Analysis of the Second Day Nothing - Essay Example

of the Work: Second Day Nothing of the Artist: Jonas Burgert Work: 2008. Location of Work: The Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver, Colorado Critical Art Essay: Analysis of the Second Day Nothing by Jonas Burgert. The different phases of human civilization have witnessed changing reaction of common people about art and the way it relates or influences social affairs. There is a common idea that Art is entirely generated and manifested through imagination and does not have any connection with reality. Despite the fact that art or artistic ideas, to a great extent are incited from imagination but a sincere analysis of any great piece of art would clearly show that apart from imaginative aspect, an artist also incorporates various artistic techniques, metaphors, social imageries and symbolic aspects with an intention to nourish the piece of work; consequently the artist also provides scope to an individual to interpret the work of art from different perspectives. Fulfillment of an artistic creation can be properly realized when the audience, besides receiving the spontaneous aesthetic pleasure, can also find avenues to relate the work of art with his experiences. Historians, sociologists and anthropological scholars also provide considerable importance over critical analysis of art and its forms that emerged during a particular time, in a specific social context. The written historical evidences often are written by those people, who dominated a society for certain time but complete and critical perception regarding social development can only be gained when evidences are gathered from different sources, from different sections of the society. Art, in this context, is extremely helpful to provide a complete picture of the society through all its form. An historical evolution of different art forms in various phases of human civilization would reveal that artists, apart from serving the basic purpose to exercise aesthetic articulation and experimenting with different forms of artistry, have also dealt deeply with important social events, socio-cultural factors that influenced common people. At the same time, different shades of human emotion, reflections of mutual interaction, expectations and deprivation from life have also emerged as important subjects of consideration in the field of artistic experiment. The early artists have shown a tendency to depict these subjects with an overtone of imagination, while the spontaneity of human actions remained at a metaphoric or symbolic level, advancement of human civilization and its impact over artistic cultivation showed that such symbolic or metaphoric presentations are taking explicit forms and imagination is becoming the most effective device to receive attention of audience both from aesthetic and realist perspectives. Almost immediately after introduction of modernism in the Western socio-cultural discourse, two consecutive World Wars proved that compared to early times notion of common people about their fellow human beings has changed radically and humanity, quite evidently, will encounter quite a tough time with the gradual process. In addition to such realization, cultural differentiation, religious and racial discrimination, social cosmopolitanism, globalization, capitalism on one and economic deprivation of common people in name of welfare, corporate aggression fused with common hedonism: all these factors, conjointly made the issue of human existence quite complicated one. People’s psychological perception about their respective existence, both from macrocosmic and microcosmic perspectives, started differing radically. The modernist, rather post modernist forms of artistic experimentation trends that consider plight of human existence, trapped within such psycho-socio ambiance as one of the most important theme of cultivation and evaluation, in the artistic creations aftermath 1945, beside socio-cultural issues of individual dilemma, human psychological conditions also received considerable attention. Consequently, reflection of the psychological diversity, reflected through social differentiation has also become an interesting subject for the contemporary artists, especially among artists during the post 1945 period. The Second Day Nothing by Jonas Burgert, is an evident proof in support of this observation. Description of the Work: It is widely considered that effective communication between audience and the artist is an important aspect so that the audience becomes capable of receiving an overall impression about the subject of artistry; consequently, he would also feel impulsive naturally to communicate with the creation and seek to explore different layers of the creation. Jonas Burgert, in the Second Day Nothing, has made a successful attempt to achieve this goal. Irrespective of ample using of artistic devices, such as, metaphor, symbolic implication and indication towards diversity of human emotional intensity through different shades of color and well as respective portrayal of the human figures, he has attempted to provide a clear and startling impression to his audience about the entirety of a situation. Set amidst an urban setting, this picture refers to a chaos, resulted due to yield of certain green liquid. It seems that during process of some explorative work, suddenly this liquid came out of the ground. Surrounding residents are clearly interested in gathering this liquid, as they have identified that it might have immense monetary value or the same can help in their personal or social benefit. While some of them have succumbed to death, may be during the same process, others are hardly paying any attention and completely engrossed in the process of collecting as much of the green liquid as possible. Among the collectors, while most of the figures can clearly be identified as human beings, however, some of them, despite their human appearance, provide an impression of being