The Disneyfication of history, culture and everything

 "When Paradise Arrived" (1988) Charcoal on Paper by Enrique Chagoya 

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Ever since Emperor Trajan ordered his famous column depicting his triumphs in the Dacian wars, erected in 113 AD, the history of art has focused its attention in making narratives out of events from mythology, religion and human history in general. Of course history painting and sculpture existed long before 113 AD, but this column certainly foretold things to come, mainly the art propaganda. 

 Emperor Trajan's Column, 113 AD

As we all know, the retelling of a story comes with an agenda and after all, history is written by the victors. Throughout the age’s kings, popes and the powerful elite decided what was going to be created and celebrated in art and today is no exception. Every artwork is subject to the economic forces of its own time. Any successful artist that pretends to live off his art, knows this and often has to paint or sculpt for a patron the ideas that indirectly of directly promote the power structures of their time. 

                                        "Chac Mool"  (1999) Stone scultpture by Nadin Ospina

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Of course there is space for dissent and revolutionary art but as soon as this art is discovered, accepted and adopted by the powerful and elite, the art itself is transformed, re-packaged and redistributed by the same institutions it once voiced against and therefore the meaning of it is irrelevant as it becomes just another empty commodity. This is self evident in mainstream contemporary art. A good example of this in music is hip-hop, which once represented the voice of the marginalized urban communities; it then became corporately owned and as much of the mainstream music today is influenced more by the market than by pure creative spirit.

  

Pinocchio Heroin By Jose Rodolfo Loaiza Ontiveros

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It is not so different with the all too well known Disney re-telling of ancient legends, myth and Grimm brother’s tales. By this re-branding of the classics, Disney becomes the owner of its content, stripping the recorded place, event or person from its original meaning.  By repackaging and disseminating their own sanitized versions of the stories of Hercules, Pocahontas and Aladdin they sell a product that removed or waters down any vestige of the original narrative in question. In doing so they replace it with an empty shell deprived or any thought provoking content, serving a corporate driven agenda that intends to homogenize and generate passive consumption and cultural perceptions on all level of our society and at a global scale. Its success lies in the fact that they make beautiful pictures easy and pleasant to grasp that reach out to the masses in ways traditional literature or art cannot compete with.

 "Disneyfication of a Hero" (2010) Oil painting on canvas by Patrick McGrath Muñiz

Acquired by the  Albuquerque Museum of Art and History

Its magic resides in its manipulation of beauty and distortion of values consolidating patriarchal gender roles, perpetuating racist views and always elevating the rich, glamorous and vain over the poor, disenfranchised and different, despite its claims to the contrary  with its "updated" revisions. It preys on the innocent spectators as well as on their parents who give in to the power of persuasion while selling us a “family oriented” experience or product. It is also not hard to find evidence of the mind stupefying strategies utilized by the corporate giant as it controls a big chunk of the mass media conglomerate and has been actively involved in political propaganda since World War II and disseminating its anti-socialist comics in Chile during the 1970's (How to readDonald Duck).

Disneyfication is a global phenomenon occurring not just in our understanding of history but at all levels of culture and society, from the suburban way of life to our consumer habits and what we watch on screen. The metaphor that comes to mind is that of the evil witch offering Snow White the poisoned apple. But an even better metaphor for this corporation is that of the magician apprentice played by Mickey Mouse in 1940's animated film Fantasia. But as those who have already seen the film know, the magical act turns against the mouse as he foolishly multiplies his "cleaning" operators and everything gets out of control in the end. 

 Disney's Fantasia: The Sorcerer 1940

A lesson we can learn from ancient Roman history is that every empire has its fall and it often comes with over-expansion and disintegration from within. Who knows how Disney will fall but be sure of it, It will fall. Perhaps future tourists will visit Disney's Cinderella castle but get a similar tour to the one we get today while visiting Trajan’s Column, and admire this powerful propaganda monument for what it really is.

Mcdonaldization in Art

 Death to the Old Gods By Patrick McGrath Muñiz

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Recently I re-read Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser and after visiting a couple of dozen contemporary art galleries in town I could not help but think about how much the Mcdonald's way of doing things has permeated our culture and even the art world. Everyone knows art has always reflected the culture of it's time. In art school you learn about Pop art being a reflection of the consumer culture of the sixties and so on. But seldom do they tell you about the Mcdonaldization of art, literature, music and culture in general, perhaps because the universities play into it as well. George Ritzer pointed out five aspects in his 1993 Mcdonaldization of society five primary aspects that define this global phenomenon: Efficiency, Calculability, Predictability, Control and The Irrationality of Rationality. These all seem to be quite present in much of the contemporary art presented in art galleries, art fairs and museums around the world. Of course not all art done today follows these "fast food" standards and on the contrary, they respond in a very conscious way to our zombie-like consumer culture. Here I've presented some fine examples.

