Untitled Document

It’s easy enough to describe AVANT CAR GUARD’s work as nothing more than a self-referential and hypocritical practice of love-biting the hand that feeds – a series of in-jokes and one-liners that uncritically use the very same methods and mediums that they seek to criticize. But, like most things, this would miss the point. On closer inspection it becomes very clear that their work is not trying to cripple and implode the South African art industry; they’re not seriously expecting their photograph of themselves diving into a little oil slick pond - representing the incestuous back waters that are the South African art market (AVANT CAR GUARD ‘dive into’ the South African contemporary art market, 2007) - to shake the art kings and queens off their screen printed Steven Cohen thrones. Or to really awaken any slumbering dogs or prompt life-changing epiphanies. First of all, they’re just not that serious, and second of all, they’re not heroes. So then, as a student or two prodded in AVANT CAR GUARD’s lecture on their work at Stellenbosch University, what is the point if they’re not really changing anything or bringing anything new? The point is that there is no point, because art is ultimately a pointless practice. The costume party that is the CAR GUARD’s back-handed terrain scrapes away a tiny section of the supra-serious overcoat that glosses many a contemporary artist’s and curator’s CV, only to expose that there is nothing underneath it except more gloss, pomp, and glory. And subsequently that this pomp and glory is one of the best things about art - hence the work Untitled (2007) featuring the band as gods of death metal with a naked groupie. The self-referential character of their work, the persistent nibbling at the frosty icing that supports South Africa’s tender position in the international art market (Africa Biennale 2008) and the sponge of pretence and pseudo-sincerity of identity-politicians and middle aged post-colonialist troopers is the key to why the CAR GUARD’S practice works. Where else are we going to refer? There is no outside.
As Henning Ludeke discreetly revealed at the opening of Naked Frontier Ambition Vibes (AVANT CAR GUARD at the WHATIFTHEWORLD/projectspace), “I have a secret”, long pause, “art isn’t important”. Though somewhat belated, Henning’s epiphany, in addition to proving that the CAR GUARDs prompt epiphanies after all, marks the mantra that all artists should be repeating to themselves every evening before they lay down their sleepy heads. Art is not important, but so what? What is important, global politics? Nope. Media coverage of human rights atrocities? Nope. 567 Cape Talk’s blanket drive? Banking? Home loans? Electric wind-up windows? Life on earth? Unfortunately not. Art is however, important to artists, and in that case (now that the pressure is off) why not stop pretending that we’re winners? This doesn’t mean that we should take art less seriously (maybe just a little), we just shouldn’t forget that overall, we’re not doing anything profoundly meaningful in a universal sense.
A few of the AVANT CAR GUARD’s photographs, the one-liners like ‘dancing on Pierneef’s grave’ may seem like they’ve been snapped in a couple of minutes amid giggles and good times, a fleeting moment. After watching them doing a shoot I realized that it’s not all fun and games, they take it all pretty seriously, and so they should. That’s the great thing about art, it’s a gap in the conventional social structure where we can play around, play a game, without being disheartened by the fact that it’s all pointless. It’s a perfectly legitimate practice. What AVANT CAR GUARD shows is that art shouldn’t always have to be about something overtly emotional or intellectually profound, more often than not, the shallower it gets, the better. It is, after all, a shallow pool. Doing pointless things, knowing they’re pointless, while still taking them seriously is the ultimate privilege of the artist. Consequently; smoke machines, primary colours, Jacobean ruffs, cardboard box guitars and most importantly, vibes, can all become part of a days work.


