10/20/2014 The End of the Economy and the Realization of Art

http://scansitu.antipool.org/6002.html 1/3
Originallyappearedin
Internationale
SituationnisteNo.4(June
1960).Extractsfrom
'CritiqueoftheEconomic
Policy'publishedasaSI
SpecialReportsameyear
(seeelsewhereonthis
website).Translatedby
ReubenKeehanand
takenfromSituationist
InternationalOnline
TheEndoftheEconomyandtheRealizationofArt
AsgerJorn
FORHUMANITY,timeisnothingbutasuccessionofphenomenafroma
pointofobservationinspace,whilespaceistheorderofthecoexistence
ofphenomenaintimeorprocess.
Timeisthechangethatisonlyconceivableintheformofaprogressive
movementinspace,whilespaceisthesolidthatisonlyconceivableinits
participationinamovement.Neitherspacenortimepossessesarealityor
valueoutsideofchangeorprocess,thatistosayoutsideoftheactive
combinationofspacetime.Theactionofspacetimeistheprocess,and
thisprocessisitselfthechangeoftimeinspaceandthechangeofspace
intime.
Wesee,then,thattheaugmentationofquality,orresistancetochange,is
duetoquantitativeaugmentation.Theymarchinstep.Thisdevelopmentis
thegoalofsocialistprogress:theaugmentationofqualitybythe
augmentationofquantity.Anditallowsthisdoubleaugmentationtobe
strikinglyidenticaltothediminutionofvalue,ofspacetime:reification.
Thegreatnessthatdeterminesvalueisspacetime,theinstantorthe
event.Thespacetimereservedfortheexistenceofhumanspaceonthe
Earthdemonstratesitsvalueinevents.Noevents,nohistory.Thespace
timeofahumanlifeisitsprivateproperty.ThiswasMarx'sgreatdiscovery
intheperspectiveofhumanliberation,butatthesametimeitisthepointof
departurefortheerrorsoftheMarxists,becausepropertyonlygainsvalue
initsrealization,initsliberation,initsuse,andwhatmakesthespacetime
ofahumanlifearealityisitsvariability.Whatgivestheindividualasocial
valueisthevariabilityoftheirbehaviorinrelationtoothers.Ifthisvariability
becomesprivate,excludedfromsocialvalorizationasisthecaseunder
authoritariansocialismhumanspacetimebecomesunrealizable.
Therefore,theprivatecharacterofhumanqualities("hobbies")hasbecome
anevengreatervalorizationofhumanlifethantheprivatepropertyofthe
meansofproductionbecauseuselessness,insocialistdeterminism,is
nonexistent.Insteadofabolishingtheprivatecharacterofproperty,
socialismdoesnothingbutaugmentthemasmuchaspossible,rending
humansthemselvesuselessandsociallynonexistent.
Thegoalofthedevelopmentofartisticliberationistheliberationofhuman
valuesbythetransformationofhumanqualitiesintorealvalues.Here
beginstheartisticrevolutionagainstsocialistdevelopment,theartistic
revolutionthatistiedtothecommunistproject...
Thevalueofartisthereforeacountervalueinrelationtopracticalvalues,
anditsmeasureinasenseinversetothethem.Artistheinvitationto
expendenergy,withnoprecisegoalotherthanwhatspectators
themselvescanbringtoit.Thisisprodigality...Somestillimaginethatthe
valueofartisinitsduration,itsquality.Andtheythinkthatgoldand
preciousstonesareofartisticvalue,thatartisticvalueisaninherentquality
oftheobjectinitself.Bythislogic,theworkofartisnothingbutthe
confirmationofhumanityastheessentialsourceofvalue...
Thecapitalistrevolutionwasessentiallyasocializationofconsumption.
Capitalistindustrializationbroughthumanityasocializationasprofoundas
thesocializationproposedbythesocialiststhatofthemeansof
production.Thesocialistrevolutionisthefulfillmentofthecapitalist
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revolution.Theoneelementremovedfromthecapitalistsystemissaving,
becauseconsumption'srichnesshasalreadybeeneliminatedbythe
capitaliststhemselves.Itissoraretofindacapitalistthesedayswhose
consumptionexceedsthemeanestdemands.Thedifferencebetweenthe
lifestyleagreatlordofthe17thcenturyandthatofagreatcapitalistofthe
Rockefellereraisridiculous,andthegapisalwayswidening.
Therichnessofconsumption'svariabilitywaseconomizedbycapitalism,
becausethecommodityisnothingbutanobjectofsocializeduse.Itisfor
thisreasonthatsociologistsavoidoccupyingthemselveswiththeobjectof
use.
