UNIT 1 Dissertation
UTOPIA OR DYSTOPIA?
L O N D O N By Stephen Myers s.myers1@arts.ac.uk
MA Drawing (Part time)
“London- The great departure lounge!”
Alfie Vrantsis “By seeing London, I have seen as much of life as the world can show”.
Samuel Johnson “On thinking about Hell, I gather My brother Shelley found it was a place Much like the city of London.” Bertolt Brecht (1898 - 1956) The aim of the project is to document, satirize and make a social commentary on 21st century London. The people , its places, its culture, its hopes, its fears, its utopian dreams and its dystopian reality. London and its current affairs will be the subject and narrative of the project. The artists Gustave Dore and William Hogarth are two of the artists who will be informing the project. Both of them drew the subject as documentation and as social commentary. London is the capital city of England and the United Kingdom. The largest urban area in the European Union. Consisting of the City, West End, Westminster and Greater London, its official population by July 2010 was 7,825,200. (Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 3 April 2012). This accounts for one eighth of the UK total. Alongside New York and Tokyo it is one of the world’s leading financial centres. It has the third most international visitors in the world and London Heathrow is one of the world’s busiest airports. The city has 43 Universities, which is probably the highest concentration globally. There are over 300 languages spoken besides English and it is home to many religions including the big 3 (Judaism, Christianity, Islam).
On 30th Nov 2011, the MA drawing group visited the London archaeological research centre (LARCC). A guided tour of the premises revealed how all the millions of artefacts are stored, catalogued and drawn. This has been part of the inspiration to take London as the subject of the research. One of the features that inspired the subject is the multiplicity of layers of life enshrined in the city as one culture built over the past. The history of London is a long one; the city dates back to the Bronze Age and became a major capital under the Romans. It is in the modern age that past, present and future are deemed relevant. As stated, in previous ages, each culture sort to build over the previous, in order to obliterate the past to forge a new aesthetic and culture. My interests are in these historical layers as well as the present and future. In the 1860s Gustave Dore was commissioned by Grant & Co the publishers to embark on a project to draw London. This entailed him spending 3 months of the year living in London and he was paid the sum of £10,000 p.a .The resulting book “London; a pilgrimage” was published in 1872 and contained 180 engravings of the subject. A commercial blockbuster, selling widely here in the UK but and also abroad, it had many critics. What irked the critics most was its depiction of the grim poverty that existed there. It is of interest that the illustrations would have coincided with the career of Charles Dickens whose own work concentrated on the injustices and cruel living standards of the disenfranchised. Dore’s greatest critic was John Ruskin who went to his grave spitting with critical venom: “Well suppose I was to tell you, in the strongest terms I could use, that Gustave Dore’s art was bad-bad, not in weakness-not in failure-but bad with dreadful power-the power of the furies and the Harpies mingled” (The Dore controversy: Dore, Ruskin, and Victorian taste). Ruskin’s main bone of contention revolved around the fact that the work was part reality and part invention. It is interesting to note that Dore was referred to as the “preacher painter”. The fact that he referred to his stay in London as “pilgrimage” is of interest.
An illustration of Gustave Dore. A 21st century inhabitant of the city of London.
An illustration of Gustave Dore, 21st century inhabitants of the city of London and a war widow in the 1860s. The other artist who will inform the research is William Hogarth(10th November 169726th October 1784).The grandfather of the satirical illustration. Knowledge of his work is so widespread that satirical illustrations in this style are referred to as “Hogarthian”. It is of interest that one of his early works, “An Emblematical Print on the South Sea Scheme”(c.1721) is a commentary on the disastrous stock market crash of 1720 known as the “South Sea Bubble” during which many in England lost their fortunes. A subject which resonates with present financial woes. In fact the retrospective in 2006 of Hogarth’s work at the Tate Britain is part of the inspiration of the research. Having seen the exhibition, it was striking how its subject matters mirror contemporary issues. For example; “A Harlots progress”(1732)-a tale of a simple girl fallen into prostitution. In 2012 the headlines of the Daily Mail read- “How a public schoolgirl, 14, fell into the clutches of predatory gangs who forced her to become a sex slave” The Daily Mail Monday, April 9th 2012. James Tozer. ”Marriage a la mode”(1743)-an ill fated warning of a marriage of convenience In 2012 the headlines of the Daily Mail read- (Two vicars conducted hundreds of sham marriages to help illegal immigrants stay in Britain’) The Daily Mail Monday, Apr 9th 2012 Anthony Bond “Beer St and Gin Lane.” (1751) The warning of the consequences of alcoholism. In 2012 the headlines of the Guardian read; “David Cameron to back minimum alcohol price.”-The Guardian 15th February 2012 Patrick Wintour and Helene Mulholland. “Industry and Idleness” (1747). A moral tale depicting the virtues of hard work and the consequences of idleness.
