Beef you feel good about

Rochester Institute of Technology

RIT Scholar Works

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Thesis/Dissertation Collections

5-18-1996

Beef you feel good about

Courtney Grim

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Recommended Citation

UBeef You Feel Good About"

Graduate Thesis

Master of Fine Art

School of Photographic Arts and Sciences

Rochester Institute of Technology

by Courtney Grim

May 1996

Thesis Board Members;

Roberly Bell, Thesis Chair, Associate Professor, CIAS

Elaine O'Neil, Associate Professor, SPAS

_ _ _ _

date~

/'if

Alex Miokovic, Adjunct Professor, SPAS

"Beef You

Feel Good

About"

by

Courtney

Grim

Rochester Institute

of

Technology

Masters

of

Fine

Arts

in

Imaging

Arts

To:

mom and

dad

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Roberly

Bell

Alex

Miokovic

Jeff Weiss

Elaine O'Neil

J/fcL

Chris Hahn

Tony

Gerardi

Alison

Sleini

-';fl

Melissa GrilTo

/

Deborah Reiders

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>\^_\

Since the

beginning

oftime

humanity

has hunted

andgath

ered

food.

This

holds

true_today,

but

thenature ofthe

hunt

ing

and_gathering

has

changed.

Today

we

hunt

in the rela

tively tamejungle ofthe supermarket.

Here,

we

decide

which typeof cheese we would

like

or

how

much

hamburg

er we wantground. Thetimes

have

changed

but

thebasic

ingredient is stillthesame

-food.

Foods marriage to

tech-Figure 1

nology

has

wrenched it

from

natureand thrown it into the "plastic world."

Thefocus on

prepackaging and other plastics

has

causedfoodto

become

a metaphorforour culture-our

progression

from down home

cookin'

to T. V.

dinners

toprecooked pre made preprocessed

Thanksgiving

Dinners,

these all

demonstrate

themass acceptance ofplastic food. Weshould

thankour

local

grocer nexttimewe _saytidingsat the table. Forwith out the_grocer, couldyou

skin andbutcheryour owndinner?

if, -j&z

**-Over thelast _{centurytechnology}hasallowed us toproduce and

communicate our needs and

desires

inall aspectsofourculture.

Foodisno exception. It has

long

beenthe topic ofconversa

tion anddiscussions. We

have

the _technologyto make itbet

ter, fasterandtastier thaneverbefore. Food has

found

_{its way}

into ourlivesthrough: the media, the _grocer, and alsothe

artist. Onesuch artist, Daniel

Sporrie,

evenstates _that, "to

buy

a tomatowhile _realizingthat it'sa work of_art, thatone is

Figure2

buying

and_{participating in}agreatspectacle. Ina spectacle

what is

false

becomes true,provided one chooses toenter into the

game."!

Itshould come as

no surprise than thatone ofthe earliestknownpaintingsis on acave wall and

depicts

a

bison

hunt. (fig. 2)2 _{Food has}

long

beena catalyst

for

discovering

and_uncoveringthe_underlying

My

current

body

ofwork; "Beef YouFeel GoodAbout," reflects uponthe changes_technology

has had

on our_culture,

by

_reexaminingthe _{way in}whichwe

buy,

package andsellfood. I

hope

togive insight into this

highly

developed,

quickly changing culture. Before I

begin,

I

would

like

to

briefly

discuss

some artists who

have

also used

food

and_technology to examine

theirown culture. Food and its_relationship to culture

has had

such aneffecton artiststhatit

appears assubject matterthroughout the gamutof

history.

Chaim

Soutine;

a Lithuanian_painter, was_especially

known for his

_paintingoffood and animals, (fig.

3)

The

importance of

food

came aboutfor Soutine

"by

the lackof

it inhischildhood. Soutine suffered terrible _povertyand hunger. His paintings

hold

an emotionalcharge"3

that

mustbe linkedto the smalltownhe grew_{up in along}with Hgure 5

^e

constant reminderofthe religious and culture impor

tance food held. Thesubject matter inwhich

his

still

life's

were _emotionally wroughtincluded

suchitems as

fish,

fowl, bacon, lemons,

_tomatoes, andbeef. These itemswere _onlyavailable to

him

through the paintshe used. Even after

he

achievedfame and

fortune,

his

stomach ulcer

prevented

him from

_{enjoying any}ofthem oncehe

f

;

|;

^,5^5

7-~m&

could afford them. Hispaintings show thedirect gf

^-'^P^"'

connection

between

the artist and theinfluence

theirculture

has

upon them.

In Hieronomous Bosch's Garden_of

Unearthly

Delights (fig.

4)

he uses food allegories topaint pic

turesof repressed desires. Theleftpanelcalled,

Creation_ofEvedisplays the"forbiddenfruit" _along

^^h^J\}

withthe _growinganticipationof

being

plucked.

.-'<=-&^

=r~z,v \W <ll

1-.

Thispanelalso showsAdamand Eve in the

foreground

_watchinganimals

devouring

each

other. Thecentral panel

known

asThe Fall_of Manwe see more obviousmetaphors suchas;

"cherries,

strawberries,raspberries andgrapesthat are

offeredto the

human

figures,

andwhich _{they devour}with

enjoyment. These are _nothing

but

thegodlesssymbols of

sexual pleasures. The apple-boat thatserves the lovers as a

refuge isreminiscent ofthe

female

breast,

the birdssymbol

ize

lewdness

and

ignominy,

thesea-fish lustor_anxiety, the

shellis thesymbolofthe

female.

Bosch

here

paints astrik

ing

pictureofrepressed desires."4 (fig.

5)

Figure 5

Boschalso uses

food

and theideas of consumptiontolookat our culture. Heplacesfood with

specific allegorical _meaning inhiscentral panel whichrepresents the fallofman. Onecould

possiblysee theimplications ofsex, desire and consumptionhe implies.

Giuseppe

Arcimboldo,

whosewhimsical andhumorouspaint

ings were oftenconsidered_silly untildiscovered

by

thesurreal

ists,

usedfruitto create objects rather than_usingthemas

objects. His_painting Summer(fig.

