Trash; garbage; rubbish; dross; detritus - in this radical exploration of Junk; Gillian Whiteley rethinks artrsquo;s historical and present appropriation of junk within our eco-conscious and globalised culture. She does this through an illustrated exploration of particular materials; key moments and locations and the telling of a panoply of trash narratives.Found and ephemeral materials are primarily associated with assemblage - object-based practices which emerged in the mid-1950s and culminated in the seminal exhibition The Art of Assemblage in New York in 1961. With its deployment of the discarded and the filthy; Whiteley argues; assemblage has been viewed as a disruptive; transgressive artform that engaged with narratives of social and political dissent; often in the face of modernist condemnation as worthless kitsch. In the Sixties; parallel techniques flourished in Western Europe; the US and Australia but the idiom of assemblage and the re-use of found materials and objects - with artist as bricoleur - is just as prevalent now. This is a timely book that uncovers the etymology of waste and the cultures of disposability within these economies of wealth.
#1699524 in eBooks 2012-01-15 2012-01-15File Name: B00766I198
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Childhood memories (the age of innocence)By MarkI bought Great Meadow as I had decided to read all of Bogardes autobiographies. this being number five (just about to begin number seven Cleared for take off)This book continues on from where the first part of Postilion struck by lightning (his first autobigraphy) ends. Written in the same style. from the view point of a 12 year old. and very well done indeed! This is a period in his life that he looks back on with much fondness and he terms as his halcyon years. summers spent with his sister and nanny at their summer cottage on the Sussex Downs.So if you enjoyed the first part of Postilion struck by lightning then there is no doubt youll enjoy Great Meadow. An evocation it definitely is. of a time before television. computers and living in a modern technological society removed a certain charm and innocence from childhood.7 of 7 people found the following review helpful. Charming book. read by the author!By Linda HudsonThis is an utterly charming book on tape. It consists of a compilation of memories of Dirk Bogardes childhood. which was spent with his younger sister and nanny in a lovely English village. The worries and concerns as well as the joys of this small boy are captured in this delightful memoir. Alas. I finished listening to the last tape on the day Dirk Bogarde died. What a lovely gift he has given us; his memories and his reading of this tape.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Delightful and relaxing memories of childhoodBy stephen.digbyFor me. memories of childhood are mostly snippets evoked by an old picture. a smell. a sound. These evocations have the feel of truth although my intellect tells me to be suspicious. Less often. and less reliably. I consciously recall ancient (yes. the word is usually accurate) events from my memory "banks". In a number of cases. there is good evidence from relatives that "my" memories have been embellished. or even invested. I cannot recall a single instance where I can reconstruct a sequence of activity over a number of days - much as I would like to.Thus. I read Dirk Bogardes enchanting book as delightful literary fiction. If it is autobiography. then Dirks memory banks are extraordinary. More likely. the story deserves that common subtitle "based on a true story".My pleasure in the reading arose from the charm of the detailed portrait of tranquil. rural lifestyle from a childs naive but fresh perspective. As always. the sense that it is substantially true adds to the vibrancy (otherwise why would so many writers add that prominent subtext ?).We live with Dirk through the chores and challenges of daily life at the family holiday house in Great Meadow. Sussex where they are cared for by their nanny in the absences of their "well to do" London based parents.Dirk weaves structure into the account with a number of extended themes such as Dirks relationship with his sister. his nannys romantic relationship. as well as a refugee bring a hint of the impending world war. The narrators also shows character development - starting as a precocious child of 6 and ending the book with a developing self-awareness.A delightful and relaxing read.