This is also mirrored in the present with headlines on the growing issues of the “work shy”.
“Marriage a la mode” and the “Sham marriage” article in the telegraph. The research will be observational (self reflective) and will endeavour not to subside into vain moralising. It is also important to state that Dore did not make any socio-political comments regarding London, it was just that his critics complained that the subject matter focussed on the abject poverty that many found themselves in around 1870. Hogarth however, had a more moralistic outlook. “Utopia-an ideal commonwealth whose inhabitants exist under perfect conditions” Sir T More 1516 . London is a destination for many who have a utopian dream. Many however experience a dystopian reality. For some, “sanctuary” can become “battlefield”. The project will be dealing with ideas of these two states visually impacting into the reality and experience of many in London. Both Dore and Hogarth depicted grim realities and idealised states. The paradox of these two concepts will also be of interest.
The idea of utopia has as many meanings as users, it is a familiar word which has been explored by many regimes for countless centuries. “Utopias are about how people should live, about human nature, and the purpose and meaning of life. And thus they deal with perennial problems: happiness, good and evil, authority the state, religion, work, sex, equality, liberty.”-“Utopia” by Ian Todd ,Michael Wheeler Orbis publishing Ltd.1978 Many of these subjects will feature in the project of drawing and depiction. In the “Drawing Out” conference (UAL/RMIT collaboration 2012) there was much exploration of the concept of visual literacy and Dr Irene Barberis talked of “all writing is drawing”. The project seeks to draw the contemporary saga of life as it unfolds. “Earthly Utopias are concerned with the happiness of the individuals in society, or with their ideal organization and the two concerns don’t always fit together very well. They are frequently associated with periods of great social upheaval and so are concerned with the security of the body politic-the state rather than individual happiness. Thus Utopia curiously is rarely a very pleasant place to live.” (“Utopia” page 7) In his (2011) manifesto, David Cameron (British Prime Minister 2011) confronts the idea of a “broken Britain” and puts forward a policy of “Big Society” wherein he seeks to put right all that ails society. As if to cue, the riots of 2011 ensued. The aftermath of this event has been one of soul searching and many statistics have been drawn up concerning the causes and undercurrents of all that happened. The following quote from an urban planning lecturer, Alex Singleton, is appropriate to the discourse of this project. “Rioting is deplorable. However, if events such as this are to be mitigated in the future, the prevailing conditions and constraints affecting people living in areas must form part of the discussion. A "broken society" happens somewhere, and geography matters.” Liverpool University urban planning lecturer Alex Singleton
A dystopia is the idea of a society in a repressive and controlled state, often under the guise of being utopian. A dystopian reality is one where the subject has consciously, and in many cases, unconsciously crossed over from a utopian dream into a place where nothing is as it once seemed. The worst violent crime, during the riots, was in London and the West Midlands where collectively four men were murdered.
Sacred or profane? It is interesting to note that Biblical literature starts with a story of Utopia/Dystopia and ends with both. The research will examine such topics as morality/ethics/faith/values etc and the research will touch on the role that these values once played in the massive output of past European art. Both Dore and Hogarth’s works were charged with a moral and ethical perspective. These subjects are resurfacing in the media etc and becoming very relevant to post modern Britain. With the diverse multi cultural nature of the country they take on a new perspective and urgency.
