And now it's yours - creating REAL VALUE
Introduction
And now it's yours is a continuous action of transferring ownership of things/artifacts to individuals and groups. The things/artifacts in question are part of my Collection of Things.
As soon as I declare the transfer of ownership to a named individual or group, my ownership of the specified thing/artifact comes to an end and the transfer of ownership is complete. The only thing I retain is the copyright. I may reproduce and publish the thing or a representation of it in any form I like. In case of a physical thing, it is up to the new owner to take possession of it. This can be done either via personal collection, instructing someone else to pick it up or via sending me the postage so I can dispatch it. After the transfer of ownership I hold no responsibility for damages to the thing/artifact. Needless to say, the longer the thing/artifact is in my possession, the greater are the chances of damage.
Every object is numbered. I don't publish the names of the new owners; they are kept in a database. I only publish the number, a representation (for example a photograph, a video or a description of it), the place of discovery and/or creation and the date of the transfer of ownership.
The recipients are selected and
notified of the transfer of ownership on social media channels such as Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.The selection and notification procedure might change.
Collection of Things
As part of my practice I collect things that I analyze and store in various locations. These things are physical and non-physical things such as tangible objects, thoughts, sentences or gestures.
Background
With his readymades Marcel Duchamps famously opened the door to a whole world of new conceptual gestures and ideas that many artists have adopted and developed further since then. To name two giants among those artists: Donald Judd who disowned a number of pieces purchased by Italian count Giuseppe Panza in response to a violation of the terms & conditions of their agreement, and Robert Rauschenberg's famous telegram to Galerie Iris Clert in Paris saying "This is a portrait of Iris Clert if I say so." There are many more intriguing actions/gestures by other artists of course. A most interesting actions, however, occurred on the 11th of January 2017, the day of Donald Trump's very first official press conference, when artist Richard Prince disowned and hence devaluated (the act of making something worthless) his Instagram portrait of Ivanka Trump by a simple statement on Twitter: 'This is not my work. I did not make it. I deny. I denounce. This fake art.'
(https://twitter.com/RichardPrince4/status/819281967225180160)
I have been working for a while now in this conceptual territory. In 2005 I started dedicating buildings, institutions, companies, places etc. to people (read more http://jayrechsteiner.com/to_all_my_friends.htm). In a next step I want to continue 'the story' by turning 'things' (physical objects, actions, gestures, thoughts etc.) into art by transferring their ownership. I am fascinated and puzzled by the concept of ownership and find it hard to comprehend at times. The questions however remain: Why is it art now? Just because the artist, the creator declares it to be art? Just because the creator transfers the ownership? Where and what is the link between art and ownership? These are just a few of the questions to be discussed and answered. However, for now the things/artifacts I transfer become valuable and attain the status of art by the simple act of transferring ownership over to someone else. Tthe status of art is detached from the thing as it relates to ownership and therefore exists forever (as long as humans remember their history!). Yes, my art is forever. Now. |
