the aesthetic values of the latter. A s the Smithsonian Institute houses 1 9 9 R o g e r Shattuck "Introduction: H o w C o l l a g e Became Assemblage" The Art of Assemblage: A Symposium N e w Y o r k : M o M A , 1961, p.121. 1 1 1 airplanes that no longer fly, we may soon need a repository for w o r k s that have l i v e d for a day. That w o u l d be a m u s e u m w i t h o u t a r t . 2 0 0 Huelsenbeck: A r e y o u against Dada? A n d against neo-Dada, as far as I understand it? Shattuck: I'm not trying to be cryptic. I am for the spirit of D a d a , but I believe that D a d a was p r i n c i p a l l y an historical m o v e m e n t . 2 0 1 W i t h these remarks, Shattuck stood counter to H u l t e n w h o understood D a d a as m a i n t a i n i n g its currency through a D u c h a m p i a n "way of seeing, a visuality... o n w h i c h a l l current aesthetics is based." Just as Movement in Art had represented a n e w start for M o d e r n a Museet, N e w Y o r k ' s M u s e u m of M o d e r n art was also i n need of a renewal. W h i l e both exhibitions used D u c h a m p to l i n k contemporary activies to an historical avant-garde, Seitz focused his attention o n Dada's ability to incorporate the t h r o w a w a y side of consumer culture into i n d i v i d u a l aesthetic gestures, whereas H u l t e n was more interested i n its ability to rub against bourgeois habits and norms. D u r i n g the A r t of Assemblage s y m p o s i u m , D u c h a m p addressed this visuality that H u l t e n had observed b y suggesting that it represented a "choice...based o n a reaction of v i s u a l indifference w i t h at the same time a total absence of good or b a d taste...in fact a complete anesthesia." A r t , i n other w o r d s , remained a matter of i n d i v i d u a l choice, rather than a collective shock.202 O p e n i n g u p "this [self-described] egomaniac's discourse" to the context of M o M A (where the battle was no doubt s t i l l between homo and heterogeneous w o r k ) , D u c h a m p c o n c l u d e d that "since the tubes of paint used 2 0 0 i b i d . , p.130. 201lbid.. 2 0 2 M a r c e l D u c h a m p " A p r o p o s of Readymades" i n The Art of Assemblage A Symposium, pp.135-136. 112 by the artist are manufactured and readymade products, we must conclude that all the paintings i n the w o r l d are 'Readymades A i d e d ' — and also w o r k s of a s s e m b l a g e . " 2 0 3 W i t h a S o l o m o n R. G u g g e n h e i m M u s e u m e x h i b i t i o n of recent paintings by A r s h i l e G o r k y , A d o l p h Gottlieb, Barnett N e w m a n , C l y f f o r d S t i l l and other abstract painters just a few blocks away, the i r o n y of Duchamp's w o r d s c o u l d not have been missed by those w h o realized h o w closely D u c h a m p was equating art objects to consumer objects. 2 0 4 The Art of Assemblage exhibition, as Solnit has suggested, d i d pave the w a y i n the U n i t e d States for an emerging post-war avant-garde centred i n N e w Y o r k . Whether or not the exhibition was consciously set u p to introduce Pop A r t specifically is u n l i k e l y . But what is important is that it d i d end up serving this function b y 1962. Solnit has also noted that the N o u v e a u x Realistes, w h i c h i n c l u d e d Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y , h a d "a k i n d of w i t and irreverence t o w a r d the art w o r l d that is reminiscent of the Californians, and their w o r k too tended to consist of unmarketable urban debris, rather than salable representations of i t . " 2 0 5 W h i l e I w o u l d not agree that these artists were attempting to produce 'unmarketable' assemblages — just difficult art — I do think Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y found their o w n p o s i t i o n as outsiders i n N e w Y o r k s i m i l a r to that of Bruce C o n n e r and E d w a r d K i e n h o l z , to name but a few of the artists they came into contact w i t h through this e x h i b i t i o n . 2 0 6 2 0 3 I b i d . . 2 ° 4 W e should remember that in the United States, and increasingly in Europe, Abstract Expressionism was the undisputed champion of modern art. Recoginizing this, The Art of Assemblage represented an attempt to "fix" all those artistic practices which where caught in the gap between "high" modernism and "low" popular culture. 2 0 5 I b i d . , p.87. 2 ^ 6 Ibid.. Solnit points out that "Niki de St.Phalle's work from the early sixties... includes triptychs displaying bats and guns and crucifixes, which make an assault on organized religion in a spirit akin to Conner's" who, along with other California artists "in comparison to the eastern artists, seem a hermetic tribe of icon-makers." 1 1 3 Labyrinths or Laboratories: Collaborations and the D y l a b y D i v i d e In February 1962, Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y traveled to C a l i f o r n i a to visit S i m o n Rodia's Watts Towers to w h i c h they h a d been introduced to v i a the Art of Assemblage exhibition. The towers, over ninety feet h i g h , h a d been erected out of b r o k e n plates, bottles, shells and tiles b y the i m m i g r a n t laborer S i m o n R o d i a (1879-1965) as a monument to himself o n his o w n property. For Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y , this c o u l d just as w e l l have been b u i l t b y an ego anarchist such as M a x Stirner, or artists like themselves. The towers seemed to illustrate the potential of l i v i n g i n the midst of society's copious waste o n the edge of the e c o n o m y . 2 0 7 W h i l e exhibiting at the Everett E l l i n G a l l e r y i n L o s Angeles, T i n g u e l y was asked b y a producer for N B C to stage an event for David Brinkley's Journal. Just the previous September, T i n g u e l y h a d staged a large scale p y r o t e c h n i c a l performance entitled Study for the End of the World for L o u i s i a n a ' s Bevaegelse i kunsten, the t h i r d a n d final venue for the Movement in Art e x h i b i t i o n [fig. 54]. This h a d taken place at the very height of the C o l d W a r arms race between the Soviet U n i o n and the U n i t e d States. O n September 1, the Soviet U n i o n had exploded a nuclear b o m b i n the atmosphere to end a 34 m o n t h interruption of atomic weapons tests b y a l l nuclear powers. W h i l e President K e n n e d y w o u l d p u b l i c a l y c o n d e m n this resumption of testing, u n d e r g r o u n d nuclear testing had b e g u n i n the N e v a d a 2 0 7 I n the seventies both artists w o u l d construct their o w n i n d i v i d u a l towers to l i v e i n a n d it w o u l d s p a w n inspiration for a m o n u m e n t a l sculpture i n S t o c k h o l m that we w i l l discuss at length i n the next chapter. 1 14 desert by the m i d d l e of that month. U n d e r this atomic light, Tinguely's self- contained destructions participated metaphorically as m u c h i n C o l d W a r politics as i n a w a r between hot and c o l d abstraction. W h i l e i n C a l i f o r n i a i n 1962, both these wars were still o n and T i n g u e l y had received the opportunity to execute Study for the End of the World No.2., this time i n the N e v a d a desert, the heartland of nuclear testing [fig. 55]. A s k e d by W i l l i a m B y r o n of The Saturday Evening Post whether his w o r k c o u l d be considered a practical joke on art and life, T i n g u e l y made clear his intentions: These things are serious for me. A b s u r d i t y can be carried a l o n g w a y , and w h e n it's carried far enough its effect is to make conventional values r i d i c u l o u s , cut them d o w n to size, cast some b a d l y needed doubt o n the "wonderful age" we're l i v i n g i n . "Century of the C o m m o n M a n ! " M a n today is ill-treated, h u m b l e d as he has never been before. I take the noise and b l o o d and brutality and make a w o r k of art of them. That makes them d o u b l y ironic, to be raised to the level of art. I feel a tremendous relief that the whole thing is going to be destroyed, because it's like a lunatic end to everything monstrous i n the w o r l d . 2 0 8 A s this quote confirms, if Tinguely's realisme was increasingly taking a turn towards violence and destruction, it corresponded directly w i t h a certain political reality that was facing artists o n both sides of the A t l a n t i c . B y early A p r i l of 1962, Saint-Phalle's w o r k was also b e g i n n i n g to take o n a new form as w e l l . Whereas her w o r k up u n t i l that time h a d incorporated an eclectic m i x of consumer waste into indistinct c o m p o s i t i o n a l arrangements, b y n o w her w o r k s were more sharply defined figurative compositions assembled out of store-bought plastic children's toys s u c h as guns, bats, and dinosaurs. This shift i n Saint-Phalle's w o r k can best be seen by 2 0 8 T i n g u e l y quoted i n W i l l i a m R. B y r o n " W a c k y A r t i s t of Destruction" The Saturday Evening PostI ( A p r i l 21, 1962) cited i n V i o l a n d - H o b i , p.52. 1 15 c o m p a r i n g her shooting o n l y a m o n t h p r i o r outside gallerist V i r g i n i a D w a n ' s beach house i n M a l i b u . D u r i n g Tinguely's exhibition i n Los A n g e l e s , the Everett E l l i n G a l l e r y sponsored this first shooting i n the U n i t e d States, witnessed b y an impressive audience that i n c l u d e d John Cage [fig. 56]. O n l y a m o n t h later, i n early A p r i l , another shooting event was executed i n the h i l l s o v e r l o o k i n g M a l i b u , w i t h assistance from L o s Angeles assemblagist E d w a r d K i e n h o l z whose dark social satires appear to have impressed the Europeans [fig. 57]. N o t o n l y had interest i n Saint-Phalle escalated to being fashionable enough so that the audience i n c l u d e d m o v i e personality Jane F o n d a , the director John H o u s e m a n , and H e n r y G e l d z a h l e r , a representative from the M e t r o p o l i t a n M u s e u m of A r t i n N e w Y o r k , but more interestingly, w e can also see h o w her compositions were n o w changing into more clearly articulated forms. O n her return to Europe i n early 1962 Saint-Phalle exhibited ten n e w w o r k s i n a one-woman show at Paris's Galerie R i v e Droite. A s mentioned i n chapter one, France was at this time not o n l y fraught w i t h c o l d w a r tension, but it was also experiencing extreme domestic and colonial conflict related to A l g e r i a n independence. O n an epic scale (252 x 241 x 41 cm), O.A.S. [fig. 58] presented a N o u v e a u Realiste v e r s i o n of Picasso's Guernica. Here, the black and w h i t e cubist comment o n u n i v e r s a l h u m a n injustice, suffering, a n d death filtered through a contemporary event has been transformed into a tripartite g o l d assemblage filled w i t h religious icons, bats, boars and guns creating an ambiguous critique of the right w i n g terrorists, Organisation armee secrete. U n l i k e her other assemblages such as Autel du chat mort (1962) [fig. 59], w h i c h deals more specifically w i t h her o w n Catholic 1 1 6 u p b r i n g i n g , O.A.S. remains unshot as if to comment o n the i n a b i l i t y of France to k i l l off its colonialist past. By this time Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y were not o n l y revealing a heightened sense of p o l i t i c a l awareness, but had gained enough connections and currency i n the U n i t e d States, traveling a r o u n d like a Bonnie and C l y d e art team between the East and West Coasts. Earlier that year i n N e w Y o r k they met w i t h Rauschenberg to organize another collaborative performance that they named The Construction of Boston. This time they a p p o i n t e d a script writer by the name of K e n n e t h K o c h and enlisted an ensemble consisting of H e n r y G e l d z a h l e r , Frank Stella, Paris Review w r i t e r M a x i n e Groffsky, and the dancers from the M e r c e C u n n i n g h a m Dance C o m p a n y . A s Rauschenberg, T i n g u e l y and D u c h a m p biographer C a l v i n T o m k i n s have recollected, the entire performance, w h i c h took place i n front of a s o l d out audience at the "off-broadway" M a i d m a n Playhouse, lasted o n l y fifteen minutes but managed to include a plethora of 'anti-happening' gestures [fig. 60]. In the play, T i n g u e l y was responsible for the architecture w h i l e Saint-Phalle was to b r i n g Boston culture and war. Rauschenberg made the set like a furnished apartment w h i c h i n c l u d e d t w o dancers going about their banal routines and being rained o n occasionally. In an updated D u c h a m p i a n fashion, T i n g u e l y was dressed u p as a 'maid-man' M a e West look-alike a n d constructed a cinder-block w a l l across the stage w h i c h effectively separated audience and performers. W i t h this company, Saint-Phalle made her entrance s t r i d i n g d o w n the centre aisle through the audience, s l i m and c o l o u r f u l i n the uniform of a N a p o l e o n i c artillery o f f i c e r . 2 0 9 A n assistant w h e e l e d a plaster 2 0 9 I n this context this must have been read as a rather abrasive act "against" the Brechtian Happenings of Kaprow and the activities of Merce Cunningham, John Cage, and others. 1 17 copy of the V e n u s de M i l o out o n stage, and another assistant h a n d e d M i l e , de Saint-Phalle the rifle w i t h w h i c h she posed against the kitsch r e p r o d u c t i o n classically ordered beauty. Tinguely's anti-Brechtian gesture of separating the audience from the stage s h o u l d have been a sign for the N e w Yorkers that their attitude towards art and life was indeed different. Despite the different attitudes that became apparent at this event, another major collaboration w o u l d soon take place between the Europeans and A m e r i c a n s . Between the Bewogen Beweging e x h i b i t i o n a n d The Construction of Boston, Rauschenberg, Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y along w i t h D a n i e l Spoerri, M a r t i a l Raysse and Per-Olof U l t v e d t had been i n v i t e d back to the Stedelijk M u s e u m i n A m s t e r d a m where W i l l e m Sandberg offered them a ready-made setting to produce a 'dynamic labyrinth.' Dylaby, as the exhibition w o u l d be acronymned, w o u l d end up being the last collaboration between Rauschenberg and T i n g u e l y . O n A u g u s t 30th, just a m o n t h after the s u d d e n death of Y v e s K l e i n , Dylaby opened w i t h seven constructed environments i n t r o d u c i n g the m u s e u m goer to different sensory experiences not u n l i k e that of a funny house at an amusement park. U l t v e d t p r o d u c e d a r o o m filled w i t h machines made of w o o d activated b y the audience's movement through the space; Spoerri made an u p s i d e - d o w n version of a r o o m ; M a r t i a l Raysse i n t r o d u c e d a Raysse -Beach, w i t h neon signs, a jukebox, s w i m m i n g p o o l and plastic toys; Saint-Phalle constructed a shooting gallery where opening-night visitors could assassinate her large white relief filled w i t h prehistoric monsters [fig. 61]; Rauschenberg filled a r o o m w i t h caged combines; w h i l e T i n g u e l y made 1 1 8 the visitor exit the 'party' through a tunnel filled w i t h balloons. These balloons, as we w i l l see, w o u l d soon 'pop.' By most p u b l i c accounts the event was a success. P r i v a t e l y , however, Dylaby d i d not result i n the k i n d of Utopian collaborative moment some might have expected. A s U t v e d t recalls, the events leading up to a 'cold war' between the five Europeans and the sole A m e r i c a n , Rauschenberg w o u l d become frustrated b y the reluctance of T i n g u e l y and others to communicate i n E n g l i s h . 2 1 0 Rauschenberg w o u l d later tell his biographer, C a l v i n T o m k i n s , that he had b y this time become "irritated and d i s i l l u s i o n e d b y the others' reluctance to collaborate o n a single w o r k , and by T i n g u e l y ' s penchant for g i v i n g orders and generally r u n n i n g the s h o w . " 2 1 1 For Rauschenberg, this e x h i b i t i o n s h o u l d have represented a collective w o r k i n g environment, but what he found was i n d i v i d u a l artists w i l l i n g to w o r k collaboratively, but refusing collectivity: N i k i , Jean, U l t v e d t and I w o r k e d i n d i v i d u a l l y together as a team. This [Rorelse i konsten] was a situation w h i c h i n s p i r e d n u m e r o u s other collaborative projects.... But the altruistic energy's innocence w o u l d not s u r v i v e Dylaby.... Professional maturity t r i u m p h e d over the collective joy of just m a k i n g a r t . 2 1 2 2 1 0 m an interview conducted o n June 10,1992, P e r - O l o f U l t v e d t recalled Rauschenberg's "irritation:" "I remember sitting at the dinner table. N o matter h o w h a r d w e a l l tried to speak English, w e ended up speaking French w h i c h Bob d i d not understand. I guess he must have felt quite alienated...." 2 1 1 C a l v i n T o m k i n s Off the Wall: Robert Rauschenberg and the Art World of Our Time N e w Y o r k : D o u b l e d a y a n d C o . , 1980, p.225. 2 1 2 R a u s c h e n b e r g quoted i n B i l l y K l i i v e r and Robert Rauschenberg's "Rorelse i konsten — en kombinerad minnesbild, i n Moderna Museet 1958-1983 S t o c k h o l m : M o d e r n a M u s e e t , 1983, p.148. 1 19 W i t h our understanding of the European's anarchist roots i n a p h i l o s o p h y of radical i n d i v i d u a l i s m , we can surmise that this moment represented a fork i n the road leading either to i n d i v i d u a l collaboration or m u t u a l collectivity. Interestingly enough, i n his historical o v e r v i e w of these events, C a l v i n T o m k i n s refers to Dylaby as a "dynamic laboratory." The slip from labyrinth to laboratory is significant. It w o u l d not surprise us if Rauschenberg interpreted the a c r o n y m differently and thereby p i n p o i n t e d a major difference between the A m e r i c a n s and Europeans. W h i l e the Europeans i n question understood "dynamic labyrinth" to reference the Situationist Constant N i e w e n h u y s ' s anarchic constructions such as Ambiance de feu (Environment for Play) and New Babylon; and b y extension u p d a t i n g the acronym " C o B r A " to "Dylaby." Rauschenberg, through his correspondence w i t h T o m k i n s , suggests a collaborative experiment for art and s c i e n c e . 2 1 3 In other w o r d s , the Europeans were p r o p o s i n g a very different m o d e l of anarchic p l a y rebelling against the o p t i m i s m and structures of new technologies. U n l i k e them, Rauschenberg was optimistically open to new medi a as a revolutionary and M c L u h a n e s q u e extension of l i f e . 2 1 4 A s w e w i l l see i n chapter three, Rauschenberg, w i t h the S w e d i s h B e l l Laboratory scientist B i l l y K l i i v e r , w o u l d develop* this more optimistic embrace of technology into c the laboratory E . A . T . (Experiments i n A r t and Technology). 2 l 3 p o r Spoerri this connection to Constant must have been most relevant. As mentioned in chapter one, Spoerri's ludic constructions were closely related to Henri Lefebvre's writings. In turn, Lefebvre was highly influenced by Constant's wring Pour une architecture de situation (1953). Constant had by 1960 left the Situationist International which they found too polemically positioned under Debord's leadership. See Eleonore Kofman's and Elizabeth Lebas's "Introduction" Henri Lefebre: Writings on Cities Blackwell Publishers, 1996, pp.11-12. 2 1 4 F o r McLuhan, the medium was not only the message, but it could function as the extension of the human nervous system. 1 2 0 A t her o p e n i n g i n Paris that spring, Saint-Phalle had been i n v i t e d by the A m e r i c a n art dealer A l e x a n d e r Iolas to exhibit at his N e w Y o r k gallery i n the fall. This w o u l d p r o v i d e Saint-Phalle w i t h an o p p o r t u n i t y to clarify her ambivalent p o s i t i o n i n relation to the U n i t e d States and the N e w Y o r k art scene. In the brochure for this solo s h o w , Saint-Phalle reprinted her astrologer's findings w h i c h points the direction she was determined to take w i t h her w o r k : " Y o u w i l l adorn death w i t h the enchantments of c h i l d h o o d . " 2 1 5 T y i n g rubber lizards to doll-babies' bellies, shooting real .22's at cans, bottles and balloons filled w i t h paint, Saint-Phalle kept p l a y i n g "Fun House" w i t h the utmost artistic seriousness u n t i l her creation/assassination was complete. In the N e w Y o r k show, Saint-Phalle h a d exhibited studies towards King Kong, [fig. 62] a larger w o r k to be executed i n L o s Angeles i n early '63 w i t h the help of V i r g i n i a D w a n ' s gallery. W r i t i n g from L . A . , W h o l d e n made the f o l l o w i n g acute observations: King Kong, b u i l t and bulleted this summer under the aegis of the D w a n G a l l e r y , represents a consolidation of both thematic and pictorial experiences for N i k i . It is her largest continuous narrative, a "Tableau M o u r a n t " deliberately engineered for permanence. Because N i k i de Saint-Phalle has gained notoriety largely through p u b l i c acts of destruction, the autonomy of King Kong as a finished art object needs to be emphasized. It is a demonstration picture, l i k e Delacroix's Death of Sardanapalus.216 2 1 s T h i s was true of her work as Rosalind Wholden pointed out in her review of the exhibition in Artforum. See Rosalind G. Wholden "Puerealism: "The End' With Innocence" Artforum Vol.2 No.3 (September 1963), pp,30-33. 2 1 6 I b i d . , p.32. 1 2 1 If this can be v i e w e d as a "demonstration picture," then what was Saint- Phalle demonstrating? A s W h o l d e n hints near the end of her r e v i e w , this image, like the O.A.S. picture, is a subjective demonstration s i m i l a r to Picasso's Guernica. A r r a n g e d a r o u n d a central s u n / g o d , the black and white King Kong is subtly d i v i d e d into two halves. Read counter-clockwise from its top left h a n d corner, Saint-Phalle leads the v i e w e r from b i r t h to death. The left side of the c o m p o s i t i o n includes scenes of a mother g i v i n g b i r t h , c h i l d r e n p l a y i n g , a heart representing teenage love, a m a n o n a motorcycle, a church, masks representing various p o l i t i c a l figures, and a m a r r i e d couple standing next to an A m e r i c a n f l a g . 2 1 7 B e l o w the sun, replacing Picasso's t w i s t i n g horse and b u l l , a Tyrannosaurus Rex functions as a G o d z i l l a like stand-in for " K i n g K o n g " w h o is not literally i n c l u d e d i n the picture. This monster, m o v i n g from the center to the right side of the composition, appears to be d r a g g i n g a l l of Saint-Phalle's personal references towards a N e w Y o r k cityscape located o n the far right. This storyboard can thus be said to d i v i d e E u r o p e / P a r i s (left side) from the U n i t e d S t a t e s / N e w Y o r k (right side) to illustrate her o w n personal experiences through a potent m i x of h i g h art and p o p u l a r culture references. A s if to w a r n the v i e w e r (or artist, monster) against the i m m i n e n t danger of entering N e w Y o r k . B y returning to her o w n personal m y t h o l o g y , Saint- Phalle shows the city's skyscrapers attacked b y fighter planes a n d missiles conveying as m u c h the fictional story of K i n g K o n g as it represents the real hubris of C a p i t a l i s m , consumerism, and a C o l d W a r culture. A s W h o l d e n 2 l 7 Saint-Phalle had been married to the American poet Harry Mathews and in this sense this picture could represent the story of her failed relationship with both him and her former country. 1 2 2 states, this picture, like her other w o r k from this time, is an allegorical representation of death: A s allegories of death the Saint-Phalle constructions are a k i n d of sideshow. Life is precious, short and irreversible. Sometimes the o n l y w a y to bear the strain of mortality is to try s a m p l i n g death, as if practice c o u l d make perfect. Romanesque Last Judgement, Goya's Disasters of War, Guernica, even films l i k e Hiroshima Mon Amour and On the Beach are death shows scaled for the adult w o r l d ; the price of a d m i s s i o n to the B i g Top is seriousness. N i k i ' s Punch-and-Judy massacres embody the disbelief of T o m Sawyer, home just i n time to stare at his o w n funeral. She conjures last laughs, not last r i t e s . 2 1 8 A n d as we w i l l see, "sampling death" is exactly what Saint-Phalle w o u l d continue to do u n t i l she established a death mask of her o w n . A m e r i c a n i z i n g the N e w O p e n A r t : N e o - D a d a Goes 'Pop' B y the time W h o l d e n ' s Artforum article was p u b l i s h e d , a number of significant events h a d just taken place. It was becoming increasingly clear for A m e r i c a n critics and curators that a n e w type of art was being absorbed into the art industry partly as a result of the Seitz assemblage exhibition. Particularly noteworthy was the s u d d e n increase i n interest i n p o p u l a r consumer objects as subjects for artists o n both the East and West Coasts. In September of '62, The Pasadena A r t M u s e u m p i c k e d u p o n what it must have perceived as a possible bridge between the East and West Coast. New Paintings of Common Objects i n c l u d e d J i m D i n e , R o y Lichtenstein, A n d y W a r h o l , E d w a r d Ruscha, Robert D o w d , P h i l l i p Hefferton, Joe G o o d e , and W a y n e T h i e b a u d . U n a b l e to give a coherent group 'name' to these A m e r i c a n 2 1 8 W h o l d e n , p.32. 1 2 3 artists, art critic Jules Langsner c o u l d nonetheless suggest i n his "Los Angeles Letter" to Art International that the e x h i b i t i o n brought an e m e r g i n g n e w tendency into "sharp f o c u s . " 2 1 9 W i t h i n the art market, the confirmation of this new trend's passage into the realm of 'high art' came w i t h Sidney Janis' decision at the end of October, 1961, to carrel the artists he saw representing the latest avant-garde generation. U p u n t i l this time, Janis had been d e a l i n g w i t h blue-chip m o d e r n artists ranging i n generation from M o n d r i a n and Leger to leading Abstract Expressionists such as W i l l e m de K o o n i n g , M a r k R o t h k o a n d Robert M o t h e r w e l l . N o w he was i n t r o d u c i n g a younger generation of artists w h o appeared to reject the tradition and seriousness of the modernist avant-garde. O n October 31, Janis's two-gallery e x h i b i t i o n The New Realists opened to include the Pop artists (as they w o u l d soon become k n o w n as) W a r h o l , Lichtenstein, and Rosenquist alongside Nouveaux Realistes Y v e s K l e i n , Jean Tinguely, Per-Olof U l t v e d t , M a r t i a l Raysse, and A r m a n [fig. 63]. U n l i k e the Pasadena exhibition, this survey was commercial, international, and controversial. A s C a l v i n T o m k i n ' s recalls, a number of the Abstract Expressionists, a m o n g them Rothko, M o t h e r w e l l , Gottlieb, and Baziotes, were so angry w i t h this merger that they resigned from Janis's gallery i n p r o t e s t . 2 2 0 Sidney Janis w o u l d later recall the i r o n y of this situation: Here w e had been s h o w i n g P o l l o c k cheek-by-jowl w i t h Leger, and de K o o n i n g w i t h M o n d r i a n , and K l i n e w i t h K l e e , but w h e n w e took u p the next generation our artists were furious. They didn't want to be associated w i t h these people w h o became artists o v e r n i g h t . 2 2 1 2 1 9 J u l e s Langsner " F r o m L o s A n g e l e s Letter" Art International (September 1962), p.49. 2 2 0 C a l v i n T o m k i n s Off the Wall: The Art World of Our Time N e w Y o r k : D o u b l e d a y & C o . , 1980, pp.184-185. 2 2 1 I b i d . , p.185. 1 2 4 In his exhibition catalogue, Janis elaborates its central theme a n d provides a w o r k i n g d e f i n i t i o n of the New Realist: C i t y bred, the N e w Realist is a k i n d of urban folk artist. L i v i n g i n N e w Y o r k , Paris, L o n d o n , Rome, S t o c k h o l m , he finds his i n s p i r a t i o n i n urban culture. H e is attracted to abundant everyday ideas and facts w h i c h he gathers, for example, from the street, the store counter, the amusement arcade or the home.... In the u n p l a n n e d transformation the o r d i n a r y become extraordinary, the c o m m o n , u n c o m m o n , a transposition i n w h i c h the spirit of the c o m m o n object becomes the c o m m o n subject for these artists. Thus the traditional artist-invented w o r k of art n o w is supplanted unceremoniously b y a true product of mass culture, the ready-made. Artists w o r k i n g i n this direction form the central theme of the exhibition. A l s o dead center to the idea of the exhibition is w o r k colored b y other qualities i n mass media. The b i l l b o a r d , magazine, comic strip, d a i l y newspaper, very directly have been the inspiration of a variety of facts and ideas introduced by the n e w g e n e r a t i o n . 2 2 2 Sidney suggests i n particular that D u c h a m p ' s Readymades "remain today art works of v i s i o n and of particular significance and inspiration to the N e w R e a l i s t s . " 2 2 3 W h i l e g i v i n g significant attention to the ' o l d guard's' disgust, and p i n - p o i n t i n g this e x h i b i t i o n as "the event that capped P o p A r t ' s l i g h t n i n g - l i k e 2 2 2 J a n i s , Ibid.. In his i n t r o d u c t i o n , Janis also makes sure that he sidesteps W i l l i a m Seitz's attempt to define the contemporary art scene i n A r t of Assemblage w h i l e at the same time u s i n g his achievement to b u i l d his o w n brand of avant-garde art: "These are the categories u p o n w h i c h the e x h i b i t i o n concentrates. T o a v o i d confusion, peripheral, or closely related w o r k s of quality, but whose techniques are less factual than they are poetic or expressionist, have been omitted as outside the scope of the exhibition. In this sense, the paintings of Rivers a n d Rauschenberg come to m i n d . Johns, an established Factualist, also is, unfortunately, not i n c l u d e d . T o r e m a i n w i t h i n the idea of the e x h i b i t i o n , the important directions of Collage a n d Assemblage are omitted." A s w i t h both H u l t e n a n d (to a lesser degree) Seitz, D u c h a m p is the central figure i n Janis's construction of a movement. 