General Idea More Art

In 1967, General Idea was founded in Toronto by AA Bronson (b. 1946), Felix Partz (1945-1994), and Jorge Zontal (1944-1994). Over the course of 25 years, they made a significant cont...

In 1967, General Idea was founded in Toronto by AA Bronson (b. 1946), Felix Partz (1945-1994), and Jorge Zontal (1944-1994). Over the course of 25 years, they made a significant contribution to postmodern and conceptual art in Canada and beyond. General Idea was both prolific and multi-disciplinary long before it became de rigueur. Together, they worked across photography, sculpture, painting, mail art, video, installation, multiples, and performance. The group also made a significant number of unconventional editioned works and was inspired by the idea of the anti-art object. Thematic continuity was a key element in General Idea's work. Early on they introduced talismans or logos that they would revisit and re-envision, including skulls, ziggurats, and poodles. They were particularly interested in (European) crests used for centuries to represent a city, district, or even a creative or professional guild. General Idea both appropriated and reinterpreted existing crests (often by replacing a lion with a poodle) as well as creating crests that were entirely of their own imagination. Between 1988 and 1989, General Idea created 8 chenille crests with some of their most iconic motifs. These crests recalled their traditional European antecedents and the aesthetics of high-school sports teams and varsity jackets. "Lucre" features a trio of stylized dollar signs completed in a palette of crimson red, black, and white. It is possible that the dollar signs are personified in what seems to be a pseudo self-portrait, a recurring trope throughout General Idea's oeuvre that envisions the trio in campy, cartoonish, or absurd renditions of group self-portraits. While these crests were intended to be an unlimited edition, according to the General Idea Editions catalog raisonné, less than 100...

In 1967, General Idea was founded in Toronto by AA Bronson (b. 1946), Felix Partz (1945-1994), and Jorge Zontal (1944-1994). Over the course of 25 years, they made a significant contribution to postmodern and conceptual art in Canada and beyond. General Idea was both prolific and multi-disciplinary long before it became de rigueur. Together, they worked across photography, sculpture, painting, mail art, video, installation, multiples, and performance. The group also made a significant number of unconventional editioned works and was inspired by the idea of the anti-art object. Thematic continuity was a key element in General Idea's work. Early on they introduced talismans or logos that they would revisit and re-envision, including skulls, ziggurats, and poodles. This work, with it's stylized cartoon skull (with copyright symbol eyes) is one of these logos or mascots that make several appearances in their oeuvre. Click here to see another example of this skull. General Idea was particularly interested in (European) crests used for centuries to represent a city, district, or even a creative or professional guild. They both appropriated and reinterpreted existing crests in addition to creating ones entirely of their own imagination. Between 1988 and 1989, General Idea produced 8 chenille crests with some of their most iconic motifs. These crests recalled their traditional European antecedents and the aesthetics of high-school sports teams and varsity jackets. "Eye of the Beholder" features a single stylized skull completed in General Idea's signature palette of crimson red, black, and white. The skull motif epitomizes their campy, cartoonish, or absurd emblems. While these crests were intended to be an unlimited edition, according to the General Idea Editions catalog raisonné, less than 100...

In 1967, General Idea was founded in Toronto by AA Bronson (b. 1946), Felix Partz (1945-1994), and Jorge Zontal (1944-1994). Over the course of 25 years, they made a significant contribution to postmodern and conceptual art in Canada and beyond. General Idea was both prolific and multi-disciplinary long before it became de rigueur. Together, they worked across photography, sculpture, painting, mail art, video, installation, multiples, and performance. The group also made a significant number of unconventional editioned works and were inspired by the idea of the anti-art object. Thematic continuity was a key element in General Idea's work. Early on they introduced talismans or logos that they would revisit and re-envision, including skulls, ziggurats, and poodles. They were particularly interested in (European) crests used for centuries to represent a city, district, or even a creative or professional guild. General Idea both appropriated and reinterpreted existing crests (often by replacing a lion with a poodle) as well as creating crests that were entirely of their own imagination. Between 1988 and 1989, General Idea created 8 chenille crests with some of their most iconic motifs. These crests recalled their traditional European antecedents and the aesthetics of high-school sports teams and varsity jackets. "When the Fur Flies" is the most colorful and curious example from the series. A pink poodle, which appears almost as a curly abstraction, mimics the lion's pose often seen in traditional European iconography. Behind the famous General Idea mascot are stylized three yellow mushroom clouds. This design is a classic General Idea; subversive, zany, queer, and mischievous. While these crests were intended to be an unlimited edition, according to the General Idea Editions catalog raisonné, less than 100...