It is interesting to note that these elements were regarded by the Impressionists as being “heavy”. The research will look at how these values could once again play a part in contemporary drawings. Narrative for the project may be taken from contemporary debates such as: The Leveson enquiry Baroness Warsi’s comments on Europe and faith. The London riots and their aftermath. Future ongoing events and debates in the next year will inform the work
“…transcendence is intrinsic to all material reality, and therefore of all human artifact” Council of Niceae II 787AD…….also intrinsic to human events!!
In 1983 on taking up a position as designer to Enrico Coveri (Florence, Italy) I was asked: “What will the future be about?” Unable to answer, my future employer answered his own question. “It will be about sex, sex, sex!!” This prophetic statement has been realized. The moral landscape however is now radically changing and the question “What will the future be about?” resurfaces. Skill or ineptitude? In her lecture “The exercise of skill-a punishable offence?” Deanna Petherbridge makes some controversial statements about the way in which the subject of drawing is approached, from the old Academy methodologies to the present. One of the statements she made was that “ineptitude affects what you decide to draw and how you draw it”. In the light of this it is hoped that the pursuit of new skills will be explored. My work hopes to examine the methodology of past artists and re-discover past technical resources, whatever they may be, to effectively assist in attaining a goal of personal artistic expression and competency. The process of drawing studies from past Masters work will also be a resource. One of the ways this will be put into effect is through the drawing labs on the MA drawing program. These drawing labs are formulated collaboratively between Michael Pavelka, Robert Kaupelis from the book “Experimental Drawing” and the Guardian web pages. The program looks at drawing topics such as;” gesture and movement”, ”composition” etc. The other avenue of attaining new skills has been the enrolment onto a glass engraving course run by Freddie Quartley, a glass engraver, living and working in Oxford. She trained originally as a calligrapher and typographer before starting a career in publishing, but in 1980 she began studying glass engraving in London with Eli Eliades. Three years later she was nominated and elected an Associate Fellow of the Guild of Glass Engravers.
It is hoped that other short skill courses will be undertaken in some of the other techniques such as: engraving, chiaroscuro drawing, metal point, caricature and etching, to name a few. The project will contain still, life, landscape and figurative works. A variety of media will be utilized including photography and video footage.
Glass engraving by Stephen Myers The medium of glass has been relevant to the project in many ways. Firstly, as a popular material in the construction of modern London. Perhaps in future excavation work, what will be of interest is the use of this material. The present era may well have the description of the “Glass age” attached to it? Glass is often transparent. The word “transparency” has become a popular one, used in many, contemporary socio political debates. Glass often projects peripheral imagery, the ephemeral and the multiplicity of imagery that permeates the city, often overlooked or fleeting, but everywhere present. Reflections, distortions, shadows, haze, etc. Finally another reason for using glass is the opportunity to layer imagery. This will be discussed in the next subject. (Vectorisation). Digital or Manual? In an interview on BBC 3 on the Sunday Feature “New ways of seeing” David Hockney talks about his Ipad drawings. He also mentions the use of cameras positioned in diverse positions to get a multi view of a landscape. In the same way the project will also synthesize both digital and manual techniques and ideas. Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator are programs that utilize a process of vectorisation to build up imagery. The project will cross-fertilize some of these processes and examine how one could influence the other. Epic or minimal? Again in his interview Hockney speaks of how the Western “framed” view has conquered the world and in a visit to the NY Met, he had an opportunity to look at Chinese scroll
drawing. He spoke of “the idea of Chinese landscapes where you walk through them.” Part of the intention of the project will be to produce the “epic” drawing. Hans Memling’s depiction of the Passion of Christ is an example of a long narrative, depicted in one frame. Saint or sinner? Based on the experiences of being part of a large faith based, multi racial community in south east London, the project will develop ideas from its culture and discipline. There will also be some self reflective view points to the topics. In his interview, Hockney states; “Teaching people to draw is teaching people to LOOK” The discipline of the “Way” is also a revelatory experience. In a sense, it offers other perspectives on the realities and experiences of our lives. The work of the artist and community founder Francisco Eduardo Arguello (Kiko) will be part of the research. Along with Carmen Hernandez the Neocatechumenal way was founded in the slums of Madrid in the 1960s.