different than their human counterparts. In the left corner of the picture, a gigantic human figure, with civilized apparel is lying dead, while another figure almost of the same physical magnitude, without much of such sophisticated appearance, stands tall, staring at the main source of the collection process, and awaits, as if, for its turn to come. Right side of the picture depicts three figures in a line that are covered, providing an impression of demonic representative and such implication becomes more evident, as the last one in the line exhibits its blue skin color. Just opposite to the following line, in the left side another figure with the same skin color, is seen to be collecting the fluid, with abnormal brain structure, under supervision of an elderly man, providing the impression of an experimentalist. With his hands inside the overcoat pocket, he appears to be not much interested with material benefit of the liquid and only interested in collecting that amount, which he feels, would be sufficient for his requirement. Apart from these especially noticeable figures, people from all parts of the section have also joined this collection process and they are trying to gain as much benefit as possible through their different ways of participation or in the quest of encouraging or coercing others. The Second Day Nothing is located at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver, Colorado. The museum authority, in order to provide scope to derive highest aesthetic pleasure and startling impression of the picture, has set it on a background of semitransparent white cover. Using such background has served a twofold purpose: first, it allows only required amount of light to create a light-shade ambiance, and second, bright strokes of color and sharpness of the painting receive adequate platform to attract attention of a viewer, even to the minutest of details as well as symbolic implications. Choosing any other background or any setting outside the ambiance would not have contributed so effectively to the setting of the art piece; consequently, sharpness of color or the shocking effect that the picture is capable of creating through impression of the grotesque form of chaos, would surely also be fainted. Interpretation: In the Second Day Nothing, Jonas Burgert has made an attempt to provide a microcosmic presentation of the chaos created by human beings on every such occasion, whenever they have found anything that might seem to be of their respective and communal benefit. The obsession to collect is so desperate and pervasive that even without keeping in consideration the negative impact they keep on taking it away. Consequently, lust for material gain would lead them to empty the stock and there would be nothing left for the second day. Interestingly, common men, poor people, people with demonic nature, intellectuals, capitalists – all would join the same procession and contribute according to their respective capacity. Such universality of human nature, to add up in their respective way of gaining has masterfully been handled by the artist. Irrespective of differences in perspectives of goal, none of them actually show any intention to provide any benefit to others that might come later and solely concerned about self-centered purpose. It has been observed about Jonas Burgert’s work that “The grotesque and the distorted provide the subject-matter of Burgerts art. The atmosphere in his paintings is of a world of destruction and decay. Bold, sensuous and opulent, they depict an apocalyptic mood of an end time, or visions of a netherworld, or a peculiar dream.... As if set in the theatre or opera, fantastical make-up and costumes evoke humans and animals, shamans and magicians, giants and dwarfs, demons and harlequins, creatures dead and alive. These figures act as allegories for the human existence in its variously shaped appearances, they represent types or characters from the circus or the commedia dellarte, or from an unknown myth” (Haunch of Venison, n.d.). In the Second Day Nothing also justification behind the same observation becomes evident, as on one hand, the artist startles his audience with chaos of the situation, with use of bright and deep color, and on the other, the grossness of human behavior has been specifically highlighted. During the same course the artist also seems to have showed an inclination to suggest that gradual progress to the apprehended apocalypse from socio-cultural, economic, political, religious and moral perspective is becoming evident due to human beings’ senseless hedonism and malicious obsession with individual prosperity. Social Commentary: The sharp decline of human morality towards grotesque and increasing rate of self-centric approach seem to be main issues of criticism from the artist in the Second Day Nothing. An overview of the modern social condition and regular human affair clearly provide evidence in support of the observation that no matter how much humanists, artists, intellectuals and socialists emphasize over the aspect of social harmony or respecting the universal philosophy of humanity, however, the real picture presents quite an antithetical impression about the entire social affair. Trapped in the quest of respective gain or self-satisfaction, every individual is ready to go to the extent of depriving others. While helping each other in a particular situation can lead to equal distribution and existence within an ambiance of stabilized existence, people are always trying to gain higher quantity. Even if such achievement is happening at the cost of harming others or leaving others in the face of death at their completely helpless condition, their human counterparts have practiced to remain dispassionate only to ensure that highest possible benefit can be attained. Reference Haunch of Venison, (N.D.). “Jonas Burgert”. Available at: http://www.haunchofvenison.com/en/index.php#page=home.artists.jonas_burgert. Accessed on: July 31, 2010. Read More