6)

consists ofthefruits one

wouldencounterin thisseason. Fruitssuch aspears, peaches,

cherries and grapes allform togetherto make a portrait.

Figure 6

The New Realismand Photorealismmovements, borninthelate 1960's as a reactionto the

Abstract Expressionistartistssaid _{something very}different. Gone was _{emotion, color, poetry,}

and incame reality.

By

_usingphotographs, Richard Estesperfected

his

workto the point

millionsof

Americans.

Inthis the_everyday wastransformed into

fine

art."5

HisGordon'sGin6

paintingis astreet scene

including

a

billboard

with "Gordon's Biggest

Selling

GinIn

England,

America,

TheWorld!"7

proudly

displayed

inthecenterofthepiece. Estes'

images are acele

bration

ofAmericanpopular culture. He sawthis particular_scene, photographedit and then

reproduced it exactlyas it appearedin thephotograph.

Felix Gonzalez-Torres uses

food

or rather sweetsto reference_manyaspects ofhis life. (fig.

7)

Forexample

his

"celebrated _candyspills, such ashis Untitled (Welcome Back

Heroes)

of

1991,

a

400 - _{pound stack of}

red, white and

blue

wrapped Bazooka gum,

'memorializing'

the Gulf War.

Other_candypiecesinclude portraits ofhis boyfriend and

himself,

andothers, inwhich the

candyhas thesame weight ashissubjects. Who

can resistcandy? Thus the metaphoricassociations

ofhismaterials permit Gonzales-Torresto construct

workswhich share whatamounts to aformal

invita-* ; _X

^tion

_{to the audienceto}

participate

by

_slowly

ingest-(ing

them,sweet

by

sweet."8

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^j^^^^rurthermore

Gonzalez-Torres UntitledPlacebo9

pieces referto experimentaldrugsoften used in clinics. His 1991 Placebo piececonsisted of

1000 - 1200 _{pounds of silver-foil wrappedcandies,} laidout like ahuge carpet across thefloorof

theAndrea Rosen

Gallery

inNew York. Here "Placebo

immediately

involves usin the cultur

al

field

ofthe medical clinicaltrials ofpotential treatmentdrugs."10 Butthere are so _many dif

ferent meanings associated with Gonzalez-Torresworksthateventhe critiques are puzzled.

"Thereis thus acomplex, shifting relationship amongGonzalez-Torres'svariouscandy pieces,

which

has

not

been

apparent tocritics whoregard hisuse of sweets as if_they were _traditional,

fixed

iconographicsymbols."11

Gonzalez-Torres'

work

itself,

"introduces themetonymous

shade of

Andy

Warhol,

and connotations ofblue

Marilyns, Lizs,

Electric

Chairs,

and so

Figure 8

Jean

Pigozzi

isaNew Yorkphotographer who

tries tocapture people _{in everyday}events and

with an almost voyeuristic

look

intopeoples

lives

as_they interact withinoursocial struc

ture. His

Thanksgiving

DinnerinaNew York

Indian

Restaurant,

(fig.

8)

is an excellent

example ofthe_wayourculture centers its

entiretyaround theconsumption offood.

The conceptual artist Marcel Broodthaersis anoth

erexample of an artist_who, "delights in incongru

ous juxtapositions andthe creation of visual para

doxes

through thecombinationof_{worlds, everyday}

objects andprinted

material."

Hissculpture

CasseroleandClosed Mussels

(fig.9)

consists of atall

pileofmussel shells

held

togetherwith green-tinted

resinwhich evokesthepresenceofthe sea. ^Figure 9

Broodthaersintends this work not_only as a satire on the Belgian

bourgeoisie but

also as a

metaphor

for his

home _countryof

Belgium;

where mussels arethenationaldish.

Wayne Thiebaud'searly work (fig.

10)

was

devoted

to

the depictionofall-American

foods,

_{especiallypies,}

whichhe executed inan

impassive,

realist style _using

thick,

juicy

pigments. Heoften repeated variationsofa

single object as though

"they

were on

display

in a cafe

teria, presentingthem almost as ritualisticofferings to

unmistak-able consumer

items,

_{concentrating}ontheir_texture, color and _shape, makesthe_painting an

importantexample ofAmericanCulture."12

Giorgio De Chirico created

Metaphysical

Pointings13 thatused

imag

inative andmysterious imagery.

Among

them

he

often used

food

for

symbolic meaning. Take

for

example

his

_paintingThe

Uncertainty

ofthePoet (fig. 1 1

)

in which

he

places

bananas

inthe

foreground

nextto a plaster castof awoman's

bust

which

he

uses

torepresent

human

eroticism. Thiswas_commonlyused

by

the

surrealists as visual puns andmetaphors throughout their work.

Figure 11

Popularculture, in many

different

ways, referencesour obsession withfood.

Wacky

packages

came out inthe _early seventies

by

Maddmagazine. These were_tradingcardswith

humorous,

punchy, often sardonic witticismtowards the consumer_{culture; they}soonbecame a childhood

memory.

Recently

I stumbled upon anewer version of

Wacky

Packages. Topps_company

has

expanded onthe oldfavorites

like

Squelch's Ape Juiceand

Cup

_ofPoodles Soup14

by

_printing

manufacturer'scoupons on the

backside

with _everything

including

thedotted lines. Take

for

example Chicken Licken: The

Poultry

Helper, (fig.

12)

Beside the

box

ofChicken Licken is an

advertisementto entice thewould

be

buyerintothis particular product. The advertisement

reads asfollow:

SAVE

14*

B Not|w am make iw uti neilMlrelyMftfyMrtamrRft iMtatfCMrtMtMmcMbtn

raflor mitfi WBolit,cMnbral wt

n-'

hMtt!MnMtmtIt IM* for rUqr.HdfaqrLnqr

MptMWW r

gro-HOTRV ftMf GMMfU

Ti^wh* *s**?;*.~ - "r.r"'"""~"~~ ""

Figure 12

"Here sucker, sucker, sucker! Come and get

it! Nowyou can make your next

holiday

meal _entirelyout of your

favorite

part- _the

stuffing! ChickenLickencan

be

molded

into absolutely anyshape or

form

- just

add

water and

dig

in! No

fat,

cholesterol or

J annoying

bones!

