They'll be hearing from John Cage's lawyers for royalties.

I wonder what her point is, assuming there is a point. Is this just absurdism? Commentary on fame, celebrity, music, pop music? Is she mocking high art society? Is it a John Cage 'art is what you put your frame around' kind of thing? Is she purposely provoking the audience? Daring them to laugh? Are these supposed to be gutrural sounds of raw humanity? Does she hate the song or Katy Perry? Too much booze? I never really get where she is coming from.

Art is subjective.

Composer John Cage wrote a piece of music called 4'33, which is essentially 4 minutes and thirty three seconds of silence. It is left up to the audience to figure out for themselves what the art of the piece is - if any. Is the absence of sound art? Are the tiny noises people make breathing and fidgeting in their chairs art? The point of piece, IMSO, is that art is whatever you decide to put your frame around.

I'd make the argument that anything put on film (video, DV, etc.) and arranged in a fashion to entertain people is art. I'd include porn in this as well, although I've never seen porn that I would describe as 'good', 'serious' or 'thought-provoking' art.

One more point. Art does not lose its art status just because if falls below a certain threshold of sophistication.

Gigli is art.
Nickelback is art.
Thomas Kinkade is art.
Twilight is art.

Oh, hey look, boobs!

Tags for this video have been changed from 'john cage' to 'john cage, silence, music, atonal avenger' - edited by Fusionaut

>> ^Ornthoron:
I submit that any video with pretences of being about nothing at all can at least be classified as art.


He's right, you know. If this and this can both be called art, than anything can. I voted for them both based on their bizarreness and absurdity, not for their "artistic" merits. Andy Warhol also made a film called Sleep, which was nothing more than a 5 hour film of his friend John Giorno sleeping. Art.

So really, anything that doesn't fit into a channel could be labeled "Art," and how could you prove him or her wrong for doing so?

Having said that, here's my submission:



Capital A
Capital R
Capital T

It has to be art, because it's in French. And it's from Vimeo.

Hey...That dog came from one of John Cage's last litters!

Dead video replaced.

In reply to this comment by Ornthoron:
*dead

You obviously have no appreciation for the fine arts. The rapid tempo changes combined with the provocatively bland sounds make for a short yet exhilarating piece of avant-garde that follows in the footsteps of John Cage while still staking out its own course into unchartered territory.

Nah, I'm fooling myself. This is *terrible.

LOL! You didn't by any chance stumble onto one of these? That might scare a lot of people off. There's quite a bit of variation in that playlist, though, so you may perhaps find something you like as well.

In reply to this comment by legacy0100:
I tried listening to your 'ear balsam' playlist. I made it through 30 seconds of one of your videos and closed the window.

Apparently we greately differ when it comes to musical taste

Congratulations! Your sifts are an inspiration, from John Cage to Dadaist Avant-Garde. They make the present a little less dystopian.

Tags for this video have been changed from 'stereolab, john, cage, bubblegum, french' to 'stereolab, john cage, bubblegum, french, uk, red, lava, guitar, 1993, 90s' - edited by Eklek

AeroM, please note that the John Cage estate sued, not John Cage proper. I'm sure Cage himself would have abhorred the lawsuit and copyrights in general. I'm sure he would feel that sound belongs to everyone, and shouldn't be bought and sold by a bunch of fat, rich assholes.

It's not especially creative to copy John Cage; but to be John Cage is something else! The piece you refer to, 4'33", was basically his hit single and in 1952 it was revolutionary.

But you are in good company in dismissing him as the "emperor's new clothes". Cage is probably second only to Andy Warhol as the target of that accusation.

I don't recall the details, but there was actually a copyright dispute over this a few years back. I'll poke around and see if I can find a link. Apparently John Cage has silence copyrighted.

I wonder if he's related to Johnny Cage, Liu Kang's friend.

Here it is: http://archives.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Music/09/23/uk.silence/

A full orchestral version of the same piece - so to speak:

http://www.videosift.com/video/John-Cage-433

Enjoy!