Umberto Eco Explains Kitsch in 1970s Swiss TV Series
A rediscovered video from the late 1970s shows Umberto Eco, then a young semiotician, explaining kitsch on the Swiss television series 'Occhio critico'. In the clip, available on YouTube, Eco uses multiple reproductions of the Mona Lisa—from wax museum statues to food packaging and eyeglass cases—to trace the term's complex etymology and manifestations. He contrasts these with Marcel Duchamp's mustachioed Mona Lisa (L.H.O.O.Q.), arguing that Duchamp's work is not kitsch but an ironic denunciation of falsehood. Eco defines kitsch as 'the lie in art', while Duchamp's piece exposes that lie. The segment references Gillo Dorfles's 1968 volume 'Il Kitsch. Antologia del cattivo gusto'.
Key facts
- The series 'Occhio critico' aired on Swiss television in the late 1970s.
- Umberto Eco was the host, discussing past and contemporary art languages.
- Eco focuses on kitsch, explaining its etymology and manifestations.
- He uses various Mona Lisa reproductions: wax statues, food packaging, eyeglass cases.
- Eco compares these to Marcel Duchamp's mustachioed Mona Lisa (L.H.O.O.Q.).
- Eco defines kitsch as 'the lie in art'.
- Duchamp's work is described as an ironic denunciation of falsehood, not kitsch.
- Gillo Dorfles published 'Il Kitsch. Antologia del cattivo gusto' in 1968.
- The video is available on YouTube.
- The article is published on Artribune.
Entities
Artists
- Umberto Eco
- Marcel Duchamp
- Gillo Dorfles
Institutions
- Televisione svizzera
- Artribune
- YouTube
Locations
- Switzerland