Also-besure to

look for

Henny

Penny,

Goosey Lucy

and

foxy loxy

Helper at your

local

supermarketor grocers today!

Who needsmeat?"15

And a coupon

for

"Butter

Up

"

(fig.

13)

butter

_{reads as}

follows:

"Fat Spread

for

People Who

Long

for

Bypass

Surgery! Nowyou canget 100times as

IOC OFFER EXPIRES THUR. 3:00pjb.

IOC

save

no&

on

Nowyou canget100limesas

much _{butter in only one} pat Butter _Up is _{scientifically}

corn-idtot!Nosubstitutes,no_by

much

butter

_{in only}onepat-pressed

fat!

No

Substitutes,

no

by

_products,justthe real

McCoy!! ! Ifthisstuffdoesn't clog,your

t'"rtfri pressedfot! Nosubstitutes",noby-_J

-Sr _*

isr^ijffis

5s^l

arteries in

24

hours>

we'11ive yu yur

^^^^

^ iesin 24hours,we'll give youyouri

^-^V^c^ moneybockand o one poundbag' L 1 J n r W^1

^^^j

of gristle!!! I money backandaone pound

bag

ot

Figure 13

gristle!!"

16

Besides advertising, Hollywoodhas also referenced theideas offood and consumption _{in many}

ofits movies. VincentVegaintheblockbuster movie,

Pulp

Fictionrefers toa

five

dollarshake

as ..."the

best damn

shake he ever

had."

Other

movies like: Eat DrinkMan

Woman,

Scent_ofa

Green

Papaya,

LikeWater for

Chocolate,

The

Thief,

The

Cook,

The Wife Her

Lover,

Willie

Wonka,

and

Fatso;

directly

address the influence

--,,1,

-.--| food has had ontheir

cultures.17

Ang

Lee,

(fig.

;_..

^^--_..

^

tA

&

'

'-

tei^i

'

m\

14)

the directorofEatDrink Man Woman_states,

"food is communication and_art, metaphor and

obsession. Eat Drink ManWoman isa movie that

has thepreparation of

food

and itsconsumption as

a constant theme. Food is a symbolaswell as

nourishment... a

huge influence,

with itsthemes of

hot and_cold, of contrasts and ofbalance."18

Since

the _early years of video_art, artists

have

madetelevisioncommercials a topic intheir

work. From

Television

Delivers

People(l973)

by

Richard Serrato Nam June Paik's Global

Groover(

1973),

artists

have

incorporatedactual commercials intotheiranalysis oftelevision

advertisingto

form

an aesthetic and political critique

of mass media.19 _Just

as Hans Haacke makes political

and economic

forces

thesubject of

his

_art, these

media artists

"directly

appropriate material

from

pro

grammingin order to

foreground

a materialistic cri

tiqueofthe exigencies ofproduction."20 _In

thevideo Figure 15

ofProduction Notes: FastFood

for

_Thought (fig.

15),

_{Jason Simon "strings} togethera series of

sevenpopulartelevision commercials."

After_watching each_commercial,we view itagain in

slow motion,"whileon thesoundtrackthe _advertisingagencies productionnotes are read out

loud. We

hear

whatthe_agencywas _seekingto sell andhow and to whom. Theresult is a

cogent

decoding

ofthestrategiesthat are_subtly, and_usually

invisible,

played out inthe com

mercial."21

figure 16

Thanksto Marcel

Duchamp

andhis nowfamous

ready-mades (fig.

16),

objects are

increasingly

being

intro

duced into highculture as art -

food

is _{no exception.}

Robert

Rauschenberg

attributesthis to thequalities

inherent incertain objects. Hestates _that, "apairof

socks isno lesssuitable tomake a_painting than_wood,

nails, turpentine, oil andfabric."22

By

_{stating this,}

Rauschenberg

recognizes that the most suitable objects

forart_making are oftenthose in

daily

use.

This is truewithfoodas well. Theselectionoftheobject

becomes

more important than the

creationofthe object. Thisis

because

the

implication and _meaningofthat_veryobject is

called intoquestion.

By

_placing theobject in

agallery, its meaningis recontextualized.

By

choosing a specific object over_others, that

particular object

has been

given new meaning.

I emphasize thisconcept in mycurrent

body

ofwork, "BeefYou FeelGood

About."

By

choosingchunks ofprocessed cheese,dehydrated

beef,

hormone

injected

dairy

products, andvaccummed sealed wonder

bread

I have forced the

viewerto

look

at a specific object inanewand

different

light, (fig.

17)

Besides_containingthese "pedestals ofprecious

objects"

the

body

of work also consists of_{electronically}repro

duced imagesand plastic boxesto encourage con

sumption and consumerism. Like Duchamp's

ready-mades, mypedestals "take acommonplace object out

ofits customary setting and places it inanew and

unfamiliarone."23

By

taking apackage of processed

American Cheese and_{placing it}upona_pedestal,

enclosing the cheese inplastic and

lighting

it

from

Figure 18 underneath - I have forced the viewer/consumer to

reexamine the importance and ideasbehind processed cheese (fig. 18). The nutritious value as

well asthe mode of_{packaging is}placed under careful scrutiny. Its attribute as aprepackaged

ready togoitem ishighlightedviathe displacementofit asaprecious object. Theideaof

transformingfamiliarobjects and_encouragingus to lookatthem ina new and

different

_way is

also indicative oftheNew

Realist,

Javacheff Christo. Christois obsessed with_wrappingand

packaging.Take

for

example

his

projectin

Miami,

Florida.

