Destruction Rites: Ephemerality and Demolition in Postwar Visual Culture

274 Pages·2017·20.611 MB·English

by  Mona Hadler

i
Mona Hadler is a professor of Art History at Brooklyn College and the
Graduate Center of the City University of New York (CUNY). She has
written widely on the artist Lee Bontecou and on the art of 1950s
New York.
ii

“Hadler demonstrates how destruction, when ritualized in popular culture and fine
art, can become enormously productive aesthetically.”
David Joselit, Distinguished Professor,
City University of New York, Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center
‘‘The book … has a clear, powerful point to make, and does so economically,
engagingly and thoughtfully … The scholarship is impressive.’’
Jo Applin, Senior Lecturer in Modern
and Contemporary Art, University of York
‘‘Hadler treats objects of popular culture without condescension, giving them the
same thoughtful visual analysis, informed by a deep understanding of history, with
which she presents avant-garde art. And she provides a model for interpreting
iconoclasm that will be relevant both to art historians in her own field and far
beyond it. I’m very grateful for this book.’’
Rachel Kousser, Professor of Greek and Roman
Art and Archaeology, City University of New York, Brooklyn College and the
Graduate Center
iii
Destruction

Rites
Ephemerality and
Demolition in
Postwar Visual
C ulture
MONA HADLER
iv
Published in 2017 by
I.B.Tauris & Co. Ltd
London • New York
www.ibtauris.com
Copyright © 2017 Mona Hadler
The right of Mona Hadler to be identified as the author of this work has been
asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book, or any part
thereof, may not be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or
transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Every attempt has been made to gain permission for the use of the images in this
book. Any omissions will be rectified in future editions.
References to websites were correct at the time of writing.
International Library of Modern and Contemporary Art 27
ISBN: 978 1 78453 340 3
eISBN: 978 1 78672 159 4
ePDF: 978 1 78673 159 3
A full CIP record for this book is available from the British Library
A full CIP record is available from the Library of Congress
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: available
Typeset by Newgen
Printed and bound by CPI Group (UK) Ltd, Croydon, CR0 4YY
v
To my husband John Vila and to
my sons Daniel and Michael
In loving memory of my parents,
Lucille and Murray Hadler
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Contents

List of Figures viii
Acknowledgments xii

Introduction 1
1 The Demolition Derby 32
2 Military Games of Destruction 68
3 Mid-century Hobbies and Toys
of Destruction 93
4 Ephemerality and Creative Destruction
in the Public Space 127
5 Garage Sales and Planned Obsolescence 168
Conclusion 192
Notes 197
Index 238
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List of Figures

0- 1 Demolition Derby, 1964, Islip Speedway, courtesy of Ken
Spooner and Marty Himes 3
0- 2 Jean Tinguely, Homage to New York, 1960, © 2016 Estate of
David Gahr; © 2016 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York /
ADAGP, Paris; Digital Image © The Museum of Modern
Art/ Licensed by SCALA/ Art Resource, NY 3
0- 3 The Who – Pete Townshend smashes his guitar & amp at
Windsor Jazz & Blues Festival, Windsor Racecourse, Saturday
30 July 1966, Alamy Stock Photos A2PA7 4
0- 4 Aerial view of the Able Day Explosion over Bikini Lagoon,
1 July 1946. Credit: Government photo National Archives
(public domain) 6
0- 5 Public School 58, Carroll & Smith Streets, Brooklyn, New
York, hold a “take cover” drill practice. Here youngsters
crawl under their desks/ 1962, photo by Walter Albertin; New
York World- Telegram and the Sun Newspaper Photograph
Collection, Library of Congress (Wikimedia Commons) 11
1- 1 Demolition Derby, Franklin County Fair, Malone, New York,
23 August 2011, photo by author 37
1- 2 Demolition Derby, Saratoga County Fair, Ballston Spa, New
York, 16 July 2013, photo by author 42
1- 3 1960s advertisement, The Himes Museum of Motor Racing
Nostalgia, New York, courtesy of Marty Himes 44
1- 4 Astronaut John Glenn in Pressure Suit, NASA photograph,
Project Mercury, 1962. Credit: Government photo National
Archives (public domain) 48
1- 5 Lucille Hadler in front of her 1960 Ford Galaxy four door sedan 52
1- 6 Andy Warhol, Orange Car Crash 14 Times, 1963, The Museum
of Modern Art, NY © 2015 The Andy Warhol Foundation for
the Visual Arts, Inc. / Artists Rights Society (ARS),
New York, NY 55
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