photo by melissa of New OrleansToday I have considered the notion of the destruction of artworks. Many of the artists with whom I have become intimate have several, if not a great many, paintings or sculptures which they themselves chose to destroy. Happily, some remnants survive in sketch form or are described by contemporary critics but this is not always the case. Common reasons cited for committing such acts include a complete stylistic shift, scathing reviews in the press, or random bouts of fury. This is a mentality I cannot grasp. Why would someone want to obliterate their past? Perhaps I am too sentimental; perhaps they were without hope of better days to come in which they could look back and see their lives' progression.
Over a century and a half later these works have been forgotten while other pieces -pastels, maquettes, sketches - live on in gilded frames on hallowed walls. Would my dear artists consider this a success? Would they regret their past destruction seeing now how it could have added to our modern understanding? Would they embrace modern, temporary art which is designed to eventually disappear?
I hadn't thought of it from that point... Would the passage of time make even my works invaluable???
ReplyDeleteJules
Well, yours surely already are ;)
ReplyDeleteIt is bizarre to think that in 50 or 100 years' time one's childhood crayola markings or daydreams in a diary could be highly sought-after commodities as they offer insight into the genius that is you.
a: "You know that scholar, that brilliant one who wrote all those books back in the early 2000s, Melissa Berry?"
b: "Of course, who doesn't?"
a: "Well, did you know she began her writing career when she was 5 writing child-like prose about her love, Mike, who she particularly admired for his monkey impressions in kindergarten."
b: "Fascinating!! Do you think it was her early attraction to monkeys that led her to focus on a time period when a slang term for prostitution was, indeed, 'monkey?' Such genius and perception from such a young age...."
hee hee - i love it!!
ReplyDelete