Uploaded October 2010 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
I apologise for being so abrasive and ranty in this video, but this is a subject that can really make my blood boil.
= IT IS IMPORTANT TO READ THE FOLLOWING TO TRULY APPRECIATE WHERE I'M COMING FROM IN THIS VIDEO =
I must reiterate - I am not attacking any one person in this video. Its more an attack on a mindset. Why is art something one can criticise without knowing anything about it? We here in our little corner of YouTube criticise creationists and Intelligent Design proponants to no end for attacking evolution without understanding it. Why is art any different? Obviously there is a degree of subjectivity with art that is simply not there in the realms of science, but at the very least one should understand the basics of something before one denigrates it to the level of worthless cultural junk.
My anger is not directed at people who simply disagree with me about this piece. If you don't like the piece, fine. Thats your opinion and you have every right to have it. My anger is directed at people who think their opinion is an objective standard, especially since art is probably the only subject wherein one is allowed to act in such a way.
'My Bed' is a representation of Tracy Emin's life though inanimate objects, at a time when she was experiencing severe depression due to her troubled personal relationships. The bed can be understood as an insight into her psyche at the time. Most of us make our beds every morning, making sure they are clean and tidy. What does it say about a person whose bed is so chaotic and distressed?
Furthermore, the bed as an object used to represent life is the perfect choice. We are born in a bed. We sleep in a bed. We cry in a bed. We laugh in a bed. We fuck in a bed. A lot of us will die in a bed. Its an object we spend an awful lot of time interacting with. A bed is a big part of our lives.
I also want it to be known that I do not dislike the work of the more 'traditional' artists - Picasso, Rembrant, J.M.W Turner - these guys fuck my shit up. I love their work. But you can't compare it to the work of Andres Serrano, Marcel Duchamp, Damian Hurst or Tracy Emin. Its completely different.
Thank you for watching/reading.
I apologise for being so abrasive and ranty in this video, but this is a subject that can really make my blood boil.
= IT IS IMPORTANT TO READ THE FOLLOWING TO TRULY APPRECIATE WHERE I'M COMING FROM IN THIS VIDEO =
I must reiterate - I am not attacking any one person in this video. Its more an attack on a mindset. Why is art something one can criticise without knowing anything about it? We here in our little corner of YouTube criticise creationists and Intelligent Design proponants to no end for attacking evolution without understanding it. Why is art any different? Obviously there is a degree of subjectivity with art that is simply not there in the realms of science, but at the very least one should understand the basics of something before one denigrates it to the level of worthless cultural junk.
My anger is not directed at people who simply disagree with me about this piece. If you don't like the piece, fine. Thats your opinion and you have every right to have it. My anger is directed at people who think their opinion is an objective standard, especially since art is probably the only subject wherein one is allowed to act in such a way.
'My Bed' is a representation of Tracy Emin's life though inanimate objects, at a time when she was experiencing severe depression due to her troubled personal relationships. The bed can be understood as an insight into her psyche at the time. Most of us make our beds every morning, making sure they are clean and tidy. What does it say about a person whose bed is so chaotic and distressed?
Furthermore, the bed as an object used to represent life is the perfect choice. We are born in a bed. We sleep in a bed. We cry in a bed. We laugh in a bed. We fuck in a bed. A lot of us will die in a bed. Its an object we spend an awful lot of time interacting with. A bed is a big part of our lives.
I also want it to be known that I do not dislike the work of the more 'traditional' artists - Picasso, Rembrant, J.M.W Turner - these guys fuck my shit up. I love their work. But you can't compare it to the work of Andres Serrano, Marcel Duchamp, Damian Hurst or Tracy Emin. Its completely different.
Thank you for watching/reading.
