détournement
Subversive media appropriation
Détournement is the practice of hijacking cultural materials—advertisements, artworks, political slogans—and subverting them to critique the original or make a new point.
The term comes from French Situationist theory and literally means "rerouting" or "diversion." A corporate logo altered to mock the company, or a propaganda poster rewritten to undermine its message, are classic examples: The artist's détournement of the Coca-Cola billboard turned consumerism against itself.
Shifting meaning through setting
- hijackingForcible seizure mid-transit
- subversionUndermining established authority
- diversionRedirection of attention
- reroutingSending by different path
repurposing · recuperation · misappropriation · plagiarism · theft · piracy · defacement · spectacle
Assembled mixed-media artwork
- montageAssembled sequence of images
- cut-upHabitual joker or clown
- assemblageCollected group of things
- bricolageConstruction from available materials
juxtaposition · pastiche · overlay · splice · remix · mashup · sampling · photomontage
Satirical imitation
- ironyMeaning opposite to words
- mockeryScornful ridicule or travesty
- caricatureExaggerated comic depiction
- spoofComic exaggerated imitation
lampoon · burlesque · travesty · sarcasm · ridicule · send-up · takeoff · wit
Visually striking event
- InternationaleGlobal workers' anthem
- flâneurLeisurely urban observer
- urbanismStudy of metropolitan areas
- driftGradual movement, no direction
mapping · recuperation · avant-garde · radical · revolutionary · Paris · graffiti · tract
recontextualization
Shifting meaning through setting
- hijackingForcible seizure mid-transit
- subversionUndermining established authority
- diversionRedirection of attention
rerouting · repurposing · recuperation · misappropriation · plagiarism · theft · piracy · defacement · spectacle · commodity
collage
Assembled mixed-media artwork
- montageAssembled sequence of images
- cut-upHabitual joker or clown
- assemblageCollected group of things
bricolage · juxtaposition · pastiche · overlay · splice · remix · mashup · sampling · photomontage · readymade
parody
Satirical imitation
- ironyMeaning opposite to words
- mockeryScornful ridicule or travesty
- caricatureExaggerated comic depiction
spoof · lampoon · burlesque · travesty · sarcasm · ridicule · send-up · takeoff · wit · absurdism
spectacle
Visually striking event
- InternationaleGlobal workers' anthem
- flâneurLeisurely urban observer
- urbanismStudy of metropolitan areas
drift · mapping · recuperation · avant-garde · radical · revolutionary · Paris · graffiti · tract · pamphlet
- Radical Artanti-art, guerrilla art, protest art, radical art, resistance art
détournementhomage
Expression of deep respect
tribute · pastiche · faithful adaptation · celebration · fan art
détournementrecuperation
Gradual return to health
co-optation · commodification · assimilation · cultural hegemony · conformism