episode-header-image

Jul 2022

53m 21s

Kitsch

ELLIE ANDERSON, PH.D. AND DAVID PEñA-GUZMáN, PH.D.

About this episode

What do garden gnomes, the #BlackLivesMatter black squares of June 2020 Instagram, and formulaic pop songs all have in common? They’re kitsch. In episode 56 of Overthink, Ellie and David investigate the history of kitsch as an aesthetic category distinct from art. How does the superficiality and mass-reproducibility of kitsch explain its uses as a tool of fascist propaganda? They discuss the American cultural instinct to deploy inspirational quotes in response to national trauma, kitsch as an antidote to working class alienation, the decline of emotionally significant, critical art, and more.

Works Discussed

Clement Greenberg, “Avant-Garde and Kitsch”
Tomáš Kulka, Kitsch and Art
Catherine A. Lugg, Kitsch
Zach Brown Band, “Chicken Fried”
Cassius Marcellus Coolidge, Dogs Playing Poker

Support the show

Patreon | patreon.com/overthinkpodcast
Website | overthinkpodcast.com
Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod
Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com
YouTube | Overthink podcast

Up next

Time to take in a breath of fresh air. In episode 133 of Overthink, Ellie and David close out their four-part series on the elements with air. They consider Anaximenes of Miletus’s belief that all things are made of air, Luce Irigaray’s belief that air is feminine, and the modern ... Show More

This one’s going to rock your world. In episode 132 of Overthink, Ellie and David dig into the earth for the third part of their four-part series on the elements. They discuss everything from earthworms and carbon dating to the “solidity” of the earth. They look to Foucault, Freu ... Show More

Oceans, baths, ponds, and amniotic sacs? In episode 131 of Overthink, David and Ellie take a deep dive into the topic of water as part of their four-part series on the elements. They discuss how all life begins in water, and the conceptual features of water, such as its fluidity ... Show More

Recommended Episodes

Goblin Mode x the Abject with McKayla Coyle

In this episode we’re asking why ‘goblin mode’ is so danged zeitgeist-y such that in 2022 it became the Oxford English Dictionary's Word of the Year. Joined by McKayla Coyle (they/them), author of Goblin Mode: How to Get Cozy, Embrace Imperfection, and Thrive in the Muck, we dig ... Show More

Wonka x Antisemitism and Censorship with Leena Norms

In this week's episode, we're joined by the incredible Leena Norms (she/her) to talk about Timothée Chalamet's latest venture: Wonka. This holiday blockbuster from director Paul King (Paddington, Paddington 2) made many people on the internet cringe even before it's release in mi ... Show More

Blackout Tuesday x Platformization

At Material Girls, we’ve been thinking a lot about the idea of using social media for social change and what those calls imply about the role of social media in our collective imaginations. And so, in the spirit of always historicizing, we recorded this episode to look back on th ... Show More

Star Wars x Mass Culture

Why is Star Wars so popular? What were the material conditions that set the first film, A New Hope, up for success in 1977? What can a Marxist critique help us understand about the film? In this episode, Marcelle leads Hannah through a conversation about one of her favorite franc ... Show More

Queer Eye x Cruel Optimism

What makes the Fab Five so fab? In this episode, Hannah leads Marcelle through a discussion of contemporary masculinities and their commodification via pop culture! They talk neo-liberalism, self-care discourse and the interplay of Trump's rise to power and "reaching across the a ... Show More

Wakanda is F*cking Awesome: Black Panther (2018)

Today we are discussing the movie Black Panther! Here are the links we promised: +Vanity Fair Interview with the costume designer: https://www.vanityfair.com/video/watch/black-panther-s-costume-designer-breaks-down-t-challa-s-entrance-scene +Atlantic interview with the costume de ... Show More

The Night Circus x Reading Ecosystems

One of Marcelle's favorite books is The Night Circus, so she decided to be brave and do an entire episode about the best-selling fantasy novel by Erin Morgenstern. Why brave? Well because sometimes it's hard to think critically about something you love! We all know that. ;) This ... Show More

56. What to Do with Our Short, Precious Life with Kate Bowler

1. Kate describes the overwhelming feeling of love—not anger—that she felt when she was sure she was near death. 2. Why it’s time we throw out expressions like “Everything is possible” and “What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger,” and rewrite our cultural cliches. 3. Why Kate ... Show More

How is culture adapting to quarantine? Plus: our film critic on what to watch now

This week, we discuss the future of movies with FT film critic Danny Leigh. Will we see a wave of apocalypse dramas once this is over? Are mid-budget films under threat? And what little-known films should we be watching? In the second half of the show, Gris and Lilah take stock o ... Show More

Avatar x Hypermediacy

Did you love James Cameron's Avatar upon its release in 2009? Have you since watched it and thought, huh, now what were we thinking 14 years ago? Were you critical of it from the start? Baffled by the public's interest in colonialism and hot blue aliens? Then this episode is for ... Show More

Listen to millions of songs and podcasts on Anghami