“The Art World was recreated in 4 Days in 4 Sections, 40 years ago, and originally in 4004 B.C. Today minor Artists have 400 Disciples and more favored mediocre Artists have 44,000 Devotees approximately. There are 4,040 Rules of Art Conduct…
The Four Sacred Art Texts are Confusionist, Doughist, Tantrumist, and Sham-Buddieist. The Four Art Castes are Purehatpriests, Guruteacherhats, Sunnyascetichats and Bighatdevotees…”
So proclaimed an astrological chart created by Ad Reinhardt in the May 1956 issue of Artnews when I was 3 months old.
Later, in 1987 we, the founders of the International Post Dogmatist Group, thought of Ad Reinhardt as a quintessential example of a post dogmatist. We studied the above image and noticed the 4,040 Rules of Art Conduct and I set out to contemplate what these rules might be and how to excavate them from the ethers and collect them together.
At the time, after a session of pontificating, speculating and theorizing we came up with the first rule:
Rule no. 23 - Shut up and Paint.
Then we went back to our easels to practice the rule.
So I have been thinking about and working on this idea for a very long time. One of the problems is that, if you identified a new one every day with commentary it would take a little more than 11 years to complete. So that is a consideration. Perhaps it is a multi generational project.
Of course, the number 4,040 is completely arbitrary and the idea of the Rules of Art Conduct is a complete fabrication. There is no such thing as the 4,040 Rules of Art Conduct. So that is my pet project which might forever remain an unpublished document. Just make up the rules as needed. That is basically what we are all doing. By not writing them down they remain esoteric.
Another Post-Dogmatist innovation was the idea of operating, at least in appearance, as a bureaucracy (ruled by desks) that is based on invented rules, procedures and policies with as much tongue-in-cheek red-tape and tedium as possible to simulate, critique and interact with the institutional powers within the art world. Hence the need of the 4,040 Rules of Art Conduct. This is of course completely antithetical to how the actual community of creatives work. Hence the humor of such a futile project.
So while thinking about it, in the meantime I have had the years since that time to experiment with being a practicing artist, collector, curator, archives builder, gallerist, writer, poet, publisher etc. A pretty good spattering of at least homeopathic experience with some parts of the art world at large at least within the scope of my own interests.
Post Dogmatism was originally founded by three painters who had a strong interest in and studied the spiritual traditions of the world. Our thought was to reorient the idea of the avant garde toward a movement inward, exploring one’s spiritual depth through the arts and away from an outward looking forward movement which no longer makes any sense if it ever did. At the same time being more playful and exploring, experimenting and critiquing with self deprecating humor as a foil against egotism.
See: ‘Avante Garde?’ (1994) – Ceciliano Touchionini
Therefore, at some point, I will invent an organization called something like Department for the Research and Development of the Rules of Art Conduct - the DRDRAC which might be directed and desked by Dr. Drac or some such thing.
In terms of ‘art conduct’, I think of conduct mostly in terms such as in the meaning of definition #9 below, as in how to be a conduit for creativity but to some extent, all of the other definitions as well.
NOUN
1. personal behavior; way of acting; bearing or deportment
2. direction or management; execution - the conduct of a business
3. the act of conducting; guidance; escort - The curator's conduct through the museum was informative
4. obsolete a guide; an escort - A train conductor
TRANSITIVE VERB
5. to behave or manage (oneself) - He conducted himself well
6. to direct in action or course; manage; carry on - to conduct a meeting to conduct a test
7. to direct (an orchestra, chorus, etc.) as leader
8. to lead or guide; escort -to conduct a tour
9. to serve as a channel or medium for ( heat, electricity, sound, etc.) - Copper conducts electricity
INTRANSITIVE VERB
10. to lead
11. to act as conductor, esp. of a musical group
So the ‘rules’ might in turn address one’s own behavior, one’s ethics. one’s self control and self disciple, one’s ability to manage, direct. guide, lead, execute one’s creative lifestyle and creative activity.