John Baldessari
Pure Beauty
Tate Modern 13 October 2009 – 10 January 2010
Explore:
Room 3
After studying at several art schools and universities in California, Baldessari returned to National City in the late 1960s and set up studio in a failed cinema. Surrounded by photographs pinned to the walls as reference material for his paintings, he began to question the need to use photography in this way and started taking snapshots around National City. Without looking through the viewfinder or attempting to compose the image he sought to circumvent making aesthetic decisions and tried to show his hometown as it was. These unremarkable images were then transferred onto canvas and paired with simple lettering to identify the site.
Baldessari continued to challenge notions of authenticity and worthwhile subject matter in his Commissioned Painting series. Based on photographs of a finger pointing at domestic objects, these images are not beautiful, but simply record the act of selection. Fourteen amateur painters were paid to copy the photographs as faithfully as possible, the idea being that art would emerge in the process. Upon completion, a sign writer inscribed the painter’s name on each canvas. The series encourages the viewer to practice connoisseurship, noting the differences between each painting. With this approach, Baldessari sought to demonstrate that technical skill is not necessary for an artist, and often less important than the right subject matter or venue for showing their work.