In 1967, General Idea was founded in Toronto by AA Bronson (b. 1946), Felix Partz (1945-1994), and Jorge Zontal (1944-1994). Over the course of 25 years, they made a significant contribution to postmodern and conceptual art in Canada and beyond. General Idea was both prolific and multi-disciplinary long before it became de rigueur. Together, they worked across photography, sculpture, painting, mail art, video, installation, multiples, and performance. The group also made a significant number of unconventional editioned works and was inspired by the idea of the anti-art object. Thematic continuity was a key element in General Idea's work. Early on they introduced talismans or logos that they would revisit and re-envision, including skulls, ziggurats, and poodles. They were particularly interested in (European) crests used for centuries to represent a city, district, or even a creative or professional guild. General Idea both appropriated and reinterpreted existing crests (often by replacing a lion with a poodle) as well as creating crests that were entirely of their own imagination. Between 1988 and 1989, General Idea created 8 chenille crests with some of their most iconic motifs. These crests recalled their traditional European antecedents and the aesthetics of high-school sports teams and varsity jackets. "Ouroboros" features General Idea's most famous mascot, the poodle, who mimics the lion's pose often seen in traditional European iconography. Entangled in the twists and curls of its tail, the poodle appears to be consuming the tip of it, embodying the full 'ouroboros' or circle of life. Completed in a menacing palette of black, forest green, and electric red, this design is a classic General Idea; subversive, zany, and mischievous. While these crests were intended to be an unlimited edition, according to the General Idea Editions catalog raisonné, less than 100...

In 1967, General Idea was founded in Toronto by AA Bronson (b. 1946), Felix Partz (1945-1994), and Jorge Zontal (1944-1994). Over the course of 25 years, they made a significant contribution to postmodern and conceptual art in Canada and beyond. General Idea was both prolific and multi-disciplinary long before it became de rigueur. Together, they worked across photography, sculpture, painting, mail art, video, installation, multiples, and performance. The group also made a significant number of unconventional editioned works and was inspired by the idea of the anti-art object. Thematic continuity was a key element in General Idea's work. Early on they introduced talismans or logos that they would revisit and re-envision, including skulls, ziggurats, and poodles. They were particularly interested in (European) crests used for centuries to represent a city, district, or even a creative or professional guild. General Idea both appropriated and reinterpreted existing crests (often by replacing a lion with a poodle) as well as creating crests that were entirely of their own imagination. Between 1988 and 1989, General Idea created 8 chenille crests with some of their most iconic motifs. These crests recalled their traditional European antecedents and the aesthetics of high-school sports teams and varsity jackets. In this variation of the mythological phoenix, a poodle with fierce claws and a dragon's fire breath emerges from stylized flames that mirror the animal's fur. This blend of camp, kitsch, and historical iconography epitomizes General Idea. While these crests were intended to be an unlimited edition, according to the General Idea Editions catalog raisonné, less than 100...

In 1967, General Idea was founded in Toronto by AA Bronson (b. 1946), Felix Partz (1945-1994), and Jorge Zontal (1944-1994). Over the course of 25 years, they made a significant contribution to postmodern and conceptual art in Canada and beyond. General Idea was both prolific and multi-disciplinary long before it became de rigueur. Together, they worked across photography, sculpture, painting, mail art, video, installation, multiples, and performance. The group also made a significant number of unconventional editioned works and was inspired by the idea of the anti-art object. Thematic continuity was a key element in General Idea's work. Early on they introduced talismans or logos that they would revisit and re-envision, including skulls, ziggurats, and poodles. They were particularly interested in (European) crests used for centuries to represent a city, district, or even a creative or professional guild. General Idea both appropriated and reinterpreted existing crests (often by replacing a lion with a poodle) as well as creating crests that were entirely of their own imagination. Between 1988 and 1989, General Idea created 8 chenille crests with some of their most iconic motifs. These crests recalled their traditional European antecedents and the aesthetics of high-school sports teams and varsity jackets. "Post Mortem" features a trio of stylized skulls completed in an alternating palette of saffron, crimson red, and black. The triple skull motif recurs throughout their oeuvre and stands as an iconic example of their campy, cartoonish, or absurd renditions of group self-portraits. While these crests were intended to be an unlimited edition, according to the General Idea Editions catalog raisonné, less than 100...