The Romance of commerce and culture (1984)
James Sloan Allen: 1 | 2 | 3
Although James Sloan Allen cites Marcuse, there is no sign that he has benefited from the critique of mass culture developed by the Frankfurt School philosophers (Adorno and Horkheimer in particular), even though that critique addresses itself in part to a key issue of Allen’s book, namely, the relationship between high and low culture. It can be argued that the fine arts (high culture) and visual mass culture still constitute two relatively autonomous realms (in spite of the amount of traffic between them), that the difference between them is maintained by all kinds of institutions and practices, and that ultimately the division between them can be traced to class distinctions within society. If this analysis is correct, a total merger of high and low culture cannot be achieved without a radical social transformation. Allen’s text is valuable because it deals with a major instance of interaction between art and business. However, it seems to me that Allen over-estimates the extent to which business assimilated modernism.
This overestimation is perhaps due to the fact that James Sloan Allen employs a singular conception of modernism, whereas to cope with the diversity of tendencies typical of modern art and design, one should perhaps speak of ‘modernisms’. This point is important because although the modern design ethos of Moholy-Nagy and Mies Van Der Rohe was highly compatible with capitalist business, other varieties of modernism were not (Dada, for example). It would be wrong to assume that all subversive, critical and antagonistic works by radical modernists have been accepted by the dominant social strata of America. Many instances of censorship can be cited to show that this is not the case.
In his introduction, James Sloan Allen asserts: “This history wears no ideological badge”. Given the intelligence exhibited by the text it is hard to accept that Allen really believes historians can be ideologically-neutral observers of society. However, it is true that he tends to keep his personal opinions to himself (though here and there one can detect a tone of sarcasm and scepticism). Allen’s tactic is to describe people and events in considerable detail and to present the conflicting attitudes and arguments concerning the commerce/culture relationship. This tactic is quite productive: by refusing to identify with one viewpoint (either "for" or "against"), Allen demonstrates the fundamentally ambivalent, ambiguous and contradictory nature of that relationship. The basic contradiction can be summarized as follows: modern art exemplifies a realm of human desire and spiritual freedom which is model for a better society, but at the same time it exists as part of a material world and depends upon financial support and patronage emanating from the rich and powerful. In so far as it is dependent upon the wealthy, its freedom to criticise the social order is limited.
James Sloan Allen: 1 | 2 | 3
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