 Mcshitter by Carlos Barberena

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But I must say I've already lost count of how many times I've seen art that is boringly(predictable) simple (easy to control results) rapidly produced (efficient) in a quantity over quality (calculable) equation that defies any rational judgment on what is good or bad art (The Irrationality of the Rationality) Probably the only three big difference between contemporary art and fast food culture are the obvious ones: product, price range and targeted audience, but other than those I see no big differences between the production/packaging/brand and marketing strategies between the two. Certainly mainstream contemporary art owes much more to Pop art than its big debut in art history but it does seem highly hypocritical to uphold much of what is produced in the mainstream contemporary art world as "high art" as if it was something totally unrelated to popular culture and specifically "fast food culture". This said, I do not think it is bad because much art prepared today resembles a fast food product made in a hurry by little or no skill, preheating frozen "readymades" and repackaged to satisfy the "educated" masses, but it does look far from what art used to be for millennia before modernism came.

From the series "Los Intocables" by Erik Ravelo.

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I know it would be silly to try to undo all the postwar art theories that have been taught to us in school and pain as if we were living in 1789 but at least artists should be aware of the times they are currently living in when technique and skill are disregarded, profit is primordial and the value of things don't make any sense. We should all be aware of how much consumerism and the mass media machinery has infected the art world and our cultural attitudes towards what we think is good and beautiful and this having powerful consequences reaching a global scale. Some artists have addressed these issues with their art and it is important to take notice of them and what they have to say. While many might keep blindly mass producing repetitive Mc artworks the fastest way possible, with predictable results and selling these at prices that defy any sound rationality, there are those who will insist in pointing out at the clown in the room and how he operates so others can wake up and smell the Mc Coffee.

From the series "Sum of all Evils" by artists Jake and Dinos Chapman

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Right studio, right light

Greetings everyone! After a brief blog hiatus, I'm finally back to blogging again. The reason for the delay was my recent relocation from Savannah, Georgia to Houston, Texas and it has taken a while to accommodate and find the right space and time for my studio and getting everything back in order including this blog. Now that I'm back & painting again I shall post more blog entries not only about  content behind many of the narratives in my work but also painting techniques which I'm sure some of you will be interested in reading about.

At this moment, I'll take the opportunity to talk a little about setting up a studio and finding the right light to work with, since this has been an important issue for me for the past several years moving from one studio to another. In the past 14 years, I have relocated my studio from Puerto Rico to El Salvador, to Florida, Georgia and now Texas. I noticed that the further south I was, the brighter the light, but no matter where I painted,  the biggest difference came down to the angle and type of light you get when you change the position of your easel. North light has always been the best ally a painter can get. It is a neutral consistent light that makes the most sense when it comes to paint.

This is why when it came to choose an apartment unit at this new location, I made a conscious decision to take the one that had windows facing north. It is not only the best light to work in by day but also the best to take pictures of the work as well. I've worked in spaces with windows facing west and this became a problem at sunset when the Sun just blinded my vision and I simply could not work in the afternoon without messing up the contrasts and values in my paintings. I've also had to work on spaces facing east and you get the same problem in the mornings. Spaces facing south are as good as north because light will be spread evenly throughout the day and will not blind you. Light coming from above probes to be better than light coming at eye level because it will not create shadows or reflections cast from your extended arm over the canvas. But since most windows are at eye level, try placing the easel at the right side diagonally from your nearest window if you paint with your right hand. If you are left handed place your easel on your left side. This will help by not having your own arm cast shadows over your painting surface.

I'm a big fan of big doors, large windows and balconies but  I've had to get used to working inside as weather conditions often change and some other factors that are out of my control like visiting flies and mosquitoes. Overall, when setting up a studio I will not have a predetermined set of rules in mind but rather set up the space in a way I feel completely comfortable to work in. For me it is really important that the space becomes, intimate, personal and sacred. I try to stay away from distractions as much as possible and will surround myself with images, books and objects that will inspire me to paint. Music is also a vital component for me to work with so I always install a small set of speakers at a safe distance from my painting area. A 5 x 7 feet rug is placed under the easel and an extra monitor right beside it. I've noticed that working from a screen is much more advantageous than working from printed material as you can zoom in and out and able to appreciate more values and better contrasts.

Studio space does not have to be very big unless you work mural size paintings, big sculptures or become a hoarder. I've learned to keep my studio clean and ordered because it helps me stay focused and be more productive. I separate drawing from painting area but they are usually side by side, separated by the rugs under my drafting table and easel. I place both right next to my window and keep my computer and extra monitor on small portable tables or stools so I can move them around easily. Years ago I followed some of the Feng Shui principles to order my studio but same as with my own painting process,  things became more and more intuitive in time and I guess you just end up setting up and working in the most flexible, practical, organic and natural way possible. Allow the studio to become an extension of your soul and the rest will just flow.