Capitalist Realism presents us with myriad ways in which we (quite literally) psyche ourselves out of thinking for the future — or, as Fisher would later recalibrate his focus, alluding to the templexity of our present, “the new”. [The Gothic Secession of Patchwork Yorkshire, March 15, 2018, by @xenogoth]
The term "capitalist realism" has been used, particularly in Germany, to describe commodity-based art, from Pop Art in the 1950s and 1960s to the commodity art of the 1980s and 1990s.[1] When used in this way, it is a play on the term "socialist realism". Alternatively, it has been used to describe the ideological-aesthetic aspect of contemporary corporate capitalism in the West. Although attested earlier,[2] the phrase "capitalist realism" was first used in the title of the 1963 art exhibition in Düsseldorf, Demonstration for Capitalist Realism, which featured the work of Gerhard Richter, Sigmar Polke, Wolf Vostell, and Konrad Lueg.[3]
Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative? is a 2009 book by British theorist Mark Fisher, published by Zero Books. It explores Fisher's concept of "capitalist realism," which he takes to describe "the widespread sense that not only is capitalism the only viable political and economic system, but also that it is now impossible even to imagine a coherent alternative to it."[1]
The book investigates what Fisher describes as the widespread effects of neoliberal ideology on popular culture, work, education, and mental health in contemporary society. Capitalist Realism was an unexpected success, and has since influenced a range of writers.[2]
The subtitle refers to Margaret Thatcher's slogan "There is no alternative".
Media[]
- «Depressive capitalist realism», by Justin Murphy, published 9. Sept 2019
- «The Gothic Secession of Patchwork Yorkshire», 15 March, 2018, by @xenogoth
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- Mental health; Politics; Mental health and Leftism; Mental health and the Right-wing; Depression and politics
- Psychology; Psychology and politics; Depression; Mark Fisher