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... was used as background. This created very interesting effect, when actors lines were not being associated with their personalities. One of plays character was a poem, which used to refer to itself as purely metaphysical idea, entitled with consciousness: I am the poem of this place and moment, I am a pause amid the seas of motion, I have no body I am Proteus, I flicker like a candle off and on (Goodman).
While watching the play, viewers were being required to apply their own ideas to plays message, in order to refine its semantic properties. Although today theatrical experimentation's became quite common, in early sixties authors used to take a great risk, while choosing in favor of theatrical uno conventionalism. This risk, however, would be greatly reduced, if performance was to take place in Greenwich Village, because of its association with ideological non-conformism. This was the reason why spiritually liberated authors strived to see their plays being staged in one of Villages many theaters.
This, of course, does not mean that Villages theatrical life in sixties can only be discussed within a context of general marginalization of American culture. Many highly credited actors had started their careers in obscure Villages theaters, when only very lazy critics were not ridiculing their affiliation with theatrical non-conformism, as something utterly un beneficial. For example, Al Pacino gained recognition of his actors talents, while playing a part in Israel Horowits play The Indian Wants the Bronx, which was staged in Astor Place Theatre in 1968. The play became instantly noted by critics, because, apart from promoting some controversial ideas, it also featured flashes of naked bodies, on the part of few actors. Another famous actor, Robert DeNiro, was also able to make an amazing acting career, because he dropped out of school at the age of 16 to perform in Villages off-Broadway theaters. Today, he often admits that it was during his Greenwich Village years that he became fully familiarized with secrets of acting, because the fact that he was not subjected to a strict acting discipline, allowed him to become mentally associated with his characters.
In 1963, The Open Theater presented viewers with a Gertrude Steins play Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights, which is now considered as a complete breakthrough from classical theatrical traditions. Stein embarked on creating an artistic effect by manipulating with audiences emotional reactions to the rapid changes of illumination. During the course of play, the powerful projectors illuminate stage from constantly changing angles, which according to the author, was meant to instill them with the idea of illusory essence of human existence. In his article Gertrude Stein Interprets Faust, Stephen Holden, suggests that staging Steins play is still being considered as very risky enterprise by many theaters, because the majority of viewers consider it as being totally deprived of any sense altogether, or being filled with such a deep meaning that it becomes almost impossible to understand it: When Gertrude Stein created Dr. Faustus Lights the Lights, her whimsical play based on the Faust legend, she made the invention of the light bulb the brilliant central metaphor for the human assumption of godlike power. Viewers need to adopt a metaphoric way of thinking, in order to understand plays message (Holden).
This again, provides us with insight on the extent of spiritual freedom, associated with off-Broadway theaters in Greenwich Village, in sixties. At the same time, the freedom of artistic pursuits does not always correspond to their quality. A great number of plays that were performed at the time of American cultural revolution in Greenwich Village did not leave a historical mark. Apparently, it had to do with the fact that, despite the bohemian atmosphere in Village, many of its residents artistic sophistication, was purely artificial. Just like Kazimir Malevich, who never got tired of praising his own masterpiece Black Square as such that was full of hidden ideas, despite the fact that his painting could easily be reproduced by any 3 years old child, the Villages progressive dramatists, also kept on insisting that their plays represent a great value, even though that many of these plays were being written in the state of drug-induced stupor. This also explains why many Greenwich Villages poets, artists, and dramatists used to be genuinely attracted to Marxist ideas.
They thought of them as such that are being essentially progressive, even though that these ideas practical implementation resulted in deaths of millions of people. Therefore, we can say that, despite the fact that Greenwich artistic ism of early sixties, in many instances, turned out to be productive, it would be wrong to discuss it within a context of cultural breakthrough alone. (3) When we look at poorly designed car, we rarely praise it because of its ugliness. However, this often been the case with politically correct pushers of Liberal agenda, who suggest that any other opinions, apart from the one which considers the genre of avant-garde as such that possesses an objective value, simply does not have the right to exist. The matter of fact is that bohemian progressiveness, which is still being strongly associated with Greenwich Village, paved the way for metaphysical insanity to become a basis for the social policies in this country. Therefore, it is hard to agree with Rex Roberts, who in his book review When Greenwich Village was a Bohemian Paradise implies that it is because of Greenwich Village, as cultural phenomenon, that we are now able to enjoy civil liberties: Villagers insistence on self-expression, self-determination and self-fulfillment has become America's unchallenged credo, and freedoms unthinkable a century ago are now considered unalienable rights (Roberts). Author must be unaware that peoples civil freedoms in this country are guaranteed by American Constitution.
