25 Paul Sharits - Sears Catalogue 1-3
(1965), 8 mb
Paul Sharits' video is about
consumerism and how all the stuff we are told we're supposed to buy and want
and need influences our lives. The artist connects his idea to art by montaging
quick snapshots of an originally leisurely read catalogue. The clip progresses
from washed out to normal contrast to dark images. The beginning fadedness of
the photo clippings eases the audience into the work, while the darker ending
and the fast frame time evoke anxiety. The frames start to go by faster during
the last couple seconds. Every time I watch it, towards the end my heart speeds
up and I feel heavy. A lot of Fluxus videos make the audience
nervous because of the suspense or because something unusual happens.
The artist uses something
that already exists in the world and changes our notions about a simple, happy
catalogue. He uses recognizable pictures and words like “fluoride,” men’s’
shoes and cameras. The title definitely helps the audience know right from the
start what they are watching.
The ending starts getting creepy because the artist moves from showing pictures of stuff to photos of
smiling women to a mix of tools and words like “surgical” and “messy.” The
frames go by so quickly that I was nervous the first time I watched the video
and it wasn’t until the 4th time that I recognized how the subjects
of the photos change.
The artist manages to do all of this in just 47 seconds!
The artist manages to do all of this in just 47 seconds!
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