Let's get started...

I have just been involuntarily introduced by Laura I believe! My real name, as already mentioned, is Graham. Likewise with L, my name across various boards/sites is 'vahrael'/'vahron', and feel free to say hi. I don't pretend to be an expert, but it's still nice to rant and prompt discussion. I tend to be interested, somewhat unhealthily, in the philisophical side of the 'art debate'. Examples are always good though...
So...without further ado, I'm going to drag our very first artist into the spotlight...

 Chicken Knickers 1997

Sarah Lucas is a member of the Young British Artists, and probably quite an obvious choice to start with. Her work tends to play upon common sexual innuendos, and look to shock her audience.

And yes, she placed a chicken in front of some knickers.
And yes, apparently this is art.
And yes, I do get it.

The redefinition of art into our postmodern 'anything goes' is usually attributed, at least in part to Duchamp and his work 'Fountain'. It was new and shocking at the time, but I wonder whether the prolonged attempts to mimic this have left the public desensitised to the point where they are no longer phased by even the more extreme works. What happened to leaving the viewer in awe at the beauty of a masterful piece of art?

There is hope that the tides are changing. This years Turner Prize winner. More on that when I'm more awake.

Grumpiness over for now :)
G.