2018, Vol., No.43

Journal of History of Modern Art 2023 KCI Impact Factor : 0.77

pISSN : 1598-7728 / eISSN : 2733-9793
https://journal.kci.go.kr/kahoma

Destabilzation and disruption are the central concerns in the art of Sigmar Polke, which challenges the internal premises in art and deals with the social concerns of his time. This study focuses on these aspects in three perspectives that are followed below. First, in raster-paintings which is a form of critical appropriation of American Pop Art, Polke dissolves the deceptive visual images of the printed world of simulacre, which masks the reality of the postwar Germany. The second group of works consists of ‘alchemical’-paintings in which the image constantly changes, in response to temperature and humidity. In these works, Polke not only breaks down the boundaries of media by using the photo-chemical mechanism of photography as for producing painterly effects, but overthrows the concept of a completed work through the constant transformation of the image. Furthermore, by combining the ‘alchemical’-paintings with a historical place or motif, Polke expresses a new understanding of history as a dynamic process of which meaning is constantly changing in accordance with the present condition and perspective of the subject. Finally, Polke overthrows the myths of art history through ironic twist of the dominant art form of modernism that has been regarded as normative. In addition, he aims to debunk the political ideology hidden beneath the abstract art, which provides an effective means to ignore and silence the postwar history of Germany.

This paper explores the early years of Yoko Ono and John Lennon’s collaborative events and media activities between 1968 and 1969. In particular, by tracing how their much-publicized performance events such as Bed-In (1969) and Bagism (1969) were derived from Ono’s Bag Piece (1964), conceived in the early 1960s during her underground period, I suggest that the media spectacles were an extension of Ono’s avant-garde art concepts that she consciously (if not strategically) staged in order to engage the mass media audience. Her romantic relationship with Lennon, which became public in 1968, changed the direction of her artistic career. As the Beatles’ notorious Japanese partner, she became a public figure whom cameras always followed, and she knew that the ‘world’ was now her audience. But the fame also came with a price that she would be for long known as Lennon’s wife rather than an independent artist. Considering the various movements of experimental art and youth culture in the late 1960s, this paper examines how Ono negotiated, utilized, and extended not only her art but also her public image when she was straddling between her avant-garde art background and the new pop culture wonderland.

This study is based on my experience as a research team leader of Suknam Yun in 2016 ‘Korean Artist Digital Archive Project’ jointly implemented by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism and the Korea Arts Management Service. The purpose of this study is twofold. One is to suggest follow-up researchers some important issues and technical problems to achieve successful archive results, and the other is to reveal the specific performance of my project and its art historical significance. Based on thorough verification and analysis of all works by Suknam Yun, of interviews and various materials about the artist, I corrected some important errors related to her works, and classified some confusing major series in coherence. In addition, I discussedthe significance of the new findings and the influence of the artist’s early media change on her later works. This study is expected to provide know-how and guidelines for constructing other artists’ archives as well as important materials for subsequent research of the artist. Thus, it will prevent the controversy over counterfeit of Suknam Yun, and contribute to build a solid foundation for art criticism and academic research in the future.