Artist Series: Ho Suh, Hawkinson, Zittel & Ali

Whether through fabric, gouache, or recycled materials, Do Ho Suh, Tim Hawkinson, Andrea Zittel, and Laylah Ali’s work inform concepts of postmodernism. Rejecting the notion of progress and the idea of the avant-garde, these artists tend to reflect upon the past, eliminate the sense of individualistic identity, and allude to consumer or pop culture.

             Do Ho Suh’s fabric recreations of architecture are far removed from their origins. Though they directly reference personal spaces, they are ghostly and “mute constructions” that show little evidence of the crafter’s hand. This elimination of the artist as “creator” is definitely a postmodern thought.

            Andrea Zittel’s sculptures and installations transform things such as eating, sleeping, bathing, and socializing into artful experiments in living. She directly references consumerism within “A–Z Administrative Services”. Zittel designed this organization to mass-produce homes, furnishings, and vehicles for contemporary consumers. Her standpoint on consumerism as an entrapment hones in on the redundant process of duplicating many of the objects she makes- such as her outfits or personal pods.

            Tim Hawkinson’s collage technique and the implementation of photographing himself to use those pictures within his work are also postmodern. Collage and its borrowed imagery can be seen within the Dada movement, which in itself was postmodern. His use of household items and industrial material also go hand in hand with the appropriation element of postmodernism.

            Laylah Ali’s cartoon characters though colorful and playful looking address societal issues such as discrimination, power and violence. Art 21 shows Ali applying her 2-D works to modern dance. This transfer of what can be seen as “low art” into something that can be viewed as more than drawings on paper, is somewhat progressive and modern in concept. Ali remains a postmodern artist though; in the manner she references pop culture in the media and the stylized execution of her cartoon figures.

            Do Ho Suh, Tim Hawkinson, Andrea Zittel, and Laylah Ali work in different mediums and are inspired by various issues in contemporary culture. What link these artists together are their postmodern concepts and innovative ways of provoking discussions about politics, consumerism, memory, and appropriation.