In addition to such realization, cultural differentiation, religious and racial discrimination, social cosmopolitanism, globalization, capitalism on one and economic deprivation of common people in name of welfare, corporate aggression fused with common hedonism: all these factors, conjointly made the issue of human existence quite complicated one. People’s psychological perception about their respective existence, both from macrocosmic and microcosmic perspectives, started differing radically.

The modernist, rather post modernist forms of artistic experimentation trends that consider plight of human existence, trapped within such psycho-socio ambiance as one of the most important theme of cultivation and evaluation, in the artistic creations aftermath 1945, beside socio-cultural issues of individual dilemma, human psychological conditions also received considerable attention. Consequently, reflection of the psychological diversity, reflected through social differentiation has also become an interesting subject for the contemporary artists, especially among artists during the post 1945 period.

The Second Day Nothing by Jonas Burgert, is an evident proof in support of this observation. Description of the Work: It is widely considered that effective communication between audience and the artist is an important aspect so that the audience becomes capable of receiving an overall impression about the subject of artistry; consequently, he would also feel impulsive naturally to communicate with the creation and seek to explore different layers of the creation. Jonas Burgert, in the Second Day Nothing, has made a successful attempt to achieve this goal.

Irrespective of ample using of artistic devices, such as, metaphor, symbolic implication and indication towards diversity of human emotional intensity through different shades of color and well as respective portrayal of the human figures, he has attempted to provide a clear and startling impression to his audience about the entirety of a situation. Set amidst an urban setting, this picture refers to a chaos, resulted due to yield of certain green liquid. It seems that during process of some explorative work, suddenly this liquid came out of the ground.

Surrounding residents are clearly interested in gathering this liquid, as they have identified that it might have immense monetary value or the same can help in their personal or social benefit. While some of them have succumbed to death, may be during the same process, others are hardly paying any attention and completely engrossed in the process of collecting as much of the green liquid as possible. Among the collectors, while most of the figures can clearly be identified as human beings, however, some of them, despite their human appearance, provide an impression of being different than their human counterparts.

In the left corner of the picture, a gigantic human figure, with civilized apparel is lying dead, while another figure almost of the same physical magnitude, without much of such sophisticated appearance, stands tall, staring at the main source of the collection process, and awaits, as if, for its turn to come. Right side of the picture depicts three figures in a line that are covered, providing an impression of demonic representative and such implication becomes more evident, as the last one in the line exhibits its blue skin color.

Just opposite to the following line, in the left side another figure with the same skin color, is seen to be collecting the fluid, with abnormal brain structure, under supervision of an elderly man, providing the impression of an experimentalist. With his hands inside the overcoat pocket, he appears to be not much interested with material benefit of the liquid and only interested in collecting that amount, which he feels, would be sufficient for his requirement. Apart from these especially noticeable figures, people from all parts of the section have also joined this collection process and they are trying to gain as much benefit as possible through their different ways of participation or in the quest of encouraging or coercing others.

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