Ray Johnson - "Message In A Bottle"

Buster Cleveland and Coco Gordon recall Ray Johnson.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Ray Johnson
• Mail Art
• Correspondence Art

[TTxTBeowulf]

wow how easy "special ed" people call retarded crazy sociopaths "artists"...LMFAO the only thing that guy deserved...was a straightjacket and some electro shock therapy for breakfast lunch and dinner....

who the fuk calls slapping a box with a belt art...seriously...u cant tell he was trippin ballz off acid and other such drugs during the 60's? geesh...wake up

[polarpolo12]

@TTxTBeowulf - The box represent Kafka. He had a lot of painful physical maladies in his life. The belt represent the pain and Johnson is putting that pain onto himself in a gesture. As artists, we are assigned the duty to understand other artists, their lives and when possible pay tribute to them. Ray added an element of humor to it only he could have done. If I had to explain it any further, I'd recommend Art Survey 101.

[Consumer007]

Okay what kind of fucked up shit is this? She never analyzed a retard hopping around whipping a box and writing kakfa? She just kind of enjoyed it?

Auidition fail for MTV's jackass...that sums it up

[polarpolo12]

"It's like trying to tell a stranger about rock n' roll." The piece is about Franz Kafka. Johnson, in my estimation was using the box to represent Kafka and the many physical illnesses and psychological sufferings he endured. That being said, and understanding the wit of Johnson, everything he did had a duality to it. On the other hand, Johnson could remain very enigmatic about the meaning of his work, as have many other artists. Personally, it's very funny to me, I laugh every time I see it.

[crypttonite]

the only identification a man found floating in a river,was a letter from Ray-how does that happen?

[polarpolo12]

Johnson worked in mail art. His network became large. Wide enough in fact, he was unaware of everyone in it as it would pass from person to person. Someone in between Johnson and the man found in the river were connected by the correspondence activity.

[taekwonkey]

for those immature fools that only accept "visually pretty objects" as art, i want you to challenge yourselves by questioning what "art" really means in a more philosophical and perhaps spiritual terms. to answer this question in the simplest form for you fools, art is self-expression after all. btw this is addressed to people like TTxTBeowulf and Consumer007 that are blinded by commercial medias and material representations who rather let those external fabrications dominate your judgment.

[youknowtube]

he couldn't forget about the damn moose

[TheRealSirNate]

This is pretty much my favorite thing in the world right now.

[rich107s]

Really interesting Gentlemen. Really makes me veiw warhol in a whole new light. Is this were the idea for the Brillo boxes came from or for that matter the whole pop art concept ? Watch this DVD . Johnson came to NYC in 1948. His studio was full of the type of art that warhol fame was based on.I think we are looking at the person( Ray Johnson ) who had the idea,. Not Warhol

[rowrowrow10]

Consumer007; I hate you. From the bottom of my heart, I hate you.