“Artspeak” is about the observation of art manifested by the art jargon or tropes that try to define art for ourselves. The descriptions in these paintings are culled from art reviews, PR releases, and biographies. They have become so ubiquitous to the art world, that they lose meaning and represent a kind of hyperbole that can be applied to any artwork.
By placing these “artspeak” descriptions on top of the painting, it forces the viewer to engage with these narratives and question if they are meant to describe the painting in the background. The viewer is seduced into making the same narrative for themselves unless they realize it’s all bullocks.
This is the price of entry for some in the art world. The coded language which tries to elevate the meaning and value of what is being observed.
JosephAbbati.art 