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-AAS -EDIA 6ERLAG "ERLIN 6OL
v.O 3OUL &OR 3ALEv WAS PRINTED ON 4ATE -ODERNS INVITATION FOR ITS TH ANNIVERSARY 0ERHAPS WE ARE
NOT SELLING OUR @IMMATERIAL LABOUR -AURIZIO ,AZZARATO SO EASILY YET WE OFTEN TREAT OUR LIFE AS CREATIVE
PROJECTS ,UC "OLTANSKI #HRIS $ERCON NEXT DIRECTOR OF 4ATE -ODERN DESCRIBES CREATIVE PRACTITIONERS
TODAY AS ZOMBIES AND VAMPIRES DUE TO THE PRECARIOUS WORKING CONDITIONS WE FACE AND ENDLESS FREE
SERVICES WE ARE WILLING TO OFFER
7HEN SELF
EXPLOITATION SEEMS TO BE THE NORM AS A SURVIVAL STRATEGY HOW IS IT POSSIBLE FOR CULTURAL
WORKERS TO SAY @NO
7ITHOUT EXISTENTIAL SECURITY WHAT ABOUT OUR ABILITY TO CHALLENGE
(AS CONTEMPORARY ART BEEN COMPLETELY ABSORBED BY THE THOUGHT OF POLITICAL CORRECTNESS
)
7EI ,I #%/ OF !24/54
!24/54 IS MORE EXPLOSIVE THAN (OLLYWOOD AND FAR MORE INNOVATIVE THAN !RT "ASEL )T WILL TURN YOUR LIFE
INTO A TRUE ARTISTIC EXPERIENCE 3ERVICES INCLUDE THE ARTIST SPENDING TIME WITH THE CLIENT DISCUSSING
ART AND OTHER ISSUES ACCOMPANYING THE CLIENT TO THE MOVIES PLAYS RESTAURANTS ART OPENINGS PERFOR
MANCES ATTENDING BIRTHDAY PARTIES WEDDINGS BAR MITZVAH FUNERALS ACADEMIC CONFERENCES FUND
RAISING DINNERS AND OTHER EVENTS
%ACH SPONSOR OF AN !24/54 EVENT GETS A SPECIAL CERTIlCATE DESIGNED BY THE ARTIST CONlRMING THEIR
PARTICIPATION 0HOTO AND VIDEO DOCUMENTATION OF THE EVENT ARE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST
.OT ALL OF OUR ARTISTS ARE LISTED IN OUR DIRECTORY )F YOU HAVE A SPECIAL REQUEST DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT
US 0REPARE YOUR !24/54 EVENT AT LEAST ONE MONTH IN ADVANCE 7E OFFER CORPORATE DISCOUNTS AS WE
BELIEVE ANYONE CAN BECOME A SUCCESSFUL ART AFFECTIONADO
4RAVEL ARRANGEMENTS CAN BE MADE
7E AT !24/54 BELIEVE THAT ART IS AN OPEN CONCEPT AND ARTISTIC PRAXIS IS THE PROCESS OF BECOMING THAT
CORRESPONDS TO THE TOTALITY OF INDIVIDUAL TEMPORALITY !RTISTIC CREATIVITY RESULTS FROM THE DIALECTICAL RELA
TION BETWEEN THE ACCEPTANCE OF THE MARKET AS THE UNDERLYING PRINCIPLE OF SOCIAL REALITY AND THE NEED
TO ESCAPE ITS IMPERATIVES OF OBEDIENCE AND CONSENSUS ITS LOCUS IS THE INDIVIDUALITY OF THE ARTIST 4HE
ARTIST PLAYS THE MESSENGER AND THE MESSAGE THE SELF
MEDIUM THAT lNDS ITS LEGITIMACY THROUGH THE
CHARISMATIC NEGATION OF CONVENTIONALITY
7E BELIEVE THAT THE INDIVIDUALITY OF THE ARTIST IS FAR MORE SIGNIlCANT THAN THE MATERIAL END
PRODUCT OF
THE ARTISTS LABOR 7E ARE EXTENDING THE LIMITS OF THE TRADITIONAL MARKET
MODEL TO RECOGNIZE THE ARTIST
