Critical Realism In Contemporary Art

This thesis respond to the reemergence of realism as a feasible and critical term in the art critique vocabulary,especially in the contemporary art context.Realism and documentary,which were once taboo and facing deconstruction at the summit of postmodern semiotics era,are now fairly essential.After the post-structuralism age,however shackled by the dated epistemology and metaphysical notions,various effort has been undertaken by predecessors to reshape realism only result in vain.The “critical realism” championed in this thesis focus on the concepts about ethics,inter-subjectivity and human rights.Despite the commonly hold idea that realism suggests “fit” and identity between reality and representation,critical realism's responsible for elaborating aspects of diversification,otherness and non-identity.The theoretical framework of this thesis draws from the ideas of a South African artist and curator Okwui Enwezor,and the philosophical views of Western Marxists Theodor Adorno.Three contemporary artists(Ian Wallace,Jeff Wall and Allan Sekula)are included in this study.With their divergent artistic styles and different individuality,I seek to connect their art practices and concepts to broader themes of modern art history,which are commodification,anti-theatricality and Utopian longing.