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Con Art - Why you should sell your Damien Hirsts while you can Paperback – March 24, 2012

by Julian Spalding (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 82 ratings
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A concise dissection of the myths that created Con Art - above all the myth that art has to shock to be new. The multi-million dollar reputations of Duchamp, Warhol, Beuys. Hirst and Koons and many others are exploded. Their art is worthless as art because it isn't art.
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  1. Print length
    44 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    March 24, 2012
  4. Dimensions
    6 x 0.1 x 9 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1475088434
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1475088434
  7. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (March 24, 2012)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 44 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1475088434
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1475088434
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 4.2 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.1 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 82 ratings

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Julian Spalding

Julian Spalding

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Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
82 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Rebecca
5.0 out of 5 stars An Artist's Opinion
Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2012
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I am a full time artist and although I am personally not against conceptual art I am extremely tired of it.
It dominates what is taught in art schools, what wins competitions, and what modern galleries exhibit. I can live with all of that to a certain extent, because I believe as Artists it is our responsibility to change things.
However I do hate seeing young artists being pushed in any one direction, and the conceptual art push in schools is more like a vicious shove, with the students that are designing it getting all the accolades.
If you take a radical idea and make everyone do it, it is no longer radical! On top of that the creation of conceptual art seems to be to the detriment of technical ability.
I am actually a Ceramic Artist and when I saw that conceptual art is also influencing ceramics, I decided to create a work that discussed this. I am just at the research stage, so when I looked online to find information from both sides of the argument, I struggled to find documented informed writing that was against the anti art movement. So I was truly delighted when I found this book.
Not only is it clever, informed and written by someone indisputably in the know, it is really funny and entertaining. The only thing that disappointed me was that it came to an end.
I don't agree with everything that was written, but the point is having all sides of the arguement, (and there is plenty written in support of conceptual art elsewhere) so you can form your own opinion.
And for the record, Damien Hirsts shark worked for me as it was powerful and dramatic, I love originality in any form.
I am not conservative or as previously stated- anti the anti art movement. I just believe it's time to move on and this book takes away the illusion of presuming that because it is conceptual, that it is also clever.
Sincerely
Rebecca Shawyer (NZ)
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Eline
4.0 out of 5 stars Good contribution to art discussion
Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2012
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Good contribution to a subject that should be more widely discussed: what is art? (and what's not). Not all human expression is art. Spalding needs only 44 pages to explain why not and he does it in a funny way too. He hopes to be the little boy that tells the Emperor he's naked. Although I wish him to be that little boy, I think it may take another while. There's big money and reputations at stake. And the general public have turned their back on modern art. I'm afraid we need a lot more little boys and girls to tell the Emperor he hasn't got anything on. But this booklet is a good start.
2 people found this helpful
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Anne Phillips
5.0 out of 5 stars Make Money Not Art
Reviewed in the United States on April 11, 2016
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Julian Spalding has never been shy in the presence of dignitaries, luminaries and authorities - several anecdotes he proudly relates in this book attest to that. His short-lived tenure as museum director in Glasgow as well as several critically acclaimed exhibits curated by him, establish that he really knows what he is talking about. And Spalding does not hold back - be it the reorganization of the National Gallery in London, the Tate building, snobbish gallery owners, lack of drawing skills, "multiples" ... and on and on and on. I want to go back to the times before pissoirs became art, when sharks remained in the ocean, and I did not need instructions to understand the meaning of a piece of art! Where have all the flowers gone or the gentlefolk in the meadows or a landscape by Hockney? Written as an opinion piece, probably a little too long and a little too repetitive, but never for a split second is there any doubt about Julian Spalding's standing. I think, he is also in the Queen's corner.
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Steve Harrison
3.0 out of 5 stars Good opinion but without background or context
Reviewed in the United States on February 9, 2013
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This is a short but nicely-written presentation of the author's opinions. He is critical of much modern art and of the modern art market. I happen to agree with him. The problem is that his book requires, rather than provides, an understanding of art or the market. For that I recommend Don Thompson's The Twelve Million Dollar Stuffed Shark. Reading that book, though, makes Spalding's superfluous unless you want to read confirmation of Thompson's opinions from an art expert (Thompson is an economist).
8 people found this helpful
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propertius
5.0 out of 5 stars Is That All There Is, Peggy Lee?
Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2013
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This essay and that is what it is, should be read after reading Mr. Spalding's biting satire of the art world, "Nothing On." In a terse and laconic manner the writer, controlling his emotions, attempts address the question, "Why should we care about conceptual art."

