Is Shia LaBeouf's 'Performance Art' genius or shameless?

Shia LaBeouf has explained his recent shenanigans as “performance art.” While this may look like a simple breakdown, I can understand why the general public would be confused. But, if Mr. LaBeouf says that it is art, I will bite. But, all art must be challenged to prove its creative genius. I will challenge his performance art.

In a surprising finale to LaBeouf’s performance art, he explained the method to hide madness. In a Twitter post, he stated that it was art when he plagiarized David Clowes’ Justin M. Damiano in his short film HowardCantour.com. He said that all of his actions, including using a skywriter to apologize to Clowes, has been performance art. More specifically, he said that his twitter account @thecampaignbook is art.

The definition of performance art is, “an art form that combines visual art with dramatic performance.” Everything that he has done could be considered a dramatic performance. But, is it a good dramatic performance?

In my opinion, LaBeouf’s use of a skywriter as an apology was the metaphorical highlight of his performance. It was ironic that he was being criticized for stealing another man’s words yet his apology was literally written by another person. The transparent clouds in the sky were showing the fact that LaBeouf’s apology was transparent in itself. He was doing a commentary on his commentary.

Using Twitter as a medium to mediate his emotions and commentary is the low point of LaBeouf’s performance. Instead of challenging himself to use a unique medium than that of the other poser celebrities, he chose to go with a simple route. The realization of his mistake in medium was revealed on Jan. 13 when he tweeted “I AM NOT FAMOUS ANYMORE” four times.

I AM NOT FAMOUS ANYMORE

— Shia LaBeouf (@thecampaignbook) January 22, 2014

Each of the tweets was a recall to the original Shia LaBeouf. Shia got his start on Even Stevens. The Disney Channel show lasted three seasons and the finale was a film. That was four separate times that he played Louis Stevens. This use of the past combined with social media was a reflection of the growth that he has made as an actor. He was figuring that he did not want to be known as the old Shia LaBeouf. He was doing a metamorphosis in 140 characters.

The four tweets were also a recall to his Transformers past. While he starred as Sam Witwicky in the first three Transformers films, he was replaced for the fourth film by Mark Wahlberg. LaBeouf is using the repeated tweet to show how missing out on the fourth film may lead to his cinematic downfall.

The moment that brought this performance art to life was when he was cast to star in Broadway’s Orphans. It was the first hint in the beginning of his long journey. It was a physical analogy of Joaquin Phoenix’s 2010 actions. In 2010, the actor pretended to quit acting and become a rapper then he and Casey Affleck made a documentary about it. While Phoenix used his performance art to make a documentary, Shia has taken the physical route and is using his performance art to curve his career.

With the foundation set for successful performance art, LaBeouf completely changed the game by pulling up the curtain on Hollywood. He tried to do his best Catcher in the Rye and try to expose the phonies within the celebrity world. But, through that, it is questionable if he made them look like phonies or made himself part of the phony system.

Art is difficult to define. Shia thinks that copying other people, acting like a jerk and getting into bar fights is art. Is Shia LaBeouf a creative genius? History will tell.

Shia has yet to title his performance art. I have a suggestion. I believe the best title for his performance is “The Mental Breakdown: A Former Child Star’s Fallout Laced With a Lame Excuse.”