Decentralised Practices
The prominence of airbrush art on the fairground, characterised by large scale, singular artworks adorning a new generation of rides, coincides with art, and its place in society, ensconced firmly in the postmodern phase. Though one definition of postmodernism is its ability to evade definition, this does not really concern us when considering the input, status and frames of reference for the contemporaneous (airbrushed) fairground art.
Postmodern art engaged a playful dialogue with late 20th Century cultural constructs in general, such that notions of the apparent meaninglessness of celebrity (and the revered status it holds in society) are drawn in to consideration as artists such as Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin create more antagonistic and notorious projects, and so become a kind of celebrity themselves. Whereas the modernist protagonists functioned outside of the radar of public appreciation and popular media attention, the postmodernist conceptualists enjoy an 'OK / Hello' style level of recognition.
The artists re-emerging as celebrity is a corollary of art being a vehicle for that celebrity, kind of like a pre-ordained stunt for the benefit of a reality TV show. The art is talked about in the popular press because it enforces the celebrity status of the artist without actually invoking a consideration of the work of art or the status of art in general. Such art as practice, or the subject of the artist, is not transferable to mediums such as fairground art. However, a form of decentralised and more participative 'DIY' practices began from the 1970s, kicking off with music scenes such as punk rock which - as well as having a distinct aesthetic and series of iconographic objects - fostered more inclusive modes of engagement such as fanzine and clothing design. This participative element moved through subsequent undercurrents and was greatly enhanced at the end of the 1980s with the rave scene christened as the 'Second Summer of Love'. This essentially marked a new stage of self-organised, autonomous entertainment that branched into all areas of its administration. Parties and music events were organised below the radar, pirate radio stations flourished, and fanzines and flyers multiplied with new 'cut'n'paste' computer programs allowing images and ideas to be plundered, reworked and rearranged at the click of a button. The internet enabled instantaneous sharing of ideas and visual products. Similarly the mix tape became the item of choice for sharing music creativity, and bedrooms became studios for a generation of kids able to plug into programmable music software. The barriers between the revered artist and the consumer were thoroughly blurred, if not abandoned.
Graffiti styles quick and with current modes of communication and expression.
Rave music - as a generic umbrella for the procession of beat driven micro-genres through the 1990s - impacted on the fair in many ways. Firstly, it was the music of choice for the modern thrill rides and the established social rides such as the Waltzer, secondly it provided a new regime of striking imagery, iconographic elements and an associated vocabulary, and finally it reflected a more cohesive relationship between the public and the fairground aesthetic. The Victorian age of carved work exemplified a harmony between the art and craft of the fair, the public's appreciation of fairground art and carving in reference to their understanding and admiration of art in general, and a united aspirational quality. Then, the 20th Century saw fairground art understood through the medium of design and advertising, and thus its appreciation understood through the public's immersion in iconographic and semiotic forms. Finally the end of the millennium saw the art, its subject matter, and its understanding and appreciation, converge to a new unity that functioned without the 'specialism' of the artist.
Art on the fairground was appreciated as a function of something that everyone could relate to and, if taken in by it, contribute to it through the technological mediums of the time - from graffiti influences to the 'Hed Kandi' brand artwork that adorned flyers and CD cases. Airbrush artists in the 1990s continued to emerge from more trained backgrounds - normally studying illustration at college and working on trucks and motorbikes - to graduate towards to large-scale fairground work. Possibly the only classically trained artists were 'Andi' and Paul Wright - the former quoted as being disillusioned by the "angst and egos" and the latter being tired of the "clique". Paul Wright went on to become the most accomplished and innovative airbrush artist on the scene, producing work of such detail and smoothness that it began to move outside its 'place' in the pantheon of fairground art.
Influence of the 'Hed Kandi' brand.
Airbrush art continues to work closely with the evolving imagery of the rave music scenes, morphing slowly in ways that can be mirrored by images, ideas, designs, phrases, etc spreading and sharing as memes on social networking sites. In the way that graffiti and 'tagging' spreads on to every available space in the urban landscape, airbrushed singularities are stencilled into the smallest and most enclosed aspects of the fairground. It is informed by a clutch of predominantly decentralised practices and so, at present, holds a unique position not previously seen in its rich history and intertwining with art and society.
Filling every available space...
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