Fischli and Weiss are a pair of Swiss artists who collaborated on various projects and ideas, one of the most iconic is called ‘The Way Things Go’. The pair collaborated on many works over their careers and even had a retrospective at the Guggenheim in 2016, regrettably Weiss died of cancer in 2012, but their unique viewpoint and way of communicating meaning keeps on rolling like a tire.
This work is actually a 30 minute clip owned by Bates College Museum of Art, who describe the work as slapstick and thought provoking. Generally they were received by people well with an appreciation of their humour but also of the issue they were trying to poke fun at. However, other artist like Roberta Smith also spoke about the danger that viewers take Fischli & Weiss’ work (and work like it) at a superficial level without fully understanding the deeper complexities intended by the creators.
I love their playful elements but also their very frank way of communicating and also generating ideas; The Way Things Go was made from the leftovers of their studio whilst working on an entirely separate project. The same is true of How to Work Better, found on a bulletin board in Thailand, its a list of 10 things to do to work better that the pair use to ambiguously critique and/or praise notions of industrialism and potentially modern life or the ‘rat race’ as it is sometimes known.
I also like how Fischli talks about curation; trying to make sure his pieces stay in the ‘good neighbourhoods’ and don’t fall into the bad ones and try to convey too much meaning. I think Fischli is trying to stay away from meta or pretentious ideals and stay true to the satirical whimsy that made the duo’s work so interesting.
In terms of my practice I would like to emulate their sense of ambiguity, their playful use of materials as well as their understanding of everyday materials. I would also like to experiment further with interactive or kinetic elements of my work especially when considering exhibition or installation.
“We knew people enjoyed some of our work, and at the same time we suspected that they didn’t take us seriously,” Mr. Fischli said. “But we had a strong sense of what we were doing. And what was interesting for us was something that was loaded with ambiguity. Irony, after all, is interesting only if you don’t know if it’s meant ironically.”