2 2 3 I b i d . . 125 triumph," T o m k i n s , i n his historical account, manages to ignore the fact that this exhibition c o u l d also be rendered problematic for artists i n the show. For N i k i de Saint-Phalle w h o was not i n c l u d e d i n the show, and for Jean T i n g u e l y and P e r - O l o f U l t v e d t w h o were i n c l u d e d , the fallout of the exhibition w o u l d be devastating. The public success of the e x h i b i t i o n took o n the most p o i s o n e d form i n B r i a n O'Doherty's enthusiastic r e v i e w for The New York Times: It's m a d , m a d , w o n d e r f u l l y m a d . It's also (at different times) g l a d , b a d and sad, and it m a y be a fad. But it's welcome. It is called New Realists, and it opens today at 4 p m i n the Sidney Janis G a l l e r y (N.Y.) ... A l t h o u g h the standard vocabulary of such antique art movements as surrealism and dada is used, the intent is entirely different; a fresh w i n d is b l o w i n g across the vast b i l l b o a r d wasteland, and anarchy is out.224 A l t h o u g h this statement c o u l d have been read as a w i t t y announcement that anarchy had come "out" of obscurity, for the foreign artists that concern us here, it was more l i k e l y read literally as a declaration that anarchy was "out." After a l l , O ' D o h e r t y also announced that " w i t h this show, 'pop' art is officially h e r e . " 2 2 5 F o r O ' D o h e r t y and other defenders of A m e r i c a n modernist abstraction, the critique of mass culture w h i c h an historical avant-garde h a d leveled against the bourgeois w i t h shock h a d n o w been turned back o n itself: H e [Janis] has p r o v i d e d what must be the year's most entertaining show.... A m e r i c a has been a pioneer i n t h r o w a w a y cups and saucers, m i l k containers and tablecloths. N o w it is a pioneer i n t h r o w a w a y art.... Since the very essence of [ N e w Realism] is c o m p o u n d e d lightness, irreverence and w i t , it w o u l d be ridiculous to take it w i t h deep p h i l o s o p h i c a l seriousness. This w o u l d perform the nice trick of 2 2 4 B r i a n O ' D o h e r t y The New York Times (October 31, 1962), p . 2 2 5 I b i d . . 1 2 6 m a k i n g mass culture esoteric... It is, of course, founded o n the premise that mass culture is bad, an expression of s p i r i t u a l poverty. So perhaps this is the o l d story of the avant-garde g i v e n the opportunity to seize o n the bourgeois again, this time through its packaged products. O r , more a m u s i n g l y , things may have reversed themselves, and n o w it may be the bourgeois that shocks the a v a n t - g a r d e . 2 2 6 It was under these a w k w a r d circumstances that the term "Pop A r t " gained recognizable currency. Inflated w i t h some D u c h a m p i a n Paris Air, Pop had popped. O n the 13 of December 1962, the M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t announced A Symposium on Pop Art w h i c h came at the heel of not o n l y the Sidney Janis exhibition, but also the Art of Assemblage S y m p o s i u m the previous year. In an attempt to justify the phenomenon of P o p art w i t h i n a context w h i c h to this point had p r e d o m i n a n t l y represented modernist h i g h art practices, H e n r y G e l d z a h l e r argued that Pop d i d not "fall from the heavens" but h a d g r o w n "naturally out of the art of the recent past." It s h o u l d be l o o k e d at as "two- dimen si o n al landscape painting" and was not a threat to the idea of the ' i n d i v i d u a l ' or I n d i v i d u a l i s m . Instead it was to be understood as a natural response to the artist's v i s u a l environment w h i c h d i d not forego the idea of art for art's sake: Both Greenberg and H a r o l d Rosenberg have w r i t t e n that increasingly i n the twentieth century, art has carried o n a dialogue w i t h itself, art leads to art, and w i t h internal sequence. This is true s t i l l , even w i t h the external references pop art makes to the observed w o r l d . 2 2 7 2 2 6 I b i d . . 2 2 7 H e n r y G e l d z a h l e r quoted i n A Symposium on Pop Art w i t h Peter Selz, H e n r y G e l d z a h l e r , Dore A s h t o n , L e o Steinberg, a n d Stanley K u n i t z at the M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t , N e w Y o r k . P u b l i s h e d i n Arts ( A p r i l 1963), pp.35-45.Reprinted i n Steven H e n r y M a d o f f (Ed.) Pop Art: A Critical History Berkeley: U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a Press, 1997, p.66 (pp.65-81). 1 2 7 W h i l e these artists may d r a w on a "common body," he suggests that their: ...style and decisions...are unmistakable. The choice of color, composition, the b r u s h stroke, the hardness of edge, a l l these are personal no matter h o w close to a n o n y m i t y the artist m a y aspire i n his desire to emulate the material of his inspiration, the anonymous mass media. [In the end] the pop artists remain i n d i v i d u a l . 2 2 8 New York Times critic H i l t o n K r a m e r , a supporter of A m e r i c a n abstraction, was outraged. To K r a m e r , P o p art represented n o t h i n g more than a "charade" dependent o n the juxtaposition of cliches: Pop art carries out a moderately successful charade — but a charade o n l y — of the two kinds of significance we are particularly suckers for at the present moment: the Real and the H i s t o r i c a l . P o p art seems to be about the real w o r l d , yet it appears to its audience to be sanctified by tradition, the tradition of D a d a . W h i c h is to say, it makes itself dependent u p o n something outside art for its expressive meaning, and at the same time makes itself dependent u p o n the myths of art history for his aesthetic integrity. In m y o p i n i o n , both appeals are f r a u d u l e n t . 2 2 9 For Kramer, the m a i n threat Pop art carried was the reconciliation of art and what he called "the dishonesties of contrived p u b l i c symbols and pretentious c o m m e r c e . " 2 3 0 Its social effect, he continued, "is s i m p l y to reconcile us to a w o r l d of commodities, banalities and vulgarities — w h i c h is to say, an effect indistinguishable from advertising a r t . " 2 3 1 Pop art, then, represented more than a bridge b u i l t between art and life, it represented a h i g h w a y filled w i t h masses of consumers i n their style-obsolescent cars w h o couldn't care less 2 2 8 i b i d . . 2 2 9 I b i d . , p.68-69. 2 3 0 I b i d . , 68. 2 3 1 I b i d . . 1 2 8 about the i n d i v i d u a l as they were collectively joined b y ' I n d i v i d u a l i s m . ' Ironically, this threat was also taken seriously by artists like T i n g u e l y , Saint- Phalle and U l t v e d t w h o a l l of a s u d d e n were labeled P o p artists. The difference, however, between K r a m e r and the Europeans was i n their i n d i v i d u a l defenses. Whereas K r a m e r argued for a retreat into an i v o r y tower based o n an art for art's sake, Saint-Phalle, T i n g u e l y , and U l t v e d t , I suggest, were retreating into a tower b u i l t o n D u c h a m p i a n i r o n y and silence. Whether K r a m e r saw this is beside the point. H i s m a i n concern was keeping A m e r i c a n institutions like the M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t from negotiating a deal w i t h a new 'popular front' aesthetics. To k i l l off P o p , K r a m e r k n e w very w e l l that he had to k i l l off its father figure — M a r c e l D u c h a m p : B e h i n d its pretensions looms the legendary presence of the most overrated figure i n m o d e r n art: M r . M a r c e l D u c h a m p . It is D u c h a m p ' s celebrated silence, his d i s a v o w a l , his abandonment of art, w h i c h has here — i n p o p art — been i n v a d e d , colonized and exploited. For this was never a real silence. A m o n g the majority of m e n w h o p r o d u c e d no art, and experienced little or none, Duchamp's d i s a v o w a l was d e v o i d of a l l meaning... it is o n l y i n the context of a school of p a i n t i n g w h i c h has radically d e p r i v e d art of significant v i s u a l events that p o p art has a m e a n i n g . 2 3 2 M o r e diplomatic, but still critical of the Pop artists, was Dore A s h t o n , a critic w h o understood the movement to represent a p o l e m i c a l rejection of Abstract Expressionism. For A s h t o n , this n e w contemporary artist was "weary and perplexed b y the ambiguities of idealism" that Abstraction represented. A s a supporter of 'Neo-Dada' artists like Rauschenberg, the p r o b l e m w i t h the 2 3 2 I b i d . . 1 2 9 new 'Pop' art was its seeming dismissal of metaphor, w h i c h she suggested was "necessarily a c o m p l i c a t i n g device, one w h i c h insists o n the play of more than one element i n order to effect an i m a g e . " 2 3 3 The P o p artist, she observed, "wants no such elaborate and oblique obligation. H e is engaged i n an elementary game of n a m i n g t h i n g s . " 2 3 4 U n l i k e D u c h a m p w h o equated chance w i t h the distance between intention and expression, the P o p artists, A s h t o n felt, r e l i n q u i s h e d responsibility: In the emphasis o n randomness and chance, o n the v i r t u a l object divested of associations, o n the audience as participant, a n d i n his rebellion against metaphor, the p o p artist generally begs the question of reality. H e refuses to take the responsibility of his c h o i c e s . 2 3 5 W h i l e a d d i n g that she considered P o p art to be an important sociological phenomenon that responded to contemporary life, she nonetheless concluded that "to the extent that it shuns metaphor, or any deep analysis of complex relations, it is an i m p o v e r i s h e d genre and an imperfect instrument of a r t . " 2 3 6 But as I have tried to suggest, certain artists were weary of P o p A r t ' s leap into the giant b a l l r o o m of consumerism and were p u s h e d into n e w strategic territory. O b s e r v i n g w i t h great interest the formation of an art movement to w h i c h he was being credited the seminal father figure, D u c h a m p made the f o l l o w i n g observation about the phenomenon as a w h o l e and T i n g u e l y i n particular: 2 3 3 I b i d . , p.70. 2 3 4 I b i d . . 2 3 5 I b i d . . 2 3 6 I b i d . . 1 3 0 I ' l l tell y o u what's going to happen... The p u b l i c w i l l keep o n b u y i n g more and more art, and husbands w i l l start b r i n g i n g home little paintings to their w i v e s o n their w a y home from w o r k , and we're a l l going to d r o w n i n a sea of mediocrity. M a y b e T i n g u e l y and a few others sense this and are t r y i n g to destroy art before it's too l a t e . 2 3 7 U n d e r s t a n d i n g , as D u c h a m p o b v i o u s l y d i d , the conflicting v i e w s about this sudden institutionalization of Pop A r t i n the U n i t e d States is crucial to understanding the direction the Europeans (and certain A m e r i c a n s ) 2 3 8 w o u l d take from this moment forward. It also provides us w i t h greater insight into the conflict at Stedelijk's Dylaby e x h i b i t i o n w h i c h h a d ultimately resulted i n U l t v e d t , Saint-Phalle, T i n g u e l y and Raysse discussing a n e w collaborative project — this time without Rauschenberg and w i t h the help of Pontus H u l t e n i n S t o c k h o l m . A l t h o u g h this n e w m o n u m e n t a l e x h i b i t i o n w o u l d have to wait u n t i l 1966 to take place at the M o d e r n a Museet (chapter three w i l l deal w i t h this i n detail), this time the object of the exhibition w o u l d be more strategically executed. Letters written between 1963 and 1966 from Saint- Phalle and T i n g u e l y to U l t v e d t and H u t l e n stress the importance of not turning this exhibition into a 'Pop' event [fig. 64]: S a i n t - P h a l l e : 2 3 7 D u c h a m p q u o t e d i n C a l v i n T o m k i n s The Bride and the Bachelors: Five Masters of the Avant-Garde N e w Y o r k : P e n g u i n Books, 1981 (originally p u b l i s h e d 1965), p.15. 2 3 8 A s k e d by Susan H a p g o o d i n 1993 if he fled N e w Y o r k i n 1963 to L o s Angeles because of "the effects of the b u r g e o i n i n g art market a r o u n d 1962 Claes O l d e n b u r g answered that he felt the N e w Y o r k scene was "exhausted b y '62." H a p g o o d : " W h i c h is just the point w h e n the m e d i a p i c k e d u p o n it?" O l d e n b u r g : "Yeah, that's a l w a y s a sign that it's over. T h e n I went to Los A n g e l e s where things started a l l over again; it was l i k e v i r g i n territory. It was c o o l , a n d N e w Y o r k was hot. The p e r i o d from the end of '59 u n t i l '62 was so intense i n N e w Y o r k , so complicated, that I just wanted to get away from it. But after a w h i l e y o u r u n out of places to go." "Claes O l d e n b u r g " Interview conducted by Susan H a p g o o d , N e w Y o r k C i t y , M a r c h 1,1993 p u b l i s h e d i n Susan H a p g o o d ' s Neo-Dada: Redefining Art 1958-62 N e w Y o r k : The A m e r i c a n Federation of A r t s , 1994, p.129 (123-129). A s w e w i l l see i n chapter three he, l i k e T i n g u e l y a n d Saint-Phalle, w o u l d see S t o c k h o l m as one of these places to r u n to. 1 3 1 I'm glad that y o u like the idea of an enormous collaboration. But there are problems.... it w o u l d have to be an enormous Castle. Jean a n d I both feel that this collaboration w o u l d be something sufficient i n itself. T i n g u e l y : What's the use i n a large Pop hot dog? Don't y o u feel the four of us w o u l d be enough since the castle w o u l d become a unity. W h y have an enormous hamburger next to it? Saint-Phalle: Rauschenberg also may be u n n e c e s s a r y . 2 3 9 A n o t h e r letter from T i n g u e l y and Saint-Phalle suggests to U l t v e d t that it w o u l d be best to keep B i l l y K l i i v e r uninformed of their plans. W h a t w i l l be revealled to be significant i n m y next chapter, this friendship between K l i i v e r and Rauschenberg w o u l d by 1966 result i n the Experiments i n A r t and Technology. Spaces of Masquerade: Getting the Story 'Straight' In establishing an international name for himself, this conflict c o u l d not have come at a worse time for Ultvedt. Throughout Dylaby, U l t v e d t had tried to find a 'neutral' position. P r i o r to Dylaby U l t v e d t h a d become quite a close friend of Rauschenberg w i t h w h o m he traded w o r k s as late as the 1962 Venice Biennale where he was represented at the N o r d i c P a v i l l i o n . W h i l e h a v i n g a solo exhibition at A l e x a n d e r Iolas N e w Y o r k G a l l e r y the f o l l o w i n g S p r i n g , U l t v e d t p r o d u c e d the installation Manhattan, his o w n p l a y f u l environment a k i n to Jacques Tati's critical comedies. This was constructed w i t h assistance from K l i i v e r a n d Rauschenberg w h o "supported w i t h ^ ^ T r a n s l a t i o n of these "coded" letters were p r o v i d e d by P e r - O l o f U l t v e d t d u r i n g an i n t e r v i e w conducted o n June 10,1992 at Lfndingo, Sweden. A l t h o u g h undated, U l t v e d t confirmed that they were a l l written between 1963 a n d 1966. 1 3 2 addresses and h e l p f u l a d v i c e . " 2 4 0 Manhattan 'trapped' the v i e w e r into participation b y r i g g i n g doors, chairs, lamps and utensils i n such a w a y that they were compositionally rearranged by the audience [fig. 65]. A s he w o u l d soon realize, U l t v e d t was himself trapped between his o l d and n e w friends. N o t o n l y had U l t v e d t been asked b y Illena Sonnabend (Rauschenberg's N e w Y o r k art dealer) to j o i n her gallery, but the camaraderie between U l t v e d t and Rauschenberg was by this time good enough that U l t v e d t accepted a request by Rauschenberg to perform w i t h C a r o l y n B r o w n and himself i n the ballet Pelican to take place that M a y . A s a part of Washington's G a l l e r y of M o d e r n A r t ' s Concert of Dance Number Five, Pelican took place at A m e r i c a o n Wheels skating rink. U l t v e d t and Rauschenberg, w i t h roller-skates o n their feet and large circular parachute contraptions o n their backs, performed a dance w i t h B r o w n that resembled something between astronauts l a n d i n g o n the m o o n and recreational sports. A l l this was accompanied b y a collage of music b y H a n d e l , H a y d e n and light entertainment music [fig. 6 6 ] . 2 4 1 After this performance o n M a y 9th, U l t v e d t w o u l d also w i t h d r a w from further p a r t i c i p a t i o n w i t h the A m e r i c a n s . 2 4 2 H a v i n g w r i t t e n to S w e d e n describing his activities to close friend and art critic U l f L i n d e , U l t v e d t received an acidic letter back a short w h i l e later w h i c h again points to a fear of Pop. H a v i n g up to this point defended Rauschenberg's w o r k p u b l i c a l l y i n the 2 4 0 U l v e d t i n P.O. Ultvedt: Tvivel och overmod: Arbeten fran 1945 till 1988 M a l m o : M a l m o K o n s t h a l l , 1988, p.48. 2 4 1 A s U l t v e d t claims i n m y interview w i t h h i m i n 1992, he was i n the end not interested i n being "boxed i n " by Sonnabend and to this day does not consider himself a "Pop Star w h o travels a r o u n d to p l a y p o p u l a r music." N o t unoteworthy, U l t v e d t is often s h o w n i n photographs of this performance but is very rarely mentioned. 2 4 2 W h e n Rauschenberg repeated the Pelican performance at the First N e w Y o r k Theater R a l l y i n 1965, U l t v e d t was replaced b y A l e x H a y . 1 3 3 S w e d i s h p o p u l a r p r e s s , L i n d e , l i k e H i l t o n K r a m e r at the Pop Art Symposium, p r i v a t e l y d e f i n e d h i m as f r a u d u l e n t . A f t e r y o u r d e s c r i p t i o n o f the W a l l Street d o m i n a n c e I h a v e b e e n c o n v i n c e d that a s o c i a l i s m m u s t take o v e r e v e r y w h e r e ( s a r c a s m ) . T h i s is the o n l y w a y to e n d " n e w r e a l i s m , " s i n c e this m o v e m e n t o b v i o u s l y has to d o w i t h artists h a v i n g a h a r d t i m e g e t t i n g r i d of t h e i r garbage.... T h e fact that R a u s c h e n b e r g h a s b e g u n w o r k i n g w i t h s i l k - s c r e e n stuff I f i n d u p s e t t i n g . It is, after a l l , A n d y W a r h o l w h o h a s the p a t e n t o n s i l k s c r e e n i n g . Is there n o R e s t a n y o v e r there to k e e p a n e y e o n w h a t artists are d o i n g ? [ m y b r a c k e t ] 2 4 3 S h o w i n g a n a c u t e a w a r e n e s s o f r e c e n t a c t i v i t i e s c o n c e r n i n g N e w R e a l i s m a n d P o p A r t , L i n d e , u n l i k e K r a m e r , s h o w s c o n t i n u e d i n t e r e s t i n D u c h a m p . B u t l i k e K r a m e r h e s o u n d s w o r r i e d , e v e n s c a r e d , a n d p r e s e n t s R a u s c h e n b e r g a n d the n e w P o p artists i n e x t r e m e l y n e g a t i v e a n d h o m o p h o b i c t e r m s : Y o u [ U l t v e d t ] h a v e w r i t t e n a b o u t N e w Y o r k i n a s t r a n g e w a y i n the letter I r e c e i v e d t o d a y . Y o u a l m o s t s o u n d l i k e a n e w b e i n g — a n d to t h i n k that I s t i l l l i k e the o l d o n e so m u c h . . . . I h a v e b e e n s m e a r i n g o i l o n c a n v a s for the ' s t o p p a g e s ' [replica's o f D u c h a m p ' s S t a n d a r d S t o p p a g e s ] . I h a v e m e s s e d a n d s m e a r e d , s t r o k e d a n d r u b b e d — I ' m b e g i n n i n g to u n d e r s t a n d t h o s e homo-painters ( m a l a r b o g a r n a ) . It's w o n d e r f u l , the h e a d is c o m p l e t e l y e m p t i e d . . . . I p r o m i s e y o u , as m u c h w o r k as I h a v e p u t i n t o this e x h i b i t i o n ( T h e P a s a d e n a D u c h a m p r e t r o s p e c t i v e ) , n o d a m n h o m o - p a i n t e r w o u l d b o t h e r to d o . ... [By the w a y ] , the o n l y t h i n g I'm r e a d i n g r i g h t n o w ... is L e o n a r d o [ D a V i n c i ] . H e is fantastic. T h i s is w h a t h e w r i t e s : ' O n e s h a l l n o t u s e the b r u s h u n l e s s s i t t i n g i n front of n a t u r e a n d f e e l i n g as t h o u g h y o u h a v e c r e a t e d it y o u r s e l f . ' I t h i n k this is d a m n g o o d — a n d it is e x a c t l y the shit o f art t o d a y : T h o s e w h o w o r k w i t h ' p o p ' are too p r e c i o u s (fina o m n y p o r n a ) — y o u can't t e l l m e that L i c h t e n s t e i n feels l i k e h e d r e w t h o s e c a r t o o n s . I ' m t i r e d o f this " i r o n i c d i s t a n c e . " 2 4 4 2 4 3 P . O . Ultvedt: Tvivel och bvermod: Arbeten fran 1945 till 1988 M a l m o : M a l m o K o n s t h a l l , 1988, p.53. 2 4 4 I b i d . . 1 3 4 The reference to D u c h a m p ' s Standard Stoppages helps us determine that this undated letter was written shortly before the Pasadena M u s e u m ' s D u c h a m p retrospective w h i c h opened o n October 8, 1963. L i n d e , w h o contributed w i t h a major catalogue text and numerous replica's of D u c h a m p ' s w o r k , was from this time forward so 'anti-American' that he a v o i d e d traveling to L o s Angeles for the v e r n i s s a g e . 2 4 5 The letter is particularly interesting i n that it reveals a clear understanding of the sexual differences at play between artists such as U l t v e d t and Rauschenberg and suggests an attempt to distance one project from the other by emasculating the N e w Y o r k artists and labeling their 'openness' h o m o s e x u a l . L i n d e ' s references to messing, smearing, stroking and r u b b i n g s h o u l d have been understood by U l t v e d t as relating to an "excremental v i s i o n " apparent i n A m e r i c a n s ' such as Rauschenberg's w o r k . W i d e l y circulated by the early sixties, N o r m a n O . Brown's Life Against Death was enthusiastically read b y artists such as Rauschenberg w h o found i n it a social pathology of everyday life related to his artistic v i s i o n . W h i l e L i n d e and U l t v e d t m a y not have been familiar w i t h N o r m a n O . B r o w n (who was most readily available w i t h i n N e w Y o r k ' s intellectual underground), they were, v i a a F r e u d i a n psychoanalytical m o d e l , familiar enough w i t h Rauschenberg's w o r k to be able to interpret his combines and prints as signs and gestures related to an interest i n a different erotic 'instinct.' 2 4 5 l n an interview w i t h L i n d e o n M a y 18,1999,1 asked L i n d e if he h a d ever made the p i l g r i m a g e to P h i l a d e l p h i a to see the D u c h a m p collection a n d , i n particular, D u c h a m p ' s Etant Donnes. T o this he responded that he h a d never been to the States a n d w o u l d never go: " W h y s h o u l d I go to see w o r k w h e n D u c h a m p left perfect instructions o n h o w to make on m y own?" H e then proceeded to s h o w me his recently completed, fully functioning, scaled replica of Etant Donnes constructed i n his l i v i n g room. 1 3 5 A s early as 1918, Freud's biographer Ernest Jones had described this anal-erotic character traits as: ...any d i r t y material, street-filth (including of course dung), soiled l i n e n and other things, dust, coal, house or garden refuse, waste-paper, and, indeed, waste material of a l l descriptions, for i n the unconscious the ideas denoted b y the w o r d s 'waste' and 'dirty' seem to be s y n o n y m o u s — the tertium comparationis doubtless b e i n g that of 'refuse.' Either disgusting or waste matter relating to the b o d y is especially apt to become thus associated. The former of these m a y be illustrated b y the material of loathsome diseases — e.g., purulent and other secretions — and this is also the reason w h y a corpse is often a s y m b o l of feces. Examples of the latter one are hair and nails, parts of the b o d y that are apt to get dirty and w h i c h are periodically cast off. Books and other printed matter are a curious s y m b o l of feces, presumably through the association w i t h paper and the idea of pressing (smearing, i m p r i n t i n g ) . 2 4 6 A t this moment w h e n the N e w Y o r k avant-garde's i n s t i t u t i o n a l i z e d p o s i t i o n needed to be questioned, a w o r k such as Rauschenberg's Monogram [fig. 47] c o u l d function as a scapegoat not just b y the popular press (as mentioned earlier), but b y someone like L i n d e w h o turned these scatological signs into a distancing device between artists like U l t v e d t and Rauschenberg. Jonathan Weinberg, i n his study of Jasper Johns provides a useful F r e u d i a n screen through w h i c h to read Monogram as an emblem, or indeed a 'monogram,' of Rauschenberg's gay identity: The connection between excrement and money to w h i c h psychoanalysis gives such weight is dependent o n the idea that the y o u n g c h i l d , k n o w i n g n o t h i n g of the genital functions and of the w o m b and h a v i n g o n l y the experience of his o w n b o d y , i n i t i a l l y believes that he was b o r n out of his mother's stomach t h r o u g h the anal canal. In this process, excrement, w h i c h i n [Norman] O . Brown's w o r d s 'incorporates the body's d a i l y d y i n g , ' is transformed from dead 246-rhis quote is taken from, a n d is discussed i n , Jonathan Wienberg's article "It's In the C a n : Jasper Johns and the A n a l Society" Genders 1 (Spring 1988), p.42. 1 3 6 matter into something of value, the l i v i n g , breathing entity of the self's o w n b o d y . 2 4 7 Monogram, whose very title is a reference to a s i g n of identity for Rauschenberg, can accordingly be interpreted: the tire a r o u n d the stuffed goat (literally a dead b o d y standing o n the discarded or excremental signs and materials from pop-consumer culture) is deciphered as a r i n g (the w o r d 'anus' derives from the L a t i n w o r d anus m e a n i n g ring) t h r o u g h w h i c h the 'dead' goat penetrates and is transformed into the c o m m o d i t y A r t object (represented by the abstract drips o n the goats face. B y 1963, L i n d e , U l t v e d t , T i n g u e l y , and Saint-Phalle w o u l d a l l turn their attention away from this 'death defying act' w h i c h was increasingly read as an uncritical embrace of an increasingly A m e r i c a n consumer culture and avant- garde. Instead their interest i n the act of destruction and death w o u l d become p r o n o u n c e d . Whether Rauschenberg's roller-skate dance performance Pelican h a d been planned as early as 1962 is uncertain, but i n hindsight, N i k i de Saint- Phalle's 1962 assemblage Pirodactyl de New York (also referred to as The New York Alp) [fig. 67] can be read as a hubris w a r n i n g for U l t v e d t . In this 250 x 310 c m large d i p t y c h , a h a l f - c h i l d / h a l f - p i r o d a c t y l o n roller-skates is f l y i n g o v e r / t o w a r d s N e w York's c i t y s c a p e . 2 4 8 T r y i n g to escape the burdens of 2 4 7 J o n a t h a n W e i n b e r g "It's In the C a n : Jasper Johns a n d the A n a l Society" Genders 1 (Spring 1988), p.47. 2 4 8 A s N a n c y Spector has described the costumes U l t v e d t and Rauschenberg were w e a r i n g i n the Pelican performance: "Strapped to their backs, these parachute forms l o o k e d at once l i k e prehistoric w i n g s a n d futuristic, aerodynamic extensions of the body." H e r s u m m a r y , w h i c h is interesting here o n l y so far as it makes the connection between Saint-Phalle's p i r o d a c t y l a n d U l t v e d t , is p a r t l y d e r i v e d from E r i c a Abeel's account "Daedalus at the R o l l e r d r o m e " i n Saturday Review ( N e w Y o r k ) V o l . 48 N o . 3 5 ( A u g . 28, 1965), p.53. This helps strengthen m y 1 3 7 European tradition, history and r e l i g i o n (represented b y kitsch religious icons on the left panel), the Icarus-like figure has been set up to be shot at b y Saint- Phalle's spectators. W h e n hit, the sun, located above the E m p i r e State B u i l d i n g i n the upper right hand corner, bleeds black. C o n s i d e r i n g its production at the height of the C u b a n M i s s i l e C r i s i s , this cross-Atlantic scene looks more like a nuclear holocaust than a pop-oriented artistic exchange. Saint-Phalle's w o r k began to take new form and subject matter by 1963. D u r i n g what she has called her 'white period' between 1963 and 1964, Saint- Phalle created a large b o d y of w o r k devoted to brides, mothers g i v i n g birth, heads and hearts, but also d e v o u r i n g mothers, witches and whores. B y this time, she had m o v e d i n w i t h Jean T i n g u e l y at a former auberge, the 'Auberge d u cheval blanc,' at Soisy-sur-Ecole near Essonne. This n e w focus o n female stereotypes went hand-in-hand w i t h a n e w m a s c u l i n i z e d 'black-period' i n Tinguely's w o r k w h i c h consisted of p a i n t i n g a l l his w o r k matte black and exaggerating their violent characteristics. Read together, as they often w o u l d through their collaborations from n o w on, Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y h a d joined i n d i v i d u a l forces i n order to masquerade their carefully engineered w o r k i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p . 2 4 9 Icarus r e a d i n g of b o t h Saint-Phalle's Tir and the Pelican performance — a p a r t i c u l a r l y s t r i k i n g motif used both i n the States and Europe to discuss the new "open" art. See N a n c y Spector "Rauschenberg and Performance, 1963-67: A Poetry of Infinite Possibilities" Robert Rauschenberg Retrospective N e w Y o r k : H a r r y N . A b r a m s , Inc., p.234-235 (226-245). Note: N o t k n o w i n g what to d o w i t h U l t v e d t w h o has since the sixties become m a r g i n a l i z e d w i t h i n international art histories, Spector makes the very c o m m o n mistake of n a m i n g h i m a F l u x u s artist — a "label" w h i c h U l t v e d t t o l d me he never associated w i t h himself, despite h a v i n g participated i n a few F l u x u s events. 2 4 9 E v e n w h e n Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y were p r o d u c i n g separate w o r k they w o u l d often be in dialogue. T i n g u e l y ' s Hannibal (1963) w h i c h appears to respond to Saint-Phalle's reference to H a n n i b a l crossing the A l p s i n her New York Alps; a n d T i n g u e l y ' s Hong Kong is a follow up to Saint-Phalle's King Kong(1963). In both cases we have the stories of great m y t h o l o g i c a l figures reenacted, brought from one w o r l d to another only to become fugitives. 