A guide to the artistic underground

What is the avant-garde? In pictures

The term avant-garde is no longer considered de rigueur as a description of boundary-testing artists, but that does not mean that an artistic underground has ceased to exist.

However, finding out about those artists who test the boundaries of their art is not as easy as stepping into your local book store or record shop.

But help is at hand. As part of Today guest editor Zadie Smith's programme, the author Hari Kunzru has put together a starter kit to those artists in the artistic vanguard.

By definition, the underground is - underground. So there's no overview, no definitive guide. This is a partial, ill-informed, cobbled together list of stuff, being made mostly in Britain, which is in some way difficult, experimental, marginal, odd, or otherwise unlikely to be available on your local high street.

WORDS

There's the post-language poetry scene, around Keston Sutherland et. al in Sussex.

Wikipedia: Keston Sutherland

Barque Press

Stewart Home is a novelist who combines pulp fiction with hardcore theory and a certain amount of gratituitous filth.

Stewart Home

There's always Iain Sinclair.

Wikipedia: Iain Sinclair

And the sad young literary men at 3am Magazine.

3am Magazine

Consider afrofuturism.

Afrofuturism.net

Anthony Joseph

Wikipedia: Kodwo Eshun

Avant-garde philosophy this way.

Urbanomic

Or perhaps apost-situ art politics zine.

Savage Messiah

Orunderground cultural commentary.

Metamute

Once upon a time there was a cyber-underground, associated with Warwick university.

History is made in the night

Orphan

And you have to question what is outside the mainstream, when Sarah Kane's work is in major venues around the world.

Wikipedia: Sarah Kane

MUSIC

Fancy some (un)pop?

Difficult Fun

Adaadat

What about some noise? (It won't be played in a cocktail bar any time soon).

Aufgehoben

Youtube: Aufehoben

Perhaps free improvisation from Derek Bailey and co.?

European Free Improvisation home

Or turntablism?

Philip Jeck

Maybe laptop music is your kind of thing?

A Brief History of Laptop Music

Or noise + politics?

Datacide

Or drone metal?

Wikipedia: Drone Metal

Or environmental sound?

Chris Watson

Or time travel?

Longplayer

Or dubstep?

Kode9

Or for those who like their avant institutionalised, there's always the good old electro-acoustic scene.

Ears

ART

These guys are Dutch, but in terms of abstract web stuff they're way out there.

Jodi

Then there is process-based anti-art, also known as sport art, where they do things like illegal border crossings and climb trees.

Heath Bunting

Malinky

And finally there is post-Viennese actionism (Warning: Contains images that some may find upsetting)

Franko B