It’s amazing how so many of today’s avant guard, as well as traditional cultural and art establishments, and their powerful institutions with their nurtured ideological viewpoints and representative artists were totally caught out by the unfolding of the main events of the largest financial crash of our time.
It was as if both traditional and Post- Modern culture right across the globe (like the worlds major financial economists) were absolutely unaware of an emerging and quintessential reality, which would affect everyone’s life. It was as if they had all been culturally hypnotised as indeed they were.
Marcuse once spoke of ‘one dimensional man’, but there also arose the one dimensional contemporary ‘cultural courtier’ who was a total opportunist. It may all have been a big game during an historic period of cultural confusion.
Only by separating myself from the hypnotic hubbub of hierarchical cultural worlds and establishments, could I focus on emerging truths and authentic aesthetic presences, emerging around me. That has been difficult to do, whilst living beside semi- hypnotised and drugged- up worlds and of cultures suffering from private solipsism, narcissism and political and cultural amnesia. Also with the capitalist mass media these smoke and mirrors campaigns now function as huge enterprises that further contribute to cultural confusion, and work on a humongous and horrendous scale across the globe. People without real information or authentic culture easily become either lost estranged souls or the unseeing members of easily manipulated crowds. Sometimes becoming strangely passive and almost anonymous. The culture talks of ‘individuality’, and yet everywhere people become more held down as tiny screws in larger machines of institutions and other bodies.
How does the artist find a way out of this abyss or maze of hostile cultural and political impediments?
First step is to name in the magical counter world of art, those who might be responsible for the present, decadent shemozzle. For example those who took whole countries to war under false pretences with trumped up evidence. To some extent these people could be considered war criminals. Cultural satire grows out of a great love of truth and a hatred of folly, philistinism and a repugnance in the presence of hypocrisy and sheer bunkum.
We live in a world where the targets for satire are increasing and expanding exponentially by the hour.