1 3 8 I suggest that a masquerade and 'playful repetition' was increasingly e m p l o y e d b y Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y to expose the construction of both masculinity and femininity i n their critique of Pop A r t . This critical strategy is not far removed from the feminist arguments made later b y L u c e Irigaray. In her book This Sex Which is Not One (1985), Irigaray discusses the transgressive possibilities w i t h i n the spaces of the masquerade. For her, the act of mimesis i n these spaces carries w i t h it the possibility for w o m e n to make visible constructions of a masculine logic: To play w i t h mimesis is thus, for a w o m a n , to try to recover the place of her exploitation by discourse, w i t h o u t a l l o w i n g herself to be s i m p l y reduced to it. It means to resubmit herself... to ideas about herself, that are elaborated i n / b y a masculine logic, but so as to make 'visible,' b y an effect of p l a y f u l repetition what was supposed to remain invisible: the cover-up of a possible operation of the feminine i n l a n g u a g e . 2 5 0 M u c h has been made i n recent art history of the fact that A n d y Warhol's ability to m i m i c the w o r l d of advertising, fashion and art came from his b a c k g r o u n d i n graphic design. W h a t historians have failed to recognize i n Saint-Phalle's case is her similar ability turn this masquerade into a critical tool to reveal the patriarical, misogynist, and masculinist side of culture. B y the time Saint-Phalle entered into her 'public' role as artist, she had already had lots of experience i n dressing up. This experience can be traced back to her early years as a top international m o d e l . By the age of 19 she h a d graced the covers of not o n l y Vogue magazine, but also Life [fig. 68] where she o b v i o u s l y learned the art of objectification and what it meant to 'pose' for an 2 5 0 L u c y Irigaray This Sex Which is Not One (1977) trans. Catherine Porter Ithaka: C o r n e l l U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1985.1 w o u l d like to acknowledge C e c i l W h i t i n g ' s useful discussion of gender constructions w h e n a p p l y i n g Irigaray's understanding of mimesis to the w o r k of M a r i s o l . 1 3 9 anonymous p u b l i c that is i n m a n y ways parallel to that of the art w o r l d . 2 5 1 By the time she was 30 she h a d not o n l y divorced her first husband (the A m e r i c a n writer H a r r y M a t h e w s ) , but developed an artistic practice centred o n 'her o w n ' p u b l i c execution of the Self. In a s i m i l a r w a y to m y o w n understanding of N i k i de Saint-Phalle's masquarade, historian of P o p A r t Cecile W h i t i n g has located mimetic strategies i n the w o r k of M a r i s o l Escobar: ...between 1961 and 1966 ... M a r i s o l assumed i n this manner different roles of w o m e n p r i m a r i l y of the m i d d l e and u p p e r - m i d d l e classes.... H e r figures — her selves — portray brides, mothers, and w i v e s ; these w o m e n promenade w i t h their families or socialize w i t h other w o m e n . In these sculptures, M a r i s o l appropriated and p l a y e d w i t h various female identities, i n c l u d i n g her o w n . 2 5 2 Rereading M a r i s o l ' s w o r k after decades of neglect by art historians and feminist historians alike, W h i t i n g proposes that M a r i s o l s h o u l d be "reread ... as a feminine subject i n control of the processes of representation and self- representation, rather than as entirely determined b y t h e m . " 2 5 3 W h i l e I w o u l d want to agree w i t h W h i t i n g , I w o u l d hesitate to argue that M a r i s o l , or Saint-Phalle, were fully i n 'control' of these defining processes. A s w e have seen i n the case of Saint-Phalle, these self-representational strategies were partly determined b y a h i g h l y charged socio-political context. 2 5 1 N o t the fitting b y l i n e o n the Life cover w h i c h b y chance points at her later embrace of a m b i g u i t y . 2 5 2 C e c i l e W h i t i n g " F i g u r i n g M a r i s o l ' s F e m i n i n i t i e s " i n A Taste For Pop: Pop Art, Gender and Consumer Culture C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1997, p.188. 2 5 3 I b i d . 189. 1 4 0 A majority of critiques of Pop A r t have ignored its potential to be read as critical since its superficial 'look' appears to go hand-in-hand w i t h a v i s i o n tied to consumer culture. In a more interesting w a y , Irigaray has opened up a critical understanding of this issue of v i s u a l i t y by i l l u m i n a t i n g the patriarchal nature of this appearance: In our culture, the predominance of the look over s m e l l , taste, touch, hearing has brought an impoverishment of b o d i l y relations. It has contributed to d i s e m b o d y i n g sexuality. The moment the look dominates, the b o d y loses i n materiality....The male sex becomes the sex because it is very visible, the erection is s p e c t a c u l a r . 2 5 4 W h i l e D u c h a m p had obliquely tried to illustrate the w o r k i n g s of this erotically charged v i s u a l culture through an anti-retinal art tied to the language of industry, T i n g u e l y and Saint-Phalle w o u l d , t h r o u g h acts of mimesis, make visible this phallic s p e c t a c l e . 2 5 5 Just as A r m a n and K l e i n h a d d i v i d e d u p the universe into material and i m m a t e r i a l space, T i n g u e l y and Saint-Phalle w o u l d d i v i d e up D u c h a m p ' s Large Glass. In this reading, Tinguely's m o v i n g machines occupied the l o w e r material region of D u c h a m p ' s m a s c u l i n i z e d construction, w h i l e Saint-Phalle's increasingly feminized forms and actions w o u l d respond to The Bride's i m m a t e r i a l upper-region of "fantasy." A s we have n o w seen, the events related to the emergence of Pop A r t i n 1962 had serious consequences for the s u r v i v a l of an avant-garde tied to anarchist politics rooted i n a radical form of i n d i v i d u a l i s m . If this moment 2 ^ 4 L u c e Irigaray Les Femmes, la pornographie, Yerotisme ed. M a r i e - F r a n c o i s e H a n s a n d G i l l e s Lapouge (Paris: Seuil, 1978), p.50 cited i n Jones, p.285. 255se e M o l l y Nesbitt's "The Language of Industry" i n T h i e r r y de D u v e , ed.. The Definatively Unfinished Marcel Duchamp. Massachusetts: M I T Press, 1992, p p . 351-384. 14 1 has p r e v i o u s l y been celebrated as the emergence of an international P o p A r t connected v i a the seminal influence of M a r c e l D u c h a m p , I suggest that it was also at this moment that collaborative experiments initiated by artists, critics and curators i n France, Sweden and the U n i t e d States collapsed. Rather than seeing i n d i v i d u a l forms of expressions united as one institutionalized happy family, we can n o w see the dysfunctional side of this u n i o n w h i c h forced various i n d i v i d u a l s into c o m p r o m i s e d positions and new aesthetic territory. T u r n i n g back to consider the a w k a r d p o s i t i o n Stockholm's M o d e r n a Museet found itself i n between 1963 and 1966, we w i l l n o w consider h o w this awkwardness was not o n l y i n response to debates w i t h i n the art w o r l d , but must also be read against the precarious p o s i t i o n Sweden found itself i n w i t h i n international politics. It seems to me that just as S w e d e n w o u l d be asked to define its neutrality politics between the C o l d War's superpowers, M o d e r n a Museet found itself forced to address its relation to an A m e r i c a n avant-garde. A s I suggest, the direction M o d e r n a Museet had taken since Movement in Art i n 1961 must increasingly after 1963 have been understood as a 'false start' by H u l t e n and others. The f o l l o w i n g discussion sets out to provide a discursive l i n k between art and politics. C e n t r a l to this i n q u i r y w i l l be the role of sexual politics i n a l l o w i n g these independent attempts to surface and declare the centrality of the margins. 1 4 2 C H A P T E R III T H E M E C H A N I C A L BRIDE STRIPPED B A R E IN S T O C K H O L M , E V E N By reading the history of the post-war avant-garde from the margins (Stockholm) rather than the centre ( N e w Y o r k and Paris), m y first two chapters expose a crisis i n representation w h i c h by the mid-sixties had led to splintered relations between artists, curators, and critics engaged i n cross- Atlantic cultural collaborations. If, b y 1962, the meeting place for this international exchange can be described as h a v i n g occurred o n a tightrope suspended between E u r o p e a n and A m e r i c a n c u l t u r a l institutions, by 1963, i n d i v i d u a l artists such as N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Jean T i n g u e l y , and P e r - O l o f U l t v e d t found their identities falling into 'fixed' positions defined w i t h i n an increasingly dominant N e w Y o r k centred art w o r l d . A s this t h i r d chapter w i l l show, at the moment these artists were forced to regroup and redefine their i n d i v i d u a l and collaborative artistic projects, M o d e r n a Museet, under the leadership of Pontus H u l t e n , w o u l d also be forced to re-negotiate its position. W h i l e o n the outside M o d e r n a Museet appeared to have achieved reputable international attention and strong p u b l i c support from its S w e d i s h audience, the o p t i m i s m that h a d s u r r o u n d e d i n i t i a l exhibitions s u c h as Rorelse i konsten a n d Four Americans w o u l d soon be understood b y insiders as an abortive b e g i n i n g . A s the S w e d i s h - A m e r i c a n conflict over V i e t n a m began to heat up i n 1965, M o d e r n a Museet found itself forced to reconcile its artistic activities w i t h the p o l i t i c a l reality outside its o w n doors. This last Chapter w i l l s h o w just h o w deeply i n v o l v e d M o d e r n a Museet h a d become i n a love affair w i t h A m e r i c a . B y 1966 the S w e d i s h m u s e u m had managed to w i t h d r a w its affection a n d found its o w n identity. But as w e k n o w , breaking u p is h a r d to do. 1 4 3 Love and Despair: The C o m p r o m i s i n g Success of M o d e r n a Museet 1961 - 1965 F u n c t i o n i n g as an extension of the N a t i o n a l M u s e u m , the M o d e r n a Museet had, by 1958, managed to introduce contemporary international art to over 40,000 visitors on a shoestring b u d g e t . 2 5 6 If these attendance figures were not impressive enough to convince state funding agencies of the p u b l i c demand for m o d e r n art, the exhibitions p r o d u c e d under H u l t e n ' s direction between 1961 and 1964 w o u l d arrest their attention. N o t o n l y d i d Movement in Art b r i n g i n over 70,000 visitors, but the exhibition also initiated a l i v e l y public debate about the social role of the m u s e u m [see chapter two]. Between 1962 and 1964 the m u s e u m continued to attract attention w i t h an extensive host of artists to w h o m H u l t e n had been introduced i n N e w Y o r k b y B e l l Laboratory engineer B i l l y K l i i v e r and the concrete poet a n d artist O y v i n d Fahlstrom. F a h l s t r o m had been particularly important i n b r i n g i n g awareness of N e w Y o r k ' s art scene and u n d e r g r o u n d culture to a S w e d i s h p u b l i c . A regular contributor throughout the sixties to the d a i l y Dagens Nyheter, Fahlstrom managed to produce a v i v i d picture of an alternative lifestyle and e x p e r i m e n t a l c u l t u r a l e v e n t s . 2 5 7 E x h i b i t i o n s such as 4 Amerikanare, The New American Cinema: New York Film, and New American Music and Poetry, Ben Shahn, a n d Jackson Pollock, not o n l y b r o u g h t these experimental and exciting events to Stockholm, but they helped redirect discussion of contemporary art a w a y from a p r e v i o u s l y Eurocentric Paris towards a more 2 5 6 I n 1958 the Museum had a budget of 30,000 Swedish Crowns [approx. 6,000 Cdn Dollars] to buy art with. Ulf Linde "Memoarer" in Granath, et. al., p.65. 2 5 7 See for example Fahlstrom's "Orgiernas Brooklyn" [The Brooklyn of Orgies] in Dagens Nyheter (April 17, 1965), p.4 which reviews the American author Hubert Selby's Last Exit to Brooklyn. The detailed description of existence in Brooklyn's slum district includes discussion of prostitution, homosexuality, alcoholism and drugs. 1 4 4 'popular' N e w Y o r k . In this exchange, Stockholm's m u s e u m came to p l a y a m e d i a t i n g role. Perhaps this exhibition p r o g r a m was not so m u c h a shift i n attention from Europe to the U n i t e d States as it was a diplomatic move to balance Hulten's interest i n transcontinental discourses. Whatever the case m a y have been, the activities were considered successful by S w e d i s h f u n d i n g agencies w h o increased M o d e r n a Museet's purchasing budget to 100.000 C r o w n s by 1964, and significantly granted a one time s u m of 5,000,000 C r o w n s [1 m i l l i o n Dollars] to help purchase new w o r k for its c o l l e c t i o n . 2 5 8 It appears that the government was finally starting to realize the role the m u s e u m c o u l d play i n c u l t u r a l d i p l o m a c y . This extraordinary amount of money h a n d e d d o w n from the state was a direct response to The Museum of Our Wishes, an e x h i b i t i o n o r g a n i z e d between December of 1963 and February 1964 b y H u l t e n and M o d e r n a Museets V a n n e r [fig. 6 9 ] . 2 5 9 B o r r o w i n g from an international range of collectors a n d dealers, a w i d e assortment of 20th C e n t u r y Western artwork (available for purchase) was presented to the museum's n e w f o u n d p u b l i c as a visible p r o p o s a l of what the m u s e u m c o u l d look l i k e if o n l y it h a d sufficient funds to f i l l perceived 'gaps' i n its collection. A donation box was set u p inside the m u s e u m to a l l o w the gallery visitor to feel a part of this c u l t u r a l investment. A n outline and explanation of its avant-garde history was 2 ^ ^ U l f Linde "Memoarer" in Granath, et. al., p.60. 2 ^ 9 A membership club initiated in 1953 as an extension of Nutida Konst [Contemporary Art], a club which had been existence since 1925. See Gerard Bonnier "Fdretal" Moderna Museet's Vanner Onskemuseet Stockholm: Tryckeri A B Bjorkmans Eftr., 1963, p . l . whose name translates to "Friends of Moderna Museet." The initial idea came from Osten Fagerlind, one of the board members, who with Linde expanded the idea into a large scale exhibition. 1 4 5 p r o v i d e d i n the form of a lengthy catalogue written b y U l f L i n d e (who had by this time established himself as a w e l l - k n o w n art critic for Dagens Nyheter, the largest of the S w e d i s h dailies). This was accompanied by reproductions of the art w o r k a n d the introduction " A r t w o r k H a s N o Price" by H u l t e n . In his text, H u l t e n stressed the democratic nature of m o d e r n art b y p r o p o s i n g that despite the monetary value society has placed o n art, "that w h i c h is meaningful i n art [still] belongs to a l l . " 2 6 0 This said, H u l t e n urged the reader to support their m u s e u m i n its attempt to wrestle some of the most innovative m o d e r n art away from private collectors: E v e n if prices for art are high, one has to attempt to b r i n g together a collection of art b y the innovators of m o d e r n art before it is too late. It is legitimate for a m u s e u m to pay a h i g h price for an art w o r k . Since art i n a m u s e u m w i l l belong to a l l , it can never be said to be too expensive. If integrated into the m u s e u m collection the art w o r k gets r i d of its resale value since it w i l l not be s o l d . 2 6 1 H a v i n g m o r a l l y positioned the economic side of the museum's collecting activities outside — yet at an arms-length distance from — the private interests of the art market, H u l t e n continued to offer reasons w h y it was necessary for a S w e d i s h p u b l i c institution to have an international art collection: ...The role of art is increasingly becoming larger as the content of our times is b e c o m i n g incomprehensible, confused, a n d frightening. A country must have a place to store this m y t h - i n s p i r i n g material, one has to produce a reference system and a source of inspiration. Especially i n a l a n d o n the periphery, where major art events are rare a n d the i m p o r t of foreign art is l i m i t e d , where one risks b e i n g placed outside what happens i n the centre. O n l y through k n o w l e d g e about what is 2 6 0 p o n r u s Hulten "Konstverk har inget pris" Moderna Museet's Vanner Onskemuseet Stockholm: Tryckeri A B Bjorkmans Eftr., 1963, p.8. 2 6 1 I b i d . , pp.8-9. 1 4 6 h a p p e n i n g c a n o n e p r o d u c e one's o w n c o n t r i b u t i o n . . . . T h e t i m e h a s c o m e to m a k e a s e r i o u s c o m m i t m e n t to b u i l d i n g a r e p r e s e n t a t i v e c o l l e c t i o n o f i n t e r n a t i o n a l art. L e t u s w i s h e a c h o t h e r s u c c e s s i n t h i s p r o j e c t . 2 6 2 B a c k i n g u p H u l t e n ' s p l e a for a c o l l a b o r a t i v e p u r c h a s e o f h i s t o r y , U l f L i n d e o f f e r e d h i s h i s t o r i c a l a c c o u n t of the d i f f e r e n t m o v e m e n t s i n m o d e r n art r e p r e s e n t e d i n the e x h i b i t i o n . S e v e n c a t e g o r i e s o f p r e - W o r l d W a r II art w e r e d e f i n e d : F a u v i s m a n d E x p r e s s i o n i s m , C u b i s m , F u t u r i s m , D a d a , A b s t r a c t A r t , C l a s s i c i s m a n d O b j e c t i v i t y , S u r r e a l i s m . C o n n e c t e d to these "roots i n m o d e r n i s m ' s past," b u t m o v i n g b e y o n d t h e m , f o u r g e n e r a l c a t e g o r i e s o f p o s t - 1945 art w e r e d i s t i n g u i s h e d : P e i n t r e s de T r a d i t i o n F r a n c a i s e , C o l d [Strang] A b s t r a c t i o n , T h e U n f o r m e d , a n d f i n a l l y N e w R e a l i s m r e p r e s e n t e d b y T i n g u e l y , K l e i n , R a u s c h e n b e r g a n d J o h n s . I n L i n d e ' s a c c o u n t , the l a t t e r t w o m o v e m e n t s a i m to d i s s o l v e c e r t a i n a s p e c t s o f m o d e r n i s m : [For these p o s t - w a r artists] the b e l i e f s h e l d b y the p i o n e e r s [of m o d e r n art] i n f o r m a l i s t m a g i c a p p e a r s to h a v e d i s s i p a t e d , a n d n e i t h e r c a n [today's] y o u t h u n d e r s t a n d art as a t o o l to r e a c h b o u r g e o i s t r u t h s . L e a s t of a l l c a n t h e y a c c e p t that art s h o u l d f u n c t i o n l i k e a s t o c k m a r k e t c e r t i f i c a t e . B u t w h a t p u r p o s e d o e s art h a v e t h e n ? T h i s q u e s t i o n c a n l e a d to d e s p a i r — b u t i t d o e s n o t n e c e s s a r i l y d o so. It c a n a l s o b e u s e d as a s e a r c h l i g h t to e x p l o r e u n k n o w n t e r r i t o r i e s w h e r e n e w v a l u e s are b e g i n n i n g to g r o w . 2 6 3 R e a d i n g t h i s , i t a p p e a r s that L i n d e , l i k e H u l t e n , w a n t e d to s e v e r the u m b i l i c a l c o r d o f g o l d t i e d to a b o u r g e o i s e l i t e a n d r e p l a c e i t w i t h a m o r e e g a l i t a r i a n c u l t u r a l l i f e - s u p p o r t s y s t e m t h a t r a n parallel to s o c i a l d e m o c r a c y . A s a n t i c i p a t e d , t h i s a p p a r e n t l y ' c o l l e c t i v e ' m a n d a t e a p p e a l e d to t h e S o c i a l i s t 2 6 2 I b i d . , p.8. 2 6 3 U l f Linde "Efter Kriget" Moderna Museet's Vanner Onskemuseet Stockholm: Tryckeri A B Bjorkmans Eftr., 1963, p.63. 1 4 7 government's Department of C u l t u r e w h o responded g e n e r o u s l y . 2 6 4 M o d e r n a Museet h a d thus b y 1964 not o n l y managed to m a i n t a i n an active space for contemporary art, but had also established a strong historical collection o n w h i c h they c o u l d b u i l d their o w n contemporary t r a d i t i o n . 2 6 5 In his description of N e w Realism, U l f L i n d e p r o p o s e d that w h i l e one may despair of the c o m p l i c i t role artists explicitly p l a y i n the art market (and we can o n l y presume that he is referring to the Pop artist), this 'other' new realism or 'unformed' art c o u l d function as a searchlight to explore u n k n o w n territories where n e w values were g r o w i n g . By 1964, M o d e r n a Museet h a d discovered a new path away from P o p art, but because of earlier commitments its p u b l i c i n t r o d u c t i o n w o u l d have to w a i t another year. Before this avenue c o u l d actively be explored, the m u s e u m h a d to fulfil its earlier commitments to a N e w Y o r k centred avant-garde. Between February 29 and A p r i l 12, 1964, M o d e r n a Museet presented the first large-scale P o p A r t exhibition i n Europe. A p t l y titled American Pop Art: 106 Forms of Love and Despair, the e x h i b i t i o n i n c l u d e d a w i d e selection of w o r k by N e w Y o r k artists J i m D i n e , R o y Lichtenstein, Claes O l d e n b u r g , James Rosenquist, George Segal, A n d y W a r h o l , and T o m W e s s e l m a n [fig. 70]. For the catalogue cover a n d exhibition poster, Lichtenstein designed one of his 2 6 4 F o r more information on the government's funding of Modern Museet, see Roland Palsson's article "60-talet 'in nostalgiam'" in Granath and Niekels, pp.141-142. Palsson took over as head for the Department of Ecklesiastik's newly formed Department of Culture in 1961 and remained a vital supporter of Hulten's activities throughout the sixties. 265ft should not go unmentioned that Onskemuseet did, despite its public success, receive criticism. Reviewing the exhibition in Konstrevy, Eugen Wretholm made clear that it "reflects a 'Paris centred overview'" that did not include work by pioneers of the informel such as Hans Hartung, Englishmen such as Ben Nicholson and Graham Sutherland, the Portugese Vieira da Silva, nor any abstract German paintings. Wretholm, Eugen "Utstallningar i Stockholm: Hosten 1963" Konstrevy No. 1 (1964), p.32. 1 4 8 signature graphic images of a salesman's h a n d p o i n t i n g directly at the v i e w e r i n the manner of "Uncle Sam Wants Y o u ! " [figs. 71] A fitting image at a moment w h e n some artists and intellectuals felt that they were being drafted against their o w n w i l l into the w r o n g aesthetic camp. W h a t must have read as an o d d introduction to the exhibition, Hulten's text d i d not p r o v i d e the usual enthusiastic sales p i t c h one w o u l d have expected to read i n a m u s e u m catalogue. In fact, considering h o w m u c h time and effort H u l t e n had invested i n p r o m o t i n g an art tied to i r o n y and humor, this introduction casts a rather dark shadow o n an otherwise eye- p o p p i n g experience: It is a c o m m o n mistake to believe that there is a great i r o n y p o i n t e d at mass culture embedded i n Lichtenstein's or Warhol's pictures.... This is i n m a n y w a y s a n e w art created from a different point of o r i g i n . It is the creation of a generation w h o feels powerless to transform the w o r l d ... and i n order to survive is forced to accept it.... They partake i n m u c h of the w o r l d a r o u n d them i n a meaningless, unengaged manner. In relation to society and its problems they stand passive. Politics do not interest t h e m . 2 6 6 Hulten's description of these artists' 'apolitical' attitude a n d lack of i r o n y m a y be an outrageously false accusation. Nevertheless, it d i d serve to distance P o p A r t from a more apparently engaged and historical E u r o p e a n avant-garde. B y p o i n t i n g to the former artists' "middle-class u p b r i n g i n g " i n the U n i t e d States, H u l t e n positioned them squarely i n the lap (it is tempting to say "shopping cart") of a consumer-based mass culture: 2 6 6 p o n t u s H u l t e n " F o r o r d " Amerikansk pop-konst: 106 former av karlek och fortvivlan Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1964, p.15 (pp.15-16). 149 They are not bohemians. They have never had to confront real external pressures. M o s t of them are too y o u n g to have participated i n the war. A s artists they have reached success and economic security w i t h a speed rarely seen before. This economic success is what they strive for. They are not especially intellectual, nor do they have a deep interest i n anything but pure personal experience.... Their w a y to respond to society is personal, not s o c i a l . 2 6 7 Despite his o w n distinct interest i n radical i n d i v i d u a l i s m , H u l t e n had never advocated an anti-social position. After a l l , even if he d i d not see himself as a socialist, it was w i t h i n social spaces such as M o d e r n a M u s e e t where anarchist 'play' c o u l d be activated. W i t h this i n m i n d , Hulten's image of Pop A r t reads as one of despair — a position to be a v o i d e d . Scrambling to make something positive of the exhibition, H u l t e n , w i t h o u t suggesting that the w o r k was socially critical, proposed that the 106 forms of love and despair on display were desperate attempts at obtaining the freedom to experience life: Pop A r t is not social criticism. Instead one can say that it shows a l o n g i n g for relaxation. It is desperately t a k i n g part i n an unavoidable environment, and being subtly optimistic about the p o w e r of v u l g a r i t y and banality. O n a personal level, one object is not better than the next. If there is something of interest one can manage to f i n d i n these often s i m i l a r copies of objects, it is the t r i u m p h of feelings. The P o p artists do not ask any questions and have no agendas. W h a t they w a n t to offer us, is b y a l l accounts, a new w a y of f e e l i n g . 2 6 8 W i t h h o l d i n g a p u b l i c judgment of P o p art, H u l t e n c o n c l u d e d his introduction w i t h the rhetorical question i n brackets: " W i l l [these artists] be 2 6 7 I b i d . . 2 6 8 I b i d . . 1 5 0 s u c c e s s f u l i n f u l f i l l i n g that p a r t o f the e x p e r i e n t i a l v a c u u m w h i c h is the b o m b ' s u l t i m a t e r e a s o n ? " 2 6 9 If H u l t e n ' s text c o u l d f u n c t i o n as a m e a n s to d i s t a n c e the i r o n y a n d s o c i a l c r i t i q u e o f a E u r o p e a n a v a n t - g a r d e f r o m the i n d i v i d u a l i s m h e felt w a s p a r t a n d p a r c e l w i t h a N e w Y o r k v a n g u a r d , t h e n the A m e r i c a n art c r i t i c A l a n R. S o l o m o n ' s a c c o m p a n y i n g e s s a y " T h e N e w A m e r i c a n A r t " a c h i e v e d the s a m e s e p a r a t i o n b u t w i t h o p p o s i t e i n t e n t i o n s . C o u n t e r i n g H u l t e n ' s i m a g e o f " d e s p a i r , " S o l o m o n s u g g e s t s that these artists m a n a g e d to w o r k t h e i r w a y o u t of the c o n f i n e d h i s t o r i c a l c i r c u m s t a n c e s f a c e d b y b o t h the A b s t r a c t E x p r e s s i o n i s t s a n d N e o - D a d a i s t s . A w a r e of the activities of artists l i k e R a u s c h e n b e r g a n d J o h n s , a n d free f r o m a d e p e n d e n c e o n the E u r o p e a n a v a n t - g a r d e ' s r o o t s , the n e w g e n e r a t i o n o f A m e r i c a n P o p artists a p p r o a c h e d t h e i r e n v i r o n m e n t " s p o n t a n e o u s l y " a n d " i n d e p e n d e n t f r o m e a c h o t h e r . " 2 7 0 A c c o r d i n g to S o l o m o n , P o p art h a d n o t b e e n s e r i o u s l y c o n s i d e r e d b y c r i t i c s w h o f u n d a m e n t a l l y m i s r e a d the w o r k as e i t h e r a f o r m o f s o c i a l p r o t e s t o r c y n i c i s m : I h a v e a r g u e d e l s e w h e r e h o w e x t r e m e l y w r o n g this u n d e r s t a n d i n g is b y s h o w i n g h o w these artists are a l l w o r k i n g f r o m p e r s o n a l e x p e r i e n c e s w h i c h h a v e n o interest o r c o n n e c t i o n to s o c i a l o r p o l i t i c a l m a n i f e s t a t i o n s . It is w i t h great r e g r e t that o n e h a s p u t the l a b e l P o p A r t o n t h i s g r o u p ' s w o r k . R e g r e t f u l , s i n c e t h i s h a s c r e a t e d s u c h great c o n f u s i o n a m o n g s t its p u b l i c . T h e t e r m P o p A r t w a s c o i n e d i n E n g l a n d a m o n g s t a g r o u p o f artists w h o w e r e m o s t i n t e r e s t e d i n e x p r e s s i n g t h e i r s o c i a l d i s s a t i s f a c t i o n a n d felt a s t r o n g n e e d to c h a n g e e s t a b l i s h e d s t a n d a r d s . T h e s e p r o b l e m s c a r r y n o i n t e r e s t for the A m e r i c a n p a i n t e r s w h o a c c e p t life as it is a n d i n s t e a d o f d o w n p l a y i n g a n d d u m p i n g o n o u r 2 6 9 i b i d . . 2 7 0 A l a n R. S o l o m o n " D e n N y a a m e r i k a n s k a konsten" Amerikansk pop-konst: 106 former av karlek och fbrtvivlan S t o c k h o l m : M o d e r n a M u s e e t , 1964, p.19 (pp.17-23). 15 1 v u l g a r c i v i l i z a t i o n , they celebrate it o p t i m i s t i c a l l y w i t h n e w standard measures they themselves have i n v e n t e d . 2 7 1 In Solomon's construction, the Pop artist was u n i q u e l y A m e r i c a n precisely because he refused to acknowledge his w o r k i n an historical c o n t i n u u m . Read against Hulten's understanding of Pop art as a movement rooted i n despair, Solomon's text detects an A m e r i c a n love affair free from a E u r o p e a n historical consciousness. This nicely explains the title of the exhibition and points to the former's fear of losing i r o n y and the latter's celebration of its loss. D u r i n g the fall of 1964, M o d e r n a Museet w o u l d once again p l a y host to N e w Yorkers. This time it was M e r c e C u n n i n g h a m ' s Dance C o m p a n y w h o , d u r i n g its w o r l d tour, received an i n v i t a t i o n to v i s i t S t o c k h o l m for a summer vacation. Put u p at Ultvedt's country house just outside S t o c k h o l m , the performers (who i n c l u d e d Rauschenberg, Steve Paxton, John Cage, D a v i d Tudor, C a r o l i n e B r o w n , A l e x and Deborah H a y , Robert M o r r i s , Y v o n n e Rainer, and Trisha Brown) were also i n v i t e d to organize at the m u s e u m a series of "happenings" at the m u s e u m w h i c h became k n o w n as 5 New York Evenings.272 In Hulten's w o r d s , this w o u l d be "the last b i g o r g a n i z e d event i n what had been the springtime of collaborations w i t h the N e w Y o r k a r t i s t s . . . . " 2 7 3 2 7 1 I b i d . , p.23. 