"Christo

used over a

billion feet

ofpink polypropylene

ribbon combined with61/2 million square

feet

of pink

fabric for

Surrounded Island

(fig.

19). These materials

were picked after tests

for

there

buoyancy

and color

fastness.

Christo rented Biscayne

Bay,

Floridatocover

the_surrounding 200

feet from

theisland out,

including

all 1 1 islands. He wanted_to, emphasize the_way thepeo

ple ofMiami

live,

between land

andwater."24

Figure 19

Here Christo is _talkingabout Miamiculture andthe ideaof_packagingitas a cultural and con

sumergood. Otherconsiderations

for

Christo

before

_undertakinga site specific piece range

from

the erosion control of aspecific fabric liketheone thatwasused in

Australia,

to the

strength of nylon

like

thepiece that was stretchedbetween Rifle

Gap,

Colorado. Christo

has

taken this ideaof_wrapping things to anewdimension. He

has

produceenvironmental _sculp

turesand landscapes known forthere wrappings.

By

_covering thePontNeuf-5 _in

Paris,

Christowas

"accentuating

thebridgessculptural

detail

while_creatingamajestic and mysteri

ous object ofbeauty. Italso served toemphasize theimportance of_preservingsuch

historical

monuments."26

The pedestals of preciousobjects in"Beef You Feel GoodAbout"reexamines this ideaof

preservation. I

have

chosen

beef,

cheese,

bread,

and milk asour culturaland

historical

monu

ments;

bringing

theseobjects together torepresent ourcultural

heritage

toour

future

genera

tions. The "TasteIt" Boxes (fig.

20)

found at theentrance of"Beef You Feel GoodAbout"

encourage one toparticipate in thespace

by:

licking

adiamond/pacifier_ring,

blowing

on a

whistle_{pop, wearing}a_candynecklace or_sucking onadumdum. This act ofparticipationis

further

encouraged as you progressthroughthe space

looking

and

learning

abouttheculture you

live

in.

"Like

Duchamp

blurring

the

line between

product and

art

object,"

the

line

continuesto

blur

when your eyes

rest ofthesubject matter of"Beef You Feel Good

About."

(Duchamps

subversionofthe art object

he

pro

ceeded to mass produce

his

own serial versionsofmass

media

imagery

and_packagingdesigns."27

Pop

Artis one ofthe

best

examplesof artistsreexamin [image:17.564.151.495.60.340.2]

ing

how

_theyviewand evaluate theirculture. Richard

Hamilton,

Roy Lichtenstein,

Claus

Oldenburg,

and

Figure 20

James Rosenquist all used Americanculture,_technology and more_specificallythe growthof

the

fast

food

industry

as theirsubject matter. These artistsdemonstrate the influences popular

culture

has

on art and vice versa. In the

late

50's and_early

60's,

Hamiltonused collage to

address issues

from

_contemporarymass mediatopopularculture toadvertising. Hisfamous

piece,JustWhatis it Thatmakes Today's Homes So

Different,

So Appealing? (fig.

21)

is a collage of a

stylized 1950's interiorand represents a

humorous

look atourconsumers paradise. Not tomention

it addresses the

beginning

ofthe

Pop

Artmove

ment.28

Roy

Lichtensteinused imagesand materials that

were mass-produced andproducts ofthe industri

alenvironment, often _extracting images

from

theiroriginal context and_parodyingthem.

By

Figure 21

[image:17.564.55.509.431.691.2]

magnifying and_{over-simplifying}these images

he

was not _makinga socialcomment on the con

tent

buy

_trying tomake people more aware ofthe aestheticsofthe 1960s. Lichtensteinonce

said that "aprime exponent of

American

Pop

Art,

_inwhich_artifacts, mass mediaand products

from

modern

life

were used as art

forms

inthemselves."29

Figure22

Claus

Oldenburg

was concerned with_making artfrommaterials and productsfrom the com

mercial environment, (fig.

22) Oldenburg,

who often reflectedupon the American"Fast-food"

empirethat was

developing

in the

late

60's,

was _{interested in everyday}lifewith itscomplex

changes and_{everyday ideas.} Heis interested in

imitating

and

displacing

one ofthe most potent

symbols ofAmerican Culture. In 1966

Oldenburg

created_manyobjectshe called "mul

tiples."

Among

them _included, "Severalhand

made objects that were to

be

cast and encased in

plastic...I proposed aselectionof purchased food

imitations, like many ofthe items found inthe

"museum."

But little cameofthis."30

Figure 23

One such example isthe False Food

Selections,

Prototype Box of1966. This was a unique pro

totype forproposed Fluxus

Edition,

_consistingofan antiquewood chest _containingtwo sheets

of notes

by Oldenburg

and assorted"false"

foods

inplasticand rubber. Anotherexample of

this isthe

Wedding

_{Souvenir (fig. #23)} multiples. Inwhich_roughly 250slices of_weddingcake were massproduced with a_stamp on the

bottom

_stating"Claus

Oldenburg

Wedding

Souvenir

Los Angeles 1966."

These

have

ended _upas

full

cakes on

display

in

homes

and ingalleries

alike. But _accordingto

Oldenberg

he

prefers, "to insist onits original

identity

as partof a cake

-a multiple inthe

form

of a

slice."

Several artists that I

have

been inspired

by

that actually use

food

orthe ideas

behind

food,

as a

materialfor theirsculptures or paintings include:

Charles

Ray

andhisMarble Box Filled with

Pepto-Bismol (fig.

24);

Sandy

Skokland andhercheese

puffinfestedCocktail

Party,

Joseph Beuys and

his

Chairwith

Fat,

Armand Arman's use resin toencase

objectsto capture them in_time; Daniel Spoerri's

snarepictures and

his

_philosophy ontomatoes as

stated earlier in my _{thesis; Karen}Finley'sperfor

mance of_pouringchocolate onher

body

and_stuffingJell-O in

her

bra; Wolfgang

Laib's Milestone (fig.

25)

andhis obsessionwith process not to mentionhis_statement, "I

feel

that it

wouldn't even

be

_necessaryto make art because _{it is already}

there."

