Reversing Anti-Art: Natasja van Wyk’s Crafted Perception – Analysis

In my last blog, I argued that considering works that present skill and traditional mediums could be the solution to reigniting mainstream interest in the arts. This is because works of this style are more accessible to the general public who may not have a background in art theory. In being more accessible, this can help increase funding in a sector that is currently in a lull. At the time of writing that blog, this idea seemed quite unlikely, given the sector’s current preoccupation with conceptual art, especially found objects.

Recently however, I had come across an example of such a work that fulfilled most of this criteria, ironically a play on a piece I had referred to in my last blog, Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian (2019) (left). Natasja van Wyk, a textile studio artist from the Burrinja Cultural Centre, has taken Cattelan’s infamous found object and reinstated it as an art object through her Crafted Perception (c. 2024) (right). Simultaneously, she has also challenged the gender stereotypical view that has pervaded the art canon, that textiles is “not art”.

On first glance, Natasja’s work appears as merely an appropriation of Maurizio’s work: It’s a banana, taped on a crisp white museum wall. The yellow of the banana and the grey of the duct tape seems quite similar. But look closer, and these works go off in rather different directions. Quite literally, Natasja’s banana faces the opposite direction to Maurizo’s (left instead of right), a sign that this is not a slavish imitation of the controversial work. Although her work very much mimics a found object, her work is by no means a found object. Crafted Perception is a three-dimensional sculpture that has been meticulously crafted by materials and other media. When one takes the time to really look at this work, this becomes so much more than a tongue-in-cheek rendition of a mischievous work: Other shapes and patterns are incorporated into this sculpture. Even the patterns of some of the fabric Natasja uses is of bananas, which does more than replicate the slowly decaying banana. It creates humour, without making a mockery of the arts in general. Even the duct tape has a chequered pattern that Maurizo’s version lacks. Layers of white, yellow, light brown and patterned fabric compose the body of this sculpture, making it both a collage and a sculpture. This in turn distinguishes Crafted Perception from an appropriation of Comedian. Instead, it is a complete reversal of the anti-art message that the original expressed.

It’s absolutely crucial to look at not just the appearance of the work, but also the technique that has been used. As mentioned earlier on, textiles has had an ambivalent reputation as a traditional art medium. For decades, the art historical canon has continually relegated textiles as a craft, a “lesser” form of art because it uses a needle and thread, rather than a brush and paint. Being a medium that is associated with domesticity and femininity, textiles has been dismissed as being below the quality of an oil painting or a marble sculpture, simply because the maker was more likely to be a woman, rather than a man. However, we must take into account that Crafted Perception goes against the grain of this quite forcefully. In Maurizo bringing in a banana and sticking it to a gallery wall, he has made the statement that any object (or fruit) can be a work of art. Natasja on the other hand, takes this idea and turns it on its head by firstly crafting this work by hand so that it becomes a serious work of the artist’s own right, rather than a meme and a joke. Additionally, in using mediums that are not viewed as “art” mediums, but still applying skill and technique, Natasja has the upper hand as she challenges the anti-art direction of contemporary art, while elevating textiles to a form of art. In doing this, her work does what Comedian has missed: Challenging audiences about preconceptions of art without alienating them altogether.

Crafted Perception takes on a form that sparks attention and amusement from viewers. Yet, rather than generating shock and then boredom once the reaction wears off, general audiences will continually be mesmerised by the multi-layered technique and message of her work. If there were more works like Natasja’s that challenge how we view art through skill instead of random objects, the arts sector would have a better chance of survival long term.