2 7 2 I n light of what w e k n o w from the private correspondence between L i n d e a n d U l t v e d t , the fact that they stayed at U l t v e d t ' s place seems a w k w a r d . 2 7 3 H u l t e n "The N e w Y o r k C o n n e c t i o n " G r a n a t h , et. al., p.56. 1 5 2 A m o n g the m a n y performances, 5 New York Evenings i n c l u d e d M e r c e C u n n i n g h a m ' s Summers-pace [fig. 72], Robert M o r r i s a n d Y v o n n e Rainer's Olympia and Check, Steve Paxton's Jag vill gdrna telefonera [I Would Gladly Make a Phone Call], a n d Rauschenberg's The Elgin Tie [fig. 73]. For H u l t e n this must have been an a w k w a r d moment. A s an early avant-garde matchmaker, H u l t e n was n o w witnessing "the end of a l o n g beautiful summer" of collaborations w h i c h had started off as an anarchist's collaborative affair but was n o w e n d i n g i n collective despair. Despite this apparent conflict, i n M a r c h of 1965 Rauschenberg's Illustrations to Dante's Divine Comedy were presented w i t h m u c h p u b l i c attention. For H u l t e n and the m u s e u m , a Rauschenberg e x h i b i t i o n shortly after his international success at the Venice Biennale i n the s u m m e r of 1964 (he was the first A m e r i c a n to w i n the L i o n d'Or) was no doubt an important feather i n their respective caps. But this engagement must also have been an extremely uncomfortable compromise for someone i n H u l t e n ' s shoes as he attempted not to fall from the tightrope he himself h a d helped to stretch between v a r i o u s i n d i v i d u a l factions. B y the s p r i n g of 1965, Pontus H u l t e n w o u l d be "grounded;" forced into a position where he c o u l d not do another N e w Y o r k event w i t h o u t fearing p u b l i c and private execution. W i t h its n e w found p u b l i c v i s i b i l i t y , M o d e r n a Museet was n o w not o n l y being pressured b y a s m a l l group of intellectuals to sever ties w i t h the U n i t e d States, but was increasingly attracting c r i t i c i s m from a broader p u b l i c responding to politics related to A m e r i c a n m i l i t a r y interventions i n V i e t n a m . B y February of 1965, a n t i - A m e r i c a n sentiments were reaching a peak. To understand what this escalation meant for the 1 5 3 museum, as w e l l as the country as a whole, w e have to position S w e d i s h foreign politics next to the history of the post-war avant-garde i n the first chapters. N e u t r a l i t y , Independence and Internationalism: The C u l t u r a l F o r m a t i o n of C o l d W a r Politics i n Sweden, 1958-65. P a r a l l e l to Hulten's attempt to forge an independent c u l t u r a l position between Paris and N e w Y o r k i n Stockholm, Sweden was by the late fifties struggling to define its identity between the C o l d W a r superpowers. Just as we have seen i n the c u l t u r a l history of this p e r i o d , Sweden has also, u n t i l recently, largely been ignored i n d i p l o m a t i c history. W i t h a p o p u l a t i o n of o n l y approximately 8 m i l l i o n , but covering the fourth largest l a n d area i n Europe, S w e d e n occupied an interesting p o s i t i o n w i t h i n a post-war p o l i t i c a l terrain. A l t h o u g h relatively isolated geographically, and c l a i m i n g p o l i t i c a l neutrality, S w e d e n was nonetheless an active player i n international politics and p l a y e d an important role i n foreign relations. W e have seen i n the first chapter h o w Sweden was considered a m o d e l society b y m a n y o n the Left i n the early fifties. B y the early 1960s, Sweden was s t i l l l a u d e d b y m a n y countries, i n c l u d i n g the U n i t e d States, for the h i g h standard of l i v i n g it h a d achieved and the "middle-way" it h a d successfully forged. W h i l e being governed b y a Socialist government since 1932, S w e d e n h a d become one of the most A m e r i c a n i z e d countries i n Europe, a n d h a d , even according to L y n d o n Johnson, achieved "happy and honorable bonds" w i t h the U n i t e d States." 2 7 4 2 7 4 F r e d r i k L o g e v a l l "The S w e d i s h - A m e r i c a n C o n f l i c t O v e r V i e t n a m " Diplomatic History (Summer 1993), p.424. 1 5 4 The apparently comfortable relationship that literature has constructed of this time and place, w o u l d however soon be put into question, for there were significant u n d e r l y i n g tensions w h i c h w o u l d lead to heated controversy by the summer of 1965. Sweden's public refusal to join defense pacts such as the Brussels Treaty O r g a n i z a t i o n , and its later version N o r t h A t l a n t i c Treaty O r g a n i z a t i o n ( N A T O ) , coupled w i t h its attempt to set up independent defense pacts w i t h other Scandinavian countries, had irritated the U n i t e d States for a number of years. W h a t undercut this irritation was a secret alliance forged between N A T O and the S w e d i s h g o v e r n m e n t . 2 7 5 G e o p o l i t i c a l l y caught between the two superpowers of the Soviet U n i o n and The U n i t e d States and recognizing its l i m i t e d sovereignty i n this context, the S w e d i s h government increasingly realized its role w i t h i n international politics as that of a buffer s t a t e . 2 7 6 In this balancing act, w h i c h is paralleled i n H u l t e n ' s m u s e u m activities, the Social Democratic government, led b y P r i m e M i n i s t e r Tage Erlander, was publicly f i r m i n its stand that S w e d e n c o u l d o n l y remain neutral b y a v o i d i n g explicit ties to the West. B y the mid-sixties, just as the M o d e r n a M u s e e t h a d become intimately connected and associated w i t h an A m e r i c a n form of art, a v o i d i n g explicit ties 2 7 5 T h i s was revealed during the summer of 1992 when the newly elected conservative government, in an attempt to strengthen its relations with the European Union (EG), admitted to Sweden's ties to N A T O during the 1950s and '60s. This "secret" appeared in documents related to the trial of the Swedish general Stig Wennerstrom who was revealled to have been a Cold War spy for Russia while simultaneously being involved in linking the Swedish War Intelligence Centre (Svenska stridsledningscentralen) with N A T O centres in Norway and Denmark. See "Hyckleri?" in Expressen (May 27, 1992), p.2; and "Spionforhor bekraftar N A T O kontakten" Dagens Nyheter (May 27, 1992), p.l&6; These issues can also be followed in the Parlamentary debates regarding Swedish Neutrality. See Riksdagen Protokol (1991-1992, May 25, 1992), in answer to interpellations, p.2-16. 2 7 6 M y use of the term "buffer state" is in reference to a study edited by John Chay and Thomas E. Ross entitled Buffer States in World Politics Colorado: Westview Press, 1986 in which a buffer area is defined as "an area...controlled by one or more small states and located between two opposing — and much greater — powers... The buffer system dictates that neither (great power) can dominate the system." p.90. 1 5 5 to the West was becoming increasingly difficult for a country t r y i n g to remain o n the economically profitable road to democracy that an American-based consumer culture p r o v i d e d . Increasingly, S w e d e n was b e g i n n i n g to look 'explicitly' A m e r i c a n i z e d , an uncomfortable fact for m a n y o n the Left i n Sweden and abroad. In the s p r i n g of 1965, at a moment w h e n S w e d i s h liberalism under a Socialist government was being pressured to find some w a y to m a r k out its p o l i t i c a l differences from A m e r i c a n liberalism, an escalation of major A m e r i c a n g r o u n d forces into V i e t n a m w o u l d p r o v i d e Sweden w i t h an opportunity to reposition and redefine its neutrality politics. B y February of 1965, A m e r i c a n b o m b i n g of N o r t h V i e t n a m had begun. N o t o n l y d i d it p u s h the w a r into a new phase, but it shifted m u c h international o p i n i o n against the U n i t e d States' i n v o l v e m e n t . 2 7 7 This was particularly the case i n Sweden where d i p l o m a t i c tensions m o u n t e d r a p i d l y and had erupted o n an alarming scale b y June w h e n a series of p u b l i c demonstrations took place i n the streets of Stockholm [fig. 74], p u t t i n g pressure o n the government to respond. Speaking at a July 30 meeting of the C h r i s t i a n Democrats i n 1965, O l o f Palme, then M i n i s t e r of Transport and C o m m u n i c a t i o n s , declared his objections to A m e r i c a n i n v o l v e m e n t i n V i e t n a m b y stating that "it is i l l u s o r y to believe that demands for social justice can be met w i t h violence and m i l i t a r y f o r c e . " 2 7 8 "The Social Democrat's basic m o r a l value," he continued, "forces us at each t u r n to stand o n the side of the repressed against oppressors, o n a miserable and poor 2 7 7 A n escalation of major American ground forces into Vietnam took place during the spring of 1965. See Fredrik Logevall's "De Gaulle, Neutralization, and American Involvement in Vietnam, 1963-1964" Pacific Historical Review (February 1992), pp.69-102. 2 7 8 Y n g v e Moller Sverige och Vietnam: ett unikt kapitel i svensk utrikespolitik Stockholm: Tidens Forlag, 1992, p.39. Moller's book is the most thorough discussion of Palme's speech and along with Logevall's article gives an excellent overview of the Swedish-American conflict over Vietnam. 156 peoples side against their users and l o r d s . " 2 7 9 Palme's cutting remarks d i d not go unnoticed by A m e r i c a n Embassy officials w h o were quick to voice their objections to what they understood as a direct attack o n U . S . foreign politics. F o l l o w i n g suit, the State Department i n W a s h i n g t o n d e m a n d e d "clarification" from the S w e d i s h G o v e r n m e n t as to whether or not they supported Palme's statements. A l t h o u g h S w e d i s h o p i n i o n was not u n i f o r m , Erlander and foreign minister Torsten N i l s s o n p u b l i c l y supported Palme's p o s i t i o n . 2 8 0 In the s p r i n g of 1966 further irritation for the U n i t e d States w o u l d be added to the w o u n d caused b y Sweden's position regarding V i e t n a m w h e n Erlander decided to a l l o w the Bertrand Russell International W a r C r i m e s T r i b u n a l to be h e l d i n Stockholm the f o l l o w i n g year. The tribunal, w h i c h i n c l u d e d celebrated opponents to the V i e t n a m W a r such as Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Isaac Deutscher, and others, h a d been banned from Paris by Charles de G a u l l e . R e s p o n d i n g to this decision, the Swedes were informed by the S w e d i s h Embassy that President Johnson was "disappointed and d i s t u r b e d . " 2 8 1 A s historian Frederik L o g e v a l l and others have s h o w n , the summer of 1965 h a d been the t u r n i n g point m a r k i n g a n e w direction i n S w e d i s h foreign p o l i c y , e m b o d y i n g a more activist approach to international issues and a greater determination to stake out a p o s i t i o n between the 2 7 9 I b i d . , p.38-39. 280g e e Dagens Nyheter "Vi star fast om Vietnam" (August 3, 1965), p.5. Erlander is quoted as saying that "I have nothing more to say today. The Government's view regarding the Vietnam conflict has been criticized by America. We have had our say. A n d this we stand by." The intense Swedish press debate concerning American involvement in Vietnam during the summer of 1965 has been the focus for a doctoral dissertation from the University of Lund. See Eva Queckfeldt 'Vietnam': Tre svenska tidnignars syn pd vienam fragan Phd. Lund Universitet: Bibliotheca Histroica Lundensis, 1981. The articles from this press debate have also been collected in book form under the title Vietnam i svensk press debatt Sommaren 1965. Stockholms Universitet. 2 8 1 L o g e v a l l (1993), p.429. 1 5 7 s u p e r p o w e r s . 2 8 2 This new direction by Sweden, w h i c h sought to forge a more sovereign path for itself, ultimately strained S w e d i s h - A m e r i c a n relations to the point where both the Johnson a n d N i x o n administrations issued numerous threats of i m p e n d i n g economic s a n c t i o n s . 2 8 3 A l t h o u g h Y n g v e M o l l e r , former S w e d i s h ambassador to the U n i t e d States, i n his impressive study Sverige och Vietnam Kriget (1992) has stressed the important role p l a y e d by S w e d i s h intellectuals i n forging national o p i n i o n by v o i c i n g their strong objections to A m e r i c a n i n v o l v e m e n t i n V i e t n a m , he, l i k e other historians, fails to discuss the intense c u l t u r a l politics that were being p l a y e d out next to these so called 'hard' politics. In m y reconstruction of this time and place, these two parallel histories must both be recognized i n order to account for the c u l t u r a l politics at p l a y [see figs. 73 and 75]. A s described earlier, o n M a r c h 19,1965, precisely w h e n A m e r i c a n i n v o l v e m e n t i n V i e t n a m escalated and what has been called the " S w e d i s h - A m e r i c a n conflict" intensified, M o d e r n a M u s e e t opened its exhibition of 34 illustrations for Dante's Divine Comedy b y Robert Rauschenberg. A week later, at the v e r y moment S w e d i s h p o l i t i c a l commentators began attacking A m e r i c a ' s role i n V i e t n a m i n the d a i l y press, art critic U l f L i n d e wrote the first of what w o u l d become four 'seminal' articles d e n o u n c i n g the N e w Y o r k avant-garde i n the liberal d a i l y Dagens Nyheter.2** 2 8 2 I b i d . , p.427. 2 8 3 I b i d „ p.444. 2 8 4 T h e r e are four articles i n total. See U l f L i n d e ' s " D e n O p p n a konsten: A r v e t fran M u n c h e n " Dagens Nyheter ( M a r c h 26, 1965), p.4; "Den O p p n a konsten: M y t e n o m d e n historielosa formen" Dagens Nyheter ( M a r c h 30, 1965), p.4; "Den O p p n a konsten: D e n b i l d 'man' har" Dagens Nyheter ( A p r i l 4, 1965), p.4; " D e n O p p n a konsten: D i a l o g u e utan slut" Dagens Nyheter ( M a y 13, 1965), p.4. 158 Four Articles: U l f Linde's C r i t i q u e of O p e n A r t H a v i n g for years supported M o d e r n a Museet and h a v i n g been one of the earliest defenders of the new "open art" from N e w Y o r k i n the p o p u l a r press, L i n d e ' s first article "Den O p p n a konsten: A r v e t fran M u n c h e n " (The O p e n A r t : the Inheritance from M u n i c h ) shifts his support of the A m e r i c a n vanguard to a critique of it w i t h o u t contradicting his past judgments i n the process [fig. 76]. To achieve this, L i n d e focused his attention o n the 'Pop A r t phenomenon' not by dealing directly w i t h the artists and their w o r k , but by s h o w i n g h o w the 'meaning' of the w o r k has been created "outside the studio" to produce a series of misunderstandings. H e finds the best example of this external c o r r u p t i o n i n an article by A l a n R. S o l o m o n , p u b l i s h e d o n l y a few months earlier i n Art International. It s h o u l d be p o i n t e d out that S o l o m o n h a d just served as the U . S . C o m m i s s i o n e r for the V e n i c e Biennale, an event i n w h i c h Rauschenberg h a d 'stolen' the international p r i z e from the Europeans for an unprecedented first t i m e . 2 8 5 "Jim D i n e and the Psychology of the N e w A r t " was published i n October, 1964, and as i n his essay for M o d e r n a Museet's P o p A r t exhibition earlier that year, S o l o m o n aimed to secure a distinctly A m e r i c a n interpretation of P o p : A series of exhibitions i n E u r o p e d u r i n g the past twelve months, first i n L o n d o n and Stockholm..., has o n l y succeeded i n extending the confusion abroad, since E u r o p e a n critics have consistently 2 8 ^Laurie Monahan has revealed the cultural engineering that took place behind the scenes of Rauschenberg's victory at the Venice Biennale. Contextualizing this art in relation to the Kennedy Administration's rhetoric of the New Frontier, Monahan links the rise of Neo-Dada and Pop Art in the United States to American cultural and political expansionism. See Laurie Monahan's "Cultural Cartography: American Designs at the 1964 Venice Biennale" in Guilbaut, Serge Ed. Reconstructing Modernism: Art in New York, Paris and Montreal 1945-1964 Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1990, pp. 369-416. 1 5 9 misunderstood the work. The American exhibition at the Venice Biennale has been described in the European press as an invasion of Pop, and Rauschenberg, the International Prize winner, has been crowned King of Pop Art, despite the fact that none of the artists in the exhibition regards himself, or should be regarded, as a Pop Artist."286 As he had argued in his earlier text for Moderna Museet's Pop Art exhibition, Solomon maintained that Pop was distinct from the assemblage art of someone like Rauschenberg. This enabled him to sever any potential ties to European art and make the argument that Pop artists responded to their immediate lived environment in a natural and "original" way. Reacting to the anti-European thrust of Solomon's article, Linde, while choosing not to quote the above paragraph as an example of Solomon's pro-Americanism, picked the following few sentences as a "typical" example of the attitude adopted by American critics — as well as the Pop artists themselves: Instead of protesting, or satirizing, they are telling us that anything goes, and that the mystery of art does not depend on any imaginable preconception. This openness, so much a determinant in the attitude of the new American generation, comes not from indifference, but from a desire for a new esthetic and a new morality. Such a point of view is absolutely incomprehensible to Europeans, except for a few who have had some taste of contemporary American life. Oriented toward Cartesian rationalism by a long and rich tradition, the ambiguity of attitude and the apparent absence of familiar disciplines (there is, of course, a new discipline) annoy and distract them.2 8 7 For Linde, the first and last sentence in this quote sufficed to illustrate what he saw as an inherent contradiction in Solomon's thinking. If a new discipline is established, he asked, "doesn't this prevent a series of things 2 8 6 A l a n R. S o l o m o n "Jim D i n e a n d P s y c h o l o g y of the N e w A r t " Art International (October 1964), p.52 (52-56). 2 8 7 S o l o m o n quoted i n L i n d e Linde's " D e n Oppna konsten: A r v e t fran M u n c h e n " Dagens Nyheter ( M a r c h 26, 1965), p.4. 1 6 0 from h a p p e n i n g w h i c h w o u l d have been possible p r i o r to the establishment of the discipline?" In other w o r d s , can "anything" s t i l l happen i n the new order of an "open" art? U n d e r s t o o d as a major contradiction, this was an aspect of his o w n w r i t i n g that S o l o m o n must have understood and tried to cover u p . L i n d e found proof of this awareness (what he referred to as his "slightly larger intelligence") i n a text by S o l o m o n from 1963 o n Rauschenberg's Monogram i n w h i c h he d i s t i n g u i s h e d between a "rational" and "utterly unexplainable" level of meaning: Its [Monogram's] "rightness" and clarity can not be denied, and yet the goat absolutely defies any k i n d of rational explanation; it has no meaning, i n the conventional sense. Yet there is a certain justness i n the i l l o g i c a l association of the two elements w h i c h makes the object eminently satisfying to us, o n a p u r e l y intuitive and utterly inexplicable p l a n e . 2 8 8 This passage for L i n d e was a clear example of Solomon's m a n y contradictions. In his former argument, S o l o m o n h a d p r o p o s e d that "a 2 8 8 Q u o t e d in Linde's article but here sited from the original text (for translation purposes): Alan R. Solomon Robert Rauschenberg New York: The Jewish Museum, 1963 reprinted in Steven Henry Madoff (Ed.) Pop Art: A Critical History Berkeley: University of California Press, 1997, pp.22 (19-24). In this longer text, Solomon describes Rauschenberg as "a kind of esthetic tightropewalker." Continuing he proposes that Rauschenberg is "easing his way along with a solid sense of balance above the pitfalls of ugliness, vulgarity or slickness. The sureness of his performance depends on taking chances; his absolute tact and his impeccable taste are concealed beneath the facility and the abandon of the performance.... He might seem to depend too much on the bizarre encounter and the happy accident, on excessive statements and out- landish propositions. However, a more careful look at his intentions and at his way of working makes the absolute refinement of his position clear enough." (my italics). Solomon adds that Rauschenberg's ideas "have widely influenced the new generation of artists, as well as some of Rauschenberg's contemporaries, so that Tinguely's constructions with radios [for example]... have become almost commonplace." p.24. The concluding paragraph is completely devoted to separating Rauschenberg from the European representative in New York, Marcel Duchamp: "Rauschenberg has often been compared with Duchamp.... The fact is that Rauschenberg was not particularily conscious of Duchamp until quite late, until his own position had been for the most part defined." Ibid.. 1 6 1 certain relationship between the parts of an artwork, a certain structure" can through intuition prepare the v i e w e r for an "unexpected satisfaction." A g r e e i n g w i t h S o l o m o n o n the order of things up to this point, L i n d e however observed that since w r i t i n g this i n 1963, the w o r d intuition had been subtly replaced w i t h instinct. M o r e precisely, S o l o m o n was n o w a r g u i n g for "an u n c h a n g i n g instinct, g r o u n d e d i n h u m a n nature," something distinctly different from i n t u i t i o n tied to an intentional w i l l . 2 8 9 Here w e have the crux of the p r o b l e m for L i n d e . After a l l , if a l l of "us" (to use Solomon's w o r d ) have instinctual capabilities of u n d e r s t a n d i n g something (such as Rauschenberg's Monogram), but not a l l of us understand things the same w a y , w o u l d this not suggest that some viewers (perhaps the Europeans i n question) were res ponding to the w o r k i n an "unnatural" way? For L i n d e , this was indeed Solomon's argument and it h i n g e d o n a p r o p o s i t i o n w h e r e i n : ...some people have h a d their aesthetic sensibilities r u i n e d . B y insisting o n u n n a t u r a l value systems i n their thought processes, they have managed to repress their instincts — they quite s i m p l y suffer from p s y c h o l o g i c a l conflicts.... The person w h o does not share Solomon's value system is i n this sense an u n n a t u r a l i n d i v i d u a l a n d a neurotic. This is u n d o u b t e d l y a curious conclusion — considering that it was reached w i t h an argument defending total o p e n n e s s ! 2 9 0 This said, P o p A r t , despite its declared "openness," h a d subtly (through the w r i t i n g s of someone l i k e Solomon) i n t r o d u c e d a 'fully d e v e l o p e d doctrine' defining P o p A r t as a natural c u l t u r a l phenomena: 2 8 9 L i n d e " D e n O p p n a konsten: A r v e t fran M u n c h e n " Dagens Nyheter ( M a r c h 26, 1965), p.4. 2 9 0 l b i d . . 1 6 2 Solomon's opinions are shared by most writers d e a l i n g w i t h the new A m e r i c a n p a i n t i n g — one meets almost everywhere o p i n i o n s m a r k e d b y an anti-intellectual position coupled w i t h a belief i n some mystical quality i n the w o r k , an 'order' w h i c h releases instinctual — and therefore 'correct' — feelings i n the b e h o l d e r . 2 9 1 The d o m i n a n t source for this 'anti-intellectual' and 'mystical' argument for instinct was to be found i n John Cage's book Silence (1961), a text familiar to A m e r i c a n artists as w e l l as to S w e d i s h readers of Konstrevy w h o had read it translated by O y v i n d Fahlstrom as early as 1961 2 9 2 For readers of Art International, the seminal influence of Cage (rather than D u c h a m p ) h a d also been p r o m o t e d by numerous influential writers i n a d d i t i o n to S o l o m o n . For example, i n a text from 1963, Barbara Rose suggests that John Cage had been one of the first to "understand the deadness of Europe, and [had tried] to f i n d some w a y out of i t . " 2 9 3 L i k e S o l o m o n , Rose h a d a m b i t i o u s l y constructed a distinctly A m e r i c a n o r i g i n for what she called the " N e w Dada," a construction w h i c h separated these artists from the historical b u r d e n of Europe: 29irbid.. 292See Cage, John "Om Robert Rauschenberg, konstnar, och hans arbete" Translated by Oyvind Fahlstrom. Konstrevy No.5-6, 1961, pp.166-174. In this text, Linde finds a clear example of why John Cage had become known as the 'mentor of the pops': "People's feelings are constantly woken up in confrontation with nature. Doesn't a big mountain evoke a feeling of wonder — whether we want it to or not? — ... What is more tremendous than Hghming and sound of thunder? These reactions in response to nature are mine... — feelings exist amongst those who have them. A n d sounds, if you let them be themselves, do not demand that those who hear them do so without feeling something. — Not an attempt to understand something which has been said, because if something had been said, the sounds would have been formed into words. Only an awareness of the activity of sound." [sic], Ibid.. 2 9 3 B a r b a r a Rose "Dada, Then and Now" Art International (January, 1963), pp. 23-28 reprinted in Steven Henry Madoff's Pop Art: A Critical History Berkeley: University of California Press, 1997, p.63. 1 6 3 That European D a d a d i d not bear root i n A m e r i c a , and that the A m e r i c a n experience was not describable i n D a d a terms, is illustrated by the fate of the Dadaists w h o came to settle i n this country: D u c h a m p , still the revered pontiff of the avant-garde, paints no more; G r o s z , the fervent 'Propagandada' experienced a b r e a k d o w n i n A m e r i c a and returned to G e r m a n y to spend his last days: Hulsenbeck, credited w i t h b r i n g i n g D a d a from Z u r i c h to B e r l i n , is a psychiatrist i n N e w York.... W e must therefore try to find an A m e r i c a n and not a E u r o p e a n source for new Dada.... [The] c o m m o n origin... is i n the ideas and experiments of the avant-garde composer, John Cage. Cage ... e v o l v e d theories about music that were very o r i g i n a l , very A m e r i c a n and very adaptable to the v i s u a l arts.... In Silence, his recently p u b l i s h e d lectures and papers, w e find the seeds of many, if not a l l , new D a d a concepts — the use of the o r d i n a r y and the commonplace, the familiar and the banal i n art, the consecration of the unique, unrepeatable moment, the juxtaposition of a n o m a l i e s . 2 9 4 U n l i k e S o l o m o n , Rose admitted that " N e w D a d a was often a p e c u l i a r l y and often c h a u v i n i s t i c a l l y A m e r i c a n s o l u t i o n to the p r o b l e m of where to go...." 2 9 ' Despite this a d m i s s i o n , Rose's p o s i t i o n represented the same c h a u v i n i s m as W i l l i a m Seitz had before her (in the Art of Assemblage catalogue) a n d S o l o m o n thereafter. To contradict a l l of them, L i n d e needed to answer a question of his o w n : if Cage, rather than D u c h a m p , was being constructed i n A m e r i c a n art c r i t i c i s m as the o r i g i n a l "father" of these ideas, "just h o w o r i g i n a l were these v i e w s o n art; had there really been no one to think like Cage before C a g e ? " 2 9 6 It didn't take m u c h effort for L i n d e to answer his o w n question. Cage himself, he observes, h a d admitted that he h a d outside influences. But w h i l e Cage sometimes referred to D a d a , E r i k Satie, and occasionally A r n o l d Schonberg, he more often p l a y e d out Eastern and Z e n influences against his ^ I b i d . , 62. 2 9 5 I b i d . , p.63 2 9 6 I b i d . . 1 6 4 European ties. L i n d e believed that this revealed a reluctance by Cage to acknowledge his connection to Schonberg. After a l l , ...during the thirties Cage was a student of Schonberg w h o was at the time l i v i n g i n L o s Angeles. It is of course difficult to k n o w exactly what was said d u r i n g these lessons — but one thing is for sure: nothing that Cage w o u l d ever write w o u l d mean something new for A r n o l d S c h o n b e r g ! 2 9 7 To l i n k Cage historically to Schonberg was no doubt a clever attempt at contradicting writers like S o l o m o n and Rose, but L i n d e d u g an even deeper historical hole for the A m e r i c a n avant-garde by p r o v i d i n g Schonberg w i t h roots i n the m y s t i c a l 'spirituality' of K a n d i n s k y ' s expressionist paintings and w r i t i n g s . Just as Cage h a d begun to k n o w (and understand) Schonberg i n L o s Angeles d u r i n g the thirties, Schonberg, he notes, had befriended K a n d i n s k y i n M u n i c h a r o u n d 1916. Since Rauschenberg was taught b y Cage at Black M o u n t a i n , L i n d e c o u l d see a clear historical lineage o r i g i n a t i n g i n E u r o p e a n E x p r e s s i o n i s m . C o n s i d e r i n g this K a n d i n s k y — S c h o n b e r g — C a g e — Rauschenberg historiography, L i n d e suggests that the s i m i l a r i t y between Cage's w r i t i n g s i n Silence a n d K a n d i n s k y ' s w r i t i n g On the Spiritual in Art are u n a v o i d a b l e : B o t h get their examples from nature, from everything w h i c h surrounds humans w h e n they want to describe h o w feelings arise. It is this total awareness, or openness, that b o t h understand as a k i n d of deep innocence... It is i n people's nature where the s a v i n g p o w e r s are h i d d e n — i n that w h i c h is spontaneous, irrational, a n d instinctive i n her. (Far a w a y i n the labyrinth of the history of ideas one can imagine Rousseau being brought to tears).... Cage often demands that s o u n d 2 9 7 L i n d e , p.4. 