Additionalartist include: PabloPicasso's-plate with

Wafers,

Andy

Warhols ideas aboutthemundane

being

extraor-|

dinary

andhisobsessive nature with

documentation;

Janine Antoni's Gnaw Chocolate andGnawLard that

deals

with

issues of _eatingdisorders and usesbulimiaas a metaphor

for

a

"neurotic and insatiable consumersociety"31

"BeefYou Feel

GoodAbout"

fits intothissocial context

by

_re-examiningthe

Figure 25

way inwhichwe

buy,

package andsell

food,

the _wayinwhich we consume our"federal

daily

requirements."

As one entersthe _gallerythey

find

billboard-like images

thatupon

first

glance appear as_pleasingand attractive

advertisements, while_underlying the aesthetic

beauty

are thecultural and social implications. "In it'smost

basic

form,

aconsumer culture isone inwhich the activi

ties and ethicsof a _societyare

determined

by

patternsof

Figure 26

consumption."

Thesepatterns arethefoundationsof

"Beef You Feel Good About."

Our_societyhas

become

so obsessedwith _movingand_growingat

a

faster

and quicker pace thatwe

have

not stoppedtoconsider the implications of our "con

sumerculture."32

(fig.

26)

From

bringing

home

thebaconto

frying

_{it up in}apan wehave

allowed our

lives

tobe consumed

by

consumerism. "Americanculture ofthe 1960s revolved

around issuesof consumption not_onlythe

larger

scale ofgovernmental_policy and

legislation,

economic planning,and corporate_growth,butonthemicroeconomics levelofpersonal

lifestyle as well."33

The ideaof

keeping

_upwith theJoneswas bornand the_young urbanpro

fessionals

that grew _{up in}the 60's became knownas theyuppie generation. But ifwe are

always

keeping

_upwiththeJones and_strivingto livethe"good

life"

thenwe are never _enjoy

ing

the here andnow. We have become powerlessinour search

for

Utopia "becausethe effects

ofconsumption are so widespread andprofound,discussions of consumption must extendto

social and cultural aspectsas well."34 The_{stereotypes of women inthe}

kitchen

_and

doing

the

shopping"perpetuates the socialstereotypes, ethnic_{categorization,} andgenderroles."35

The time and mood was right

for

theemergence ofwhatisnow

known

as

"pop

art."

The

movement

from

1958 to 1968 that explored_contemporaryAmerican life. The ideasor rather

questions that_pop art raiseswere a sense of ambivalence and ambiguity. Didtheir

images,

"represent a positivestatement, a glorificationor celebration ofthe consumer

ethic,"

or

did

they

"represent

a criticism ofthe

dehumanizing

results of such economic _activityand indict

ment of a_society

for

which_{standardization,}

impersonality,

and vulgar

banality

have become

the norm."36

Theworld of_pop art was_undeniably

drawn from

_{advertisements, movies,} mar

keting,

and consumer culture.

Figure27

These same themesof_advertising,mass _marketingandconsumerism thatconcerned_popartists

are also

found

in "Beef YouFeelGoodAbout."

(fig.

27)

The

large

images onthe walldirect

digital

scans instead ofthe moretraditionalphotographic process. This was done

for

two rea

sons.

First,

I wantedto use a modern_wayof_{photographing my images} andtoo

better

empha

sizehow technology is_affecting all aspectsoflife. The

digital

erahas arrived. I am not _saying

"paperis

dead";

far from it,

thisis just a

faster

more_{environmentally}

friendly,

_economically

draining

wayof

doing

things. I wanted to use thecomputerto capture _{my images} andthen to

Figure 28

output themdirectly. I did no manipulationofthemexceptforaesthetic visualplacement

upon thescanner. Ichose objects from local area_grocerystores, (fig.

28)

Theseobjects were

not random. Iwas _trying to cover allthefood _groups;

Breads,

_cereal,

Rice, Pasta;

_vegetables,

fruits;

milk, yogurt, cheese; meat, poultry,

fish,;

beans,

eggs, nuts;

fats

and sugars. Thesecond

thingwas _pickingitems thatwerepackagedand

"ready

to go".

By

thisI mean packaged for

people,

for

Americans onthegoin this

fast

past techno-industrial society.

Individual,

pre

cooked,pre-chopped, pre-diced,sliced and shredded. All

for

the ease and convenience

for

_us,

theconsumer.

"Beef You Feel Good About"

visuallyrepresents our culture atthe turnofthe century. I have

chosen

food

_technologyas a metaphor

for

our culture,ourneed to

buy

and

"shop

'til you

drop;"37 _{ourneed to}

have

everything

faster

and

better

thanever

before;

ourneed tobeenter

tainedinstead of_{entertaining ourselves;} ourneed to touchandfeel andsmell and our need to

know_everything thatis _goingon _exactlyas _{it is going}on. (fig.

29)

Take

for

example today's

super market. I still remember_mythoughts and_overwhelmingsense of awe the

day

I walked

intoWegmans. Allthe color and rich aromasand vast selection. Icould

look

andtouch and

feel

and smell-allthat _myAmericansensesdesired.

Figure29

But when"onestands

long

enough, the sensual experience

begins

toebb and

feel hollow.

Why

is itthat thebutchers have no bloodontheirwhiteaprons?"38

Why

is itthatwhen you pur

chase yourtuna and salmonthere are noheads

lying

around and more

importantly

the airis

aromatic not caked with

fishy

aromas.All the consumersees is

"a

little trimming here

and a

lot

of_wrappingthere. In

fact

the entirestore

lacks

_any

aroma at all.

Every

_{piece of meat and}

fish

_is

hermetically

sealed. The presliced

pepper-onis are spread on apieceofcardboard

like

a_winning poker

hand,

thenvacuumed in a

skin of plastic. Backat_produce, there is another _sign,

dangling

between

the 'fresh' and

the 'organic,' _advisingthat allthe

fruits

and vegetables are

dipped

ina prophylactic of

'Food grade_{vegetable-petroleum-beeswax} or

Lac-Resin-based

WaxorResinto maintain

freshness.'"39

Within the

last

ten_years, the stock atthe average supermarket

has

almost

doubled

to 30,000

products.40 _The

vast_arrayof products anditemsto

feast

upon are_only the

beginning-the

ambush

begins

with theproduce section.

