WT - Yes, people believe they see deeper truths, when it's actually just the rhetoric and symbolism of heavyness and depth, or power or money, that's being used. The art world is full of this. I'm often amazed how people, especially those who make a living with words, so rarely question the knee-jerk quality of their thinking. They would only have to ask themselves the reverse question: was Schwitters not an artist simply because he made prints for advertising agencies?
HUO - Or was Warhol not an artist just because he was also a fashion illustrator.
WT - But it's also the shock value. I think that's why Warhol remains so important: because of his fearless transmutation of values, from everyday life to fine art.
HUO - Yes.
WT - Because this moment is never resolved. Because people are always searching for a rhetoric of value, for safety. They don't like the transient, and they can only bear things that death or history has established as secure.
HUO - I think this analysis of Warhol would be a good place to pause for today. Many thanks.
Fra The Conversation Series 6, Hans Ulrich Obrist interviewer Wolfgang Tillmans.