AS THE SELF
DElNED COMMODITY WHOSE VALUE RESIDES IN THE IMMATERIALITY OF ARTISTS CREATIVE BECOMING
3PENDING TIME IN THE COMPANY OF THE ARTIST IS A NEW hCREATIVEv COMMODITY EXCHANGE IT REVEALS POWER
RELATIONS WITHIN THE EXISTING ARTIST
PATRON PARADIGM AND LEADS TO THE MUTUAL LIBERATION OF BOTH ARTISTS
AND ART PATRONS FROM THE CONDITION OF SIMPLE MATERIAL PRODUCTION AND ACCUMULATION TO THE NEXT LEVEL OF
THE DIRECT CREATIVE EXCHANGE WITHIN THE DOMINANT CAPITALIST ART MARKET PARADIGM
!24/54 AN INTRODUCTION
BY !NTON +OSLOV -AYR
1UEST
CE QUE LART 0ROSTITUTION
#HARLES "AUDELAIRE
4HE IDEOLOGICAL GENEALOGY OF !24/54 MAY BE TRACED TO VARIOUS SOURCES -IKHAIL "AKHTINS THEORY OF
THE CARNIVAL DEVELOPED IN HIS SEMINAL 2ABELAIS AND (IS 7ORLD IS ONE OF THEM 0ERFORMANCE ART AS A
FORM OF THIS CARNIVALESQUE TIME IN WHICH ACCEPTED BOUNDARIES AND DISTINCTIONS BETWEEN REALITY AND
REPRESENTATION ARE SUBVERTED AND THIS IS WHY IT IS RADICALLY DIFFERENT FROM TRADITIONAL THEATER MAY BE
AN EXAMPLE )T EXPLAINS WHY !24/54 HAS A LARGE NUMBER OF PERFORMANCE ARTISTS AS PARTICIPANTS AND
ENTERS SQUARELY INTO THE TRADITION OF hDISTURBATIONAL ARTv TO USE !RTHUR $ANTOS TERM1
!24/54 MAY ALSO BE PUT IN THE CONTEXT OF INSTITUTIONAL CRITIQUE AS DEVELOPED BY ARTISTS LIKE !NDREA
&RASER AND OTHERS )NSTITUTIONAL CRITIQUE WAS CONCEIVED AS A FORM OF COMMENTARY OF THE VARIOUS CULTURAL
INSTITUTIONS AND ASSUMED NORMALITIES OF ART AS WELL AS DISARTICULATION OF THE INSTITUTION OF ART AND ITS
VARIOUS PRACTICES )N THE CASE OF !24/54 IT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE ARTIST AND HISHER COLLECTOR
CONSUMER BOTH INDIVIDUAL AND INSTITUTIONAL THAT IS BEING STAGED AS A PERFORMANCE
!24/54 HAS ALSO BEEN INFORMED BY THE CONCEPTUAL ART INQUIRY INTO THE VERY MORPHOLOGY OF ART 4HIS
INQUIRY POLITICAL IN NATURE QUESTIONS THE ECONOMIC DIMENSION OF ART PRODUCTION NAMELY THE COMMODITY
FETISH OF CULTURAL PRODUCTION MYSTIlCATION OF PRODUCTS AND COMMODIlCATION OF THE ARTISTS PERSONALITY
!T A CERTAIN STAGE OF ITS DEVELOPMENT ART LOST ITS ABILITY TO GENERATE ITS OWN DElNITION AND THEREFORE
PRODUCE ANY SIGNIlCANT OPPOSITIONAL MOVEMENT OUTSIDE OF THE EXISTING CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS #REATION
OF CULTURALLY SIGNIlCANT OBJECTS HAD BEEN TURNED INTO AN ENTERPRISE OF CREATING MARKETABLE hNOVELTYv
FETISHISATION OF NOVELTY MEANT THE COLLAPSE OF THE AVANT
GARDE SINCE ANY POLITICAL OPPOSITION TO THE
EXISTING MODE OF ART PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION BECAME IMPOSSIBLE 4HE ART MARKET IMPOSED TOTAL
