Tulip Hysteria
In 1917, plans were under way for an exhibition in New York. It was to be the largest exhibition of modern art ever to be held in the United States. Organised by the Society of Independent Artists and based on the Salon des Indépendants in Paris, the event was open to all. There were no juries nor prizes, and the entry fee was six dollars. Marcel Duchamp spread the word that he was working on a cubist painting for the exhibition, entitled Tulip Hysteria Co-ordinating.
Instead of submitting the painting, Duchamp resigned as head of the hanging committee, after the Society’s refusal to display the work Fountain – a readymade in the form of a urinal signed with the pseudonym “R. Mutt”.
The incident demonstrated that the exhibition was not, after all, open to everyone; in addition, the work that Duchamp actually submitted – Fountain – is considered by historians of art and theorists of the avant-garde to be a major turning-point in twentieth-century art. No painting under the title Tulip Hysteria Co-ordinating has ever emerged, and no further mention nor documentation relating to it has ever been found.
Tulip Hysteria Co-ordinating is the title of one of fifteen works from a new series of paintings by the Pula artist Bojan Šumonja exhibited at the Trotoar Gallery. To some extent, the works refer to his previous painting cycle The Great Observer from 2024. The heroes of the paintings are Donald Duck, the Purple Smurf, plastic flamingos, Christmas reindeer, skulls, insects, and flying sprouted potatoes – relics of personal memory and archetypes of Western pop culture, which are now coming into a new role. They are placed in the dystopic settings of Istrian forests, among the wild garbage dumps that are so very familiar to the artist. He describes the creative process behind the paintings’ creation as instinctive and spontaneous, and familiar iconography is placed in the midst of events that exist outside of the present time and space. In some works, textual “watermarks” appear, as well as mirrored reflections of the characters in various phases of their lives, which draws attention to the artist’s consideration of metaphysical and ontological issues. Unexpected and surprising elements are here because, in addition to reflections on themes such as identity, consciousness, irony, humour, spirit, andmeaning, they are attempting to surprise the artist himself. According to Šumonja, the best paintings are made when the artist is able to create some distance from his own familiar self.
What does this have to do with the twentieth-century events mentioned above? What does the title Tulip Hysteria Co-ordinating even imply? Historical avant-garde and especially Dadaists, were famous for their absurdist works, so the title certainly, in some sense, expresses their fascination with linguistic games and absurd combinations of words, a frequent element in their art. Ultimately, it can be interpreted as a comment on the art market, the rise in the price of artworks, and a reference to “Tulip Mania”, the historical financial crisis in the Netherlands in the 17th century, an expression that is frequently used metaphorically to characterise irrational and high-risk financial movements.
Šumonja fills this space by giving his work the title of a non-existent artwork that served as a catalyst for change and the perception of modern art, and drew attention to the absurdities and anomalies of a particular community. In doing so, he skilfully draws attention to the universal principles of artistic work: the desire for change, a shift in perception, and an escape from the known self. These are the elements which ultimately make all the difference, transforming an average work into a good one, whether it be collective or individual.
Text by Tena Bakšaj