"Sixty

percent ofall supermarkets

begin

with_produce; the

others

begin

with flowers. The idea isto tantalize the cus

tomer, to drawyou inwith _eye-catching

displays

andthe

promise of

bounty

and

freshness-as

ifyou were_entering a Figure 30

trueopen-air market. Afterthat the layoutis designed

toward one end: _encouragingas_many unplannedpurchasesaspossible."41 _(fig.

30)

Fromthephysicaldesign to themetaphysical state, we

have

no _artillerythatcan

defend

us.

Even those thatremember their_shoppinglists arenot prepared

for

what

lurks

inthe shadows.

According

to a research

funded

by

Coca-Cola Research

Council,

_only thirty-onepercent of

thepopulation arrives with a_shoppinglist. Butthis

doesn't

prevent one

from

_getting addition

allypurchases. This iswhat the supper market

industry

is_countingon, whatthe

industry

is

manipulating usinto. Fromthemoment you _{step inside} to_every

direction

that you _turn,

from

theplacement ofproductsto the music_tempo, these are the _{necessary ingredients} and

have been

strategicallyconfigured toslow thecustomer

down

inorder to increasesales.

Take

for

example theplacement ofyour product.

According

to a_study

done

by

Eastman

Kodak,

"The

best

_viewingangle is

fifteen degrees below

the

horizontal,

thechoicest elevation

on _any isle

has been

measured at

51"

to 53"offthefloor."42 These are theproducts not neces

sarily

found

on your

list

and arethe most expensive. Itmakessenseto have aproductthat

almosteveryone uses

(chicken, beef,

and vegetable

bouillon)

foundon thebottomshelf.

Why

waste aprime

location

on an itemthat you

know

theconsumerwillbuy? Figure31

eeps your

Vegetables

Fresher

Longer

Have youeverthoughtabout thefood you

buy

whenitsays"LongerShelf

Life"

or"Lockedin

Freshness."

(fig.

31)

This sardonichumor isemphasized inthe title "Beef You Feel Good

About."

Fromthepedestals ofprecious objects

(being

51-53 incheshigh tobetterpromote

and encourage_purchasing,) to thenames ofthespecific _pieces,even tothe typeface used,43

theseare alltaken into considerationtoenticetheviewer into thespace. Butafter theover

whelming

beauty

oftheimages and_pretty colorshave_passed, (just likethebutcher_shop) you

glance

down

atthe title anddescriptionofthepiece and are reminded oftheprice that we are

paying-

for

_our

technologythat is. The

following

are examplesofthepiecesfound in "Beef

You Feel GoodAbout."

3=

TO

Figure 32

HANDLEHERE- _(fig.

32)

representsthe epitome ofour processed nation. The

bacon

here is wrapped

individually

microwavable_plastic, enclosed with atowelette to aid in

the absorption ofthegrease. Thetitle givesreference to the worlds stampedonthe

ends ofthe

bag

which simple states...handle

here.

Directing

the consumerto

hold

the

bag

attheedges- justin

case one

forgot

that_microwavingthingscausesthem to get

HOT!

Figure33

SAFE HANDLINGINSTRUCTIONS-

(fig.33)

_{This is thestickerfound}on all meat

productstoday. This

label

reminds theconsumerthat you need towash all utensils

and _anyareathat comes intocontact with theproduct that is enclosed.

Figure 34

DANGER OF

SUFFOCATION,

KEEP AWAY FROM BABIES- _(fig.

34)

_{This modern}

convenience allowsthe consumerthe ease of_selectingthechoicesmorsels and a speci

fied

quantity.This isgreat forpeople who are ina

hurry

and

do

nothave time towash

theirownfruits and vegetable. Butthis plastic

bag

remindsthat thisconvenience _may

also

kill

yourbaby.

Figure 35

RECOMMENDED

SELL BYNOV. 07- _(fig.

35)

_{Anothergreatexample thatwe are}

loosing

touchwith_realitywhen an expirationdate appears onfruitand vegetables.

This

bag

of

food

that

has been

processed,prechopped andprecooked foryour conve

nience

has

also

become

expendable. Sorememberthatyoubake apotato inan_oven,

and thatif it getssoft andsmelly- don't_{eat it.}

Figure36

And mypersonal

favorite,

IMPORTANT-OPENSLOWLY(fig. 36). This came about

by

the numerouscomplaintsthat

individually

wrapped cheeses would

break

at the _top

when_theywere opened. Tosolve this

dilemma,

themanufactures printed the instruc

tions

for

the correct _way toopen

Individually

wrapped cheese to

keep

the its_perfectly

square

flat

_{aesthetically pleasing}form.

Figure37

I

have focused

onthe

billboard

reference to_mypieces

for

tworeasons. The first

being

the

viewer. Iwantedthe viewerto

feel

asthough there isa _message, that the "normal" advertise

mentswe see _todayneedsto bereexamined. Thatthe "Beef YouFeelGood

About,"

campaign

is just_that, a campaignto

heighten

sales and increaserevenue. Thatthe image ofthe All

American

family

_sitting

down

to dinnerat 5pm isas common place as the horse andbuggy.

Secondly

isthe ideasof_processing and process. These areimportantelements in my images

which are readymades and thatwillbecome _readymade

by

the _veryconsumers _theywerecreat

ed for. These elements reinforce _technology andhowwe have become anationon the move.

That chicken cordonbleu is somethingyou get atWendy's not athome or ina

fancy

restau

rant;

but

on the _waytowork orhome or somewhere else. Sothe nexttimeyoubite into your

twoall

beef

_patties, ask yourselfif it is "BeefYouCanFeel Good

About."