He studied fine arts at the Royal Academy of San Fernando in Madrid and in 1959 was awarded a Special National Prize for Painting. However, after having lived a decadent and existential life he rebelled. From an artistic and intellectual life centred on many of Jean Paul Sartre’s philosophies he founded the Neocatechumenal way. He states “God permitted me to experience the absurd until he had mercy." His endeavours are to bring communities together and to help a fractured Europe to rediscover its heritage. He states “..of great importance, especially in the de-structured society in which man today lives ,is the possibility of living an ongoing education in faith in small communities, thus making a reconnection with the life of the church in the first centuries”. “Statute” by Arguello F, Hernandez C (2003) The “Way” is a process of stages in which the individual has to pass many “rites of passage”. Much like the rites of a religious order. It is during this process that literary texts are read. Biblical texts are analyzed along with such works as Xavier Leon-Dufour’s “Dictionary of Biblical Theology” and the modern catechism.
As an example, the theme of Cain and Abel was studied. It is of interest that the Old Testament deals with many sagas involving older and younger brothers. (Ishmael & Isaac, Jacob & Esau) St Paul talks a lot about the old man and the new man. “You have stripped off your old behaviour and you have put on the new man which will progress towards true knowledge the more it is renewed..” (Jerusalem Bible Col 3 v 9) The story of Cain and Abel is a story about self. The dystopic self, annihilating the utopic self. The un-spiritual man, killing the spiritual one. This self revelation has inspired me to draw a set of portraits of infamous London sagas. The story of Baby P, Damilola Taylor, Stephen Lawrence and Victoria Climbie .I have fused together both victim and murderer.
Another text that has inspired drawing is from the the psalms; “sharpening their tongues like swords ,shooting bitter words like arrows”(Jerusalem Bible Psalm 64)
On a recent visit to the Hayward gallery I was interested in a work by David Shrigley entitled “Gravestone” 2008
My own interpretation of the work is that, in front of the reality of our departure, we occupy ourselves with the trivia of life. The MA project hopes to deal with the idea that faced with the realities of our departure; the “departure lounge” is a place full of interest and enlightenment, a place where we experience utopia and dystopia. END †
Bibliography:
Arguello F, Hernandez C (2003).”Statute” page 9 The Neocatechumenal Way published by Chirico Editore, Napoli, Italy Burn A E, The council of Nicaea (1925):G Forell, Understanding the Nicene Creed(1965),EJ Martin, A History of the Iconoclastic Controversy (1930) Herendeen, W.H. The Dore controversy: Dore, Ruskin, and Victorian taste Source: Victorian Studies; Spring82, Vol. 25 Issue 3, p304, 24p Page 325
Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 3 April 2012 July 2010 Population estimates for UK, England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Jerusalem Bible (popular edition) published by Darton,Longman & Todd “Utopia” by Ian Todd ,Michael Wheeler, Orbis publishing Ltd.1978 Articles: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2091659/Two-vicars-conducted-hundredssham-marriages-help-illegal-immigrants-stay-Britain.html By ANTHONY BOND UPDATED: 17:25, 25 January 2012 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1299844/How-schoolgirl-fell-clutches-gangsforced-sex-slave.html By JAMES TOZER UPDATED: 07:53, 4 August 2010 http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/mar/23/coalition-minimum-alcohol-price-40p By PATRICK WINTOUR and JAMES BALL UPDATED: Friday 23 March 2012 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/immigration/9177962/300-people-in-shamweddings-scandal-but-just-two-deported.html By David Barrett, Home Affairs Correspondent 7:40am BST 01 Apr 2012 http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/aug/18/england-rioters-young-poor-unemployed By MATHEW TAYLOR,SIMON ROGERS and PAUL LEWIS UPDATED: Thursday 18 August 2011 21.28 BST guardian.co.uk
Lectures:
“The exercise of skill-a punishable offence?” Deanna Petherbridge lecture UAL Wimbledon College of Art 18th November 2011 “Drawing Out” conference (UAL/RMIT collaboration 2012) “New ways of seeing” David Hockney BBC 3 on the “Sunday Feature”
By Stephen Myers s.myers1@arts.ac.uk MA Drawing (Part time)