Conceptual Art: A Critical Anthology - uncopy

1975
joseph kosuth
1.
Art changes only through strong convictions, convictions strong enough to change society
at the same time.
—Théophile Thoré, 18551 Bolshevism, and later Nazism, offered avant-garde art the alternative of supporting a
revolutionary regime through aesthetic conformity—(that is, through ceasing to exist)
or attempting to revolutionize itself without any prospect of changing life, in view of
the superior force of the “professional revolutionists.”
Either of these choices could only lead to the end of avant-gardism. Without its
political shadow, the defiance of accepted social or moral norms becomes a game in
which the old threats are turned into an insider’s joke. Today, revolts restricted to the
aesthetic are welcomed by the middle class as a solace; they revive the aroma of the
exciting times when hostility and misunderstanding between artists and the public were
considered dangerous.