	Detail from Naked Frontier Ambition Vibes (2007)
	It’s easy enough to describe AVANT CAR GUARD’s work as nothing more than a self-referential and hypocritical practice of love-biting the hand that feeds – a series of in-jokes and one-liners that uncritically use the very same methods and mediums that they seek to criticize. But, like most things, this would miss the point. On closer inspection it becomes very clear that their work is not trying to cripple and implode the South African art industry; they’re not seriously expecting their photograph of themselves diving into a little oil slick pond - representing the incestuous back waters that are the South African art market (AVANT CAR GUARD ‘dive into’ the South African contemporary art market, 2007) - to shake the art kings and queens off their screen printed Steven Cohen thrones. Or to really awaken any slumbering dogs or prompt life-changing epiphanies. First of all, they’re just not that serious, and second of all, they’re not heroes. So then, as a student or two prodded in AVANT CAR GUARD’s lecture on their work at Stellenbosch University, what is the point if they’re not really changing anything or bringing anything new? The point is that there is no point, because art is ultimately a pointless practice. The costume party that is the CAR GUARD’s back-handed terrain scrapes away a tiny section of the supra-serious overcoat that glosses many a contemporary artist’s and curator’s CV, only to expose that there is nothing underneath it except more gloss, pomp, and glory. And subsequently that this pomp and glory is one of the best things about art - hence the work Untitled (2007) featuring the band as gods of death metal with a naked groupie. The self-referential character of their work, the persistent nibbling at the frosty icing that supports South Africa’s tender position in the international art market (Africa Biennale 2008) and the sponge of pretence and pseudo-sincerity of identity-politicians and middle aged post-colonialist troopers is the key to why the CAR GUARD’S practice works. Where else are we going to refer? There is no outside. As Henning Ludeke discreetly revealed at the opening of Naked Frontier Ambition Vibes (AVANT CAR GUARD at the WHATIFTHEWORLD/projectspace), “I have a secret”, long pause, “art isn’t important”. Though somewhat belated, Henning’s epiphany, in addition to proving that the CAR GUARDs prompt epiphanies after all, marks the mantra that all artists should be repeating to themselves every evening before they lay down their sleepy heads. Art is not important, but so what? What is important, global politics? Nope. Media coverage of human rights atrocities? Nope. 567 Cape Talk’s blanket drive? Banking? Home loans? Electric wind-up windows? Life on earth? Unfortunately not. Art is however, important to artists, and in that case (now that the pressure is off) why not stop pretending that we’re winners? This doesn’t mean that we should take art less seriously (maybe just a little), we just shouldn’t forget that overall, we’re not doing anything profoundly meaningful in a universal sense. A few of the AVANT CAR GUARD’s photographs, the one-liners like ‘dancing on Pierneef’s grave’ may seem like they’ve been snapped in a couple of minutes amid giggles and good times, a fleeting moment. After watching them doing a shoot I realized that it’s not all fun and games, they take it all pretty seriously, and so they should. That’s the great thing about art, it’s a gap in the conventional social structure where we can play around, play a game, without being disheartened by the fact that it’s all pointless. It’s a perfectly legitimate practice. What AVANT CAR GUARD shows is that art shouldn’t always have to be about something overtly emotional or intellectually profound, more often than not, the shallower it gets, the better. It is, after all, a shallow pool. Doing pointless things, knowing they’re pointless, while still taking them seriously is the ultimate privilege of the artist. Consequently; smoke machines, primary colours, Jacobean ruffs, cardboard box guitars and most importantly, vibes, can all become part of a days work.
	AVANT CAR GUARD at Stellenbosch lectures 1 (2007)
	I AM SIGNAL: You describe yourselves as a band and work as a band. This is especially significant because like a band, the whole is not a sum of the parts, what is your connection to the rock lifestyle and how does this affect the work you produce? AVANT CAR GUARD: With our first body of work titled Volume I we intentionally used select visual tropes, working methodologies and physical products of the punk movement and rock ‘n roll in general. The booklet was packaged in an LP sleeve and released much like a debut album – some of the photography took the form of grainy black & white, whilst the feel and sentiment of the book as a whole aimed to mimic the abstract logic of being angry young men. IAS: ‘Vibes’ obviously play an enormous part in your work and working together. I thought that the word was too far absorbed into drug culture to ever be used again – it seems Avant Car Guard have rescued it from that world and even added more cognitive value to it. Michael mentioned that when you three first began to hang out “you started vibing in a big way” (or something like that). Could you elaborate on this, with special reference to the concept of ‘vibes?’ ACG: Thank you for noticing – vibes is a locally-specific slang for the mood or sentiment of a thing, person, environment or event – when 3 people work together on an ongoing basis there have to be commonalities in outlook and intent amongst them or it does not work. The concept of vibes began life for AVANT CAR GUARD as a way of articulating in a lazy, easy sense that mood of working together. Of being a band. Later it has become a flippant way of not taking either what we say or do too seriously, it’s a reflexive scapegoat to undermine ourselves – end every sentence with vibes and see for yourself. IAS: Do you consider yourselves to be in the conceptual art camp? What do you think the importance of conceptual art is today, why do we need theory and even in its superfluity/excess why should it be ‘practiced?’ ACG: Nearly every form of contemporary visual art practiced today is imbued with some form of conceptualism, hence we’re part of this canon in so much as we are engaged in the making of contemporary art. We’re not a band that play in bars, instead we play for a contemporary art audience within a gallery context and as such we assume and want a critical reading of our jokes vibes. IAS: At Stellenbosch University you delivered a lecture and then gave an ‘art class,’ the following day to a hand full of students. At the class ‘memory, identity, gender and trace’ were warned against. These concepts are a big part of what people are doing these days. Why are they so dangerous? ACG: They’re not dangerous they are simply reactionary issues, narratives and themes in South African visual art discourse that have a disproportionate monopoly over what is produced and discussed. These terms are like bullies on the playground, they failed school a couple times, are several years older than all the other kids - they muscle-in on and dominate proceedings within a group of people that would far rather get on with the job of having fun, pissing in the sandpit or reading under a tree. IAS: What is next for AVANT CAR GUARD? ACG: We are currently working on Volume III – a lyrical and quite painterly body of work initiated during our week long residency at the University of Stellenbosch. We are also working on a sound component for our gallery-based performances. Both of these projects are underscored by a body of work comprising art objects, prints and multiples that’ll be totally cool. IAS: My final question is one which every band needs to answer at some stage or another: would you ever sell out? ACG: Maybe. If it’s, like, a really tiny venue.

	AVANT CAR GUARD at Stellenbosch lectures 2 (2007)