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nostalgia

From:     J
Category: Art
Date:     31 March 2008
Time:     06:48 AM

Review:

Well I hate nostalgia, you're right, because it's just liking yourself (loving your own youth)  or rejecting 
change, and making that into an ideology,. You like Rodchenko because he makes art for art's sake. 
And then reject Tilmans because his photos are fake, ie induce sentimental nostalgia for non-existent 
moments (surely something formal or abstract there) but all I sense from you is nostalgia for ideology. 
And I have been reading some New Left texts from 1969 and they seem to be trying to break from the 
inertia brought upon by the conservative/nostalgic mindset, things used to be better, cant be changed 
for the better. Even though they were living in exciting times, most people were defeatist/nostalgic 
then. Some of the new left weren't  and neither should you be, and neither should i be nostalgic for the 
new left.

The whole Zizek poncery  about ideology/dogma just boils down to you saying people nowadays are 
superficial and unselfaware, which is what every older nostalgic generation says about every younger 
generation. ( and think about that isn't superficiality akin to art for art's sake, leaching out the meaning 
and revelling in the aesthetics (like our youth who dress up as punks, goths, nerds whatever) rather 
like Rodchenko, who ignores his subjects suffering and the inequality of his time to make beautiful 
photos).

 What's new?


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