The Artist as a Man of the World: Allan Kaprow's Anti-Bohemian Manifesto Revisited

A review of the persistent romantic clichés surrounding the life of the artist, from Puccini's La Bohème (1896) to Jonathan Larson's Rent (1996), where AIDS replaced tuberculosis as the tragic agent. The article highlights Steve Martin's novel An Object of Beauty as a contemporary insider account of the art market's ambitions and rapacity. It contrasts the theatrical 'low-end' Downtown of Rent with the 'high-end' Chelsea and Upper East Side of Martin's book, asking what lies in the amorphous middle: the purgatory of mid-range reputations, day jobs, and middle-class security that most artists inhabit or aspire to. Allan Kaprow's 1964 manifesto The Artist as a Man of the World is cited as an early recognition that the post-war marriage of bohemian artists and academia transformed the modern artist's vocation and personality. Kaprow described artists becoming 'distinguished visiting critics' and tenured faculty who shape the avant-garde and inspire students to pursue similar careers. The article observes the annual College Art Association conference at the Hilton Hotel in Manhattan as a gathering of thousands of artists, critics, curators, and art historians—dressed in styles from uber-hipster to academic-entrepreneur—networking, presenting papers, and competing for job interviews. The scene is likened to a modern-day Balzac or Kurt Weill subject, yet lacking a chronicler. The piece is a translation from English by Stéphane Roth, originally published in artpress.