That’s what I want: art, pop and Pop Art in the neo-80s

With Craig Schuftan, Triple J presenter and author.
Sunday 2 May
2pm – 3pm, Target Theatre, level 2

It used to be that when you asked your favourite artists to name their favourite artists, it was all Nick Drake, Nick Cave and Leonard Cohen. Now, you’re just as likely to hear names like Madonna, Prince, Michael Jackson, Cyndi Lauper, Hall and Oates, and Giorgio Moroder. It seems that these days, more and more musicians are coming out of the closet, and admitting that they love… pop music. In fact, a lot of what people call ‘The 80s Revival’ is really the rehabilitation of the idea that you can be in a rock band and be popular – an idea which remained unpopular for most of the 90s. But were Kurt Cobain, Eddie Vedder and Thom Yorke right to be suspicious of success? Have the bands who followed in the wake of The Strokes and The Killers made a leap into the future, or fallen into an old trap? And is the popularity of Pop proof of its worth, or its worthlessness? Guest Powerhouse curator, author and Triple J culture guy Craig Schuftan answers all these questions and more in this talk.