THEEND

ENDNOTES

IChristinJ. Mamiya,

Pop

ArtandConsumerCulture: AmericanSuper Market (Austin: UniversityofTExas

Press, 1992),23.

^Painting

fromthecaves of_Lascaux,date_unknown,French GovernmentTouristOffice,London.

3Dunow, 79.

4Bosch

363.

5Ibid,

31.

6Mamiya,

193.

7Ibid,

38.

8Ibid,

121.

9_{Aplaceboisaninert}

substance,indistinguishablefroma pharmaceutical compound incomparisontowhichthe

effects of a

drug

_maybe measured.

10Parkett,

23.

11

Ibid,42.

12Art

Instituteof_Chicago,30.

13createdthisword....tellaboutitconsulttheartbook

14_ibid,43.

15Topps

CompanyrecreatedtheideaofMadd MagazinesWackyPackagesto

help

promote sales.

16ibid,

36.

17LikeWaterforChoclate, AlfonsoArau, Buena VistaPictures, Burbank, California, 1994; Fatso, AnneBancroft,

TwentiethCentrueyFox, 1980.;EatDrinkManWoman, AngLee,Teh Samuel GoldwynCompany, California, 1994. The Scentof aGreenPapaya,TranAnhHung,OverseasFilmgroup Inc., 1993;

Tampopo,Juzo Itami, California, 1986.

18Weintraub,

121.

19

Armstron, 231.

20_{Armstrong, 233.}

21ibid,

23.

22ibid,

67.

23ibid,

44.

24Cortlett,

23.

25Fishwick,

88.

26Brown,

120.

^'Pincus,

36.

28Richard

Hamiltonwas abritishpopartist who wasthefirsttoacknowlede theexistance of_popart.

*'

ReferencetoBarbra Krugerspiece,

"Shop

'tilyou

drop."

38Collins,

207.

39Nesbitt,

112.

40How

We Et: An AmericaDivided,56.

41ibid,

72.

42ibid,

94.

43Goudy

isthe typeface Wegmansusedfortheircampain"BeefYou Feel Good

About.'

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Aperture. New

YorkAperture

Foundation

Inc.,

1992.

Armstrong,

Richard. JohnG.

Hanhardt,

Richard

Marshall,

Lisa

Phillips,

eds. 1989Biennial

Exhibition. New York: Eastern

Press, Inc.,

1988.

Bruce, Chris,

Rebecca

Solnit,

Buzz

Spector.,

AnnHamilton: A Document_ofTwo Installations

By

Ann Hamilton. Seattle:

Henry

Art

Gallery,

1991.

Chalmers,

Irena. The Great FoodAlmanac. San Francisco: Collins

Publishers,

1994.

Claes

Oldenburg

Coosje Van Bruggen Large - Scale Projects. NEw York: Monacelli

Press,

1994.

Claes Oldenburg: Multiples inRetrospect 1964-1990. New York: Rizzoli International

Publications, Inc.,

1990.

Collier, John, Jr.,

Malcolm

Collier,

Edward T. Hall. Visual Anthropology:

Photography

as a Research Method. Albuquerque:

University

ofNEw Mexico

Press,

1986.

Collins, Douglas,

Nathalie Dupree. Americas Favorite Food. New York:

Harry

N.

Abrams,

1994.

Corlett,

Mary

Lee. The_{Prints of}

Roy

Lichtenstein ACatalogue Raisonne 1948 - 1993. New York:

HudsonHills

PRess,

1994.

Diane Brown Gallery. Damaged Goods-.Desireand the

Economy

_ofthe Object. New York: Conrad Gleber

Printing

and

Publishing,

1986.

. 1991 Biennial Exhibition. New York: WWNorton and

Co.,

1991.

Dunow, Esti,

Guy

Loudmer,

Klaus Perls and Maurice

Tuchman,

eds. ChaimSoutine (1893

-1943). London: Marlborough Fine

Art,

1993.

Farb, Peter,

George Armelagos.

Consuming

Passions: The

Anthropology

_ofEating. Boston: Houghton

Mifflon,

1980.

Fishwick,

Marshall. Seven Pillars _ofPopular Culture. London: Greenwood

Press,

1985.

Greene,

Alison

de

Lima andPierre Restany. Arman 1955 - 1991 A Retrospective. Houston:

MuseumofFine

Arts,

1991.

Hopps, Walter,

ed. Kienholz: _{ARetrospective. New York:}

Whitney

Museum ofAmerican

Art,

1996.

"How We Eat: An AmericaDivided."

The New York Times

Magazine,

10 March

1996,

37-72.

Johnson,

Ellen H. Penguin New Art

4

Claus Oldenburg. Maryland: PenguinBooks

Ltd.,

1971.

Jones,

D. Price.

"Food,

Taste andCulture: Not All Sweetness and

Light."

Chemistry

and

Industry

v.

10,

21

May

1984,

361-366.

Kinnucan,

Henry

W,

Stanley

R.

Thomson,

Hui-Shung

Chang.

Commodity Advertising

and

Promotion. Amers: Iowa State

University

Press,

1992.

Kittler,

Pamela

Goyan,

KathrynSucler.FoodandCultureinAmerica. New York: Van Nostrand

Reinhold,

1989.

Kushner,

Robert. "Life intheProduce Aisle." ArtJournalv.

54,

Spring

1995,

62-65.

Lippard,

Lucy

R.

Pop

Art. London: Thames andHudson

Ltd,

1966.

Reprint,

New York:

Thames andHudson

Inc.,

1992.

Malloy,

Julia. "The FoodPyramid."

Better Homesand Gardens v.71,march

1993,

144-152.

Mamiya,

Christin J.

Pop

ArtandConsumer Culture: American Super Market. Austin:

University

ofTexas

Press,

1992.

Mather,

Robin. A Garden_of

Unearthly

Delights. New York: ADutton

Book,

1995.

Michaels,

Walter Benn. Our America:

Nativism, Modernism,

andPluralism. London: Duke

University

Press,

1995.

