Dadaism and "Avant-Garde"

The past century has seen an influx of new ideas, technology and standards in the ways people live their lives. In the first two decades of the 20th century, the rise of Communism in Russia and World War I initiated the change in the ideals and the way people saw each other whether it was in culture, politics, or status quo. Art, in a similar way, also began to change and did so in many ways; one of which is Dadaism.

Now, Dada art focuses on the 'avant-garde' movements of the 1800s and early 1900s. The term itself was coined in the early 1800s by French Utopian Henri de Saint-Simon, and it meant the artist should aspire to advanced socio-political and aesthetic positions of modern times. In other words, push the boundaries of what the status quo is and put it in broader terms. It also had military connotations due to its literal meaning "foreground". This new concept of art basically allowed the members of the bourgeoisie to "escape the material constraints and contradictions" of their daily lives (Dada and Surrealism, Ch.1, 2). A good example of this was in 1917 when Alfred Stieglitz took a common urinal, signed it “R. Mutt, 1917” and put it on exhibition in an art gallery for people to observe. For a piece to become categorized as ‘avant garde’, it can follow some characteristics of other pieces such as the piece itself contradicts the classical definition of ‘art’, is collaborative (i.e. from anything and everything), is non-traditional and tries to change society or challenges the “rules” of what art should be. In retrospect, anyone can become an artist in ‘avant garde’, with many computer programs existing to make this possible.

In the 1970s, Peter Bürger described the mission of 'avant-garde' as a way to flow new innovation for artists and the people. By innovation, the inclusion of computerized art and collaboration allowed for new artists to emerge and produce pieces at an incredible rate. For instance, the Internet greatly influenced the way people communicated with each other and the exchange of ideas, goods and services. Art in the age of the Internet can be collaboratively made, sold and distributed at unprecedented numbers that the influx of new artists and artwork gave the world a very clear view of the lives of the people are and what they go through all while escaping into a different state of mind. In music, certain genres of electronic music have shown to have this type of effect. Clothing was also a large influence in the way ‘avant garde’ is portrayed and received. It is supposed to be normal-looking to most, but the actual article of clothing works and fits in a different way as described here. The same can also be applied to the latest trend in music, electronically composed music.

In the 21st century, Dadaism and other 'avant-garde' movements are alive and well. In the realm of Dadaism, computers and electronics are rising in the pieces under this category. Computers and Dadaism go well together; the canvas in which the artist can manipulate can also reach an unprecedented number of viewers via the Internet and other forms of communication. It also allows for better collaboration and improvement on a global scale, which is one of the most defined ideals of Dadaism, "POWER TO THE ARTIST!". Recently, PBS published a video on the Internet talking about ‘Dubstep’ music as being another form of an ‘avant garde’ movement, making music with electronics. With deep roots in the 1950s, making music with ‘found sound’ is not a new concept in Dada. It seems that the ideals of Dada in the 20th century have continued well into the 21st century by various methods including the music industry since it does challenge conventional ways in which music is made, recorded and distributed. Technically, electronic dance music (EDM), can also be classified as being a part of the ‘avant garde’ movement since genre of music is very collaborative and free. With some software and a standard desktop computer or laptop, songs in the EDM genre can be recorded and produced in record numbers as well as distributed globally through the Internet such as SoundCloud or any paid services to generate revenue. Yamaha, for example, capitalized on this by creating their Vocaloid software in the mid-2000s. As stated before, one only needed an adequate computer to run the software, and now there is a multitude of producers writing songs and albums with the various characters the software comes with. Again, the Dadaist artistic production of the 20th century was all about what the artist could get their hands on and collaborate ideas with others to create a truly unique piece that doesn't require a ‘special place’ to be displayed.

Example 1
Lady GaGa and Dadaism
Blog: The History of Visual Communication 

Vocaloid Software

History of Electronic Dance Music (EDM)