Disregarding his opinions about various artists, he confronts the general public with well reasoned and valid thoughts about not only what is happenning in the art world but also why it is happening and how it affects the newest generation of artists. Intellectual black lists and intimidation abound in the art world. The most insipid, pernicious type of censorship is being practiced through the left's favorite mechanism which is the total ignoring of any artist who does not follow the party line.

Good for you Mr. Spalding for attempting to challenge current trends and to take art seriously. I only hope that your name does not end up in Tracey Enim's next rude "Unmade Bed," you old rake.
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Tad Macy
4.0 out of 5 stars Agree or not - do no miss it...
Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2019
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Whether you will agree or disagree with Spaulding, you should read and consider his points and your reactions to them. I do not agree with everything but some of his arguments are well founded.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant and well written
Reviewed in the United States on August 25, 2017
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This is an excellent book. It has a clear thesis. It offers good explanations as to why the thesis is claimed as true.

If you ever had the experience of going to a modern art gallery and feeling utterly unmoved by most of it (and worse feelings), this book might help you to understand why. It does for me, at any rate.

It's also a lovely example of an expert in a field who can both think and write clearly (and that's a mark of a real expert).

Thank you Julian Spalding!
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William C
5.0 out of 5 stars Confirming what you secretly wondered.
Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2013
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I was shocked and pleased by this book. It dares to question authority, and makes you stop, step back, and take a strong look at the bare facts of what is true in the world of modern art, and why it has become so perverse. If you can't face the truth, don't read this, but if you can, it's a real eye opener, and may confirm what you always wondered.
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Marius
5.0 out of 5 stars A must read book for all aspiring artists or collectors
Reviewed in Canada on January 17, 2015
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Spalding tells the shameful truth about the contemporary art world in a take no prisoners approach founded on his impeccable credentials.
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Fountainhead
5.0 out of 5 stars Längst überfällig
Reviewed in Germany on April 5, 2013
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Hier schreibt ein Experte das, was wir gewöhnlich Sterbliche schon lange empfinden: nämlich dass unser gesunder Menschenverstand ein besserer Gradmesser ist für das, was man uns als moderne Kunst verkaufen will und das im Grunde genommen Schrott ist !
Julian Splading drückt das aus, was wir empfinden, wenn wir so ein "Werk "betrachten und sich in uns einfach kein Gefühl des Ah! und Oh! einstellen will, das wir beim Betrachten eines wirklichen Kunstwerkes empfinden. Die einzige Kunst, die diese "Künstler" beherrschen, weil sie von der Kunstmafia dabei unterstützt werden ist die, für ihren Schrott Höchstpreise zu bekommen.
Es ist ein gutes Gefühl zu wissen, dass man mit seiner Einschätzung richtig liegt und ich kann dieses kurze Buch jedem wärmstens empfehlen !
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Kavy
5.0 out of 5 stars Julian Spalding is Dead Right
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 1, 2012
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Julian Spalding is dead right and he even able to prove it. When I first saw the Damian Hirst stuff I thought it was gruesome and I really hated it. It seemed to be a sick joke to cut an animal up in half and show it's insides as art. Now that diamond studded skull is gruesome too, but it went for sale for 50 million and yet it wasn't art. If a top designer, who worked for a big retail store, had plastic skulls made in China, covered them in cut glass to look like diamonds, and left the teeth in looking horrible, the shop would not even be able to sell them for £9.99 each. Why, because people would see it as worthless gruesome junk, which it is.

Damian can't draw, can't do skulpture, and can't do art, and niether can Tracey Emin. Now if you found an unkept tidy bedroom of a daughter in someones else's house you would not recognise it as art, because it isn't. The only reason conceptual art is considered art is because someone stuck it in an art gallery, but if you found it in the street, or in a junk shop, you would rightly walk past it and considering it to be horrible.