1 6 5 s h o u l d just b e itself. K a n d i n s k y d e m a n d s the s a m e o f c o l o u r a n d f o r m . In h i s Liber das Geistige in der Kunst. h e s a y s that t h e y s h o u l d n o t r e p r e s e n t a n y t h i n g . . . . W h i l e C a g e ' s Silence... is v i t a l a n d f u l l o f h u m o u r i n a l m o s t e v e r y w a y , I t h i n k it is p o i n t l e s s to try to f i n d a s i n g l e o r i g i n a l t h o u g h t i n the b o o k . C o n s i d e r i n g the i d e a s i n it, it is clear that t h e y c o u l d h a v e b e e n w r i t t e n b y a n y o l d s u b s c r i b e r to Der Sturm.298 H a v i n g t h u s g r o u n d e d the P o p A r t p h e n o m e n o n i n e a r l y 20th c e n t u r y E x p r e s s i o n i s t d o c t r i n e s , L i n d e c o n c l u d e s h i s first of f o u r articles b y m a k i n g it clear that h e is n o t i n t e r e s t e d i n d e b u n k i n g i n d i v i d u a l a r t w o r k , b u t r a t h e r a n x i o u s to q u e s t i o n the ' d i r e c t i o n ' c e r t a i n i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s h a v e t a k e n d u e to " d o c t r i n e s " i n art h i s t o r y . T h e s e d i r e c t i o n s , h e a d m i t s , are n e c e s s a r y to d e f i n e w h a t art is, " a n d g i v e art n e w life w h e n the o l d m e a n i n g s e e m s d e a d . " B u t o n e s h o u l d a l s o r e a l i z e that " e v e r y d e f i n i t i o n is d o o m e d to b e p r o v i s i o n a l . " 2 9 9 F o r a E u r o c e n t r i c i n d i v i d u a l i s t s u c h as L i n d e , S o l o m o n ' s a r g u m e n t s m u s t h a v e r e a d as a n a t t e m p t to "fix" i n d i v i d u a l c r e a t i o n s w i t h i n a l a r g e r " o p e n " t e r r a i n t i e d to a d e f e n s e o f A m e r i c a n i n d i v i d u a l i s m r a t h e r t h a n the r a d i c a l i n d i v i d u a l p o s i t i o n w h i c h L i n d e u n d e r s t o o d the E u r o p e a n artists to b e s t r i v i n g for v i a D u c h a m p a n d S t i r n e r . Just as S o l o m o n w a s d i s t a n c i n g h i s a v a n t - g a r d e f r o m E u r o p e i n o r d e r to a r g u e for a c o l l e c t i v e A m e r i c a n art m o v e m e n t , L i n d e w a s d i s t a n c i n g h i s a r m y o f artists f r o m the U n i t e d States i n o r d e r to p r o t e c t t h e m f r o m f a l l i n g o u t o f i n d i v i d u a l c o l l a b o r a t i o n i n t o m o r e ' p o p u l a r ' a n d " o p e n " f o r m s o f c o l l e c t i v i t y . I n o r d e r to r e t u r n i n t e n t i o n a l i t y to artistic p r a c t i c e s , L i n d e h a d to retreat i n t o a p h i l o s o p h i c a l g a m e o f w i t a n d 2 9 8 I b i c L It is w o r t h n o t i n g that L i n d e feminizes the instinctual side of h u m a n nature by referring to "her." W e w i l l see i n his later articles that he masculinizes reason and intellect. 2 9 9 i b i d . . 1 6 6 irony just as w e have seen Saint-Phalle, T i n g u e l y , and U l t v e d t p l a y i n the previous chapter. U n l i k e the arguments w h i c h developed i n the U n i t e d States, the S w e d i s h counter-arguments had a v e r y different "public" form as it was not just disseminated i n art journals, but discussed v e r y seriously i n the popular press. This was no doubt a crucial ingredient to M o d e r n a Museet's impressive attendance records and success. I w o u l d suggest that b y 1965 it had also been p r o v i d e d w i t h a h i g h l y informed p u b l i c o p i n i o n that c o u l d t u r n against the m u s e u m . . A t the e n d of M a r c h , the second of the four articles appeared under the title "Den O p p n a konsten: M y t e n o m den historielosa formen" ("The O p e n A r t : The M y t h S u r r o u n d i n g the A h i s t o r i c a l Form"). Here L i n d e b u i l d s o n his previous argument w h i c h suggested that through an expressionist tradition, artists as diverse as Cage, Rauschenberg and the Pop artists h a d been u n w i l l i n g to differentiate between art and nature. Q u o t i n g T.S. Eliot's anti- expressionist sentiment from 1917, L i n d e agreed that: no art can exist without a dialogue w i t h the past — nor can any artist exist. One can o n l y create an artwork through the conscious energy that is released b y the actual w o r d art; something else is not possible. This is w h y the thought of an art w h i c h relies o n l y o n instinct is i n itself a l i e . 3 0 0 To s i m p l i f y this point to the lay reader, and simultaneously to make a D u c h a m p i a n p u n to a more informed audience, L i n d e suggests that K a n d i n s k y (and b y extension Schonberg, Cage and Rauschenberg) was w r o n g to suggest that y o u need to empty out meaning from colour i n order to achieve an instinctual response. After a l l , wasn't K a n d i n s k y "forced to steal" 3 0 0 i b i d . , p.4. 1 6 7 from each coloured form its history? "The w a y he wrote about it suggests that it doesn't matter if he painted the form w i t h a brush and water colour, or a dog happened to have let go of his urine. W h a t purpose w o u l d be served to call the spot made by a d o g art?" C o n t i n u i n g to poke away at the A m e r i c a n vanguard, L i n d e created both a formal and a historical l i n k between Rauschenberg's and D a d a artist K u r t Schwitters' w o r k . The purpose for a l l this, he declared, was to show that the A m e r i c a n critics "myth of an ahistorical form — w i t h a l l its anti-intellectualism — is i n itself as m u c h an intellectual construction" as it is an historically given theory like any other artistic p r o g r a m i n the twentieth c e n t u r y . 3 0 1 This said, L i n d e c o n c l u d e d that "despite its claims of l a c k i n g preconditioned direction, this [myth] is i n fact one of the most absolutist t h e o r i e s . " 3 0 2 W h a t L i n d e constructed w i t h these first two articles is a rather questionable picture of a N e w Y o r k avant-garde tradition w h i c h he argued had emerged as a fully developed doctrine b y the mid-sixties. In his f o l l o w i n g two articles L i n d e developed the other, European, side of this picture. A s a counter-image to an emasculated A m e r i c a n avant-garde tied to concepts of nature and instinct, L i n d e n o w m a s c u l i n i z e d a contemporary E u r o p e a n avant-garde p o s i t i o n b y t y i n g it to a social tradition and the more intellectual concept of intuition. If the former avant-garde was understood to be historically 'locked' into an Expressionist tradition v i a J o h n Cage, the latter was conceptually 'free' v i a the seminal influence of M a r c e l D u c h a m p . 3 0 1 I b i d . . 3 0 2 I b i d . . 1 6 8 "Den O p p n a konsten: D e n b i l d 'man' har" ("The O p e n A r t : The Picture ' O n e / M a n ' Has"*), was p u b l i s h e d o n A p r i l 4, 1965, and began Linde's reconstruction of an avant-garde position that c o u l d recover tradition b y p u t t i n g emphasis o n i n t u i t i o n rather than instinct. This d i s t i n c t i o n w o u l d become crucial for L i n d e i n his attempt to salvage an intentional m o r a l position for the i n d i v i d u a l i n society. This critical play between an inner and outer space (as Wittgenstein h a d put it), w o u l d i n m a n y ways echo the preparedness ideology of S w e d i s h Existentialists (who as w e saw i n chapter 1 had formulated their o w n s o c i o - i n d i v i d u a l responsibility to replace a resistance leveled into a p o p u l a r front mentality). In formulating this distinction, L i n d e understood w e l l that a defense of intentionality against the 'openness' of interpretation c o u l d be i n the end read as a return to the archism w h i c h Rabbe E n c k e l l had lamented i n his "Defence of C l a s s i c i s m " a few years earlier. W h a t L i n d e needed to preserve i n his o w n argument for 'competence' and responsibility was a self-conscious individual expression that c o u l d reject the collective consciousness w h i c h he saw argued for i n the n e w open art, the latter representing a fall into a state of false consciousness. For L i n d e , this self-conscious p o s i t i o n depended o n a p l a y between the i n d i v i d u a l a n d society. Situated i n this in between space, art, for L i n d e , p r o d u c e d language problems similar to what L u d w i g Wittgenstein i n his Philosophical Investigations c a l l e d 'language-games.' R e l y i n g h e a v i l y o n * Although the subtitle to this article appears simple enough in English: "The Picture 'One' Has," the title is much more ambiguous and loaded in Swedish. The Swedish word "man" can mean "one" (as in "The Picture 'One' Has"), or it could mean "Man" (As in "The Picture 'Man' Has"), and being aware of Linde's interest in Max Stirner, "Man" can also read as the "fixed" concept of "Man" described in The Ego and His Own. 1 6 9 Wittgenstein's late theories, L i n d e understood w o r d s and pictures (bilder) of language as h a v i n g m e a n i n g o n l y insofar as there exists some p u b l i c criteria for their proper use. In this line of reasoning, a completely private language (one w o u l d o n l y be used to speak of one's o w n inner experience) was not possible. Wittgenstein, however, d i d not dismiss inner experiences. H a v i n g been skeptical of both the idea of an art completely 'open' or 'closed' to interpretation, the last two articles precariously set out to balance L i n d e ' s o w n position. To do this he w o u l d have to keep his line of argument straight. W i t h a reproduction of an abstract d r a w i n g by the French Expressionist H e n r i M i c h a u x (an artist w h o had declared that his pictures were "diagrams of his soul") contrasted w i t h a picture of similar appearance d r a w n b y one of Jean Tinguely's Meta-matic machines, L i n d e illustrated that w h i l e the two images "looked" the same, it w o u l d of course be absurd to suggest that both w o r k s l o o k e d the w a y they d i d because of an expression of their "soul" intentions [fig. 77]. After a l l , the energy necessary for Tinguely's machine came from a motor, not some k i n d of inner soul. L i n d e admitted that his skepticism t o w a r d complete artistic a u t o n o m y was not something new. H e suggested that P a u l V a l e r y , i n a text o n Leonardo da V i n c i , h a d revealed a s i m i l a r skepticism towards the idea that the artist c o u l d convey his 'inner life.' P a r t i c u l a r l y interesting for L i n d e was V a l e r y ' s use of the term Tesprit d u publique,' rather than 'spectator' as the former describes a less determined i n d i v i d u a l , a less determined subject. For L i n d e , determination r i s k e d b e c o m i n g too subjective: I do not think that there can be an isolated subject w h o interprets the picture, the mark — or whatever is being interpreted. The act of 1 7 0 u n d e r s t a n d i n g something as something, to understand a m e a n i n g i n some k i n d of p h y s i c a l w a y (factum), is an act w h i c h as far as I can understand takes place above the i n d i v i d u a l . . . . I can perhaps put it this way: There can not be an 'I understand' that is not at the same time 'this is h o w one/man can understand' — a n d i n this case 'man' suggests other people: l i v i n g , dead, or not yet born. To interpret a s y m b o l — such as a s y m b o l for a feeling, or a plastic s y m b o l — is a social activity. It is not a unique subject w h o finds meaning, but it is 'man' i n yourself — 'the generalized other,' to b o r r o w a w o n d e r f u l expression from the turn of the century A m e r i c a n philosopher George H . Mead.303 H a v i n g made his argument against the idea of an i n d i v i d u a l so unique as to be able to create meaning i n isolation from the social w o r l d , L i n d e w o u l d n o w dialectically shift his position to show that this u n a v o i d a b l e "openness" of representation s h o u l d not be read as a critique of the unique i n d i v i d u a l . There exists after a l l , "that w h i c h has 'a part i n others,' but also something w h i c h addresses itself as T." If V a l e r y p r o v i d e d L i n d e w i t h an historical understanding of an "l'esprit d u publique," T.S. E l i o t w o u l d p r o v i d e h i m w i t h an extreme counterpoint to balance this understanding of intentionality. "I w o n d e r what is meant b y intention?" E l i o t h a d once pondered, "One tries to express something, but y o u never k n o w what it is u n t i l it is e x p r e s s e d . " 3 0 4 For L i n d e , T.S. E l i o t was not the o n l y artist or writer i n the twentieth century to have been forced to come to terms w i t h the "unique Ts" role i n the artistic process. H e n r i Matisse, for example, was another. B y a c k n o w l e d g i n g a n d l a y i n g c l a i m to both the historical avant-garde and modernist traditions, L i n d e was attempting to attain a levitated p o s i t i o n between h i g h art and mass culture. 3 0 3 U l f L i n d e " D e n O p p n a konsten: D e n b i l d 'man' har" ("The O p e n A r t : The Picture ' O n e / M a n ' H a s " ), was p u b l i s h e d o n A p r i l 4, 1965, p.4. 3 0 4 i b i d . . 17 1 A s c u l t u r a l historian A n d r e a s H u y s s e n has noted about this ' h i g h / l o w ' relationship, " i n relation to gender and sexuality, the historical avant-garde was by-and-large as patriarchal, misogynist, and masculinst as the major trends of m o d e r n i s m . " 3 0 5 A s L i n d e ' s f o l l o w i n g line of argument makes clear, i n constructing his defense of intentionality, he w o u l d e x p l i c i t l y rely o n gendered psychoanalytical tropes: Thought, like the thought process — this includes the plastic or m u s i c a l f o r m u l a t i o n — builds its self i n the darkness of one's Self like an u n b o r n c h i l d i n a w o m b . The b l o o d w h i c h fills the c h i l d is a different one from that w h i c h pulsates through the muscles and veins of the w o m b . For the T i n an artwork to become, the same rules a p p l y — w i t h the important difference being that the artist's offspring can never s u r v i v e o n it o w n . Its life depends every second o n a b l o o d transfusion — o n that b l o o d from "man." ... F r o m these thoughts one can reason that an artist can o n l y control his o w n w o r k to the extent that he controls the language of others; and o n l y so far as he stands w i t h i n a t r a d i t i o n . 3 0 6 W h a t L i n d e was attempting to suture was, of course, a v i t a l connection between p u b l i c and private — an attempt to salvage for the artist an unfixed p o s i t i o n between an 'impure' mass culture and a 'pure' A r t . If the debate i n Sweden over open art h a d i n i t i a l l y (1961-62) been understood as a p o l i t i c a l fight between the Left and the Right, b y 1965 these polemics c o u l d n o longer make the same sense to L i n d e . A s he w o u l d later admit: I felt partially split; above a l l because — as I saw it — a number of the v i e w s I h a d seen to m y 'right' i n the 1962 controversy [over open art] n o w seemed to be appearing o n the left instead — ie., a m o n g the 3 ° 5 A n d r e a s H u y s s e n After the Great Divide: Modernism, Mass Culture, Postmodernism Indianapolis: Indiana U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1986. pp.60-61. 3 0 6 I b i d . . 1 7 2 'radicals.' If y o u can't differentiate between the right and the left it is o b v i o u s l y difficult to orient y o u r s e l f . . . . 3 0 7 W h i l e defenders of a pure art maintained that an artwork s h o u l d not necessarily mean a n y t h i n g but just 'be,' and supporters of an impure art insisted o n being open to any meaning ("anything goes!"), both, L i n d e argued, had refused to acknowledge the v i t a l tension that exists between intention (the p r i v a t e / i n n e r space) and expression ( p u b l i c / o u t e r space). O b s e r v i n g that both camps c l a i m e d to find i n art "its o w n life" or a certain "magical quality," L i n d e concluded that an embrace of either position c o u l d be "nothing but a confused m i r r o r gesticulation" of each o t h e r . 3 0 8 W h a t I want to suggest is that despite this valiant attempt by L i n d e to figure out the "right" from "left," and despite his strenuous effort to keep the tightrope between meaning and interpretation taut, L i n d e was h i m s e l f trapped i n a Wittgenstinian language-game characterized b y one-dimensional gender inscriptions. A clear example of this is L i n d e ' s c o n c l u d i n g paragraph i n his t h i r d article: The h u m a n becomes what she becomes t h r o u g h her culture; she carries w i t h her the mark of solidarity. It is true that her c o m p l i c i t y must always be partial — no single being can, after a l l , contain the extensive experiences of a family. But s t i l l , it is o n l y t h r o u g h what she shares w i t h others that she is able to express herself; through that w h i c h is 'man' w i t h i n h e r . 3 0 9 3 0 7 l J l f L i n d e Fyra artiklar S t o c k h o l m : Bonniers, 1965. T h i s confusion was also c o m m e n t e d o n i n relation to L i n d e ' s four articles b y f e l l o w art critic O l l e G r a n a t h w r i t i n g for Dagens Nyheter later that year. See O l l e G r a n a t h " U l f L i n d e : K r i t i k e r n s korrelat" Dagens Nyheter (June 16, 1965). 3 0 8 l b i d . . 3 ^ 9 L i n d e "Den O p p n a konsten: D e n b i l d 'man' har" ("The O p e n A r t : The Picture ' O n e / M a n ' H a s " ), was p u b l i s h e d o n A p r i l 4, 1965, p.4. 1 7 3 Despite h o w conservative this statement m a y s o u n d , what L i n d e had managed to do was to connect meaning to key participants and defenders of an A m e r i c a open art. Despite what critics like S o l o m o n c l a i m e d , L i n d e showed that these artists were tied to tradition and politics. They had intentions. If L i n d e had been able to show h o w their 'anti-intellectual' claims were fraudulent, he had also, i n the process, constructed a d e v i r i l i z e d position for them by s h o w i n g h o w their intention depended o n a concept of instinct tied to nature, rather than an i n t u i t i o n tied to intellect and social praxis. The distinction between instinct and i n t u i t i o n was c r u c i a l for L i n d e if he was to be able to salvage a European avant-garde p o s i t i o n from being absorbed into the A m e r i c a n i z e d liberal politics i n w h i c h he understood P o p A r t to be participating. In "Den O p p n a konsten: D i a l o g u e utan slut" (The O p e n A r t : A D i a l o g u e W i t h o u t an End"), his last of the four articles, L i n d e addresses the confusion between the different terms as evidenced i n the w a y D u c h a m p and Cage had become almost interchangeable i n the w r i t t e n history of Pop A r t : Cage's w o r k has correctly been considered one of the most essential influences o n today's "open" art. But o n the list erected to the progenitors of ideas one can also find another name, almost as often as Cage — M a r c e l D u c h a m p . That D u c h a m p has been g i v e n this role to share seems almost incomprehensible; as far as I can see, this must have occurred because of some k i n d of deep and b r o a d c o n f u s i o n . 3 1 0 3 l ° " D e n O p p n a konsten: D i a l o g u e utan slut" Dagens Nyheter ( M a y 13, 1965), p.4 1 7 4 Yes, h o w c o u l d these two "fathers" of m o d e r n art be married? H o w c o u l d they possibly have given b i r t h to the same avant-garde w h e n their intentions were so different? What L i n d e needed to do was to rescue his E u r o p e a n avant-garde heritage by d i v o r c i n g D u c h a m p from Cage. D u c h a m p , he needed to show, was not the same "feminized" father that P o p A r t sprang from; D u c h a m p was a father w i t h clear intentions: If one wants to show h o w incompatible Cage's and D u c h a m p ' s positions are, it's enough to read Duchamp's short reply to the jury w h o i n 1917 refused his Fountain — one of his most famous ready- mades, the signed u r i n a l : Whether Mr. Mutt with his own hands made the fountain or not has no importance. He CHOSE it. He took an ordinary article of life, placed it so that its useful significance disappeared under the new title and point of view — created a new thought for that object.311 N o t o n l y h a d D u c h a m p stressed his interest i n artistic intentionality b y c a p i t a l i z i n g ' C H O S E , ' but the last sentence i n this apparent defense for an 'open' art — where a u r i n a l c o u l d be transformed into an art object — s o u n d e d v e r y s i m i l a r to Wittgenstein's late theories o n m e a n i n g . 3 1 2 In both cases the object i n question (a u r i n a l , a word...) was 'open' to 'a n e w thought.' But as L i n d e understood D u c h a m p , this was not to be any n e w thought. It was to be a thought dependent o n a relationship between an i n t e n d i n g private subject w h o 'chose' the object/form and an interpretive p u b l i c spectator w h o i n t u r n chose to create a n e w thought. A s L i n d e w o u l d make even clearer i n a speech at the R o y a l A c a d e m y of A r t the f o l l o w i n g year, he h a d never 3 1 1 I b i d . . 3 1 2 I t should be mentioned that Linde was not the only intellectual in Sweden whose concerns were centered on intentionality. The abstract artist Ulrik Samuelson had as early as 1962 written an article outlining the difference between mstinct and intuition as it relates to the creative gap between intension and expression. This, however, was not published until the Spring of 1966 in Konstrevy. See Ulrik Samuelson's "Den skapande processen" [The Creative Act] Konstrevy Nr.2 (1966), pp.50-52. 1 7 5 intended to c l a i m that there existed an essential o p p o s i t i o n between the artist and spectator (the inner and outer spaces). Instead he was interested i n an endless play between them: I have never — i n spoken or written form — c l a i m e d that there is a spectator-artist opposition; so that the spectators can o n l y be found o n the side of critics and the public. E v e n less have I claimed that a l l public reaction has the same w o r t h . The opposite — such attempts to democratize the concept of art appear irresponsible to me. I have a difficult time understanding those attempts as a n y t h i n g but reactionary pranks; since — if they are i n fact seriously intended — they must i n the end lead to a legitimation of incompetence, and its consequences; to the s h a l l o w sensations, w h i m s and superficiality of the status quo.313 A s p r e v i o u s l y noted, b y the end of 1965, L i n d e w o u l d himself admit that positions he h a d p r e v i o u s l y considered to be p o l i t i c a l l y situated o n the political left were n o w appearing o n the right (close to the p o s i t i o n that E n c k e l l had argued from at the R o y a l A c a d e m y i n 1961). A s he understood it, a certain aspect had changed. In light of the socio-political context of the m i d - sixties and the controversial circumstances under w h i c h P o p A r t emerged i n relation to a E u r o p e a n avant-garde tradition rooted i n specific anarchist politics, w e can see h o w L i n d e must have felt a certain vertigo (in the most F r e u d i a n sense of that w o r d ) as he tried to achieve his o w n p h y s i c a l , intellectual and s p i r i t u a l e q u i l i b r i u m . In a w a y , L i n d e h a d been forced, despite his earlier embrace of chaos a n d 'movement i n art,' back i n 1961, to return to order. It n o w seems ironic that he, rather than Rabbe E n c k e l l , w o u l d take to the p o d i u m of the annual meeting of the S w e d i s h R o y a l A c a d e m y of A r t . Whether he l i k e d it or not, L i n d e was n o w forced to be 'right' as it was his 3 1 3 U l f L i n d e " F o r m s o m socialitet i praxis" BLM Vo.35 N o . 6 (Summer 1966), pp.435-438. 1 7 6 turn to question the openness of art. A s we w i l l see, he w o u l d accept this new position by t u r n i n g it into an 'ironic order.' Icarus and Fighter Planes: T o w a r d s an Inner and Outer Space. A t the same time as Linde's four 'seminal' articles were being p u b l i s h e d i n the d a i l y press, and at a time w h e n a n t i - A m e r i c a n sentiments were g r o w i n g stronger i n Sweden each day, M o d e r n a Museet found itself i n the spotlight nationally and internationally as a site where A m e r i c a n p o p culture was advocated. Representing this type of art was not o n l y an a w k w a r d activity for i n d i v i d u a l s outside the U n i t e d States. In A p r i l of 1965, H u l t e n found out that James Rosenquist, one of the most prominent A m e r i c a n P o p artists, h a d just produced an epic scale painting that clearly articulated a critique of both America's consumer culture and foreign politics. C o u l d it be, that despite Hulten's c l a i m i n '64 that "Pop A r t is not social criticism," a few of its artists were critically engaged i n their culture after all? This w o u l d certainly help H u l t e n save his o w n face i n light of p u b l i c a n t i - A m e r i c a n sentiments. ¥-111, as Rosenquist's p a i n t i n g was called, was a 28 meter-long p a i n t i n g o n canvas and a l u m i n u m w h i c h was first s h o w n i n A p r i l of 1965 at Leo Castelli G a l l e r y i n N e w Y o r k [fig. 7 8 ] . 3 1 4 I n the fall of 1965, Rosenquist w o u l d make his o w n p u b l i c statement about the w o r k ' s p o l i t i c a l message i n an i n t e r v i e w w i t h Partisan Review: 31 4 A number of the American events at Moderna Museet such 4 Americans had been made possible with the help of Leo Castelli Gallery in New York. The F-lll was bought from Castelli by the New York collector Robert Scull who in turn lent it to Moderna Museet. For a description of the controversy it caused in New York, see Robert C.Scull "Re The F-lll: A Collector's Notes" in Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin (March 1968), p.282-283; and in turn, Hilton Kramer "Art: A New Hangar for Rosenquist's Jet-Pop F-lll" New York Times (February 17, 1968), p.25. 1 7 7 The picture is m y personal reaction as an i n d i v i d u a l to the heavy ideas of mass media and c o m m u n i c a t i o n and to other ideas that affect artists.... [ W i t h F-lll] I wanted to relate the idea of the n e w m a n , the new person w h o appreciates things, to this p a i n t i n g v i s i o n . One piece of this p a i n t i n g w o u l d have been a fragment of a machine the collector was already m i x e d up w i t h , i n v o l v e d i n whether he k n e w it or not. The person has already bought these airplanes by p a y i n g income taxes or being part of the c o m m u n i t y and the economy. The present m e n participate i n the w o r l d whether it's good or not and they m a y p h y s i c a l l y have bought parts of what this image represents m a n y t i m e s . 3 1 5 N o t wasting a second, H u l t e n arranged for the p a i n t i n g to be s h o w n at M o d e r n a Museet i n September that same year. A s art critic E u g e n W r e t h o l m noted i n his r e v i e w of the one p a i n t i n g e x h i b i t i o n i n Konstrevy, b e h i n d the glossy "pop" surface of the p a i n t i n g , frequent visitors to the m u s e u m must have had flashbacks to the first art exhibition h e l d o n the former n a v a l base island Skeppsholmen w h e n Picasso's Guernica [fig. 79]was exhibited exactly ten years e a r l i e r . 3 1 6 In Rosenquist's updated version, the b o m b i n g of Guernica is replaced by the F-lll A m e r i c a n fighter plane responsible for b o m b i n g V i e t n a m . D i v i d e d into sections ( w h i c h enveloped the v i e w e r i n the Leo Castelli G a l l e r y , F-222 presented a billboard-size painted collage made up of images of canned spaghetti, an umbrella, an atomic bomb's m u s h r o o m c l o u d , and more. A l l this was superimposed o n the side of an A m e r i c a n fighter-bomber w h i c h stretched the f u l l twenty-eight meters. W i t h a logo o n its side w h i c h clearly read "U.S. A I R F O R C E , " i n F-222 the A m e r i c a n v i e w e r was meant to be r e m i n d e d of the m a n y m i l l i o n s of U . S . tax dollars this plane 3 1 5 j a m e s Rosenquist "The F-lll : an Interview w i t h James Rosenquist b y G . R . Swenson" Partisan Review ( F a l l 1965), pp.590-595 (589-561). 316p_2H resembled Guernica both i n size a n d content. Just as Guernica acted to inaugurate the new m u s e u m i n 1956, Rosenquist's one painting exhibition, as we shall see, w o u l d act as a wedge to forge a n e w d i r e c t i o n i n M o d e r n a Museet's activities. E u g e n W r e t h o l m "Utstallningsrond" Konstrevy 6 (1965), P.223-224. 1 7 8 (which was introduced i n 1965 under m u c h heated controversy) represented. "Every A m e r i c a n , " as W r e t h o l m suggested i n his review, is i n that w a y part owner and partly responsible for its horrible e x i s t e n c e . 3 1 7 H a v i n g recognized his museum's 'false start,' H u l t e n h a d momentarily managed to distract his critics of A m e r i c a n Pop b y p l a y i n g the socio-political w i l d card of Rosenquist's F-lll. But something more dramatic was needed to stay ahead i n this game. W h a t H u l t e n needed to do was to clean house and re-suspend his m u s e u m along a slightly reoriented international avant-garde art w o r l d . W h i l e state funding for M o d e r n a Museet dropped substantially i n 1965 (perhaps as a direct result of the tensions inside and outside the museum) as s u d d e n l y as it h a d been gained, H u l t e n organized what he w o u l d later refer to as the two most representative exhibitions for the m u s e u m : Den inre och yttre rymden (The Inner and Outer Space ) and Hon - en katedral (She - a Cathedral). The Inner and Outer Space: an Exhibition Devoted to Universal Art was the first of these two events [fig. 80]. W h i l e i n t r o d u c i n g artists from a broad range of countries o n an epic scale s i m i l a r to Movement in Art, this exhibition was formulated v e r y differently. U n l i k e M o d e r n Museet's recent blockbusters, this one was less v i s i b l y chaotic. W i t h the exception of a White Painting from 1951 b y Rauschenberg, it was also notably v o i d of any so called N e o - D a d a or P o p A r t . E v e n the p r o d u c t i o n of the catalogue can be understood as rejection of the machine sensibility associated w i t h P o p A r t as it was quite literally made to look 'out of this w o r l d . ' M a d e w i t h various types of cardboard and paper, the catalogue was laboriously 'constructed' w i t h 3 1 7 W r e t h o l m . 