{"product_id":"general-idea-test-pattern-placemat-1988","title":"GENERAL IDEA \"TEST PATTERN PLACEMAT\" 1988","description":"\u003cdiv id=\"id6\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.caviar20.com\/collections\/general-idea\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGeneral Idea\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan\u003e was founded in 1967 in Toronto by AA Bronson (b. 1946), Felix Partz (1945-1994), and Jorge Zontal (1944-1994). Over the course of 25 years, they made a significant contribution to postmodern and conceptual art in Canada and beyond.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'San Francisco', 'Segoe UI', Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003eThe group was both prolific and multi-disciplinary long before it became de rigueur. They worked across a wide range of media including photography, sculpture, painting, mail art, video, installations, multiples, and performance.   \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWith their subversive approach and interest in parody and appropriation, General Idea addressed a broad range of social (and art-world) issues such as the cult of the artist, mass media, queer identity, and consumerism.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTheir 'Test Pattern Placemats' represent the SMPTE color bars familiar to TV viewers of earlier generations. Building on the collective’s 1979 video piece \"Test Tube\"\u003cem\u003e, \"\u003c\/em\u003eTest Pattern\" reproduces the TV screen to comment on the ubiquity and dominance of television at the end of the 20th century. One could add that this work is a nod or a critique of the concept of TV dinner. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe initial impetus to create \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eTest Pattern\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e came from the exhibition venue itself, Spiral, in Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1985 by the Wacoal Corporation, Spiral is an arts center that includes exhibition spaces, a restaurant, a gallery shop, and a cutting-edge video production facility.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGeneral Idea was intrigued by the concept of a place where you can \"look, shop, and eat\" and thus produced a work that could participate in all three while featuring the prevailing image of Japanese life, a video monitor.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is a fantastic and iconic example of General Idea's work. It can be found in numerous museum collections including \u003ca title=\"General Idea Test Pattern Placemats at the MoMA\" href=\"https:\/\/www.moma.org\/collection\/works\/402097\"\u003ethe MoMA\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca title=\"General Idea Test Pattern Placemats at the Walker\" href=\"https:\/\/walkerart.org\/collections\/artworks\/test-pattern-placemats\"\u003ethe Walker\u003c\/a\u003e, and \u003ca title=\"General Idea Test Pattern Placemats Stedelijk\" href=\"https:\/\/www.stedelijk.nl\/en\/collection\/102540-general-idea-test-pattern-placemat\"\u003ethe Stedelijk\u003c\/a\u003e (Amsterdam) amongst others. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eQuestions about this piece? \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"mailto:troy@caviar20.com\"\u003eContact us\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, call +1.416.704.1720, or\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.caviar20.com\/pages\/contact\"\u003evisit our Toronto Gallery\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Test Pattern Placemats\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMedium Offset lithograph with plastic laminate\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSigned, dated, and numbered by the artist verso\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e11.6\"H 15.8\"W\u003cspan class=\"work__caption__description__text balance-text\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"work__caption__description__text balance-text\"\u003eFrom an edition of 100\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVery good condition\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"work__caption__description__text balance-text\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"work__caption__description__text balance-text\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"General Idea","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":68115241369836,"sku":"08-20x10-26","price":2000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0074\/2712\/files\/Caviar20_General-Idea-Test-Pattern-Placemat_01.jpg?v=1794079507","url":"https:\/\/www.caviar20.com\/products\/general-idea-test-pattern-placemat-1988","provider":"Caviar20","version":"1.0","type":"link"}