Thesocializationoftheobjectofuse,whichcanbeconsideredasa
commodity,hasthreeprincipleaspects:
a)Onitsown,theobjectofuseofacommoninterest,desiredbyagreat
enoughquantityofpeople,canserveasacommodity.Theideal
commodityistheobjectdesiredbyall.Inordertoopenthewaytoward
suchasocializationofindustrialproduction,capitalismmustdestroythe
ideaofindividualandartisanalproduction,undertheguiseof"formalism"
b)Inordertodiscussthecommodity,itisnecessarytohaveaquantityof
exactlythesameobject.Industryisonlyconcernedwithobjectsinseries,
manufacturedinlargerandlargernumbers
c)Capitalistproductionischaracterizedbyapropagandaofpopular
consumptionthatreachesincrediblepowerandvolume.Thedemandfora
socialistproductionisonlythelogicalconsequenceofthedemandfora
socializedconsumption.
Currencyisthecompletelysocializedcommodity,showingeveryonethe
measureofcommonvalue...
Socializationreallyconstitutesasystembuiltonabsolutesaving.Indeed,
letusconsidertheobjectofuse.Wehaveindicatedthattheobjectofuse
becomesacommoditythemomentassoonasitbecomesuseless,when
thecausallinkbetweenconsumptionandproductionisexhausted.Onits
own,anobjectofuseistransformedinsaving,stockpiling,becominga
commodity,butonlyinthecasewhereaquantityofobjectsisstockpiled.
Thissystemofstorage,whichistherootofthecommodity,isnot
eliminatedbysocialism.Infact,theoppositeistrue:thesocialistsystemis
foundedonthestockpilingwithoutexceptionofallproductionbeforeits
distribution,withthegoalofperfectcontrolofthisdistribution.
Todate,noanalysishasbeenmadeofaccumulationofstockpilingor
savinginitsownform,thatisthatofthecontainer.Stockpilingoccurs
accordingtotherelationshipbetweencontaineranditscontents.We
remarkedinitiallythatthesubstance,knownasthecontents,isnoneother
thanprocessandintheformofcontent,itsignifiesamaterialinstorage,a
latentforce.Butwehavealwaysconsidereditfromitsownstableform.
Theformofacontainerisaformcontrarytotheformofitscontentsits
functionistopreventthecontentsfromenteringintoprocess,exceptin
controlledandlimitedconditions.Thecontainerformisthereforea
somewhatdifferentthingtotheformofthematerialitself,wherethereis
neveranythingbuttheformofthecontentshereoneoftermisfoundtobe
inabsolutecontradictionwiththeother.Itisonlyinthedomainofbiology
thatthecontainerbecomesabasicfunction.Allbiologicallifehasevolved,
sotospeak,byopposingthecontainerformswiththeformsofthematerial.
Technologicaldevelopmentcontinuesonthesamepathallsystemsof
measurement,ofscientificcontrol,areplacedintherelationshipof
10/20/2014 The End of the Economy and the Realization of Art
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objectiveformstocontainerforms.
Containerformsareestablishedcontradictingmeasuredforms.The
containerformnormallyconcealstheformofitscontents,andthus
possessesathirdform:thatofappearance.Thesethreeformsarenever
clearlydistinguishedindiscussionsonform...
Moneyisthemeasureoftimeinsocialspace...Inagivenspace,thatof
society,moneyisthemeansofimposingspeeditself.Theinventionof
currencyisthebasisof'scientific'socialism,andthedestructionof
currencywillbethebasisofthesupersessionofthismechanicalsocialism.
Currencyistheworkofarttransformedintonumbers.Therealizationof
communismwillbethetransformationoftheworkofartinthetotalityof
everydaylife...
Whereveritismanifest(incapitalism,inreformism,insocalled
'communist'power)bureaucracyappearsastherealizationofcommon
counterrevolutionarysocialization,inacertainmanner,inthevariousrival
sectorsofthemodernworld.Bureaucracyisthecontainerformofsociety:
blockingprocessblockingrevolution.Inthenameofthecontrolofthe
economy,bureaucracyeconomizeswithoutcontrol(foritsownends,for
thepreservationofwhatexists).Ithaseverypowerbutthepowerto
changethings.Andallchangewillalwaysbemadeagainstit...
Realcommunismwillbetheleapintothedomainoffreedomandofvalue,
ofcommunication.Contrarytoutilitarianvalue(normallyknownasmaterial
value),artisticvalueistheprogressivevaluebecause,byaprocessof
provocation,itisthevalorizationofhumanityitself.
SinceMarx,economicpoliticshasshownitsimpotenceanditscowardice.
Ahyperpoliticswillneedtostriveforthedirectrealizationofhumanity.
ThistextistakenfromabrochurebyJorn:CritiqueofEconomicPolitics,
whichwillbeissuedinaseriesof"ReportspresentedtotheSI"(Brussels,
May1960).
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