Introduction
The very essence of a commodity rests on its ability to sell. To consumers, therefore, these goods should carry one or more of these valuable traits – being attractive and eye-catching; functional; carries significance either in history or as a label/brand; defines a style (uniqueness), or declares a fashion or political statement.
Seeing an item’s potential, good marketing machinery will work to propel the sale and create more by-products of these items as shopping is fast becoming the most significant if not the easiest among all leisure activities. Whether it is to an individual, a place, or an institution, the same impact is left by this kind of social behavior: an opportunity to develop commodities and rake in revenues.
This essay cites the Victoria and Albert Museums as an example of an institution that houses art and culture and at the same has turned itself into a self-propelling business and has expanded the concept of a mere souvenir shop to a sophisticated emporium of culture. The discussion aims to probe the pros and cons of the kind of commodification it promotes and how it reflects the nobler mission of this cultural institution as the dwelling place of art and culture.
A Consumerist Perspective on the Value of Art
To shopping aficionados, luxury or branded, signature items are like the art pieces on the rack. These are valued, sometimes rare and most of the time sought after and talked about. In essence, any luxury item that is on display and can be acquired by anyone who has the equivalent amount of that particular item.
This mere reason, then, makes these expensive items different from genuine art. Although many pieces are also bought and sold in galleries, not all existing art pieces can be easily just purchased. In museums, the artworks are testaments not only to the skills of the artists in the past but also are artifacts that defined the kind of aesthetics we have today. Seeing the works and hearing the stories behind how it was made, is always an awe-inspiring experience to a viewer. It is also one of the main reasons why the souvenir shops came into the picture. The consumers that we bite into the concept of at least being able to take home something related to that place or to the memory of that piece, is why they thrive on the souvenirs. V&A Museum has a clear grasp of this business strength. And thus came to birth the V&A Shop.
More than just Memento
A rich and genuine artistic culture is the base for all the beautiful items found and sold at the V&A Shop. Shirts, books, journals, jewelry, flasks, home décor, furniture, and even wallpapers are available. While others are for mere form and display and others are functional, all items carry with them a branding, that is “artistic” inspiration. The designs reproduce works of popular artists in various forms, e.g. the Man Ray eye table, the flask with William Morris’ art pieces, the message t-shits that reprint the 1939 British Government war poster that says: Keep calm and Carry On. These kinds of items are collectively known as Kitsch.
As defined by Clement Greenberg:
Kitsch: popular, commercial art and literature with their chromeotypes, magazine covers, illustrations, ads, slick and pulp fiction, comics, Tin Pan
Alley music, tap dancing, Hollywood movies, etc., etc. ….Kitsch, using for raw material the debased and academicized simulacra of genuine culture, welcomes and cultivates this insensibility. It is the source of its profits. Kitsch is mechanical and operates by formulas. Kitsch is vicarious experience and faked sensations. Kitsch changes according to style, but remains always the same. Kitsch is the epitome of all that is spurious in the life of our times. Kitsch pretends to demand nothing of its customers except their money — not even their time. (Greenberg, 1939)
Despite its seemingly negative connotations, Kitsch has now risen from being just mere reproductions and copies. In fact, it has defined in itself a “style” that is akin to many modernists. Perhaps, to many shoppers as well as to the V&A Shop, the bi-products of certain artworks or artists create a kind of lasting dynamics that celebrate, propagate and promote the work. Clearly, this evidence also signifies the strength of place marketing, wherein the mood and the credibility of the institution is a large contributor to the influence it creates to be able to sell its products. Indeed, even I would like to take home an item that has been made inspired by the design of an artist I truly admire. The inspiration or the art/name behind the work can immediately put “value” to an ordinary item, let’s say a cup or a t-shirt.
There seems to be a great appreciation for Kitsch, perhaps because of the accessibility, it creates. The formalist art somehow isolates a viewer, if not most of the time has the impression that is indeed “of the highest nature”. This is reason enough for Kitsch to thrive and endure. Greenberg articulates, the concept of high culture / superior culture is one of the most artificial of all human creations, and the common man, the peasant has no “natural” urgency within to draw himself closer to Picasso. So, the tendency is to go back to Kitsch when he feels like looking at pictures, for he can enjoy kitsch without effort. (Greenberg, 1939)
Cut above the Rest
Whether kitsch or not, one identifies the purchased item from the V&A shop as an art piece. An item that came from the shop automatically elevates itself and its value because of the mere merit that it is a credible art institution, and that the works carry in itself a semblance of significance, therefore it is not just your regular item on the rack. More so, it can be evidenced in the fact that is also sold at an amount that is higher than usual. Regular value is increased with due consideration to the mentioned conditions.
Following this logic, the secondary reason as well is that the items at V&A are not just sold anywhere. There is a lot of premium for the place and so, for the price attached to it. Prestige is equally a value that dictates the price. Today, the items consumers buy are what defines them as individuals. It reveals a lot about the economic capability and aesthetic preferences of an individual.
To accept and practice the standard of living, which is in vogue, is both agreeable and expedient, commonly to the point of being indispensable to personal comfort and to succeed in life. The standard of living of any class so far as concerns the element of conspicuous waste is commonly as high as the earning capacity of the class will permit — with a constant tendency to go higher. (Veblen 1899)
So kitsch as it may be, whoever purchases these items must know in one way or another the significance of why it is valued. The same operating function can be seen in the world of fashion design wherein clothes, shoes, and all sorts of apparel are priced based on the signature label attached to it. The labels of course are the various fashion houses and designers that are known the world over and have gained the trust and admiration of the couture community in terms of style and quality. “Branding” then is the crucial element required of a commodity to sell. In the case of V&A, art became an intrinsic “branding” value and gave its items, trifle ornaments they may seem, a greater worth.
Products sold in the market have in one way or another invested in good branding strategies for it to be able to cash in the scene. Firms believe that branding help shapes consumer desires and efforts. The labels and brands that are for sale have the capacity to direct how people react to the market.
Omnipotent corporations use sophisticated marketing techniques to seduce consumers to participate in a system of commodified meanings embedded in brands. (Holt, 2002)
To this date, the most successful products out in the market are mostly products of branding. Starbucks in the United States for instance is now a global phenomenon. In fact, it has changed the way the masses see and consume coffee – all because of branding. In the case of V&A Shop, the hype and positioning lie in the fact that is nestled by the hearth of art. Culture then burns fire throughout its goods. Automatically, consumers are also drawn to the brand as it is something that one would like to associate with, whether for status or just for merely, imaging.
Conclusion
It is commodification that gave rise to material culture. The kitsch items sold at the V&A shop are great quality examples as well as testaments of the rising demand for material culture which have altered the meanings and values of things. (Jackson, 1999). Since the commodities such as the ones sold in V&A Shop become a complex cultural material, it then becomes a subject for debate. To the purists, there is some form of moral obligation that should be exercised especially in taking care of artworks. On the other hand, the influence and inspiration it could leave to regular consumers can also be valued since it creates a lasting and far-reaching impact at the same time it develops a heightened sense of aesthetics.
References
Greenberg, C. (1939) Avant Garde and Kitsch. Web.
Veblen, Thorstein (1899) The theory of the leisure class. New York (Chapter Four: Conspicuous Consumption. Web.
Holt, D., (2002) Why Do Brands Cause Trouble, A dialectical Theory on Consumer Culture and Branding, The Journal of Consumer Research Vol. 29 No. 1.
Jackson, Peter (1999) Commodity Cultures: The Traffic in Things, Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, New Series, Vol. 24 No.1, pp. 95-108.