Monument
It's actually a bit funny that these shots are going up today, as I wrote a blog post about the decline in quality of American monuments and memorials the other day. Cadillac Ranch was meant to be a celebration of and monument to the rise and fall of Caddy's famous tailfins of the 1950s, culminating in the 42-inch high wings of '59.
All things considered, I think it is one of the better monuments of recent years, however kitschy. It's honest; it's not just about the artists themselves; it celebrates not just the fins, but the cars themselves—the king of automobiles, the biggest jewel in GM's crown, and still a status symbol be they new or classic—in a very big way, in a state known for everything being pretty awesome. Even inviting the public to "participate" in the art installation by painting the cars seems to hint at how multitudes of people can influence things, or perhaps what the mob rule of a straight democracy (keep in mind, the US is a constitutionally-limited republic) looks like, albeit in a fun, harmless way. We can also see plain old creative destruction at work—both the creative destruction of the market (the car changing size, shape, and style according to external circumstances and changing fashion) and plain old spray-paint tagging.
(I can't figure out if we're allowed to link to blog posts from photos, so I'm not doing it. Insert sad face here. You may, however, find a link to my blog in my profile.)
Monument
It's actually a bit funny that these shots are going up today, as I wrote a blog post about the decline in quality of American monuments and memorials the other day. Cadillac Ranch was meant to be a celebration of and monument to the rise and fall of Caddy's famous tailfins of the 1950s, culminating in the 42-inch high wings of '59.
All things considered, I think it is one of the better monuments of recent years, however kitschy. It's honest; it's not just about the artists themselves; it celebrates not just the fins, but the cars themselves—the king of automobiles, the biggest jewel in GM's crown, and still a status symbol be they new or classic—in a very big way, in a state known for everything being pretty awesome. Even inviting the public to "participate" in the art installation by painting the cars seems to hint at how multitudes of people can influence things, or perhaps what the mob rule of a straight democracy (keep in mind, the US is a constitutionally-limited republic) looks like, albeit in a fun, harmless way. We can also see plain old creative destruction at work—both the creative destruction of the market (the car changing size, shape, and style according to external circumstances and changing fashion) and plain old spray-paint tagging.
(I can't figure out if we're allowed to link to blog posts from photos, so I'm not doing it. Insert sad face here. You may, however, find a link to my blog in my profile.)