Nihilism

What is the Nihilism in which we have seen the root of the Revolution of the modern age? The answer, at first thought, does not seem difficult; several obvious examples of it spring immediately to mind. There is Hitler’s fantastic program of destruction, the Bolshevik Revolution, the Dadaist attack on art; there is the background from which these movements sprang, most notably represented by several “possessed” individuals of the late nineteenth century–poets like Rimbaud and Baudelaire, revolutionaries like Bakunin and Nechayev, “prophets” like Nietzsche; there is, on a humbler level among our contemporaries, the vague unrest that leads some to flock to magicians like Hitler, and others to find escape in drugs or false religions, or to perpetrate those “senseless” crimes that become ever more characteristic of these times. But these represent no more than the spectacular surface of the problem of Nihilism. To account even for these, once one probes beneath the surface, is by no means an easy task; but the task we have set for ourselves in this chapter is broader: to understand the nature of the whole movement of which these phenomena are but extreme examples.

via NIHILISM by Eugene Rose.

Invisible exhibition @ Southbank Centre 2012

Invisible Art brings together works from the past half century that explore ideas related to the invisible and the hidden. The exhibition includes work by some of the most important artists of our time as well as younger artists who have expanded on their legacy.

From the amusing to the philosophical, there are works you can observe and others you can take part in, such as Jeppe Hein’s Invisible Labyrinth. From Yves Klein’s utopian plans for an ‘architecture of air’ to Robert Barry’s Energy Field (AM 130 KHz) from 1968 – which encourages a heightened awareness of the physical context of the gallery- this exhibition span diverse aesthetic practices and concerns.

Many of the works in Invisible seek to direct our attention towards the unwritten rules and conventions that shape our understanding of art. Other works invoke invisibility to underscore the limits of our perceptual capacities or to emphasize the role of our imagination in responding to works of art. Some use invisibility as a metaphor that relates to the suppression of information or the political disappearance and marginalization of social groups.

Artists in the exhibition include Art & Language, Robert Barry, Chris Burden, James Lee Byars, Maurizio Cattelan, Jay Chung, Song Dong, Tom Friedman, Carsten Höller, Tehching Hsieh, Bruno Jakob, Yves Klein, Lai Chih-Sheng, Glenn Ligon, Teresa Margolles, Gianni Motti, Roman Ondák, Yoko Ono and Andy Warhol.

via Invisible | Southbank Centre.

Website van Jacob Voorthuis

Jacob Voorthuis (1960) lectures in the philosophy of the built environment as well as architecture and the arts at the Technical University of Eindhoven. With a special interest in the relationship between the spatial practice of society and design, his current research involves an ontology of use, the attempt to put a new conception of use and the useful at the very centre of design thinking.He has lectured widely in Europe and the Americas and works as a critic and consultant at he concept stage of the design process.

via JCTV@home.

Solace (2011, kinetic light installation) « Nicky Assmann

Solace is a cinematic installation that explores the mental process and physical activity of seeing. At regular intervals a handcrafted apparatus creates a soap film as a spatial intervention. Through precise lighting the inner movement of the soap film is revealed, showing a turbulent choreography of iridescent color and fluid motion. As gravity slowly gets a hold of the membrane the viewer can be fascinated with the phenomenon, until inevitably the fragile film bursts.

via Solace (2011, kinetic light installation) « Nicky Assmann.