Fascists Are Incapable of Understanding Art

Stephen Miller, Fascist - pen, ink & acrylic on paper 12” x 16” 2017

Why?

Art is subjective, personal, the abstract and unreal made real. Art constantly defies our categories. It challenges what we think we understand about it, the world, and ourselves. To understand art, we have to be able to see within ourselves and each other, we have to be open to searching both within and without. It is of the human condition.

The human condition is the internal existence within each of us. It binds us together without physical interaction. Is it our inner emotions, our intuitions, the world within through which we exist.

The fascist exists in a state of internal conflict. Their speech and actions make them fascists, which puts them at odds with the human condition. They must actively try to kill that internal part of themselves that binds us together. In doing so they remove themselves from art, from the beauty of our internal connections. When they do this, they are unable to see art as anything but product: an object to claim. To validate false supremacy. They do not truly care what the art is or what it can do. They feel nothing in it. They only see the physical surface. They may be able to describe its historical context, comment on the mechanics of its construction, and of course speak of its financial value. They can use it - for propaganda, for status. They feel nothing of it.

This, of course, is just another way to describe the dehumanization fascists participate in.

People occasionally say they do not understand art. This is unfortunate. They think this because society has often publicized the harshest art critics who speak in vague terms and flowery language that fails to communicate both the artwork or the critic’s own feelings. Popular culture has fostered the idea that art is a mystery novel, a whodunnit, where understanding art is akin to interpreting the right symbols in order to guess the murderer before it is revealed. It is built on the premise that there is an answer, and if you haven’t figured it out, you are stupid. This is also a fascist’s definition of art.

Art is not an object to be physically understood or whose symbols are to be decoded, its properties categorized into historical or social ledgers. You do not need to understand art history to appreciate a piece of art. It is totally okay to not like most art, to not understand abstract painting or performance art.

Don’t be a fascist. To “understand” art, all you have to do is look. Allow yourself to be ignorant, to not know anything. Let yourself be curious. Let your thoughts and emotions and all that cannot be easily described take you somewhere surprising. Let it make you feel human.


Photos of Viktor Macha

It is important to bear witness to the heavy process of creating the physical modern world, especially in contrast with how much time we spend together virtually, seemingly apart from the tactile steel and concrete outside. I love the aesthetic, but also the reminder that this too is our shared reality, our weight and foundation, our environment and heritage. Viktor Macha (http://viktormacha.com) is an inspiration to myself and a gift to the world, bringing a normally hidden and dangerous world to light. I absolutely encourage you to look at this vast galleries and learn about the modern steel industry.



Representation and Abstraction

I prefer my work to have recognizable subjects over pure abstraction to encourage emotional connections in the viewer’s mind. These subjects allow an opening to engage the viewer and stir personal experiences. It is extremely important that my paintings be accessible to everyone. As Rothko said:

“One does not paint for design students or historians but for human beings, and the reaction in human terms is the only thing that is really satisfactory to the artist”

The figure partially obstructed by abstract textures and distortions then presents a challenge. There is a representation of something real, it is not purely a technical rendering. Nor is it realism as a vehicle for symbolism or commentary on culture. The abstractions leave space for internal reflections on ennui, solitude, love, and remembrance. 

Our emotions are complex and connect seemingly opposing states of being. Like nostalgia that sits somewhere between sorrow and beauty. Yet the delineations and categories of emotions we construct are not the experience themselves. They are a set of abstractions used to communicate and contend with an infinitely complicated and interconnected world.

These paintings can then be thought of as another mode of contending with our complex emotional existence in an exceedingly complex and difficult external world. From personal relationships to cultural fears to climate change and environment, our internal worlds feed back into the external world for better or worse. I hope that the time spent reflecting on internal experiences and emotional connections in the art manifests a physical, external change for the better of us all.

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