Adorno and Art: Aesthetic Theory Contra Critical Theory

217 Pages·2014·1 MB·English

by  James Hellings

Adorno and Art
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Adorno and Art
Aesthetic Theory Contra Critical Theory
James Hellings
School of Art, BIAD, Birmingham City University, UK
© James Hellings 2014
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First published 2014 by
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For Andi, Ben and Laura, Betty, Elsie, and in memory of Rod
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Contents
Acknowledgements viii
List of Abbreviations xi
Anti-Introduction: Paint It Black 1
Part I Messages in a Bottle: Aesthetic Theory Contra
Critical Theory 21
1 Critical Messages in a Bottle and Restoration 23
2 Excursus I – The Prevalence of a View: Being
Uncompromisingly Critical at the Grand Hotel Abyss 31
3 Excursus II – The Prevalence of a View: ‘Don’t Participate:’
The Politics of Social Praxis 38
4 Aesthetic Messages in a Bottle and Progress 55
5 Messages in a Bottle as the Work of Art 71
Part II Art Itself Thinks: The Politics of Aesthetic
(Mis-)Education 79
6 The Politics of Artistic Practice: ‘What artist isn’t
socially engaged?’ 83
7 The Politics of Spectatorship: Shocking Spectators 102
8 The Politics of Aesthetic (Mis-)Education 111
9 Contemporary Art Itself Thinking: Making the
Invisible Visible? 129
Anti-Conclusion: The Russian Ending 144
Notes 153
Index 195

vii
Acknowledgements
I dedicate this book to teachers, particularly at a time when education is
under daily threat by philistines bent on politicking.
To Mrs Howells for encouraging me to pursue p ost-studio practice (when
all I really wanted was to skip sitting my A-level art exam in class, an
academic exercise which I knew to be phony). To Mr Beresford for the
example of his curiosity and for his commitment to interdisciplinarity
(and for inviting me to a theatre party, which seemed very sophisticated,
staff and students mixing as equals – who’d have thought it). To Sam
and Brian for pursuing an open approach to making and thinking about
art and life (and for painting a picture of successful class-war waged, in
all perplexity, on a punt in Cambridge). To Vera Dieterich for her elegant
resistance to antagonistic debate (German cake, baked in East London
and imported into group crits in South Yorkshire – to pacify dissenters –
seemed very chic), and for introducing me to Roland Barthes. To Steve
Dutton for challenging everything about art (I well recall conservatively
lamenting the lack of A rt (i.e., life drawing) during my BA (Hons) Fine
Art first year assessment when Steve said, ‘It was all going so well until
then’), and for introducing me to Jacques Derrida. To Sharon Kivland for
channelling the mystery of Jacques Lacan into decrepit huts in Sheffield,
for introducing me to Sigmund Freud, desire a nd knowledge, and for her
continued support (when I suggested that she might have had an invis-
ible hand in a project, her response ‘it is all your own work’ still seems
wonderfully generous). To Antony Griffiths for scaring me to death
(with British Museum catalogues Jorge-Luis Borges would have recoiled
from describing), and for his example of prioritising objects (the value of
keepers and their collections). To Frances Carey for connecting a profound
knowledge of art history with a critical exactitude, which escapes many
(no, most) art professionals (and for being so kind and gracious when
my father passed). To Mark McDonald for the example of his dedica-
tion and hard work (for scandal, provocation, but mostly for making me
laugh a lot when I shouldn’t). To Edgar Schmitz for being magnanimous
about my essay on Kant’s s ensus communis (and for teaching me an enor-
mous amount about teaching). To Norman Bryson for warm-heartedly
warning me against the perils of ‘internalising the authority’ of philos-
ophy and philosophers (in this instance Derrida, Bataille, and Hegel),
viii
Acknowledgements ix
and for his touching conversations about loss and mourning. To Howard
Caygill for introducing me to Kant, Hegel, Nietzsche, et al. but above all
to Gillian Rose (his C ontemporary Thought class was an event). To Irit
Rogoff for her inspirational commitment to thinking art both poetically
and politically (and for conversations about the absurd twists and turns
of intimacy). To Peter Hallward for his example (crystal clear exegesis),
and for his commitment (and for his generosity when examining my
PhD). To Alexander García Düttmann for tirelessly pursuing uncompro-
misingly critical thinking, for his provocation and his support, and for
our ongoing conversation (all of which is made more remarkable by the
fact that he supervised my PhD). To Simon O’Sullivan for his creative
and engaging teaching, which did exactly what Deleuze said of Sartre’s
teaching – ‘fresh air’ in the academy – and for his support, mentoring
and friendship. To all of my colleagues at the Birmingham School of Art:
Chris O’Neil, John Butler, John Wigley, Johnny Golding, Henry Rogers,
Jenny Wright, David Cheeseman, Yvonne Hindle, Mona Casey, Françoise
Dupré, Janet Hodgson, Lois Wallace, Sue May, Andrew Kulman, Beth
Derbyshire and, particularly, Janice and Ervin in the library for locating
articles and getting them to me. I would like to acknowledge my debt
of gratitude to all the members of the BIAD Research Funding Scrutiny
Committee who awarded me a 12-week sabbatical, without which the
book would not have been possible. I would especially like to thank
Ole Hagen, who attentively read early drafts of the Anti-introduction,
Part 2, and Anti-conclusion and whose critical comments were generous
and exacting. Thanks to Oliver Klimpel, Johannes Maier, Lucy Steeds,
Sam Clayton, Mark Jacobs, Charlotte Ginsborg, Nigel Grimmer, David
Hoskings, and Flora Lait – all of whose friendships and conversations
about Adorno and art have helped more than they know. I would espe-
cially like to thank Kevin Biderman who has been a touchstone for much
of my thinking about Adorno and art, for reading early (and late) drafts,
and for our continued camaraderie.
Previous versions of parts of this book have appeared in Telos (2012),
The Magic City: Liverpool Biennial (2012), and Transmission Annual:
Provocation (2011). I would like to thank Russell Berman, Mary Piccone
and Telos Press, Gavin Wade and Eastside Projects, and Sharon Kivland
and Artwords Press for these opportunities. Parts of this book have also
drawn on various conference papers, lectures and seminars I have given
at the A ssociation of Art Historians Annual Conference (2012), and S chool of
Art MA Seminar (2012–2013).
I would like to thank Tacita Dean for her kind generosity in giving
me permission to use one of her hauntingly beautiful images for the