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16
her intimate involvement with Iraq. In the video she explained how her family
had been involved with the oil business for generations and her aunts were related
to Middle Eastern oilmen through marital partnerships. She also explained how
the social climate in Houston was very welcoming of Muslims due to broader
business partnerships and how a large settlement of Middle Easterners lived in the
area. As the video concluded she confidently addressed the world’s unwavering
thirst for oil and how Houston would always be safe from economic hardship
because of its ties to the industry. Creative Time curator and trip coordinator,
Nato Thompson, described this woman as representing a truly authentic Texas
persona;25 but it is reflections like this that are problematic to the work’s desire to
be innovative in the face of stereotypical depictions of people and place. It Is
What It Is purported to disseminate information about Iraq, but in certain
circumstances such as the one depicted in this video, the viewer seems to be
learning about what it means to be American.
Juxtaposing these clips reveals the disparity of perspectives that the road
crew encountered and brings up multiple concerns from a critical and theoretical
perspective. First, do these distinctions perpetuate stereotypes and generalizations
about place or do they create a cohesive picture of people in relation to shared
experiences? Furthermore, does this diversity dispel notions about perspective
and place or simply reinforce them? As a project that travelled across North
America, this piece was ripe with potential to generate responses to questions like
these and the answers could have contributed to the U.S.’s understanding of
25 Nato Thompson, interview by author, telephone Los Angeles to New York, January 5, 2011.
Object Description
| Title | Sites of production: An examination of Jeremy Deller's It is what it is: Conversations about Iraq |
| Author | Kopp, Rebecca Nichole |
| Author email | rkopp@usc.edu; rnkopp@gmail.com |
| Degree | Master of Public Art Studies |
| Document type | Thesis |
| Degree program | Public Art Studies |
| School | School of Fine Arts |
| Date defended/completed | 2011-05 |
| Date submitted | 2011 |
| Restricted until | Unrestricted |
| Date published | 2011-05-04 |
| Advisor (committee chair) | Holte, Michael Ned |
| Advisor (committee member) |
Jacob, Mary Jane Decter, Joshua |
| Abstract | For little over a decade artistic practice in the United States has become intently “focused upon on the sphere of inter-human relations” (Nicolas Bourriaud). Contemporary theorists have presented a variety of ideas concerning the resurgence of this artistic tendency that emerged half a century ago. Using It Is What It Is: Conversations About Iraq, which was presented across the U.S. and at three major museums in 2009 by British Turner prize-winning artist Jeremy Deller, as case study to further delineate this artistic form of expression, this thesis addresses recent theoretical developments within the broader social practice movement. Deller’s project emphasized the complicated nature of these theories in action within the contemporary moment, and testified to its heightened use in the public sphere through shifts higher education and institutional programming. The evaluation of Deller’s piece emphasizes the art-historical importance of this work and more broadly contends with the contemporary conflict between those who debate art’s ability to transform consciousness within the public sphere. |
| Keyword | social practice; Jeremy Deller; Iraq; dialogical practice; public sphere; public art |
| Geographic subject (country) | Iraq; USA |
| Coverage date | 2000/2010 |
| Language | English |
| Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
| Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
| Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
| Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
| Provenance | Electronically uploaded by the author |
| Type | texts |
| Legacy record ID | usctheses-m3881 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Rights | Kopp, Rebecca Nichole |
| Repository name | Libraries, University of Southern California |
| Repository address | Los Angeles, California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Filename | etd-Kopp-4545 |
| Archival file | uscthesesreloadpub_Volume26/etd-Kopp-4545.pdf |
Description
| Title | Page 21 |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
| Full text | 16 her intimate involvement with Iraq. In the video she explained how her family had been involved with the oil business for generations and her aunts were related to Middle Eastern oilmen through marital partnerships. She also explained how the social climate in Houston was very welcoming of Muslims due to broader business partnerships and how a large settlement of Middle Easterners lived in the area. As the video concluded she confidently addressed the world’s unwavering thirst for oil and how Houston would always be safe from economic hardship because of its ties to the industry. Creative Time curator and trip coordinator, Nato Thompson, described this woman as representing a truly authentic Texas persona;25 but it is reflections like this that are problematic to the work’s desire to be innovative in the face of stereotypical depictions of people and place. It Is What It Is purported to disseminate information about Iraq, but in certain circumstances such as the one depicted in this video, the viewer seems to be learning about what it means to be American. Juxtaposing these clips reveals the disparity of perspectives that the road crew encountered and brings up multiple concerns from a critical and theoretical perspective. First, do these distinctions perpetuate stereotypes and generalizations about place or do they create a cohesive picture of people in relation to shared experiences? Furthermore, does this diversity dispel notions about perspective and place or simply reinforce them? As a project that travelled across North America, this piece was ripe with potential to generate responses to questions like these and the answers could have contributed to the U.S.’s understanding of 25 Nato Thompson, interview by author, telephone Los Angeles to New York, January 5, 2011. |
