Uncommon Goods: Global Dimensions Of The Readymade

Synopsis

Since Marcel Duchamp Created His Readymades A Century Ago The Practice Of Incorporating Commodity Objects Into Art Has Become Ever More Pervasive. Uncommon Goods Traces One Particularly Important Aspect Of That Progression: The Shift In Artistic Concern Toward The Hidden Ethical Dimensions Of Global Commerce. Jaimey Hamilton Faris Discusses The Work Of, Among Many Others, Ai Weiwei, Cory Arcangel, Thomas Hirschhorn, And Santiago Sierra, Reading Their Artistic Explorations As Overlapping With Debates About How Common Goods Hold Us And Our World In Common. The Use Of Readymade Now Registers Concerns About International Migrant Labor, Outsourced Manufacturing, Access To Natural Resources, Intellectual Copyright, And The Commoditization Of Virtual Space. In Each Chapter, Hamilton Faris Introduces Artists Who Exemplify The Focus Of Readymade Aesthetics On Aspects Of Global Commodity Culture, Including Consumption, Marketing, Bureaucracy, Labor, And Community. She Explores How Materially Intensive, Uncommon Aesthetic Situations Can Offer Moments To Meditate On The Kinds Of Objects, Experiences, And Values We Ostensibly Share In The Age Of Globalization. The Resulting Volume Will Be An Important Contribution To Scholarship On Readymade Art As Well As To The Study Of Materiality, Embodiment, And Globalization. Chapter 1 Of Kula Rings And Commodity Chains 21 -- Chapter 2 Common Goods 47 -- Chapter 3 Apparel 73 -- Chapter 4 Digital Media 101 -- Chapter 5 Labor And Services 129 -- Chapter 6 Land And Natural Resources 157. Jaimey Hamilton Faris. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 195-210).