1 7 9 i n d i v i d u a l elements w h i c h were hand stamped and 'bolted' together before being packaged into a square box). In his introductory essay, a w k w a r d l y but accurately titled " A C o n c l u d i n g Beginning," H u l t e n made his intentions even clearer b y announcing that this exhibition was meant to reorient the history of m o d e r n art i n such a w a y as to redirect the m u s e u m : The motive b e h i n d this exhibition is ... to d r a w a historical line through the history of m o d e r n art, from the second decade of the 2 0 t h century and forward, w h i c h has not p r e v i o u s l y been noted. This type of art uses negation as a mode of expression. It is an art whose motif is emptiness, space, spaciousness, quietness, u n i f o r m i t y , atonality, stillness, contemplation, supersensually simple. It is an art w h i c h is easier to define b y saying what it is not, rather than what it is: This art is not constructivist — that is to say, its pictures are not composed as a collaborative play between w e i g h e d tensions i n w h i c h things are brought together to form a c o m m o n good. It does not very often express itself w i t h the help of composition — if b y that we mean collaboration between opposites, and it also does not i n any w a y take a m o r a l position. But this art can sometimes come close to the emotive qualities of C o n s t r u c t i v i s m . Its general state is closer to something religious, if we accept this w o r d i n its broadest meaning. It has a strong tendency towards a transcendental mystic side. This art has very little to do w i t h the optimistic, w o r l d l y , factual, and concrete type of art w h i c h was made d u r i n g the thirties at the Bauhaus. N o r does it have m u c h to do w i t h the Concretism of the forties and fifties. It has v e r y little to do w i t h optical art (Op art) w h i c h i n most cases does n o t h i n g more than entertain the s l i m y surface of the retina. Instead it is an art w h i c h puts people's ability to feel, imagine, and their ability to l i v e , at the absolute center — to such a degree that the actual art w o r k has at times the tendency to disappear. This is partly because the desire for p u r i t y can become so strong that the material substance burns away, is consumed. The actual decision about the art w o r k is the artistic w o r k , the creative act. The simple act of m a n u a l execution decides a part of the object's magnificence. The decision is thus w h a t the w o r k is; i n a s i m i l a r w a y as w h e n M a r c e l D u c h a m p chose a factory made object to be an artwork, a "ready-made." 3 1 8 3 1 8 P o n t u s H u l t e n " A v s l u t a n d e i n l e d n i n g " Den innre och yttre rymden: en utstallning rbrande en universiell konst S t o c k h o l m : M o d e r n a Museet, 1965 (pages not numbered) 1 8 0 This 'negation,' or turn away from the street-smart realism of P o p A r t towards a more contemplative ' m i n i m a l ' and 'mystical' abstraction, was, it seems to me, a strategic return to order, necessary to start over. Carefully organized a r o u n d three separate sections devoted to the w o r k .of K a s i m i r M a l e v i c h , N a u m Gabo, and Y v e s K l e i n , The Inner and Outer Space presented w o r k by thirty-six post-war artists w h o h a d i n different w a y s v i s i b l y demonstrated a return to "degree 0." This return was a necessary move o n the part of H u l t e n in order to protect the dialectic play he had helped to set i n motion as early as 1954. By t u r n i n g back to a H e g e l i a n tradition of negative dialectics, H u l t e n was h o p i n g to salvage art's 'social' responsibility w i t h o u t being tied d o w n b y its politics. A s the catalogue essay b y Joost Baljeu entitled "The H e g e l i a n Romantic N e g a t i o n i n M o d e r n Picture M a k i n g " made clear, the exhibition's three p i l l a r artists were chosen for their three different types of Utopian impulses, as w e l l as their ability to illustrate a H e g e l i a n p h i l o s o p h y of a r t . 3 1 9 W h i l e a l l three artists "dreamed of a better w o r l d — U t o p i a , " their romantic negation of the w o r l d a r o u n d them were differently manifested. W h i l e M a l e v i c h h a d attempted to escape what he v i e w e d as the confines of space (rummet) and time through a s p i r i t u a l understanding of symbols, N a u m G a b o h a d c l u n g to the material w o r l d through a "constructive p r i n c i p l e " closely related to the Bauhaus. U n d e r s t a n d i n g these two conflicting philosophies of art, Y v e s K l e i n , Joost argues, h a d tried to suspend himself in between these two romantic approaches towards abstraction b y m a k i n g himself a n d his art the synthesis of the material and i m m a t e r i a l w o r l d . This is the levitated p o s i t i o n 3^9Joost Baljeu "Den hegelianska romantiska negationen i den moderna bildkonsten" Den innre och yttre rymden: en utstallning rbrande en universiell konst Stockholm: Moderna Museet, 1965 (pages not numbered) 1 8 1 that his blue mo n o ch ro me paintings sought to achieve and his Leap Into the Void illustrated. Neither soaring towards the heavens nor crashing to earth, K l e i n represented that "magical" p o s i t i o n between heaven and earth, reality and fiction. By p o s i t i o n i n g Yves K l e i n as the central post-war artist able to reach a synthesis between the inner and outer space, H u l t e n had i n effect white washed (or more literally blue washed) his recent engagement w i t h P o p A r t . C o n s i d e r i n g K l e i n ' s extreme conservativism, it appears that H u l t e n , l i k e L i n d e , was also reorienting his p o l i t i c a l p o s i t i o n w i t h a n e w posture. If Hu lte n's m u s e u m h a d m o m e n t a r i l y let D u c h a m p ' s Air de Paris escape d u r i n g its m a i d e n voyage across the A t l a n t i c , it was n o w g i v e n back some of this aura i n the form of Y v e s the M o n o c h r o m e . For H u l t e n , this extremely conservative, but nonetheless intellectual, 'copy-cat' c o u l d s t i l l represent a rebellious spirit i n art w h i c h remained both social and i n d i v i d u a l : A r t i n this day and age has an important part to play and is often made into an object of interest to the state. A t the same time, o u r society and nation lacks a place for it and shows little interest i n f i n d i n g a place for it. W h i l e art m a y have a p u r e l y decorative role to p l a y , the programatically anti-decorative art w e are t a l k i n g about here suggests an u n w i l l i n g n e s s to let itself be caught i n this unclear situation. B y p r o d u c i n g pictures that are so b i g , or so b o r i n g , that they h a r d l y ever can be put u p i n a home, a m u s e u m , or anywhere else, the artists show an u n w i l l i n g n e s s to contribute to the decorative and extroverted 'artist's life' a n d even that c o m m e r c i a l i z a t i o n (to that m u n d a n e cocktail-like atmosphere) that i n some cases h i g h l i g h t m o d e r n art's appearance. Consequently, one often avoids considering this detachment. The picture of space (rymdens b i l d ) i n art is a picture of our ability to use fantasy to penetrate the universe. Since each a n d every one carries w i t h us our o w n universe w i t h i n ourselves, these images also become images b y / o f (av) o u r s e l v e s . 3 2 0 3 2 0 P o n t u s H u l t e n " A v s l u t a n d e i n l e d n i n g " Den innre och yttre rymden: en utstallning rorande en universiell konst S t o c k h o l m : M o d e r n a Museet, 1965 (pages not numbered) 1 8 2 F o l l o w i n g Hegel's example, H u l t e n argued for an art b o u n d as m u c h by the social as it was made free by the i n d i v i d u a l . This had been what L i n d e argued for at the end of his four articles earlier that year. W i t h this i n m i n d , it s h o u l d come as no surprise to find i n the catalogue an essay p r o v i d e d by L i n d e w h i c h furthered the idea of a dialectical "fourth dimension." In this d i m e n s i o n , where three-dimensional objects c o u l d m e t a p h o r i c a l l y and metaphysically become the shadows of a mystic fourth d i m e n s i o n , the i n d i v i d u a l was formulated as the synthesis of inner and outer space. Here, i n this reformulated space, L i n d e suggested that movement w o u l d always be possible: "If y o u can even just m o v e a millimeter i n a direction, the w h o l e universe has been left b e h i n d y o u ! " 3 2 1 In m a n y ways, this last quote b y L i n d e gave M o d e r n a Museet a k i n d of renewed license to move f o r w a r d . C o n s i d e r i n g the mystical, even s p i r i t u a l , side of this move towards an u n k n o w n fourth d i m e n s i o n , w e can say that M o d e r n a Museet found itself born again. She: a Cathedral: The Strip Tease Begins B y the end of 1965, t h r o u g h The Inner and Outer Space e x h i b i t i o n , H u l t e n h a d managed to clear a space at M o d e r n a Museet for the return of N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Jean T i n g u e l y and P e r - O l o f U l t v e d t to S t o c k h o l m . In the s p r i n g of 1966 they began collaboration o n a single sculptural assemblage w h i c h became k n o w n as Hon - en katedral [She - a Cathedral]. B y as early as 1963, then these three artists h a d , i n their o w n ways, re-oriented their artistic 3 2 1 L i n d e , U l f " D e n fjarde d i m e n s i o n e n " i n Den innre och yttre rymden: en utstallning rorande en universiell konst S t o c k h o l m : M o d e r n a Museet, 1965 (pages not numbered) 1 8 3 production a w a y from collective projects w i t h members of the N e w Y o r k avant-garde and were l o o k i n g at alternative collaborations. By 1965, the w o r k of a l l three artists had taken o n s t r i k i n g l y new and exaggerated forms. N i k i de Saint-Phalle, for example, was b y this time almost exclusively p r o d u c i n g what she called her Nanas — larger than life-size representations of "every w o m a n " w h i c h differed from her past figurative sculptures i n that they were increasingly b e c o m i n g decorative a n d colourful. O n the advice of her dealer A l e x a n d e r Iolas, she was n o w also f o l l o w i n g the steps of the Pop artists b y m a k i n g hard-edged figurative screen prints [fig. §1] 322 p l a y i n g off stereotypes of fertility goddesses through the ages, sculptures s u c h as Clarice, La Waldaff, Benedicte, Black Rosy, and Black Venus, used roles r a n g i n g from V e n u s of W i l l e n d o r f to contemporary bathing beauties [fig. 82]. A s discussed i n Chapter T w o , the forms of Tinguely's w o r k were also exaggerated. B y p a i n t i n g his machine sculptures matte black, he presented his w o r k as the masculine counterpart to Saint-Phalle's increasingly soft and colourful figures. In 1963 he began w o r k o n Eureka (1964), a m o n u m e n t a l sized sculpture for the Swiss N a t i o n a l E x h i b i t i o n i n Lausanne [fig. 83]. A s its title suggests, and the c o m m i s s i o n confirms, T i n g u e l y h a d not o n l y discovered his o w n private identity, but he h a d also managed to turn his dysfunctional scrap-metal machines into Swiss 'gold.' C a s h i n g i n o n his success, T i n g u e l y managed to return to S w i t z e r l a n d for five exhibitions i n 1964. W h i l e a w o r k such as Eureka was m o n u m e n t a l i n size, the most 3 2 2 H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle B o n n : K u n s t - u n d - A u s s t e l l u n g s h a l l e der B u n d e s r e p u b l i k Deutschland, 1992, p.289. 1 8 4 extreme of his masculartized matte-black painted metal machines was p r o d u c e d for a t w o - m a n exhibition i n N e w Y o r k called Two Kinetic Sculptors held at the Jewish M u s e u m . O r g a n i z e d b y Sam H u n t e r , Two Kinetic Sculptors took the form of a retrospective for T i n g u e l y and the H u n g a r i a n N i c o l a s Schoffer w h o both s h o w e d o l d and new w o r k . The catalogue for Two Kinetic Sculptors i n c l u d e d an essay by H u l t e n w h i c h emphasized the recent changes i n Tinguely's w o r k . To d i s t i n g u i s h his sculptures from Schoffer's ( w h i c h H u n t e r described as t a k i n g "the engineer's optimistic v i e w of the possibilities of a technological society... for a more rational f u t u r e " 3 2 3 ) , H u l t e n returned to the ideas r e g a r d i n g movement and freedom that he h a d presented i n his anarchist journal Kasark a decade earlier: Tinguely's point of departure is mechanical disorder. In his early w o r k s change and movement obeyed o n l y the l a w of chance. H e pitted the emancipated machine against the functional one, a n d conferred o n his creations a glorious life of i m p r o v i s a t i o n , h a p p y inefficiency and shabbiness, expressing t h r o u g h his i n s p i r e d inventions an indestructable freedom. H i s sculptures of later years convey the meaninglessness of u t i l i t a r i a n mechanical function more p o n d e r o u s l y and w i t h sharper definition. The movements of his structures have become more deliberate and dramatic: their different parts are more clearly differentiated and personified. They seem c o n d e m n e d to a prisoner's life, always operating i n the same place a n d repeating the same movements. A s d i d Sisyphus, they strenuously lift a heavy weight w h i c h must inevitably be returned to its o r i g i n a l position.The behaviour and deportment of these sculptures possess a traumatic fatality. The sense of the absurdity of the mechanical environment w h i c h expressed itself comically i n the past has n o w taken o n sober and even tragic overtones. A l s o the movements of m a n , even his more intimate operations and performances w o u l d seem sometime to be p a r o d i e d , h e l d up for ridicule and at the same time made more m o n u m e n t a l . . . . 3 2 3 S a m H u n t e r Two Kinetic Sculptors N e w Y o r k : The Jewish M u s e u m , 1965, p.11. 1 8 5 Tinguely's w o r k s today express great pessimism regarding the machine's actual efiency and w o r t h . A t the same time, however, they are basically optimistic w i t h regard to the machine's irrational and religious potential. Indeed, his art radiates an o p t i m i s m w h i c h is u n u s u a l i n contemporary art, an o p t i m i s m directed t o w a r d m a n , the creator of m a c h i n e s . 3 2 4 W h i l e the m o n u m e n t a l and religious side of this creative act w o u l d soon be v i s u a l i z e d i n S t o c k h o l m , the most conspicuous example of this "deliberate and dramatic" shift was The Dissecting Machine (1965) w h i c h brought special attention from the audience and press [fig. 84. A s H u l t e n has described the w o r k , it "cuts, saws, and d r i l l s holes i n a w o m a n (a shop w i n d o w d u m m y ) , w h o retains its affected smile t h r o u g h o u t . " 3 2 5 A s a w r y comment o n the o p t i m i s m s u r r o u n d i n g audience p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n so called 'open art,' this extremely violent and misogynist machine was activated b y the viewers themselves w h o h a d the o p p o r t u n i t y to set i n m o t i o n this p u b l i c execution w i t h a p u s h of a button. A s k e d b y The New York Times to comment o n this particular w o r k , T i n g u e l y suggested that it h a d "started out as a b a l l - p l a y i n g machine for the ladies w h o come here... but w h e n I saw them they didn't quite look as if they'd stop to p i c k up a b a l l . So I turned it into this, to scare t h e m . " 3 2 6 A week after this interview w i t h T i n g u e l y , H i l t o n K r a m e r wrote a f o l l o w u p article i n the same newspaper. R e m e m b e r i n g Kramer's anti- 3 2 4 P o n t u s H u t l e n "Jean T i n g u e l y " i n Two Kinetic Sculptors N e w Y o r k : The J e w i s h M u s e u m , 1965, p.12. 3 2 5 H u l t e n (1972), p.282. 3 2 6 T i n g u e l y quoted i n The New York Times ( N o v . 21, 1965), p.25. 1 8 6 D u c h a m p i a n lambastatiorts at M o M A ' s Pop A r t s y m p o s i u m , his interest i n d e b u n k i n g T i n g u e l y s h o u l d come as no surprise: Between the computerized constructions of M r . Schoffer — a l l light, movement, and infinities of i l l u s i o n i s t i c space — and the mechanized sculptures of M r . T i n g u e l y — w h i c h s i m p l y animate the neo-Dada imagery of junk-constructions already familiar to any observer of the art scene d u r i n g the last two decades — there y a w n s something more than a gap i n theory. There is the fundamental difference between an inventive intelligence e x p l o r i n g untried ideas and a gadgeteer m a n i p u l a t i n g the materials of accepted esthetic practice. M r . Schoffer is a true o r i g i n a l . . . M r . T i n g u e l y is the expression of a m i n o r pasticheur r u m m a g i n g a r o u n d the debris of fashionable ideas.... To this pastiche of contemporary forms, M r . T i n g u e l y brings — what? H i s little motors, and the mechanical ingenuity required to make a l l the separate parts of these constructions function more or less according to p l a n . H e brings also a certain h u m o r — a m u s i n g w h e n one first encountered it a few years ago, but n o w already dated and tiresome. F o r even v i s u a l h u m o u r requires some i n d i v i d u a l formal i n v e n t i o n to sustain itself, and M r . T i n g u e l y deals entirely w i t h a second-hand s c u l p t u r a l v o c a b u l a r y . 3 2 7 A s close as K r a m e r comes to accurately describing Tinguely's w o r k , he neglected (or perhaps avoided) to note the shift i n T i n g u e l y ' s h u m o u r towards a darker critique of the k i n d of technological o p t i m i s m Schoffer's w o r k stood for. The interesting thing about this exhibition was the ability of Sam H u n t e r to curate a show w h i c h o u t l i n e d k i n e t i c i s m as a n e w p o l e m i c i n the art w o r l d , replacing geometric a n d gestural abstraction. W i t h this i n m i n d , it is not s u r p r i s i n g that he asked H u l t e n ( w i t h his o w n investments i n 'movement') to p r o v i d e one of the t w o catalogue essays. Just as T i n g u e l y had i r o n i c a l l y managed to establish a reputation i n his very rational home country of S w i t z e r l a n d b y becoming famous elsewhere, 3 2 7 H i l t o n K r a m e r "One Inventor, O n e Pasticheur" New York Times ( N o v e m b e r 28, 1965). 1 8 7 U l t v e d t had by 1965 established his status at home b y exhibiting abroad. N o t o n l y w o u l d he receive numerous p u b l i c commissions i n S t o c k h o l m , i n c l u d i n g a collaboration w i t h U l f L i n d e o n En tidnings ansikte [The Face of a Magazine] (1964) and a neon sign for the S w e d i s h candy manufacturer M a r a b o u (1965), but he w o u l d also be i n v i t e d b y Stedelijk's former director W i l l e m Sandberg to travel to A m s t e r d a m to construct Hommage a Christopher Polhem (1965) for an e x h i b i t i o n of m o n u m e n t a l sculpture h e l d at the city's V o n d e l p a r k [fig. 85]. In its size and s t r i k i n g form, Polhem was i n many w a y s i n dialogue w i t h Tinguely's Eureka. W h i l e T i n g u e l y ' s metal construction can be read against the c l o c k w o r k of Swiss rationalism, Ultvedt's w o o d e n assemblage was devoted to P o l h e m , an early 18th century S w e d i s h inventor k n o w n as m u c h for his practical inventions as for his ability to invent useless machines and brew b e e r . 3 2 8 C o n s i d e r i n g that Polhem's most famous i n v e n t i o n was the 'Scandinavian padlock,' w e can read U l t v e d t ' s sculpture as a significant reminder of the doors that were being locked, separating artists such as himself a n d Rauschenberg. For those outside this metalanguage, these references to U l t v e d t ' s disengagement from collaborations w i t h N e w Y o r k ' s avant-garde were not so obvious. A t the end of 1965, U l t v e d t received an i n v i t a t i o n from Rauschenberg a n d B i l l y K l i i v e r to participate i n a s y m p o s i u m o n art and technology. O r g a n i z e d b y F y l k l i n g e n , the S w e d i s h society for experimental music, Nine Evenings — as the event was called — was i n i t i a l l y g o i n g to take 3 2 8 I n 1962 Ultvedt had been involved in a minor controversy at the Venice Biennale where he represented Sweden. In his assemblage Signal, which was installed just outside the entrance to the newly constructed Bauhaus inspired Nordic Pavillion, Ultvedt included a number of beer bottles that functioned as chimes when viewers neared the sculpture. In a similar way to Tinguely, Ultvedt's sculptures always have a certain 'working class' vocabulary attached to them. 1 8 8 place i n S t o c k h o l m . 3 2 9 W h i l e the project w o u l d i n the end be relocated to N e w Y o r k because of a lack of interest from S w e d i s h sponsors and artists such as U l t v e d t ("I d i d n ' t want to be some k i n d of 'waffle maker'"), i n i t i a l o p t i m i s m a r o u n d the event was tied to the S w e d i s h - A m e r i c a n d u o of K l i i v e r and R a u s c h e n b e r g . 3 3 0 Since 1963, K l i i v e r had collaborated o n Oracle, a large scale m u l t i - m e d i a installation b y Rauschenberg [fig. 86]. T h r o u g h this major investment of time, money and effort, the collaboration between artist and scientist had b y 1966 e v o l v e d into E . A . T . , the organization whose a c r o n y m stood for Experiments i n A r t and Technology. In M a r c h of 1966, Konstrevy p u b l i s h e d "Technology for L i f e , " a lengthy article w r i t t e n b y K l i i v e r describing the virtues of his collaboration w i t h Rauschenberg o n the m u l t i - m e d i a installation Oracle.331 This project, he proposed, served to show what role the artist c o u l d serve i n a society that "shall s u r v i v e thanks to — not inspite of — t e c h n o l o g y . " 3 3 2 W h a t was necessary, he argued, was an u n l i m i t e d exchange of ideas between artists and technicians i n order to produce a "medium" capable of c a r r y i n g the "message" needed to stimulate not just technological progress, but social progress. K l i i v e r ' s text, w h i c h i n m a n y w a y s reads as a manifesto for E . A . T . , is 3 2 9 F o r a brief history and lengthy inventory of events related to Nine Evenings, see the "Inventory of the Experiments in Art and Technology Records 1966-1993" compiled by Lynda Bunting for The Ghetty Research Institute for the History of Art and the Humanities web site http:/ /www.getty.edu/gri/research/main.htm. 3 3 0 I n the program suggested for Nine Evenings, Ultvedt was asked to aquire, and be in charge of, a large number of waffle makers that would, one presumes, represent the democratic nature of the planned 'happening.' Considering his disillusionment with Pop art, the symbolic value of waffle making must have appeared too close to the symbolic value of hamburgers and hot dogs. 3 3 1 O r a c / e is more an installation than a specific medium. Filling an entire room, its five free- standing parts are each mobile, but does not move. Each piece contains a radio and speaker operated by remote control from a main console. 3 3 2 B i l l y Kliiver "Teknologi for livet" [Technology for Life] Konstrevy 2 (1966), p.56. (pp.56-61) 1 8 9 http://www.getty.edu/gri/research/main.htm directly m o d e l e d after M a r s h a l l M c L u h a n ' s Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man (1964) i n w h i c h M c L u h a n presented a v e r y optimistic 'pop' interpretation of the process of c o m m u n i c a t i o n from the "Gutenburg Galaxy" to the electronic a g e . 3 3 3 To make this point clear, K l i i v e r based the structure of his essay o n M c L u h a n ' s first Chapter, "The M e d i u m is the Message." Describing the p h y s i c a l details of Oracle under the subheading "The M e d i u m , " K l i i v e r explained h o w artistic and technological m e d i u m s h a d , i n this new collective w o r k i n g environment, managed to merge into a h y b r i d form that opened itself up to n e w sensory experiences. G r o u n d i n g his argument not o n l y i n M c L u h a n ' s c l a i m that technology is "an expansion of our nervous system," but also i n the psychoanalytic readings of history p r o v i d e d b y N o r m a n O . B r o w n , K l i i v e r saw a l i n k between a "mechanical and organic stand point," respectively characterized as "for death" a n d "for l i f e . " 3 3 4 For O . B r o w n , the "hard truth" that psychoanalysts needed to deal w i t h was : the acceptance of death, its reunification i n consciousness w i t h life, cannot be accomplished b y the discipline of p h i l o s o p h y or the seduction of art, but o n l y b y the abolition of repression. M a n , w h o is b o r n a w o m a n and destined to die, is a b o d y , w i t h b o d i l y instincts. O n l y if Eros — the life instinct — can affirm the life of the b o d y can the death instinct affirm death, a n d i n affirming death magnify l i f e . 3 3 5 3 3 3 M a r s h a l l M c L u h a n Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man T o r o n t o : M c G r a w - H i l l Paperbacks (first paperback edition), 1965, pp.7-21. 3 3 4 K l u v e r here quotes N o r m a n O . B r o w n from his 1959 b o o k Life Against Death: The Psychoanalytical Meaning of History N e w Y o r k : V i n t a g e B o o k , 1959. 3 3 5 0 . B r o w n , pp.108-109. 1 9 0 This argument for "life against death/' as the title of his book declared, i n many ways stood counter to the arguments for death that Saint-Phalle, Tinguely, and U l t v e d t had by n o w e m b r a c e d . 3 3 6 One c o u l d say that w h i l e K l i i v e r and Rauschenberg were affirming Eros by e x p l o r i n g new sensory experiences through collective experiments w i t h art a n d technology, the former artists were less optimistic about collaborations and technological progress and h a r d at w o r k creating their o w n death masks i n a ritualistic 'dance of death.' F r o m the perspective we have established to v i e w these private discourses, we can see that both sides of the 'open art' debate were at w o r k to reveal the logic of their age of mechanical reproduction. But w h i l e the Europeans i n question were d o i n g so b y 'dressing up,' K l i i v e r , i n his article, argued that technology needed a very different sort of artist: "an analyst, a stimulant, a provoker, and an u n d r e s s e r . " 3 3 7 For K l i i v e r , Rauschenberg was increasingly w i l l i n g to take o n this task as evident i n w o r k such as Oracle: Oracle shows that a completely n e w relationship between the artist and engineer (and perhaps even between the artist and scientist) is a possibility. [This is a] relationship i n w h i c h the artist seeks to take advantage of the incredible resources offered u p b y technology and science i n order to reach his goals... [which] s h o u l d lie w i t h i n areas that technology and science have not yet explored: i n order to create new sensual experiences, n e w enjoyments, n e w w a y s to relate to each other, new w a y s to experience light, darkness, c o l d and heat, as w e l l as new ways to sleep, to be, to eat. E v e r y engineer today is w e l l aware of the fact that technology has unimaginable capacities. But at the same time, the engineer's ability to invent new w a y s to use technology is l i m i t e d by his o w n comfort, one-sidedness and p s y c h o l o g i c a l determinations.... 3 3 6 N o r m a n O. Brown suggests that this embrace is a very common trope in Hegel's writings as well as Existentialist philosophy in general: "It takes the greatest strength to accept death, says Hegel. Following Hegel, the existentialist philosophers have returned to the wisdom of Montaigne, that to learn philosophy is to learn how to die." O'Browh, p.108. 3 3 7 K l u v e r , p.61. 1 9 1 Engineers have a difficult time i m a g i n i n g that technology can be used to create disorder. But this is something that the artist can imagine. The artist, and o n l y the artist, can show engineers h o w technology can be used to its full c a p a c i t y . . . . 3 3 8 For K l i i v e r , Oracle h a d managed to present this m e d i u m i s t i c "message." Constructed i n five parts (like an opera or a play), Oracle consisted of movable parts o n wheels a l l o w i n g the composition to change i n relation to the r o o m it occupied. F r o m each of the five sections, m e d i u m wave radio signaled report sound from different parts of the city where it was located — ranging from the voice of a rock-and-roll D J to the news announcer to a d v e r t i s e m e n t . 3 3 9 The central images i n the five parts also relate to the city: a car door connected to a typewriter table; a tub w i t h an air-ventilation shaft; a w i n d o w frame w i t h another ventilation shaft; a ventilation pipe o n top of p r a m wheels; an enlarged staircase i n a l u m i n u m . W h i l e the o v e r a l l effect is that of a rather nostalgic l o o k i n g 'scrap-assemblage,' as some critics noted, K l i i v e r points out that the m e d i u m was taken from the immediate urban environment: "It is impossible to f i n d something nostalgic or precious i n the different parts. They were torn out of the city y e s t e r d a y . " 3 4 0 N o t o n l y that, but the radio transmission ensures that the w o r k is kept up-to-date. In its m a n i f o l d aspects, Oracle can be said to be an inverted gesamptkunstwerk, o p e n i n g u p an interdisciplinary space for art and technology as w e l l as for b u r g e o n i n g new subjectivities. A s an engineer w i t h an interest i n m a k i n g a l i n k between the psychoanalytic realm of art and technology, K l i i v e r rejected the idea of 3 3 8 I b i d . , p. 60. 3 3 9 I b i d . , p.58. 3 4 0 I b i d . , p.57. 