Towards a theory of political art : cultural politics of 'Black Wave' film in Yugoslavia, 1963-1972

Abstract

Boynik, Sezgin Towards a Theory of Political Art: Cultural Politics of ‘Black Wave’ Film in Yugoslavia, 1963-1972 Jyvaskyla: University of Jyvaskyla, 2014, 87 p. (Jyvaskyla Studies in Education, Psychology and Social Research ISSN 0075-4625; 511) ISBN 978-951-39-5979-1 (nid.) ISBN 978-951-39-5980-7 (PDF) The point of departure of my thesis is to discuss the forms of ’Black Wave’ films made in Yugoslavia during sixties and seventies in relation to political contradictions of socialist self-management. Instead of explaining filmic forms as representation of social and political dynamics; my aim is to propose a distinct methodology and conceptual apparatus that would enable to grasp social dynamics through their inscription inside the art form. The new methodological reading that I am proposing is largely based on actualization of certain theses proposed by Russian Formalists, Walter Benjamin and Louis Althusser. Combining these distinct theoretical positions my aim is to propose a model of including contradictions in researching the political art without reducing formalism to a mere representation. Basing largely on the work of Dusan Makavejev I have showed that political engagement of avant-garde artists and film makers contribute to the richness of artistic forms. My aim is to find the ways to detect these contradictions. By attentively looking at concept of slogans and cultural policy in the writings and artistic work of Makavejev my aim is to show that the conceptualization of political terms in artistic production has a distinctive characteristic. Advancing this observation my aim is to propose different reading of cultural politics and artistic practices during socialist Yugoslavia. By addressing theoretical and historical debates concerning representation of politics, nationalism, transformation of style, the realism and relation between philosophy and art I have showed the advancements of Formalist approach in understanding of ‘Black Wave.’ Also in my dissertation I have dealt with ideological consequences of various other readings of Yugoslavian ‘Black Wave’ and tried to delineate them from Formalist reading which I am proposing. Yet on another level, in my text on ‘New Collectives’ in post-Yugoslavia I am applying this methodology to contemporary art scene pointing at some formal transformations that occurred in discourse on art in transition from socialist to neo-liberal conditions.