Now one trick that is used to make this con art stand out a little is to make some of this utter rubbish really big, which might impress for a while, but it still does not make it art. My girlfriend say's, 'but it is creative, and some people appreciate that'. Well yes, but that does not make it art either. And the only reason stuff like this has never been created before is because most people, if they had thought of it, and many have, would know that it isn't art, so why would anyone ever feel the need to make this junk, except con artists.

I had an image come to me once when I was very unhappy which was really bizarre and I thought why don't I make this crazy thing, but I felt that it was not really art. But I'm good at making things so I could have made this incredibly strange looking object with these bizarre looking figurines inside, and the whole thing would have been about 4 ft high. It might have dazzled, or it might have not have. But hey! why not make it 30 ft tall instead and then want two million quid for it. But that still would not have made it art. Now if I was a true artist I would most likely change my mind about my original idea and make the structure something really beautiful and awe inspiring, and this would also show off my artistic skills. But what about the bizarre mad figurines I would like to put inside, well if I was a true artist I would not give them these stupid expressions while they were in these really awkward bizarre positions as I had in my original mad idea, but I would make them look really special, dazzling, beautiful, and some quite strange perhaps, but magnificant too. Now that would be art, but my original idea wasn't. But I am not an artist so I could have not nade this incredible thing, but I coud have produced a pile of complete junk like Damian Hirst or Tracey Emin usually put out. I hope you get my point.

So, an excellent book by Julian Spadling exposing the emperors new clothes of conceptual art, which is really just con art. It is not art at all, but one big 'con art' scam.
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xxx
4.0 out of 5 stars Brave
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 1, 2012
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Given that many in both the art world and British 'meejah' ( as the late Robert Hughes would have it) seem afraid to criticise conceptual art the author is to be applauded for his bravery. The rubbish written in praise of this art form by journalists, critics and art historians is breathtaking sycophancy. I agree with at least 85% of the authors claims. The emperor is stark naked and it seems no one in the art world can this. To the author I say Bravo sir!
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jonno
5.0 out of 5 stars things that need to be said
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 19, 2012
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'Art': what does it mean to you? To me it is something uplifting, maybe thought-provoking perhaps beautiful. It gives me an insight into somebody else's view of the world and may, by doing so, expand my own understanding or insight. So how does what Julian Spalding refers to as 'Con Art' measure-up? Is it winning the race in terms of telling me something profound about the state of humanity? No. In fact it hasn't even got out of the starting blocks. Spalding's analysis of where Art 'went wrong' traces the various threads which have produced the fabric of the modern art world. Artists, dealers, collectors, curators, 'gallerists': the hall of shame is well-stocked. He takes us through the murky personal history of Duchamp and lets us peek into Warhol's factory. At the same time he deflates a few myths about how art comes to be regarded as valuable (in artistic, not just financial terms) with references to Van Gogh and Picasso among others. I won't rehearse the arguments here - suffice to say they are cogent, well-reasoned and, surprisingly, considering the enormity of the balloon to be pricked, really quite straight-forward.

Spalding is not one who insists that all art should be simplistic and representative and indeed, his understanding of recent and historical art movements and their social context adds force to his analysis.

The book is a relatively blunt instrument but it delivers its blow very effectively and I urge anyone with an interest in art, its role in society and its relationship with scholarship, and more particularly the world of 'Big Money' to read this. If you are not already sceptical about how art has progressed - or regressed - in the last century or so it may give you pause for thought. For those wondering where the alternatives lie there are hints at where to find real artistic endeavour still flourishing. Personally, I lost the plot with Con Art when I heard Mark Lawson on Radio 4 breathlessly running around a gallery in the company of a number of artist-athletes... from that point on I felt fully qualified to make my own judgement as to what constituted Art. Julian Spalding has reinforced that belief and I am convinced that he is not a lone voice in the wilderness. Read his book and lend your voice to the call to bring back some soul, some core of humanity into Art: an art which appeals to our true sensibility not just a debased pseudo-intellectualism.

In fact I take back my earlier assessment - it [Con Art] does tell us something about the state of humanity but what it says all has to do with avarice, gullibility, complicity and that poor-relation among human failings: the need to feel 'in on' the latest fad.
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