Sculpting History: A Formal Analysis of Michael Stevenson's *The Fountain of Prosperity* (2006)
Art historian Amy Knight Powell has suggested that a key characteristic of form is its temporal “promiscuity.” Reliably unfaithful to its original moment, form is open to de- and re-contextualisation: as it enters into different settings and new liaisons it is capable of taking on numerous alternati...
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Index Journal
2024-08-01
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| author | Anna Parlane |
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| description | Art historian Amy Knight Powell has suggested that a key characteristic of form is its temporal “promiscuity.” Reliably unfaithful to its original moment, form is open to de- and re-contextualisation: as it enters into different settings and new liaisons it is capable of taking on numerous alternative associations. This paper analyses Berlin-based New Zealand artist Michael Stevenson’s *The Fountain of Prosperity (Answers to Some Questions About Bananas)* (2006) in light of Knight Powell’s observation. Focusing on the sculpture’s installation in Stevenson’s 2011 survey exhibition at Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art, I uncover a Duchampian methodology underlying Stevenson’s research-based practice. In its use of found material, contemporary research-based art builds on conceptual art, institutional critique and appropriation art practices, and like them is situated within the genealogy of the readymade. However, as with the apparently anti-art gestures of the readymades and conceptual art, the aesthetic motivations and formal innovations of research-based art tend to be neglected. The historical material such artists present is frequently read as a didactic illustration of their archival sources, with the artwork itself reduced to little more than a prompt for a history lesson. By exploiting the promiscuous temporal elasticity of form, works like *The Fountain of Prosperity* in fact demonstrate the sculptural logic that underpins the use of found objects in contemporary art. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4e69c0d185a741638161397e13a671c3 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2652-4740 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-08-01 |
| publisher | Index Journal |
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| series | Index Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-4e69c0d185a741638161397e13a671c32025-08-20T03:45:47ZengIndex JournalIndex Journal2652-47402024-08-0110.38030/index-journal.2024.5.3Sculpting History: A Formal Analysis of Michael Stevenson's *The Fountain of Prosperity* (2006)Anna Parlanehttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-2540-547XArt historian Amy Knight Powell has suggested that a key characteristic of form is its temporal “promiscuity.” Reliably unfaithful to its original moment, form is open to de- and re-contextualisation: as it enters into different settings and new liaisons it is capable of taking on numerous alternative associations. This paper analyses Berlin-based New Zealand artist Michael Stevenson’s *The Fountain of Prosperity (Answers to Some Questions About Bananas)* (2006) in light of Knight Powell’s observation. Focusing on the sculpture’s installation in Stevenson’s 2011 survey exhibition at Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art, I uncover a Duchampian methodology underlying Stevenson’s research-based practice. In its use of found material, contemporary research-based art builds on conceptual art, institutional critique and appropriation art practices, and like them is situated within the genealogy of the readymade. However, as with the apparently anti-art gestures of the readymades and conceptual art, the aesthetic motivations and formal innovations of research-based art tend to be neglected. The historical material such artists present is frequently read as a didactic illustration of their archival sources, with the artwork itself reduced to little more than a prompt for a history lesson. By exploiting the promiscuous temporal elasticity of form, works like *The Fountain of Prosperity* in fact demonstrate the sculptural logic that underpins the use of found objects in contemporary art.https://index-journal.org/issues/liquid-time/sculpting-history |
| spellingShingle | Anna Parlane Sculpting History: A Formal Analysis of Michael Stevenson's *The Fountain of Prosperity* (2006) Index Journal |
| title | Sculpting History: A Formal Analysis of Michael Stevenson's *The Fountain of Prosperity* (2006) |
| title_full | Sculpting History: A Formal Analysis of Michael Stevenson's *The Fountain of Prosperity* (2006) |
| title_fullStr | Sculpting History: A Formal Analysis of Michael Stevenson's *The Fountain of Prosperity* (2006) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Sculpting History: A Formal Analysis of Michael Stevenson's *The Fountain of Prosperity* (2006) |
| title_short | Sculpting History: A Formal Analysis of Michael Stevenson's *The Fountain of Prosperity* (2006) |
| title_sort | sculpting history a formal analysis of michael stevenson s the fountain of prosperity 2006 |
| url | https://index-journal.org/issues/liquid-time/sculpting-history |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT annaparlane sculptinghistoryaformalanalysisofmichaelstevensonsthefountainofprosperity2006 |