1 9 2 turning away from science; particularly at a time w h e n "our lives have become tied to technology" and he recognized h o w unavoidable this meeting place was: There is not a country o n earth w h o has raised its voice against this 'development.' Technology is an 'extension of our nervous system' as M a r s h a l l M c L u h a n suggests.... John Cage [has made] us aware that technology has a quality w h i c h allows people to come into agreement. The fact is that amongst a l l the m a n y agreements that are made between different countries ... the ones concerning technical areas, more than often, override a l l other agreements w i t h i n politics, commerce, etc. Technology forces us to eliminate personal feelings. W h e n experiences from space research approach our society's needs, w e w i l l be gifted w i t h a whole new type of w o r k leader and w o r k e r — someone w h o is totally responsible for his w o r k . President Johnson has g i v e n the assignment of s o l v i n g the p r o b l e m of poverty i n certain areas of A m e r i c a to the electronic industry. A s a matter of fact, these are the same companies that take care of the space program.... W i t h the computer it is no longer a question of what we can make a computer do, but h o w our unconscious decides to use it. It is a question of synthesis a n d not the use v a l u e . 3 4 1 In many w a y s this argument for b r i d g i n g not just art and life, but more specifically the 'mechanical' and the 'instinctual' side of existence, is reminiscent of the more constructivist arguments of the Bauhaus school of art and architecture w h e r e i n the i n d i v i d u a l o p t i m i s t i c a l l y h o p e d to be collectively synthesized into a democratic p u b l i c sphere. A s w e w i l l n o w see, shortly after K l i i v e r ' s article was p u b l i s h e d , a sculptural m o n u m e n t to this idea of unification w o u l d be constructed at M o d e r n a Museet — but for reasons w e have just seen, its creators d i d this w i t h a great deal of irony. In the late s p r i n g of 1966, the "Mechanical Bride," as M c L u h a n named the desired mechanisms of the 20th century [fig. 87], w o u l d be stripped bare i n 3 4 1 i b i d . , p. 60-61. 1 9 3 S t o c k h o l m . 3 4 2 O n the 27th of A p r i l , T i n g u e l y and Saint-Phalle a r r i v e d i n Stockholm where they began an intense p e r i o d of discussion together w i t h U l t v e d t and H u l t e n regarding the collaborative project that h a d i n i t i a l l y been discussed at Dylaby.343 If we consider K l i i v e r ' s optimistic appraisal of Rauschenberg's Oracle, the i n i t i a l titles for this E u r o p e a n assemblage hint at its direct relationship w i t h the former w o r k . T i n g u e l y , for example, suggested an opera or a k i n d of mechanical theatre w h i c h w o u l d have i n v o l v e d a number of episodes such as: Woman Seizes Power, A Public Relations Man Commits Suicide Because of a Failure, The Assassination of LB], The Pope in New York, An Airplane Crash in the Jungle....34* S a i n t - P h a l l e m a i n t a i n e d that the w o r k s h o u l d be a giant cathedral, and finally H u l t e n proposed "a giant supine figure, o n the lines of N i k i de Saint-Phalle's Nanas, w h i c h was at once called Hon - en katedral [She - A Cathedral]."345 O n the t h i r d of June, M o d e r n a Museet opened its ticket gate to reveal Hon, a giant female figure whose p r o d u c t i o n h a d been kept secret d u r i n g five weeks of p l a n n i n g , construction, and painting [fig. 88]. M e a s u r i n g 23.5 x 6 x 10 meters, 'She' lay headless o n her back inside M o d e r n a Museet, w i t h her legs spread and knees pointed u p w a r d s . U p o n entering through the v a g i n a of this giant N a n a , b u i l t and painted like an Easter egg b y N i k i de Saint-Phalle, the visitor encountered a plethora of amusements s i m i l a r to that of an amusement park: a C o c a - C o l a bar, lookout tower, slide, t u n n e l of love, several "Fake Paintings" i n an art gallery, a number of automatic vendors for 3 4 2 S e e M a r s h a l M c L u h a n ' s The Mechanical Bride: Folklore of Industrial Man N e w Y o r k : V a n g u a r d Press, 1951. 3 4 3 D u e to an unexpected i n v i t a t i o n to participate i n the V e n i c e Biennale, M a r t i a l Raysse, w h o h a d also been considered for the project, was forced to cancel. 3 4 4 H u l t e n (1972), p.289. 3 4 5 I b i d . . 1 9 4 various kinds of goods, service personnel, a s m a l l plant for the p r o d u c t i o n of broken glass, a public telephone, a gold-fish p o n d , a m o v i e theater s h o w i n g a soundless Greta G a r b o movie, and m u c h more. Entering through her 'gate of life,' one was first confronted w i t h a large, g r i n d i n g , black and white wheel [fig. 89]. This was one of Tinguely's dark contributions to the 'amusements' that She e m b o d i e d . S t a n d i n g o n a foam floor, the visitor was led to question its function as the s o u n d of crushing glass c o u l d be heard from inside. The function became more apparent w h e n v i s i t i n g the C o c a - C o l a bar i n one of her breasts. Standing at this bar, one c o u l d not o n l y listen to lovers' secrets transmitted through speakers from a h i d d e n microphone i n the 'love seat' installed i n Hon's left leg, but h a v i n g consumed y o u r 'pop,' the p h a l l i c nature of this A m e r i c a n consumer icon was effectively castrated b y being discarded into a shoot leading d o w n to Tinguely's machine for the p r o d u c t i o n of b r o k e n glass. In this gesture, the technological o p t i m i s m that defined itself as masculine through a variety of consumer icons, was here s y m b o l i c a l l y emptied and broken d o w n . A l o n g the lines of Tinguely's D u c h a m p i a n castration, U l t v e d t p r o d u c e d a mobile piece i n Hon's stomach w h i c h featured a m a n b e i n g massaged b y numerous hands w h i l e seated precariously o n a chair as he watches a television screen projecting images of waves o n a stormy ocean [fig. 90]. In Ultvedt's absurdist contribution to this p o p cathedral, the motif of the 'oceanic' F r e u d h a d once described as the ' p r i m i t i v e pleasure-ego' u t i l i z e d b y religions, became l i n k e d to the massage of consumer culture and technology 1 9 5 as M c L u h a n h a d a n a l y z e d . 3 4 6 W h i l e M c L u h a n may not have been aware of the critical i r o n y the three artists were p l a y i n g w i t h , he d i d find out about Hon and responded w i t h a four page spread i n his 1967 book The Medium is the Massage [fig. 9 1 ] . 3 4 7 M c L u h a n probably understood Hon to represent a good example of the new open art of the sixties where art c o u l d be "anything y o u can get away w i t h . " 3 4 8 In a d i s p l a y of self-conscious h u m o u r , the art critic L i n d e ended up taking a jab at the idea of originality i n art b y contributing a series of "Fake Paintings" w h i c h were h u n g i n an art gallery located i n one of Hon's legs and c o u l d only be v i e w e d superficially as one flew by them o n the w a y d o w n a children's slide [fig. 92]. A l o n g w i t h a l l these contraptions, assemblages, and happenings, there was also a f i l m screening of Greta Garbo's first silent move Luffar-Tetter from 1922 i n w h i c h S w e d i s h w o m e n are s h o w n bathing i n a N o r d i c landscape. In the context of Hon, G a r b o represented the c o m m o d i f i c a t i o n of the sexualized S w e d i s h w o m a n w h o h a d been exported to the U n i t e d States where she h a d 346"The true source of religious sentiment... consists of a peculiar feeling... present in millions of people.... This feeling which he [a patient] would like to call a sensation of 'eternity,' a feeling as of something limitless, unbounded — as it were, 'oceanic' This feeling, he adds, is a purely subjective fact, not an article of faith; ... it is the source of the religious energy which is seized upon by various religious systems, directed by them into particular channels, and doubtless also exhausted by them." Sigmund Freud Civilization and its Discontents New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1961, pp.11-12. For the makers of Hon, Freud's concept of an oceanic feeling that can control masses of people must have been considered a perfect analogy to the blind optimism they understood members of the New York avant-garde to be investing in art and technology. •^McLuhan's inclusion of a four page section on Hon in his 1967 book The Medium is the Massage is an incredible irony in the history of this exhibition if we consider what I would describe as Saint-Phalle's, Tinguely's, and Ultvedt's 'anti-McLuhanesque' position. Typographically and pictorially spaced out, the pages read "Art — is anything — you can get away with." Marshall McLuhan and Quentin Fiore The Medium is the Massage: An Inventory of Effects New York: Bantam Books, 1967, pp.132-136. 3 4 8 f b i d . . 1 9 6 become a sex s y m b o l i n A m e r i c a n p o p u l a r culture. B y the sixties this w o m a n had been g i v e n an existentialist twist by Ingemar Bergman whose films were n o w popular enough to w i n Oscars at the A c a d e m y A w a r d s . By 1966, Sweden had established an international reputation for h a v i n g an abundance of sexually 'liberated' w o m e n . By the 1960s, the one image that distinguished Swedish democracy from others was the liberal sexual politics it espoused. For example, by the mid-sixties, Sweden h a d among other things introduced the P i l l , legalized abortion, the I U D , and the sex-role equality c a m p a i g n . 3 4 9 Partly due to Europe's and the U n i t e d States' reticence w h e n it came to these issues, Sweden managed to develop its o w n m y t h o l o g y tied to this image of sexual freedom. This image that was presented to the outside w o r l d and w h i c h increasingly stereotyped S w e d i s h culture was embraced b y domestic and foreign post-war y o u t h alike to w h o m sexual freedom was equated w i t h p o l i t i c a l emancipation. It was to this generation of Swedes that Hon-en katedral was presented . S u p r i s i n g l y , critics and reporters d i d not p i c k - u p o n the most obvious literary and filmic reference. In 1965, a seventh filmic version of She had been released b y H a m m e r - S e v e n A r t s starring U r s a l a A n d r e s s as 'She-who-must- be-obeyed.' Based o n R i d e r Haggard's sixth n o v e l (published i n 1887), She is the story of a 2,000 year o l d white queen w h o reigns over her people w h i l e 3 4 9 I n 1974 the Swedish Health Education Committee observed the down side of this liberalization process by noticing that it "has been overtaken by an increasingly raw commercial exploitation of sexuality with emphasis on consumption, performance and depersonificationn.... Development in recent years presents the paradox of a society that increasingly stands up for equality between the sexes in various fields at the same time as the sexual exploitation of women becomes more and more brazen in, for example, the mass media and advertising. The anti-human and, in the deepest sense, anti-sexual attitudes that youth encounter today in commercial messages cannot be over emphasized." Scott, Hilda Sweden's 'Right to be Human': Sex-Role Equality: The Goal and the Reality New York: M . E . Sharpe, Inc., 1982, p.86. 1 9 7 w a i t i n g for the reincarnation of her E g y p t i a n l o v e r . 3 5 0 H e r y o u t h is renewed by 'bathing' i n a magical flame, but w h e n she tries to make her lover i m m o r t a l , she goes to the flame of eternal y o u t h once too often and ends up s h r i n k i n g and s h r i v e l i n g to death. In this w a y , Haggard's She must have functioned as alternative m y t h to that of Icarus. But as the S w e d i s h evening paper Expressen reported, to most Swedes, Hon resembled n o t h i n g more than an art w o r k masquerading as the F u n n y H o u s e at G r o n a L u n d (Stockholm's amusement p a r k ) . 3 5 1 In this same newspaper article it was reported w i t h astonishment that the e x h i b i t i o n had: ...opened o n Saturday and there is already a rush of people to get there. O n opening day there were 2,000 visitors, the next day 1,500, and each f o l l o w i n g day another 2,000. This is the exceptional part: N o t one person has been shocked (unless we count an A m e r i c a n tourist w h o d r o p p e d i n by accident and thought that this was the w a y Swedes celebrated their m e m o r y of Q u e e n C h r i s t i n a [that e x h i b i t i o n was o n simultaneously at Nationalmuseet]. W i t h o u t f i n d i n g the large female figure (honan) i n good order or morals, we report that six to seven thousand people, half of them y o u n g , have n o w entered between H E R thighs and i n through H E R w i d e open s e x . 3 5 2 A s this quote attests, Hon was also a box-office success along the lines of 'The B l o n d e V e n u s ' i n E m i l e Z o l a ' s n o v e l N a n a . 3 5 3 The event was not o n l y noted i n the S w e d i s h p o p u l a r press and journals. Time Magazine cited Hon as "one 3 5 0 p f t j i j p Leibfred's article " H . R i d e r H a g g a r d o n the Screen" i n Films in Review (September/October 1995) V o l . X L V I N o . 7 / 8 Issue 5, pp.20-29. 3 5 ! " H o n : skotte-synd pa M o d e r n a " Expressen June 8,1966). 3 5 2 I b i d . . 3 S 3 I n Zola's n o v e l , N a n a represented the desires a n d threats of an increasingly e m p h e m e r a l class stucture. Starting out as a clandestine prostitute, N a n a slept her w a y u p the s o c i a l latter. E m i l e Z o l a Nana N e w Y o r k : The M o d e r n L i b r a r y , 1955 (orig. 1880). 1 9 8 of the most uproarious, outrageous — and incredibly p o p u l a r — exhibits to make its debut i n Sweden's capital i n y e a r s . " 3 5 4 A s informed spectators, however, w e can n o w look b e h i n d this seemingly frivolous p o p surface to see that everything i n the presentation of Hon was been carefully planned and executed. The references to Haggard's She and Zola's Nana were by no means the o n l y historical reference points. Picasso's classical Bathers from the 1920s also come to m i n d . Just as Picasso's painted w o m e n h a d signified 'Mother France,' Hon c o u l d here be seen to represent a fashionable and sexy 'Swedish M a m m a . ' But along w i t h this h i p and comforting n e w look, this female figure is also clearly raped by the culture w h i c h surrounds her. The p a y i n g visitor to this enormous p o p culture courtesan was also s u p p l i e d w i t h an exhibition guide (a newspaper i n c l u d i n g chronological histories of each artist), as w e l l as documentation of Hon's construction. Just as Picasso and other 20th century avant-gardists h a d used Stephen M a l l a r m e ' s contempt for p o p u l a r culture to position their o w n ambiguous practices, the makers of Hon p l a y e d u p o n his dislike of the n e w s p r i n t m e d i u m w h i c h he had likened to a clandestine prostitute. P r o d u c e d w i t h the same anti-aesthetic obsolescence as a C u b i s t or Dadaist collage, the handout's cover s h o w e d a d r a w i n g of Hon's inner and outer spaces i n the v e r y architectural language of i n d u s t r y that D u c h a m p h a d used w h e n p r e p a r i n g his Bride Stripped Bare [figs. 93 and 94]. 3 ^ 4 T i m e Magazine (June 17, 1966). 1 9 9 Just as this newspaper w o u l d gradually be destroyed, the life of Hon w o u l d also come to an end. After two months of "fun-filled action," a three day destruction p e r i o d was scheduled, announced and executed [fig. 95]. She apparently withered away and died. To emphasize the importance of this final act, a f i l m was p r o d u c e d d o c u m e n t i n g the very violent and misogynist act of destruction. A c c o m p a n i e d by carnivalesque music, the f i l m not o n l y serves as an archival reminder of Hon's inner spaces where we f i n d , for example, T i n g u e l y ' s Radio Stockholm [fig. 96] (a sculpture w h i c h can refer to the radio transmitters i n Rauschenberg's Oracle), but w e also get a v i v i d picture of the darker side of Hon as C o c a - C o l a bottles are repeatedly seen being crushed, f o l l o w e d b y scenes of her final destruction. The violence of this latter part is particularly disturbing and I w o u l d say that it is not by accident that particular scenes are s h o w n . For example, scenes such as the r e m o v a l of one of Hon's breasts by an a l l male crew, force the viewer to adress h o w gender has been constructed and a d r e s s e d . 3 5 5 Just as i n Tinguely's earlier w o r k such as The End of the World, and Hommage a New York, a n d Dissecting Machine, celebration was f o l l o w e d by very deliberate destruction. T h r o u g h this "creative act," as D u c h a m p called it, the European bachelors h a d hereby stripped the mechanical bride of its "article of dress," to re-quote M c L u h a n , and revealed an image similar to the contemporary disaster series b y A n d y W a r h o l . Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Hon is that it p r o v i d e d its audience w i t h an early v i e w of D u c h a m p ' s last w o r k Given: 1. The Waterfall, 355-rhe destruction of Hon is w e l l documented not o n l y i n the N a t i o n a l m u s e u m ' s 1967 catalogue of the exhibit and i n n u m e r o u s books about Saint-Phaile and T i n g u e l y , but also i n a 16 m m f i l m entitled Hon b y M a g n u s W i b o m p r o d u c e d i n 1966. This f i l m is the best d o c u m e n t available of the activities that occurred inside Hon. I w o u l d l i k e to acknowledge M o n i c a N i c k e l s effort at M o d e r n a Museet for f i n d i n g the f i l m i n its archives a n d screening it for me o n A u g u s t 18,1992. 200 2. The Illuminating Gas (1946-66), the finished w o r k w h i c h w o u l d not be seen u n t i l his death two years later, but had been 'given' a w a y i n the form of a 'sketch' [fig. 97]. A s w o u l d become clear m u c h later, D u c h a m p had here revealed the 'social realism' behind his 'abstract' art [fig. 98]. A n x i o u s to realize Duchamp's "delay i n glass," these bachelors managed to see the mechanical bride stripped bare i n Stockholm — even before P h i l a d e l p h i a . A s w o u l d be the case i n the U n i t e d States w h e n Etand Donne was finally revealed, the w o r k d i d produce some "shock" i n S w e d e n as w e l l . A s N i k i de Saint-Phalle recalled the event: There was n o t h i n g pornographic about the Hon. She was painted like an Easter egg w i t h the very bright colours I have always used and l o v e d . She was like a grand fertility goddess reclining comfortably i n her i m m e n s i t y and generously receiving thousands of visitors w h i c h she absorbed, devoured, and gave b i r t h to again. The shock of Hon was so enormous that we got away w i t h it. A l s o one must remember that this was Sweden, where there had been for some time an atmosphere of sexual liberty. This joyous huge creature represented for m a n y people the dream of the return to the great M o t h e r Goddess.... The b i r t h rate of Stockholm went u p the year of the Hon, and this was attributed to h e r . 3 5 6 W h i l e Saint-Phalle's recollection carefully sidesteps any m e n t i o n of the darker side of Hon w h i c h we have just seen, we s h o u l d , I propose, read her second from last sentence i n this quote i n u n i s o n w i t h someone like T.S. E l i o t w h o h a d remarked earlier i n the century that: "Totalitarianism appeals to the desire to return to the w o m b . " 3 5 7 If this was the global game being played, these artists wanted to make sure that they got to p l a y the part of 3 5 6 S a i n t - P h a l l e quoted i n H u l t e n (1972), p.168. 3 ^ 7 Q u o t e d i n A n d r e a s H u y s s e n After the Great Divide: Modernism, Mass Culture, Postmodernism Indianapolis: Indiana U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1986, p.58. 2 0 1 M a c h i a v e l l i . Democracy was for them perhaps too fraught w i t h i l l u s i o n s and c o m p r o m i s e s . One part of Saint-Phalle's quote that w e can perhaps read more literally is her reference to Sweden's liberal attitude towards sexuality d u r i n g the sixties. This exhibition, I w o u l d agree, c o u l d not have taken place anywhere but at a m u s e u m like Hu lten 's i n Sweden. Just as i n d i v i d u a l s l i k e H u l t e n , L i n d e , and U l t v e d t were attempting to carve out a s o c i o - i n d i v i d u a l p o s i t i o n parallel to (but crucially different from) S w e d i s h and A m e r i c a n ideals of collectivity and i n d i v i d u a l i s m , the S w e d i s h state, as w e have seen w i t h regard to the V i e t n a m W a r , was attempting to differentiate its image from that of an A m e r i c a n i z e d liberal democracy. A liberal attitude towards sexuality d i d i n the end p r o v i d e Sweden w i t h at least an image of a new type of democratic "freedom." But what k i n d of image of sexual and democratic freedom c o u l d be read into this giant female G u l l i v e r l y i n g o n the floor of M o d e r n a Museet? Despite its p l a y f u l scale, colour, and content, Hon was after a l l an enormous prostitute used and abused b y the visitors w h o entered her. Refusing to skirt a r o u n d this issue, Claes O l d e n b u r g , the Swedish-born Pop artist whose solo exhibition was to f o l l o w Hon at M o d e r n a Museet, made the f o l l o w i n g aggressive connection between the pornographic side of Hon a n d Sweden's 'new look:' I, a passionate a n t i - A m e r i c a n , think it's good to accept a n d to look closely at the C u n t , an entrance, an exit. In the s m a l l i s h magazines i n Sweden, focus falls u p o n the C u n t . In the U . S . A . , there is always something i n the w a y , the C u n t is obstructed. F r o m m y studio i n the 2 0 2 M . M . , I looked straight up Hon's C u n t . E v e r y day, very clearly, I saw the citizens go i n and come o u t . . . . 3 5 8 A s O l d e n b u r g observed, there was a distinct difference between A m e r i c a n and S w e d i s h liberal attitudes toward sexuality. Since p l a y w i t h ambiguity is often e m p l o y e d by O l d e n b u r g , the exaggerated v u l g a r i t y of his description makes one question whether he is i n fact p a i n t i n g a positive picture of 'her' emancipation. L i k e O l d e n b u r g , a number of commentators saw H o n as representative of the new emancipated w o m a n of the s i x t i e s . 3 5 9 "She" was, after a l l , seen everywhere b y this time. M a r t i a l Raysse, w h o w e w i l l remember h a v i n g been forced to drop out of the collaboration o n H o n , had treated this subject matter w i t h a s i m i l a r ambiguous 'pop' surface i n his 1962 Elle — a w o r k whose title referred to the French fashion magazine b y the same name w h i c h had successfully cashed i n o n this image of a sexually liberated 'new w o m a n ' [fig. x]. In Raysse's w o r k , it is h a r d to tell if 'She' is a beautifully made-up m o d e l or a b r u t a l l y bruised housewife. In this sense w e can read his w o r k as raising questions about this n e w popularized image of w o m a n . Read alongside Raysse's w o r k , Hon presents us w i t h a s i m i l a r l y ambiguous gender construction w h i c h t h r o u g h an act of mimesis and sacrifice reveals the violent and patriarchal logic b e h i n d consumer d r i v e n democratic freedom. But not a l l critics saw H o n as a gender or c u l t u r a l critique. Critics like G u d r u n Ekeflo and Barbro Backberger read the sculpture as taking a very 3 ^ 8 0 1 d e n b u r g quoted i n Barbro S y l v a n , Pontus H u l t e n and John M e l i n eds. Hon-en katedral/historia S t o c k h o l m : N a t i o n a l m u s e u m , 1967, p.167. 3 ^ 9 S e e for example Bengt O l v a n g ' s article " H o n " i n the socialist e v e n i n g paper Aftonbladet (June 9,1966). 2 0 3 "traditional" and "reactionary" position against the liberated female subject. 3 6 0 Setting up an imaginary two-page dialogue presumably between U l f L i n d e (using L i n d e ' s description of Hon from Dagens Nyheter) and herself i n Bonniers Litterdra Magasin, Backberger set out to reveal the male chauvinist side of Hon : voice I: She b i l l o w s i n front of y o u like a washed up whale o n the beach. Y o u stand below — i n front of her like G u l l i v e r i n the l a n d of Giants. She is a cathedral. A l l cathedrals ought to be like this.... Voice II: O h , I see — a cathedral this time. It doesn't matter what w e call it, it's the same o l d passive w o m a n a n y w a y . Voice I: She is the sister of V e n u s of W i l l e n d o r f f and L o r e n z o n ' s cosmic mother. Requests and censorship buzzes about her like insignificant mosquitoes. Their tiny voices are o v e r p o w e r e d by the life machinery that chews, beats, creeks, squeaks, and turns and toss inside of her. V o i c e II: A s expected! W e are back to the thirties again. P r i m i t i v i s m ' s v i e w o n woman.... A w o m a n w h o wholeheartedly identifies herself w i t h her o w n sexuality. A pleasant and w a r m l o v e r . . . . 3 6 1 The dialogue continues at length u n t i l V o i c e II (Backberger) asks: "Is there never a n y t h i n g n e w i n art? For example, a w o m a n w h o stands o n her o w n two l e g s ? " 3 6 2 N o t o n l y was Hon offensive to m a n y because of her r e c l i n i n g pose, but the fact that her head was constructed as n o t h i n g more than a tiny extension of her enormous b o d y was more than some c o u l d tolerate [fig. 100]. Ekeflo, i n an article for the Leftist's d a i l y Stockholms Tidningen p r o p o s e d that: 3 6 ° G u d r u n Ekeflo "Varfor ar Hon en katedral?" Stockholms Tidningen. A response to Olvang's article reproduced in in the catalogue Hon-en katedral/historia Stockholm: Nationalmuseum, 1967, p.155. 3 6 1 B a r b r o Backberger "Hon" Ord & Bild 4 (Summer, 1966), pp.324-325. Ord & Bild is a literary journal that during the sixties positioned itself with the New Left. 3 6 2 I b i d . , p.325. 2 0 4 If one is to interpret this m o n u m e n t a l w o r k symbolically... [Hon] is an enormous s w e l l i n g , a sensual female b o d y topped off w i t h a tiny bulb for a head. One can stroll a r o u n d i n this body, but after h a v i n g h a d some refreshments at the bar underneath the breasts y o u don't get any farther — the head is apparently totally uninteresting and contains, according to the handout, an 'inferno m a c h i n e . ' 3 6 3 W h i l e Ekeflo's critique is entirely justified, I suggest that Hon's head was not entirely uninteresting to the producers of the w o r k . O n the contrary, the size, shape, and function of the head appears intentionally stunted as if to suggest that 'intellect,' that very necessary part of intentions, c o u l d not fully be developed under circumstances where the rest of the social body is left w i d e open for interpretation. A s l o n g as visitors c o u l d be kept from seeing what was i n her head (what L i n d e had patriarchally referred to i n his four articles as "what is him i n her), the intentionality of the i n d i v i d u a l artist c o u l d be protected. One of the strangest and most interesting events to occur d u r i n g Hon's destruction was the careful severing of the head from the rest of her body. In the end, the head, w h i c h Ekeflo had referred to as a tiny b u l b , w o u l d remain the o n l y part saved from total destruction [fig. 101]. R e m o v e d from the m u s e u m , the head was transported to an abandoned o l d p r i s o n at O s t e r m a l m i n S t o c k h o l m . 3 6 4 Just as the marble sugar cubes i n D u c h a m p ' s Why Not Sneeze Rose Selavy? (1921) were cooped u p i n a b i r d cage, the interior motifs of D u c h a m p ' s ready "maids" i n S t o c k h o l m w o u l d be l o c k e d up and protected from p u b l i c c o n s u m p t i o n [fig. 1 0 2 ] . 3 6 5 3 6 3 E k e f l o , p.155.1 w o u l d venture to suggest that this 'inferno machine' refers to Rauschenberg's prints of Dante's Inferno s h o w n at M o d e r n a Museet i n 1965. 3 6 4 A n interesting p r i s o n location for this decapitated P o p star as O s t e r m a l m is one of Stockholm's oldest, and snobbiest, upper-class neighbourhoods. 3 6 ^ D i s c u s s Why Not Sneeze Rose Selavy? from 1921. 205 A s we have seen, w h i l e M o d e r n a Museet by 1961 had managed to position itself at the center of post-war avant-garde discourses b y opening its doors to a variety of anarchistic forms of freedom, by the mid-sixties this flight into the bright light of international success w o u l d be recognized as premature. W h i l e M o d e r n a Museet's cross-Atlantic connections h a d opened up new avenues for artists, critics and curators to celebrate difference p u b l i c l y , privately artists such as Saint-Phalle, T i n g u e l y , and U l t v e d t understood their i n d i v i d u a l identities c o m p r o m i s e d as if i n a T o w e r of Babel. W i t h exhibitions such as The Inner and Outer Space, M o d e r n a Museet cleared a space for an art of enlightened false consciousness. B y erecting a colosal m o n u m e n t to the increasingly technological w o r l d order they sought to critique, Saint-Phalle, Tinguely and U l t v e d t produced an art w o r k w h i c h was directly engaged w i t h socio, psycho, a n d p o l i t i c a l representation of everyday life. In D u c h a m p i a n fashion, Hon was a tongue-in-cheek critique of both an A m e r i c a n a n d S w e d i s h consumer culture that despite its liberal 'look' was technocratically totalitarian. A s B r i a n O ' D o h e r t y described the n e w artistic environment at the moment P o p A r t 'popped' i n 1962, "a fresh w i n d is b l o w i n g accross the vast b i l l b o a r d wasteland, and anarchy is o u t . " 3 6 6 W h a t was 'given' to their audience was the sexualized social b o d y Duchamp's Large Glass h a d always referred to through the language of industry and w h i c h M a r s h a l l M c L u h a n had named "the mechanical bride." A year after Hon, M c L u h a n , i n The Medium is the Massage, w o u l d also c a l l for n e w approaches to expressing technological m o d e r n i t y . W h i l e his c a l l was for the creation of contemporary myths related to the machinery of consumer culture, he d i d g r o u n d himself i n M e d i e v a l art where he "saw the fear of the n e w p r i n t technology expressed 3 6 6 B r i a n O ' D o h e r t y The New York Times (October 31, 1962), p. 2 0 6 i n the theme The Dance of Death." W h a t I have s h o w n i n this last chapter is that this dance of death was s t i l l happening i n 1966 at M o d e r n a Museet. 