Clop002: "Contemporary Art Is Pus And Vomit"



June 2011



Les Deux Cloportes are very happy to announce their collaboration with the radical Russian art group Voina and the publication of ‘Contemporary Art is Pus and Vomit’, their “Anti-Manifesto”.



Voina, whose name translates as ‘War’, occupy a curious position in the Russian art-world - at the same time that some members of the collective face criminal prosecution for their actions, with possible penalties of up to 20 years imprisonment, they were also awarded Russia’s prestigious Innovatsia prize by the Ministry of Culture and National Centre for Contemporary Art. The work that won this prize was the audacious “Dick Captured by the F.S.B” a 210 foot penis spray-painted on a bridge opposite St Petersburg’s Federal Security Service office.



"Voina has inherited the tradition of the Russian futurists from the early 20th century. This isn't just art, but revolutionary art." - Olesya Turkina, curator and research fellow at the Russian Museum in St Petersburg.



The manifesto, compiled by Russian philologist and Voina artist Alexei Plutser-Sarno, consists of the splenetic rantings of Voina’s right-wing opponents détourned in a critique of contemporary art.



‘Contemporary Art is Pus and Vomit’ is printed on 300gsm straw/buff 100% recycled paper containing elephant dung, using a 19th century Peerless No. 2 letterpress by Cropper, Charlton & Co. of Nottingham. 100 copies were printed in this edition, 50 of these were sent to Voina and the remaining 50 numbered copies will be distributed by Les Deux Cloportes.



Mindful that we might be accused of commodifying dissent by marketing this explosive manifesto, but similarly mindful that we would like to recoup the cost of the print run, Les Deux Cloportes are offering this edition on a pay-what-you-want basis. Any profit in excess of production costs will go to Voina’s defence fund. Anyone interested in obtaining a copy should email us at lesdeuxcloportes@hotmail.co.uk indicating the sum you would like to pay and you will be sent an invoice.