Take Home Test #1

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Recommended: Mass media influences on society

Art serves as a reflection of a society’s values at any given moment in time. Duccio di Buoninsegna’s Maesta, served to fulfill the civic and religious interest of the 14th century Siena, Italy. In post World War II America, it was the advertising agencies that were eager to redefine Americans as consumers. Culture was being produced by ad agencies trying to sell products, and Americans were delighted to be sold to. Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup Cans recontextualized the ubiquitous soup can. Even Warhol’s use of screen-printing, (an almost mechanized process) was a commentary on American values; efficiency & consumerism. Not only did the final piece of art serve as the work, but the technique used to produce the piece served to enhance the depth of the work.
Contemporary Art redraws the boundaries of what art is. In 1991 Andrea Zittel needed to find “something respectable” to wear to her office job. Zittel described feeling that her freedom to choose was actually restricting and out of this paradox A-Z Uniforms was born. The piece of work spans from 1991 to 2002 and comes to have 6 different stages.
While the piece eventually takes several directions, the concept begins as the A-Z Six Month Uniform. In this stage, Zittel is focused on the concept that each of us has one garment we feel great in, yet do to the stigma of repeating outfits a false desire to have a new look for each day is born. The need to create a new look and essentially a new self-identity is one imposed by society. In response to this notion, Zittel designed her ideal, or even “fantasy” garment each season. She then wore this garment every day for 6 months, blurring the line between art and life. After 4 years, Zittel began to struggle with keeping design...

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...s even before that, the pursuit to standardize and nearly remove the mundane moments from our daily life has become our collective central focus. We want technology to make our lives easier but we don’t want to be aware of the technology. Zittel is an artist who isn’t constrained to anyone medium, material, or technique. What holds Zittel’s body of work together is her approach and “ongoing endeavor to better understand human nature and the social construction of needs.” (1)

Works Cited

Cook, Greg. "Efficiency Expert: Andrea Zittel Talks About Her Art Of Living." theartery.wbur.org. NPR, Web. 8 April 2013.
"A Brief History of A-Z Uniforms Andrea Zittel .". andrearosengallery.com. Web. 21 Feb 2004.
Catherine Cole, Vicki Karaminas, Peter McNeil. Fashion in Fiction: Text and Clothing in Literature, Film and Television. New York: Berg, 2009. Print.

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