REIlCATION OF THE PROCESS OF ART PRODUCTION REDUCING IT TO MANUFACTURING OF OBJECTS AND EVENTS IN
SPECIlCALLY DESIGNATED SPACES BY PROFESSIONALLY DESIGNATED PEOPLE #ULTURAL INSTITUTIONS BECAME THE
SUPERSTRUCTURE OF THE MARKET PLACE ON WHICH ART WAS BEING BOUGHT AND SOLD LIKE ANY OTHER MERCHAN
DISE RELYING ON AN ALL
ENCOMPASSING PROCESS OF MYSTIlCATION 4HIS MYSTIlCATION CONSISTED OF INVESTING
OBJECTS WITH THE MARKET VALUE BY PLACING THEM IN THE CONTEXT OF ART HISTORY !RT OBJECT AS A COMMODITY
FETISH THAT OFFERS hART HISTORICAL VALUEv BECAME AN INVESTMENT VEHICLE AND AS SUCH RE
AFlRMED AND
CONTINUE TO RE
AFlRM A CERTAIN ECONOMIC MODEL WITH ITS HISTORY OF ART AND ITS HIERARCHY OF CULTURE )N
MANY WAYS THE ENTIRE ART MARKET AND ITS ADJACENT INSTITUTIONAL TERRITORIES BECAME A ONE BIG "ERNARD
-ADOFF COLLECTIONx
)N THE lRST FOUR YEARS OF ITS EXISTENCE
!24/54 WENT THROUGH A FORMATIVE STAGE )T HAS
BEEN DENIGRATED AND ACCUSED OF BEING AN hILLICITv ENTERPRISE SNUBBED PRESENTED AS A FREAK SHOW BUT
ALSO HAILED AS THE MOST INNOVATIVE ART PROJECT IN THE PERIOD OF GLOBAL lNANCIAL CRISIS BY 4HE .EW 9ORK
0OST 4ODAY WE ARE ENTERING A NEW STAGE n THAT OF A FULLY FUNCTIONAL COMPANY WITH THE #%/ ADVISORY
BOARD DEPOSITED TRADEMARK AND REPRESENTING A GROUP OF HIGHLY MOTIVATED ARTISTS
!24/54 IS AN OPEN
END PROJECT THAT IS SET TO OPERATE ON THE THRESHOLD BETWEEN hREALITYv AND hARTv AND
DElES THE IDEA OF A DESIGNATED ART SPACE !24/54 MAY VERY WELL BE A RELATIONAL PROJECT ALTHOUGH WE
DO NOT BELIEVE THAT ONE NIGHT
OUT WITH AN ARTIST CAN PRODUCE A RELATIONSHIP n AN ENTERPRISE TOO UTOPIAN
TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY (OWEVER WE BELIEVE THAT THE MEANING IN ART JUST LIKE THE MEANING IN A LAN
GUAGE RESIDES NEITHER IN THE ARTISTS INTENTION NOR IN WHAT HE OR SHE DOES BUT AT A POINT BETWEEN THE
ARTISTS INTENTION AND THAT OF HIS OR HER VIEWER AND CONSUMER /UR GOAL ANDOR OUR PRODUCT IS TO CREATE
A DIALOGIZED HETEROGLOSSIA THAT EXPLORES AN ALREADY EXISTING SET OF MEANINGS RELATIONS CLICHÏS AND
PRE
CONCEIVED IDEAS "Y DOING SO WE WANT TO FURTHER THE ONGOING INQUIRY INTO THE NATURE OF ART PRODUC
TION AND TEST THE LIMITS OF THE hART SCENEv TO SEE WHETHER THE "AUDLERIAN INSIGHT INTO THE NATURE OF ART
STILL HOLDS TRUE hLARTx PEUT DERIVER DUN SENTIMENT GENEREUX LE GOUT DE LA PROSTITUTION MAIS IL EST
BIENTÙT CORROMPU PAR LE GOUT DE LA PROPRIÏTÏv2
1
$ANTO !RTHUR n 4HE 0HILOSOPHICAL $ISENFRANCHISEMENT OF !RT #OLUMBIA 5NIVERSITY 0RESS