Museumof

Contemporary

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1990s,

Pasadena:

Typecraft,

Inc.,

1992.

Nesbitt,

Lois E. "Janine Antoni: Sandra

Gering

Gallery." Artforum_v.30, Summer

1992,

112-113.

Pottker,

Jan. Crisis in Candyland. Bethesda: Nationalpress

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1995.

Sontag,

Susan. OnPhotography. New York: Anchor Books

Doubleday,

1990.

Tannahill,

Reay. Food in History. New York: SteinandDay. 1973.

Tannenbaum,

Judith. PerForms. Philadelpia: Instituteof

Contemporary

Art,

1995.

Taylor,

Simon."Janine Antoni at Sandra

Gering."

Art in Americav.80, October

1992,

149.

Warhol,

Andy. The

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_of

Andy

Warhol. New York: Harcourt Brace and

Company,

1975.

Weintraub,

Linda (ed.). Art What Thou Eat: Images _{of Food in American Art. New}York: MoyerBell

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Wyman,

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1993.

Yood,

James. Feasting: A Celebration _ofFoodin Art. New York: Universe

Publishing,

1992.

LIST OF

ILLUSTRATIONS

Figure

1. Albrecht

Durer,

The Fall

ofMan

(Adam

and

Eve)

_,Engraving,1

504,

MuseumofFine

Arts,

Boston.

2. Bison

Hunt,

Lascaux,

c. 13,000

B.C.,

_{French Government Tourist}

Office,

_London.

3. Chaim

Soutine,

Still Lifewith

Herrings,

oilon_canvas, Dr. Louis

Devraigne,

1916.

4. Hieronymus

Bosch,

The Garden_of

Earthly Delights,

oilon_wood,

1505-1520,

Museodel

Prado,

Madrid.

5. Giuseppe

Arcimboldo,

Summer,

oilon _canvas,

1573,

Musee

du

Louvre,

Paris.

7. Felix

Gonzalez-Torres,

Untitled (WelcomeBack

Heroes),

four hundred

poundsofBazooka

gum,

1990,

"whereabouts

unknown."

8. Jean

Pigozzi,

Thanksgiving

Dinner inaNew York Indian

Restaurant,

silvergelitin_print,

1993,

"whereaboutsunknown."

9. Marcel

Duchamp, Fountain, 1917,

"whereabouts unknown."

10. Wayne

Thiebaud,

Calces No.

1,

pastel on _tracingpaper,

1967,

Society

for

Contemporary

Art,

"whereabouts unknown."

11. Giorgio De

Chirico,

Uncertainty

_ofthe

Poet,

oil on canvas

1913,

Tate

Gallery,

London.

12. Chicken

licken,

manufacturers _coupon,

1991,

The Topps

Company, Inc.,

New York.

13. Butter

Up,

manufacturers coupon,

1991,

The Topps

Company, Inc.,

NewYork.

14.

Ang

Lee,

EatDrinkMan

Woman,

video _tape,

1993,

"whereabouts

unknown."

15. Jason

Simon,

Production Notes: Fast Food

for

Thought,

video,

1987,

"whereabouts

unknown."

16. Marcel

Duchamp, Fountain, 1971,

porcelain,

"

original whereabouts

unknown."

17.

Courtney

Grim,

Taste It

Boxes,

acrylic, paper, sugar, wood,

1995,

New York.

18.

Courtney

Grim,

Taste It

Boxes,

acrylic, paper, sugar, wood,

1995,

New York.

19 Javacheff

Christo,

Rifle

Gape, Colorado,

_{nylon, rope,}

1935,

"Nowdismantled."

20.

Courtney

Grim,TasteIt

Boxes,

_{acrylic, paper, sugar, wood,}

1995,

New York.

21. Richard

Hamilton,

Just WhatIs It ThatMakes Today's Homes So

Different,

So

Appealing?,

collageon_paper,

1956, Kunsthalle,

Tubingen.

22. Claes

Oldenburg,

Photograph of one-man_show, Green

Gallery,

New

York,

1962.

23. Claes

Oldenburg,

Wedding Souvenir,

plaster,

1966,

California.

24. Charles

Ray,

Marble BoxFilledwithPepto -

Bismol,

marble, pepto-bismol,

1988,

Burnett

Miller

Gallery,

Los Angeles.

25.

Wolfgang

Laib, Milestone,

white marble and _milk,

1992-1993,

Kunstmuseum Bern.

26. Javier

Carriedo,

The

Icing

andStripe

Applicator,

hostess cupcakes,

icing,

1996,

Chicago.

27.

Courtney

Grim,

Warning: This is nota_toy, bubblejetprint, sintra,

laminate,

1995,

New York.

28.

Courtney

Grim,

Acid Free

Tomatoes,

sintra,bubblejetprint,

laminate,

1995,

New York.

29. Claes

Oldenburg,

Viandes (Meat

Counter),

porcelain plate, marble _{slabs, paint,}

1964,

"whereaboutsunknown."

30. Coca-Colaadvertisement,television commercial, Coca-Cola

Company,

California.

31.

Courtney

Grim,

Keeps yourVegetables Fresher

Longer,

acrylic,paper, sugar, wood,

1995,

NewYork.

32.

Courtney

Grim,

Handle

Here,

bubble jetprint,

laminat,

sintra,

1995,

New York.

33,

Courtney

Grim,

Safe

Handling

Instructions,

bubblejetprint,

laminat,

sintra,

1995,

New York.

34.

Courtney

Grim,

Danger of

Suffocation,

Keep Away

From

Babies,

bubble jetprint,

laminat,

sintra,

1995,

New York.

35.

Courtney

Grim,

Recommended Sell

by

Nov.

07,

bubblejetprint,

laminate,

sintra,

1995,

New York.

36.

Courtney

Grim,

Important-Open

Slowly,

bubble

jet,

laminat, 1995,

New York.

37.

Courtney

Grim,

Peeps ina

Box,

sintra, bubble

jet,

laminate,

1995,

New York.