RESTARTISM!

Esta noche he recibido un e-mail de Carlos Sánchez-Gutiérrez, desde Rochester (N.Y., EE.UU.), adjunto al cual iba la versión definitiva de la traducción al inglés del Manifiesto Hartista que él ha preparado, y que nos ha hecho mantener una abundante correspondencia electrónica desde la versión "alfa", luego las "betas", las "Release Candidate"...

Ahora ya está en la web: una versión on-line (HTML) y otra para descargar (PDF). Esta traducción al inglés abre el camino a una mayor presencia del Hartismo en otros países en los que no se habla español. Será enviada a nuestros anfitriones, los Stuckistas, para ser incluida entre los múltiples manifiestos englobados en el Stuckismo Internacional. El Restartism es, teniendo en cuenta los significados de "stuck" y "restart" el siguiente paso lógico desde el Stuckism.

Esta difícil traducción -que ha quedado magnífica- ha exigido buscar un nombre diferente para el Hartismo, que finalmente se llama Restartism en su versión anglófona, y cuya justificación del término -en realidad un texto que une el término original con el nuevo- ha redactado Carlos maravillosamente:

This is why we founded this artistic movement, Restartism [in Spanish, Hartismo, from estar harto: to be fed-up]. Everyone is fed-up with the current state of Art. Some—a few— are quick to proclaim its demise, while we—the populous rest of us—continue to nurture it diligently and with daily, hard work. Art is not dead, but we have observed its glow dim and its spark wane. Perhaps Art has been resting, and the time has come for us to awaken it, look around, and learn from our mistakes.

It is time to restart the engines of our craft. We are doing it by cultivating our practice with serious and sincere commitment. And, like others have done in the past, we now wish to introduce ourselves to the world via this Restartist Manifesto.

(Traducción aproximada)
Es por ello que fundamos este movimiento artístico, el Restartism. Todos estamos hartos del estado actual del arte. Algunos—unos cuantos—proclaman con ligereza su muerte, mientras que el populoso resto de nosotros continuamos cultivándolo con diligencia y a través del arduo trabajo diario. El arte no está muerto, pero hemos observado cómo su brillo y su chispa se han opacado. Tal vez el arte ha tomado un respiro, y es ahora el momento de despertarlo, mirar alrededor nuestro, y aprender de nuestros errores.

Es hora de re-enceder los motores de nuestro oficio, y estamnos haciéndolo a través del cultivo de nuestro trabajo con seriedad y sinceridad. Y como antaño, los (Restartistas) queremos presentarnos al mundo con este Manifiesto.

No puedo resistirme a dejaros aquí la introducción completa:

RESTARTIST MANIFESTO

At the onset of the twentieth-century, many groups of artists launched avant-garde movements whose intentions were outlined through a manifesto. Those artists were typically fed-up with the status quo and expressed their ideals by listing an inventory of the various objects of their love and/or hate.

Today, a century later, right when we are supposed to be enjoying the Triumph of the Avant-garde, art movements have been snatched away by bureaucrats. They tour galleries and schools in search of “emerging artists” whose work exemplifies what should be considered a genuine artistic novelty. Artists themselves are no longer taken into consideration. We have moved from being those who protested and forged revolutions to becoming mere spectators at somebody else’s banquet.

It has been many years since the art movements of the Establishment transpired from needs embraced by the artists themselves. And for years now, artistic manifestos have been considered anachronistic. But it is today, more than ever before, that artists need to raise our voice and—why not? —publish our manifestos.

We are, as were our forefathers in the past, fed-up with the absurdity of the current situation. The art world has made this status quo seem normal and acceptable. We are fed-up with the fact that painting, drawing, and sculpting, in spite of the great importance they still have, are ignored in the State-sanctioned venues of our time. They are declared non-existent, dead. We are fed-up with the fact that money and media attention are going entirely to a kind of art that is hardly representative of the profession at large. We are fed-up with art having become a spectacle only millionaires can afford to attend. We are fed-up with elitism and hypocrisy. We are fed-up with the art of the Establishment.

This is why we founded this artistic movement, Restartism [in Spanish, Hartismo, from estar harto: to be fed-up]. Everyone is fed-up with the current state of Art. Some—a few— are quick to proclaim its demise, while we—the populous rest of us—continue to nurture it diligently and with daily, hard work. Art is not dead, but we have observed its glow dim and its spark wane. Perhaps Art has been resting, and the time has come for us to awaken it, look around, and learn from our mistakes.

It is time to restart the engines of our craft. We are doing it by cultivating our practice with serious and sincere commitment. And, like others have done in the past, we now wish to introduce ourselves to the world via this Restartist Manifesto.