In fact, Greenwich Village has always served as breeding ground of American Liberalism. Nowadays, the spiritual and often biological descendants of drug addicts with artistic aspirations, strive for nothing less then depriving Americans of their constitutional rights, suggesting that once guns were being taken away from rednecks, nothing will disrupt Americans from building a multicultural utopia, where everybody are equally going to be required to celebrate diversity, under the threat of punishment. Our review of artistic activities in Greenwich Village, during sixties, will not be complete if we do not mention a so-called Fluxus movement. When translated from Latin, fluxus means flow, which given the cultural context of sixties, provides us with understanding of what this movement stood for. It actually stood for nothing.
The composers, poets, artists, and people that lacked creative talent, but still wanted to hang out with bohemia, were able to find a common interest in promoting the idea of collective art. It is very doubtful whether either of them clearly understood the essence of this concept, but they still felt as if they were being united on subconscious level. There was no a clear division between artistic disciplines in early sixties, therefore, very often a sculptor, for example, used to refer to itself as poet or musician, which actually did correspond the actual state of affairs. The founding fathers of Fluxus movement, such as Jackson Mac Low, Al Hansen, George Brecht and Dick Higgins, were residents of Greenwich Village. It allows us to conclude that the artistic attitudes, expressed in Fluxus Manifesto, were being widespread among many villagers: Purge the world of bourgeois sickness, intellectual, professional, and commercialized culture.
Purge the world of dead art, imitation, artificial art, abstract art, illusionist art, mathematical art purge the world of Europanism! Promote revolutionary flood in art, promote living art, anti-art, promote non-art reality! (Flux Manifesto). It is very fortunate that Manifesto authors allusions of grandeur did not correspond to their artistic talent. It is also very fortunate that authors of this proclamation did not have guns at their possession; otherwise, it would only be the matter of time, before they would chose in favor of truly radical methods of purging world of bourgeois artists. Nevertheless, the ideas of Flux movement seem to be gaining a new popularity in our times, as we get to see more and more graffiti painted onto the walls of public buildings in every American town.
This coincides with less and less people willing to visit museums or opera houses. We can refer to it as indication that Europanism yields a way to primeval savagery, which is being discussed in terms of legitimate artful expression by very same people who praise Greenwich Village bohemians to the sky. We can say that graffiti is the highest form of collective art, because police often have a hard time looking for artists. Thus, the cultural phenomenon of Greenwich Village had rather negative effects.
It gives us a good reason to refer to the majority of villagers, in sixties, as such that were actively trying to promote the concept of degenerative art among Americans. According to a famous saying it is by tasting their fruits that we can distinguish poisonous plants from the good ones. If we apply the same principle, when it comes to discussion of artistic trends in Greenwich Village, in sixties, it will appear that the reason why majority of Americans still have a negative attitude towards avant-garde, is that they subconsciously associate it with spiritual poisoning. Bibliography: Greenwich Village. 2007. Bookrags. Com. 11 Dec. 2007.
web Goodman, Paul The Cyclist. 1941. Chuo University. Faculty of Policy Studies. 11 Dec. 2007. web Holden, Stephen Gertrude Stein Interprets Faust. 9 Jul. 1992. The New York Times. 11 Dec. 2007. web Paul Remembering Allen Ginsberg. 11 Nov. 2006.
The Huffington Post. 11 Dec. 2007. web Kerouac, Jack Cognac Blues. 1961. Poetry by Jack Kerouac. Tripod. Com. 11 Dec. 2007. web Maciunas, George Flux Manifesto. 1964.
Art/Not Art. Com. 11 Dec. 2007. web Roberts, Rex When Greenwich Village was a Bohemian Paradise. 29 Jul. 2002. BNET Research Center. 11 Dec. 2007.
web Abstract: This paper analyzes factors that affected the development of artistic ideas in Greenwich Village, and establishes a metaphysical connection between Village and the rise of artistic non-conformity, as cultural phenomenon. Outline: Introduction History Theater and Poetry Political Aspects
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Research essay sample on Greenwich Village Avant Garde
