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As you might expect, the artistic directors of “Kitsch as a Lifestyle” present us with an array of decorative anchors, clock nightlights with angels, music boxes and plastic flowers, but the exhibition also features exhibits on less portable manifestations of the genre, such as the mansion belonging to Gigi Becali, the owner of Steaua Bucarest FC, which has a giant golden crucifix looming over its wrought iron railings, and casinos housed in historic buildings decked with Christmas lights.
For Mihaela Pop, a philosophy lecturer at the University of Bucharest, who has organized the exhibition with help from a group of history students, “Kitsch offers a kind of instant pleasure, which requires no intellectual effort, and is unashamedly lacking in authenticity.” But it also has a social function. As he further explains, “The objects sought by collectors of kitsch are often chosen to underline their owner’s social status. So kitsch is a characteristic not only of objects but also of a mentality focused on accessibility, instant gratification, and a feverish desire to amass as many objects as possible.”
The exhibition also includes photos of objects on display in amusement parks and markets: shiny, garishly coloured t-shirts and bracelets, red candles decorated with pictures of saints, toy parrots and rabbits, plates with images of the Holy Family, and no end of cherubs.
“Kitsch has the capacity to aggressively invade every aspect of our lives, whether we want it to or not.” points out third-year history student, Roxana Coman. A threat that is present in many societies and not just Romania. “It’s a style that emerges in periods of rapid social change, like the 1990’s in our country. In only a few years, people who were isolated under communism had to adapt to challenges that westerners had been facing for the last thirty to forty years,” insists Pop. “It is clear that the phenomenon of kitsch has a lot to do with the culture shock we experienced after we joined the EU.”
But how should we respond to this avalanche of poor taste? Mihaela Pop advocates a staunch anti-kitsch attitude, based on an appreciation of serious culture.
The exhibition at the History Faculty of the University of Bucarest will run until 2 June.
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