the second edition of THE WEEDS celebrates the organizers and some participants in the first impressionist exhibition that took place from April 15–May 15, 1874.
it was organized by a group of artists who called themselves the Anonymous Society of Painters, Sculptors, Printmakers, Etc., and showed the radical work of Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Edgar Degas, and Mademoiselle Berthe Morisot, among others.
at the time these artists were not well-known within the Paris art world. they were the weeds that challenged the perfectly curated gardens of the gatekeepers (i.e., salons, academies, and galleries) with their newfound understanding of science, color theory, and natural light.
we are once again at a similar point in the art world where the establishment, whales, and platforms are challenged by a group of artists with their newfound understanding of technology, copyright, and provenance.
in the same tongue-in-cheek manner that impressionists were given their name, the trash artists take their name from supporters of the establishment who deemed creations by artists like Robness and Max Osiris to be #trashart.
this second edition is a gentle reminder to these "gatekeepers" that art history repeats itself. no one remembers the names of the gatekeepers from the salons, galleries, and academic institutions. but impressionism became modern art and continues to inspire us today.
the trash art movement (trashism?) and the artists that align with it will live on to inspire and influence art history long beyond the shortsightedness of your crypto-lined wallets.