207 EPILOGUE Connections, Rejections, and M o d e r n a M u s e e f s Collection In the preceding three chapters I have o u t l i n e d something of the history of the post-war avant-garde, and i n the process disentangled some of the conceptual confusion w h i c h took place a r o u n d the issue of a so called 'Open A r t ' between the years 1954 and 1966. W h a t I have found is an intricate and significant history s u r r o u n d i n g M o d e r n a Museet's activities d u r i n g this time w h i c h has since been obscured by a number of m y t h - m a k i n g factors. Between 1966 and 1973 (the year H u l t e n left M o d e r n a Museet to become the first artistic director of the Centre P o m p i d o u / B e a u b o u r g i n Paris), the m u s e u m continued to produce large-scale exhibitions w i t h both A m e r i c a n and European artists. It c o u l d be said that M o d e r n a Museet h a d become k n o w n as a site for 'Euro-Pop' i n the international artistic arena. Despite the great efforts w e have seen that went into separating i n d i v i d u a l collaborations from collective identities and interests i n rebellion versus r e v o l u t i o n , large scale exhibitions of A m e r i c a n artists such as Claes Oldenburg (1966) and Andy Warhol (1968) were increasingly organized alongside a E u r o p e a n avant-garde tradition represented b y exhibitions such as John Heartfield (1967), The Language of Revolution (1968) a n d Poetry Must Be Made By All (1969). If, as we have seen, exhibitions such as Inner and Outer Space and She - a Cathedral h a d been aimed at a v o i d i n g polemics b y engaging i n either a critical p h i l o s o p h y or tounge-in-cheek irony, the f o l l o w i n g events h a d a d e c i d e d l y more cynical twist. Just as Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y h a d embraced failure by becoming what they rejected and despised, H u l t e n w o u l d , after 1966, embrace the very art he h a d p r e v i o u s l y rejected. 2 0 8 Just p r i o r to leaving M o d e r n a Museet i n 1973, H u l t e n made a last desperate attempt to 'fix' the history of M o d e r n a Museet as the most 'open' and progressive site for contemporary art i n the sixties — l e a v i n g a heroic (albeit questionable) legacy i n place for generations to come. W o r k i n g w i t h B i l l y K l i i v e r and E . A . T . , H u l t e n h e l p e d purchase The New York Collection for M o d e r n a Museet w i t h the help of state funding. C o n s i s t i n g of thirty w o r k s of art by 29 a r t i s t s , 3 6 7 The New York Collection not o n l y filled gaps i n the collection from the sixties, but it helped seal the idea that M o d e r n a Museet, d u r i n g the sixties, not o n l y h a d a d y n a m i c relationship w i t h the N e w Y o r k art scene, but also a comfortable o n e . 3 6 8 Since the early seventies, M o d e r n a Museet and its collection have aquired a p o w e r f u l m y t h o l o g y w h i c h depends o n a nostalgic l o n g i n g for a time w h e n i n d i v i d u a l s i n S t o c k h o l m f o u n d themselves at the centre of artistic discourses. Simultaneously, artists w o r k i n g from the centre found a discourse a n d 'edge' o n the margins. M o r e recently, people have come to reject this history as part of the shift away from a patriarchal and canonical tradition of Western art. By shifting m y attention a w a y from questions about this art's postwar status as either a heroic A v a n t - G a r d e or failed N e o - A v a n t - Garde, m y text utilizes a perspective from the m a r g i n of this c u l t u r a l discourse i n order to re-surface tensions w h i c h made this moment i n history 3 6 7 L e e Bontecou, Robert Breer, John Chamberlain, Walter de Maria, Mark di Suvero, Jim Dine, Oyvind Fahlstrom, Dan Flavin, Red Grooms, Hans Haacke, Alex Hay, Elsworth Kelly, Donald Judd, Sol LeWitt, Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Morris, Louise Nevelson, Kenneth Noland, Claes Oldenburg, Nam June Paik, Robert Rauschenberg, Larry Rivers, James Rosenquist, George Segal, Richard Serra, Keith Sonnier, Richard Stankiewicz, Frank Stella, Cy Twombly, Andy Warhol and Robert Whitman. 3 6 8 I n Barbro Schultz Lundestam's 1998 documentary Amerikanarna och Pontus Hulten, Hulten jokes about the fact that the museum was during the sixties accused of being 'leftist' when they in fact "avoided politics." As we have seen, the politics of this time and place could not be avoided and Hulten, Linde and the artists in question were highly motivated and aware (although not always in control) of their political positions. 2 0 9 so important. B y centering m y discussion o n the activities of a few- i n d i v i d u a l s and a particular institution, I hope to have revealed the precarious side of the historical make up of N o u v e a u Realisme, N e o - D a d a and Pop A r t . B y p i n p o i n t i n g specific social, p h i l o s o p h i c a l and sexual interests, a picture of this history emerges that is not necessarily 'fixed,' but takes into account conflicting attempts at c o l o n i z i n g the 'gap' between art and life. So w h y p r i v i l e g e S t o c k h o l m as the place where this alternate v i e w of art history has been constructed? I was b o r n a few miles outside of Stockholm i n M a r c h of 1966 (the year of Hon) after h a v i n g been conceived i n N e w Y o r k . I suppose this risks m a k i n g m y dissertation appear either cathartic or ironic. M y intention is neither. Despite the disclaimer, I have to admit that m y interest i n this subject stems from m y frequent visits to Stockholm's M o d e r n a Museet o n w o r k i n g holidays to S w e d e n over the past fifteen years. Each time before entering the m u s e u m o n the i s l a n d of Skeppsholmen, I have been confronted by Le Paradise fantastique, a collaborative w o r k by Saint-Phalle and T i n g u e l y p r o d u c e d for the 1967 W o r l d E x p o s i t i o n i n M o n t r e a l [fig. 103]. Relocated to a park opposite the entrance to M o d e r n a Museet, the prominence of this w o r k fascinated me — the violent gestures it p l a y f u l l y presented disturbed me, and I began to question the meaning of this w o r k w h i c h continues to annoy Sweden's K i n g and Q u e e n i n their castle across the water. It was w h i l e researching the origins of this sculpture that I was led to the 'mother' of these mechanomorphic 'children' a n d there I discovered the roots of a history of h o w the m u s e u m had become internationally acclaimed i n the sixties, but h a d since the mid-seventies gradually d i m i n i s h e d o n the international art scene. 210 Claes Britton, w r i t i n g for the magazine Stockholm New, has described M o d e r n a Museet's recent d i l e m m a : Since Pontus H u l t e n left i n 1973 to become the first director of the Centre P o m p i d o u i n Paris, M o d e r n a Museet hasn't come anywhere near the astonishing achievements of the '60s. The museum's d a i l y operations ... [have] settled d o w n to a slower-paced trot, w i t h the international collection g l i m m e r i n g like a set of crazy jewels a r o u n d the neck of a weary m u l e . . . . 3 6 9 Since m y o w n interest i n the history of these 'jewels' began, the C i t y of Stockholm announced i n 1992 that the Spanish architect Rafael M o n e o had w o n a competition to r e b u i l d M o d e r n a Museet. The m a i n argument b e h i n d this 350 m i l l i o n kr. r e b u i l d i n g project — a proposal that hit m a n y Swedes as h a r d to s w a l l o w at a time of a major national recession i n the early nineties — has been to combat the presently unfavorable conditions w h i c h "Pontus Hulten's w o r l d r e n o w n e d collection" is h o u s e d . 3 7 0 The larger subplot, of course, was to establish Stockholm as a major E u r o p e a n c u l t u r a l tourist centre. W i t h H u l t e n gone from the S w e d i s h art scene, the p l a n was to hire a new director w h o w o u l d be able to return the m u s e u m to the center of avant- garde discourses i n time for 1998 w h e n it was Stockholm's turn to be the " C u l t u r a l C a p i t a l of Europe," a dubious, but clever, title offered to help boost t o u r i s m i n Europe. U n t i l this c u l t u r a l m a g i c i a n was found (the E n g l i s h curator D a v i d E l l i o t t was eventually hired) and the n e w m u s e u m was 3 6 9 C l a e s B r i t t o n "The Second C o m i n g of M o d e r n a Museet" Stockholm New N o . 5 (1997), p.54 (54-104). 3 7 0 T h e quote is Raphael Moneo's..., b y c a l l i n g the M o d e r n a Museet's collection "Pontus Hulten's," M o n e o acknowledges the important role H u l t e n is recognized for h a v i n g p l a y e d i n f o r m i n g that collection. See Rebecka Tarschys' interview w i t h M o n e o : Fulltraffar for M o n e o . " Dagens Nyheter (June 25, 1992), p . l . 21 1 completed, a new and "more precise" replica of D u c h a m p ' s Large Glass was constructed under the direction of U l f L i n d e . In M a y of 1992, I 'witnessed' its u n v e i l i n g i n front of M r s . Teeny D u c h a m p w h o was f l o w n to S t o c k h o l m from N e w Y o r k to authorize it i n Duchamp's absence. This copy, made for travel, was then transported to B o n n , G e r m a n y where it was o n loan for five years at H u l t e n ' s K u n s t u n d A u s s t e l l u n g s h a l l e . 3 7 1 T o d a y M o d e r n a Museet has two Large Glasses i n its collection, ensuring that their D u c h a m p can both travel and stay at home. W h i l e She has been destroyed, 'He' has been kept alive for posterity by a culture industry still c l i n g i n g to its origins. The quesion is, who k n o w s why? 3 7 1 H u l t e n ' s first exhibition at this new museum was a large N i k i de Saint-Phalle retrospective. 2 1 2 F i g . 1 M a r c e l D u c h a m p , Three Standard Stoppages, 1913 M i x e d media assem- blage (Source: H o p p s , Walter, et al. M a r c e l D u c h a m p Ready-Mades, etc. (1913- 1964), M i l a n o , Galleria Schwarz, 1964). 213 F i g 2 Gouache renditions by R u d o l f Persson of G u n n a r A s p l u n d ' s Fairground at the 1930 Stockholm Exhibition, 1929 (Source: Rudberg, E v a Stockholmsutstallningen 1 9 3 0 : Stockholm: Arkitekturmuseet, 1999). 2 1 4 F i g . 3 Otto C a r l s u n d , Composition for the Einstein Observatory in Potsdam, 1924- 25 O i l o n Canvas 141x75 c m (Source: Lyberg, Louise A History of Swedish Art: 1880-1980 U d d e v a l l a : Bohuslaningens Boktryckeri A B , 1987). 215 Fig.4 W o r l d Sports E x h i b i t i o n , Stockholm, 1949 (Source: Konstrevy, N r . l , 1957). 216 F i g . 5 O l l e Bonnier, Theme, 1949 O i l o n Canvas 120x150 c m (Source: Granath, O l l e Another Light: Swedish Art Since 1945 M a l m o : Svenska Instituted 1975). 2 1 7 F i g . 7 C o v e r D e s i g n of A r f d'aujourd'hui b y O l l e Baertling (S jourd'hui Serie 4 N o . 7 Oct - N o v 1953). 219 F i g . 8 V i k k i n g Eggeling, Diagonal Symphony, [detail] 1921, f i l m - r o l l (Source: Art d'Aujourd'hui serie 4, no.7 Oct-Nov, 1953). !W * * * * 4.»':.i« ^g*f«*M* « | S | . k* t t m t i * lit 2 8* « S ' J « r ! > * - s « < . ^ k WHfcSI* f * J ^ »*••»*. * * * * * M » R * '< «•«'*# It&M *** * « * P*>.* H > H mi )<»J»i•.«».• M «s» >•>«•«,.•« ttt --.im-irsi-m • 4 I tfcStWSi**"*,. e . ^ S i H l f S J f>s»»i* i f M l «:s C«*?< «< ^«i**f> ttn&f* ««t» F i g . 9 M i c h e l Ragon's article o n S w e d i s h and French Stamps i n Cimaise (Source: Ragon, M i c h e l "Esthetique actuelle d u Timbre-Post Cimaise M a r c h 1955). 221 F i g . 10 Torsten Renqvist, Windswept Bush, O i l o n Canvas 31x51 c m (Source: Lyberg, Louise A History of Swedish Art: 1880-1980 U d d e v a l l a : Bohuslaningens Boktryckeri A B , 1987). " 222 F i g . 11 M a r t i n H o l m b e r g , Traffic Milieu: Human Near a Wide Stretching Boulevard with Heavy Traffic, 1952, Bronze Sculpture (Source: L a r s - E r i k Astrom "Manniskan i nuet" Konstrevy N r . 2 (1957). 223 Fig. 12 Sebastian Roberto Matta Echaurren, The Being Opens Itself, 203x295 Oil on Canvas (Source: Granath, Olle and Nieckels, Monica eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: Moderna Museets Press, 1983). 2 2 4 F i g . 13 Jean Fautrier, Otage, 1944 O i l and M i x e d M e d i a on Canvas (Source: Jean Fautrier: Gemalde, Skulpturen und Handzeichnungen, Cologne: Josef-Haubrich- Kunsthalle, 1980). 225 F i g . 14 Pontus Hulten's balancing act (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 226 F i g . 15 Le Mouvement, Galerie Denise Rene (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1972). 227 Fig. 16 Bruno M u n a r i , Useless Machine, 1951 M i x e d M e d i a (Source: Tanchis, A l d o Bruno Munari: Design as Art Massachusetts: M I T Press, 1987). 228 F i g . 17 Jean Tinguely, Meta-Malevich, 1955 (Source: Hulten, Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: Moderna Museet, 1972). 229 Fig. 18 K a s m i r M a l e v i c h , Suprematist Composition, (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1972). 230 F i g . 1 9 H e n r i M i c h a u x Bataille, 1952 (Source: Agnes A n g l i v i e l de L a Beaumelle and Alfred Pacquement, eds. Henri Michaux, N e w York: The Solomon, R. Guggenheim Foundation, 1978). 231 F i g . 20 Jean Tinguely, Meta-matic Drawing Machine, 1955 (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1972). 232 F i g . 21 Pontus H u l t e n and Hans Nordenstrom, Scenes from En Dag i Staden, 1955- 58, Figures at top-right and bottom-left are P.O. U l t v e d t and J. Tinguely. (Source: Granath, Olle and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: Moderna Museets Press, 1983). 233 F i g . 2 2 Per-Olof Utlvedt, Geometric M o b i l e Ballet Decor, Spiralen, 1954 (Source: Springfeldt, Bjorn P.O. Ultvedt: Tvivel och overmod: Arbetenfrdn 1945 till 1988 M a l m o : M a l m o K o n s t h a l l , 1988). 2 3 4 F i g . 23 Per-Olof Ultvedt, Nam Ogat, Stills from film (Source: Springfeldt, Bjorn P.O. Ultvedt: Tvivel och overmod: Arbeten fran 1945 till 1988 M a l m o : M a l m o K o n s t h a l l , 1988). 235 F i g . 24 The Exercise House, interior of M o d e r n a Museet p r i o r to 1956 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 236 F i g . 25 M o d e r n a Museet, front facade (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 237 F i g . 26 Sebastian Matta at M o d e r n a Museet (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 238 F i g . 27 John Cage performing at M o d e r n a Museet, 1960 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 239 F i g . 28 Jean Tinguely, Homage a New York, 1960 M i x e d Assemblage (S Konstrevy Nr. 3 , 1 9 6 6 ) . 2 4 0 F i g . 29 Nouveau Realiste Manifesto (Livingstone, M a r c o , Pop Art: an International Perspective N e w York: R i z z o l i , 1991). 241 F i g . 30 Jacques de la Villegle Boulevard St Martin, 1959 Decollage (Source: H a p g o o d , Susan Neo-Dada: Redefining Art 1958-62 N e w York: The A m e r i c a n Federation of A r t s i n association w i t h Universe P u b l i s h i n g , 1994). 242 F i g . 31 D a n i e l Spoerri, The Trash Basket is Not Artnan's 1961 M f g j j ^ Assemblage (Source: H a p g o o d , Susan Neo-Dada: ^ W ^ ™ ^ ™ York: The A m e r i c a n Federation of A r t s i n association w i t h Universe P u b l i s h i n g , 1994). 243 Fig. 32 A r m a n , Large Bourgois Trash, I960, M i x e d M e d i a Assemblage (Source: H a p g o o d , Susan Neo-Dada: Redefining Art 1958-62 N e w York: The A m e r i c a n Federation of A r t s i n association w i t h Universe P u b l i s h i n g , 1994). 244 Fig. 33 Invitation C a r d / C a n for A r m a n ' s exhibition Full-Up at Iris Clert Galerie (Source: H a p g o o d , Susan Neo-Dada: Redefining Art 1958-62 N e w York: The American Federation of A r t s i n association w i t h Universe P u b l i s h i n g , 1994). 245 F i g . 34 Yves K l e i n w a l k i n g i n Le Vide at Iris Clert Galerie (Source: H a p g o o d , Susan Neo-Dada: Redefining Art 1958-62 N e w York: The A m e r i c a n Federation of Arts i n association w i t h Universe P u b l i s h i n g , 1994). 246 F i g . 35 Jean Tinguely t h r o w i n g his manifesto Fiir Statik out an airplane w i n d o w (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1972). 247 F i g . 36 N i k i de Saint-Phalle shooting/creating one of her paintings (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 248 F i g . 37 N i k i de Saint-Phalle Tir M i x e d M e d i a Assemblage P a i n t i n g (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 249 F i g . 38 Bewogen Beweging at the Stedelijk M u s e u m , A m s t e r d a m , 1961 (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 250 F i g 39 Rorelse i konsten at M o d e r n a Museet, 1961 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 251 F i g . 40 U l f L i n d e and M a r c e l D u c h a m p putting the finishing touches to The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even, 1961 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 252 F i g . 41 Oscar Reutersvard, U l f L i n d e , C a r l o Derkert, Pontus H u l t e n and Marcel D u c h a m p (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 253 F i g . 42 Robert Rauschenberg shooting one of N i k i de Saint-Phalle's Tir paint- ings i n Stockholm, 1961 (Source: H a p g o o d , Susan Neo-Dada: Redefining Art 1958-62 N e w York: The A m e r i c a n Federation of A r t s i n association w i t h Universe P u b l i s h i n g , 1994). 254 Fig. 43 Alexander Calder's giant mobile outside the entrance of M o d e r n a Museet (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 255 F i g . 44 Robert M i i l l e r , The Bicyclist's Widow M i x e d M e d i a Assemblage (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 256 F i g . 45 H a r r y Shunk Yves K l e i n , The Painter of Space Throws Himself into the Void, 1960 photomontage (Source: Den innre och yttre rymden: en utstallning rorande en universiell konst Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1965). 257 F i g . 46 M u s e u m goers l o o k i n g baffled at the opening of 4 Amerikanare at M o d e r n a Museet, 1962 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 258 F i g . 47 Robert Rauschenberg, Monogram, 1955-58 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 259 F i g 48 Robert Rauschenberg, Door, 1961 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 260 flit* *<*«> t'S** « O V » * <* Sportswriters called Floyd-lngo dull but . . . PICTURES REVEAL FIGHT AS A HISTORIC THRILLER F i g . 49 Ingemar Johansson and F l o y d Patterson (Source: "Pictures Reveal Fight as a Historic Thriller" Lf/e Magazine M a r c h 24,1961, p.148). 261 F i g . 50 Concert/Performance at the Theatre de l'Ambassade des Etats-Unis, Paris, 1962. (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Auss'tellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 262 F i g . 51 N i k i de Saint-Phalleand Jasper Johns at Saint-Phalle's opening at Galerie J., Paris, 1962 (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: Kunst- u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1 9 9 2 ) . 2 6 3 F i g . 52 Robert Rauschenberg, This is a Portrait of Iris Clert if I Say So, 1961 (Source: H a p g o o d , Susan Neo-Dada: Redefining Art 1958-62 N e w York: The A m e r i c a n Federation of A r t s i n association w i t h Universe P u b l i s h i n g , 1994). 2 6 4 F i g . 53 E d w a r d K i e n h o l z , The Psycho-Vendetta Case, 1960 M i x e d M e d i a 58.5x56.5x43 c m (Source: Thomas C r o w The Rise of the Sixties: American and European Art in the Era of Dissent N e w York: H a r r y N . A b r a m s , Inc., 1996). 265 Fig. 54 Jean Tinguely, Study for the End of the World , No.l, Performance/spectacle at the Louisiana M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t , 1962 (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1972). 266 F i g . 55 Jean Tinguely, Study for the End of the World, No. 2, i n the N e v a d a Dessert, 1962 (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1972). 267 F i g . 56 N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Jean Tinguely, and John Cage exchanging pleas- antries before Saint-Phalle's shooting performance, M a l i b u , C a l i f o r n i a , 1962 (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 268 F i g . 57 N i k i de Saint-Phalle and E d w a r d K i e n h o l z , M a l i b u , C a l i f o r n i a , 1962 (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 269 F i g . 58 N i k i d e S a i n t - P h a l l e , O.A.S., 1962, M i x e d M e d i a A s s e m b l a g e (Source: H u l t e n , P o n t u s Niki de Saint-Phalle B o n n : K u n s t - u n d - A u s s t e l l u n g s h a l l e d e r B u n d e s r e p u b l i k D e u t s c h l a n d , V e r l a g G e r d H a t j e , 1992). 270 Fig. 59 Niki de Saint-Phalle, Aute/ du chat tnort, 1962, Mixed Media Assemblage (Source: Hulten, Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: Kunst-und- Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag Gerd Harje, 1992). 271 F i g . 60 Participants i n The Construction of Boston (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 272 F i e 61 Saint-Phalle, Tinguely and assistant inside Saint-Phalle s ^ o t i n g gallery at Dylaby, Stedelijk, A m s t e r d a m , 1962 (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus N i k . de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepubhk Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 273 Fig. 62 N i k i de Saint-Phalle, King Kong, 1962, M i x e d M e d i a Assemblage (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 274 1 Fig. 64 Letter from Saint-Phalle and Tinguely to U l t v e d t (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1972). 276 Fig. 65 Per-Olof Ultvedt, Manhattan, 1962 (Source: Springfeldt, Bjorn P.O. Ultvedt: Tvivel och overmod: Arbetenfran 1945 till 1988 M a l m o : M a l m o Konsthall, 1988). 277 F i g . 66 Per-Olof Ultvedt, C a r o l y n B r o w n and Robert Rauschenberg i n Pelican, 1962 (Source: Springfeldt, Bjorn P.O. Ultvedt: Tvivel och overmod: Arbetenfrdn 1945 till 1988 M a l m o : M a l m o Konsthall, 1988). 278 Fig. 67 N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Pirodactyl de New York (New York Alp), 1962, M i x e d M e d i a Assemblage (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: Kunst-und- Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 279 . 68 N i k i de Saint-Phalle on the cover of Life Magazine (Source: gazine September 26,1949). 280 F i g . 69 The Museum of Our Wishes, 1963-64(Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 281 F i g . 70 American Pop Art: 106 Forms of Love and Despair, M o d e r n a Museet, 1964 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958- 83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 282 F i g . 71 Poster for American Pop Art: 106 Forms of Love and Despair, 1964 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 283 F i g . 72 Merce Cunningham's Dance C o m p a n y performing Sumtnerspace at M o d e r n a Museet, 1964. Decor b y Robert Rauschenberg (Source: Konstrevy, N r . 1, 1966). 284 Fig. 73 Rauschenberg performing i n The Elgin Tie at M o d e r n a Museet, 1964 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 285 F i g . 74 Demonstration against A m e r i c a n involvement i n V i e t n a m , Stockholm, 1965 (Source: Y n g v e M o l l e r Sverige och Vietnam: ett unikt kapitel i svensk utrike- spolitik Stockholm: Tidens Forlag, 1992). 286 F i g . 75 A m e r i c a n Helicopter L a n d i n g i n Vietnam, 1966 (Source: Y n g v e M o l l e r Sverige och Vietnam: ett unikt kapitel i svensk utrikespolitik Stockholm: Tidens Forlag, 1992). 287 uen oppna mmkn A R V . H T F R A N M U N C H E N -Ax -.v.v <̂ on. .* •« : ^ S » - V M f l J M ^ M ̂ * •Sy x*.; *W *» :<>\ ;* JMftftff vx**x- <)(V-*>v *w **M4#fe* i-x-» J * **•* JJI**^. frwwi—(t»i» •>» •»«•:•>>>' v> ^ygattMM "MWst: >>**»•»>; •*y« :w> • • I t . ^ v - W ! • A S3 , 'x$* v jjgĵ njA' J • x* * »X, «r« * * » . . . . . . *t ^ y c w*; >»«• m# *!*»!K*efcw <• A # --x-xx- x; • * » MIMM -ftk-x- . x - w » ~ «M -:>:*»»w< » y > . i \ ; ' ; < N *c*x * *•>*. jt «x* > »:'*• **.yv v . <*>' ^ — i * . : N ^ W A / N I M V . W - . - m N»? -v. *v >-.v Sir #:>»ot oc.o- : Jf, i * - *—>«t»<~ «M«a» : '•'Af <>v>*. *«•'* t V v 4* : -.v< -io*^* N>» * * * * * * * aw ! « R stoat 4s*> *n> M* >• »̂ĉ # •_*••>•• -\; ±.> »;*•»<•;; :> if* 4% >* ' * : *<•' "W> ^>.* ; ••**••( «4<4VK> < V < :s.jt-. • . . s s V w w ^ v w . v . : « * - . - v - ^ w.s-v. >• > | J » V . V \ - tMfdAto >:<. "̂<*> H # N K f l u * v . *v- vi*- *i »> • v(- Xi« vsmtv* x* xf>: w *x-:\ x. * * * .'• .*»; .y.f . . run, nfc am >X^« * * > > Jfe* F i g . 76 Detail from U l f Linde's first article i n Dagens Nyheter against the new 'Open A r t . ' L i n d e is pictures on the left, Schonberg and K a n d i n s k y i n the middle, and Cage o n the far right (Source: L i n d e , U l f "Den O p p n a konsten: Arvet fran M u n c h e n " Dagens Nyheter (March 26,1965), p.4). 288 F i g . 77 Abstract drawings by Jean Tinguely [top] and Yves M i c h a u x [bottom] used to illustrated U l f L i n d e ' s article o n " O p e n A r t " (Source: L i n d e , U l f Fyra artiklar Stockholm: BLM, 1965). 289 F i g . 78 James Rosenquist, F-lll, 1965 28 x 2.5 m., o i l o n canvas and sheet metal (Source: Madoff, Steven, H . Pop Art: A Critical History Berkley: California Press, 1997). 290 F i g . 79 Guernica at M o d e r n a Museet, 1956 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 291 F i g . 80 The Inner and Outer Space: an Exhibition Devoted to Universal Art, 1965 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 292 F i g . 81 N i k i de Saint-Phalle Nana Power seriegraph, 1970 (Source: Images S.A. editeurs//45700 L o m b r e u i l , France, 1995). 293 F i g . 82 N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Clarice, 1965, (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 294 F i g . 83 Jean Tinguely at w o r k on Eureka 1964 (Source: Konstrevy, Nr.3,1966). 295 F i g . 84 Jean Tinguely, Dissecting Machine 1965 (Source: V i o l a n d - H o b i , H e i d i , E. Jean Tinguely: Life and Work M u n i c h : Prstel, 1995). 296 Fig. 85 Per-Olof Ultvedt, Hommage a Christopher Polhelm , 1965 (Source: Springfeldt, Bjorn P.O. Ultvedt: Tvivel och dvermod: Arbetenfran 1945 till 1988 M a l m o : M a l m o K o n s t h a l l , 1988). 297 F i g . 86 Robert Rauschenberg and two of the five parts that make u p Oracle, 1963-66. Oracle was constructed i n collaboration w i t h B i l l y K l i i v e r and B e l l Laboratories [E.A.T.: Experiments i n A r t and Technology], 1963-66 (Source: Konstrevy, Nr.2,1966). 298 F i g . 87 C o v e r of M a r s h a l l M c L u h a n ' s The Mechanical Bride: Folklore of Industrial Man N e w York: Vanguard Press, 1951. 299 F i g . 88 N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Jean Tinguely, Per-Olof U l t v e d t , lion-en katedral, 1966 M i x e d M e d i a Assemblage (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 300 F i g . 89 Jean Tinguely, Machine for the Production of Broken Glass, 1966 M i x e d M e d i a Assemblage (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: Kunst- u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 301 Fig. 90 Utlvedt w o r k i n g inside of Hon-en katedral (Source: Springfeldt, Bjorn P.O. Ultvedt: Tvivel och overmod: Arbetenfrdn 1945 till 1988 M a l m o : M a l m o Konsthall, 1988) 302 F i g . 91 Three Spreads from M a r s h a l l M c L u h a n and Q u e n t i n Fiore The Medium is the Massage: An Inventory of Effects N e w York: Bantam Books, 303 F i g . 92 U l f Linde's Fake Paintings and art gallery inside Hon's leg (Source: Barbro Sylvan, Pontus H u l t e n and John M e l i n eds. Hon-en katedral/historia Stockholm: N a t i o n a l m u s e u m , 1967). 304 Fig. 93 E x h i b i t i o n catalogue/newspaper for Hon - en katedral Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1966. 305 Fig. 94 Duchamp's Plan and Elevation for The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even, 1913 (Konstrevy, N r . l , 1963). 306 F i g . 95 Destruction of Hon-en katedral, 1966 (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1972). 307 F i g . 96 Jean Tinguely, Radio Stockholm 1966 M i x e d M e d i a Assemblage (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1972). 308 Fig. 97 Marcel D u c h a m p Given: 1. The Waterfall, 2. The Illuminating Gas, 1948- 49, Painted Leather o n plaster relief 50x31 c m Collection of the M o d e r n a Museet, Stockholm (Source: M i n k , Janis Marcel Duchamp: Art as Anti-Art Collogne: Taschen, 1995). 309 Fig. 98 M a r c e l D u c h a m p The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even [recon- structed copy by U l f L i n d e , 1961 (Source: Granath, O l l e and Nieckels, M o n i c a eds.. Moderna Museet 1958-83. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museets Press, 1983). 310 F i g . 99 M a r t i a l Raysse Elk, 1962 (Source: Livingstone, M a r c o , P o p A r t : an International Perspective N e w York: R i z z o l i , 1991). 311 F i g . 100 N i k i de Saint-Phalle, Jean Tinguely and Per-Olof U l t v e d t Hon - en kate- dral, 1966, (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 312 F i g . 101 H u l t e n removing Hon's head, 1966 (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Jean Tinguely: Meta. Stockholm: M o d e r n a Museet, 1972). 313 F i g . 102 M a r c e l D u c h a m p , Why Not Sneeze, 1921 (Hopps, Walter, et al. Marcel Duchamp Ready-Mades, etc. (1913-1964), M i l a n o , Galleria Schwarz, 1964). 314 F i g . 103 N i k i de Saint-Phalle and Jean Tinguely, Le Paradise fantastique o n the roof-top of the French P a v i l l i o n at Expo '67 i n Montreal, C a n a d a , M i x e d M e d i a Assemblage, Stockholm (Source: H u l t e n , Pontus Niki de Saint-Phalle Bonn: K u n s t - u n d - Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Verlag G e r d Hatje, 1992). 315 BIBLIOGRAPHY A b e e l , E r i c a "Daedalus at the R o l l e r d r o m e " Saturday Review ( N e w Y o r k ) V o l . 48 No.35 ( A u g . 28, 1965), p.53. A h l s e n , E r i k and A h l s e n , Tore " F a r g over stan — en enkat" Konstrevy nr.2 (1958), pp.77-81. A m e l i n e , Jean-Paul Les Nouveaux Realisme Paris: Centre Georges P o m p i d o u , 1992. 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