tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5248447883714712696.post3220103187427640059..comments2024-03-25T15:02:25.695+11:00Comments on oz.Typewriter: The Orel, the Archo and the Ultimate Act of Typewriter VandalismRobert Messengerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04366507489948676594noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5248447883714712696.post-54549760381095360102012-04-03T19:59:57.923+10:002012-04-03T19:59:57.923+10:00I looked up the artist and have to say I do find h...I looked up the artist and have to say I do find her other work stimulating too. For the piece in question, I'd argue that the rarer and more unusual the typewriters sacrificed for the installation - the greater its power. Our collective indignation (if not stronger emotions) is an entirely appropriate response. Rather than destroying them, the artist has rendered the typewriters tantalisingly close but inaccessible. Emulating the actions of a totalitarian regime (internet censorship, book burning, telephone bugging) as Robert points out, is distasteful. Makes you want to right a wrong, do something about it. The more I think about it, the more I think the artist had no option than to make the work she did. It would be interesting to discover where the typewriters are now - I might ask her.Rob Bowkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12065940710708289511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5248447883714712696.post-38733981331598742062012-04-03T12:12:01.382+10:002012-04-03T12:12:01.382+10:00Thank you Richard, Georg, Bill, Rob and Florian. A...Thank you Richard, Georg, Bill, Rob and Florian. A special thank you to you, Richard, as I got your comment early enough to enable to me to quickly correct Oring - I must have got my Winterlings and Orings mixed up! I did leave it as Sheryl, though. And yes, you are obviously right about the Czech name.<br />In response to Richard and Rob, my feeling is that the key issue here, as Chuck Dilts wrote, is not the art form but the destruction of old typewriters for the sake of art. I go along with what Chuck said, that damaging functional typewriters was counter-productive to the object of the exercise. I'm very uneasy with the concept of an artist - or anyone for that matter - destroying something of historical value to make a point. Isn't that what the Taliban do?Robert Messengerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04366507489948676594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5248447883714712696.post-72292983509969394402012-04-03T10:20:37.457+10:002012-04-03T10:20:37.457+10:00Sorry, I meant Sheryl, not Cheryl. Something block...Sorry, I meant Sheryl, not Cheryl. Something blocks us from getting her name right...<br /><br />Rob, I don't think anyone would say that artists shouldn't have the freedom to make artworks -- the question is whether it's a well-conceived work and makes an appropriate impact. Opinions differ.Richard Phttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16232053429935587826noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5248447883714712696.post-14072988774592838642012-04-02T21:33:08.903+10:002012-04-02T21:33:08.903+10:00If we knew about that "art" thing sooner...If we knew about that "art" thing sooner... Get a truck and a flamecutter, drive to Berlin, liberate the typewriters!<br />Very interesting post!maschinengeschriebenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01955578932937697125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5248447883714712696.post-30478352680526452382012-04-02T21:28:35.584+10:002012-04-02T21:28:35.584+10:00So, if they made so damn many thrust-action varian...So, if they made so damn many thrust-action variants of the little eagle, why can't I find a new ribbon? I sympathise with the reactions against the artworks. Risking ostracism, I have to say that to me, even from photos of the typewriter-filled gabions, it is a very powerful installation and I find myself wanting to defend the artist's freedom to do it... and my freedom to be moved by it... on quite a number of levels.Rob Bowkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12065940710708289511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5248447883714712696.post-72907017413427906642012-04-02T18:18:06.211+10:002012-04-02T18:18:06.211+10:00Very interesting post. It is surprising how many ...Very interesting post. It is surprising how many times an artist will destroy things and call it art, but the rest of the world never sees it as art.Bill Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14649212489891769390noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5248447883714712696.post-88159493752875209662012-04-02T14:59:30.727+10:002012-04-02T14:59:30.727+10:00Thanks for this interesting post.
Had I been in B...Thanks for this interesting post. <br />Had I been in Berlin in 1999, chances are that I had spontaneously proceeded to art destruction and typewriter liberation! ("The Typewriter Liberation Front")shordzihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04824301365798484902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5248447883714712696.post-40968505913991247342012-04-02T13:57:16.973+10:002012-04-02T13:57:16.973+10:00What a confused "art" project this was, ...What a confused "art" project this was, indeed!<br /><br />The artist's name is Cheryl Oring.<br /><br />I seemed to remember, and just now confirmed, that "orel" is Czech for "eagle." So the German Adler ("Eagle") machine was naturally sold in Czechoslovakia as the Orel.<br /><br />Thank you for the rundown of these various German thrust-action machines. The mechanism certainly had much more longevity in Germany than elsewhere.Richard Phttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16232053429935587826noreply@blogger.com