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What's Next?

What's Next?

Linda Weintraub

(2018)

Additional Information

Abstract

By paying tribute to matter, materiality, and materialization, the examples of contemporary art assembled in What’s Next? Eco Materialism and Contemporary Art challenge the social, cultural, and ethical norms that prevailed in the twentieth century. This significant frontier of contemporary culture is identified as ‘Eco Materialism’ because it affirms the emergent philosophy of Neo Materialism and attends to the pragmatic urgency of environmentalism. In this highly original book, Linda Weintraub surveys the work of forty international artists who present materiality as a strategy to convert society’s environmental neglect into responsible stewardship. These bold art initiatives, enriched by their associations with philosophy, ecology, and cultural critique, bear the hallmark of a significant new art movement. This accessible text, augmented with visuals, charts, and questionnaires, invites students and a wider readership to engage in this timely arena of contemporary art.
Linda Weintraub is an artist, curator, educator, and author of several popular books about contemporary art.

Table of Contents

Section Title Page Action Price
Cover Cover
Half Title i
Title iii
Copyright iv
Contents vi
Acknowledgments ix
Preface: How Materiality Shaped This Book xi
Introduction: Where To Begin? 1
Eco Material Allures & Repulsions : Secretions 25
Fingernails 29
Blood 30
Placentas 32
Sweat 33
Tears 34
Ear Wax 36
Breast Milk 37
Fat 38
Spit 39
Hair 40
Feces 41
Corpse 45
Reader Interaction 50
Archetypes Of Material Use & Disuse : Dirt 53
Pet Archetype 57
Sacred Archetype 61
Hazard Archetype 65
Specimen Archetype 70
Resource Archetype 76
Aesthetic Archetype 81
Merchandise Archetype 87
Reader Interaction 94
Eco Material Operatives : People 101
Do-It-Without-People 104
Do-It-Yourself 109
Do-It-As-Community 116
Do-It-As-Troop 123
Do-It-With-Site 127
Reader Interaction 132
Eco Material Tools : Fire 139
Fire Burns 146
Fire Melts Metals 151
Fire Sinters 157
Fire Cooks 164
Reader Interaction 173
Eco Material Creativity : Water 179
Water Condenses 185
Water Dissolves 191
Water Forms Freshwater Biomes 195
Water Provides Marine Habitats 200
Water Inspires Reverence 207
Reader Interaction 214
Eco Material Technology : Electronics 227
E-Energy Consumption 231
E-Omnipresence 236
E-Waste 241
E-Systems 248
E-Memory 255
E-Prayer 261
Reader Interaction 267
What’s Next? 271
Option 1: Desperation 274
Option 2: Relocation 280
Option 3: Recuperation 287
Reader Interaction 302
Suggested Readings 311
Back Cover Back Cover