Newburgh N.Y. based artist . . DANIEL GIORDANO,
Photo by KATY GRANNAN in her new portrait series, ‘We The People’, 2020,
named for the recent KARA HAMILTON series of brass pins calling upon the country . .
to vote !!
image via Art in America / courtesy SALON 94
Daniel is wearing one of the ‘We The People’ pins in his hat, and another at his neck.
the absolutely striking & deeply poetic photo . . is featured in a resonant essay, A NEW MEANING FOR ‘WE THE PEOPLE’, written by GLENN ADAMSON for Art in America, and posted this past Oct 13, 2020.
see: ‘A New Meaning for We The People’ by Glenn Adamson – Art in America
some take-aways:
~ “Toronto-based artist KARA HAMILTON (is) best known for her sculptures, featuring pieces of concrete, brass instruments, and other found objects . . originally trained as an architect / she also makes actual jewelry, a practice she’s been able to maintain during the coronavirus lockdown.”
~ “as a medium of communication, campaign buttons have been swept into the desk drawer of history / but for Hamilton, that made the genre all the more attractive.”
~ “she set to work, carving a series of designs in pink wax & then casting them in brass.”
~ “tears are a recurrent theme, rolling forth from an eagle, a bumblebee, an elephant, a flower.”
~ “repeated throughout . . are the letters ‘US’, referring at once to America, and those who live in it together.”
~ “KATY GRANNAN . . has been a close friend of Hamilton’s since the two women attended graduate school at Yale some twenty-five years ago.”
~ “Grannan’s signature strategy: making intimate (photo) portraits of complete strangers.”
~ “she says that photography, for her, ‘is almost an excuse to engage with people’ . .”
~ “For the photographs in support of ‘We the People’, Hamilton & Grannan chose Newburgh, New York, as their shooting location. . one of those rough-and-ready Hudson Valley towns that boomed for decades before finally going bust / but a few factories still operate & other s have been converted into artists studios, indicating a nascent wave of gentrification.”
~ “Newburgh is also a place of historic importance, having been Washington’s headquarters during the last year of the Revolutionary War.”
the pins are being sold via SALON 94, all proceeds going to charitable causes: FairVote & the Earthjustice Action Center.
some of my notes:
~ the varied & very diverse subjects of the series, don’t seem to be identified by name, least not as the photos are titled / presented . . in this article.
~ but, now you know, that’s . . Newbugh-based artist DANIEL GIORDANO, who in fact works out of an old squat brick warehouse – that formerly manufactured winter coats, and was his originally Italian immigrant family’s generations’ old business, now defunct.
~ sometimes the old industrial warehouse is also the site of pop-up shows / street parties curated by Daniel, often in partnership with friends / though now it is mostly a multi-level showcase / including storefront, for his own work / mostly sculpture. a huge upper floor serves as his studio. Daniel is like an intellectual-magnet-on-steroids, by nature, and so the place has become a hotbed of local artistic community energy, and of the growing Hudson Valley art community at large . . and is therefore, now referred to lovingly, or at least with honest respect: as ‘Vicki Island’ for its many facets !!
the pop-up gallery was indeed called: Vicki.
named for Daniel’s aunt Vicki, who used to run the last phase of the coat manufacturing.
~ go INDIE !!!!
~ one last / very personal take-away:
re Grannan’s . . ‘seeing photography as a way to engage with strangers’ / yes !! that’s for sure.
but in my case, I don’t take portraits of strangers per se, so much as I get drawn to ‘strangers’ to me, in the art world / drawn to their talent, like a moth to flame. the more unknown, and indie – the better !!
that’s how I know Daniel.
~ and, ps he wasn’t a ‘total’ stranger to Katy, as he has been friends with Kara – through her friendships within the Newburgh community.
~ and one last / very off-the-wall, personal observation:
it’s completely a vast vast wonderment, and very compelling to me, as to how . . a ‘blonde’ Italian or at least of said ancestry . . appears to channel, and so poetically: Native American.
and, it’s not just the hat, because it doesn’t channel: cowboy / at least, not to me.
its something about the posture. the spray of violet flowers at his wrist.
it must be that indie . . rebel spirit !!
that authentic connected-ness to the landscape.
and the way that landscape is staged around him /
such is the power of photography. and in this case, Katy’s.
Kara’s pins . . also speak to Native imagery, as re-told through her eyes.
and, it’s a good thing to re-tell native folkways / and in any means possible – keep it alive, and not just flickering. Native imagery and thought, has become a newly & increasingly powerful stylistic on the art & thought of this land again, and that’s always a good thing.
it is only: win win. and if it sends you scrambling / looking with new eyes at Native American art and folk crafts / seeking out written poetry, and origination tales – so much the better, and . . amen.
these photos, but obviously particularly with regard to this one of Daniel . . resonate with the need to give both ‘poetic’ and ‘political’ voice . . to all the ancestors / both Native & immigrant . . who smashed up against each other in the past / but now hold the fate of the country in hand.
as we realize the Native American ancestors – had so much right, and we had so much . . wrong.
long live the ancestors !!
long live the new . . rebels !!
long live . . Indie !!
long live . . DIY !!
VICKY ISLAND, Newburgh, N.Y
site of Vicky . . hardcore Indie / sometime pop-up gallery
DANIEL GIORDANO’s Studio, HQ . .
his authentic upstate ancestral / early industrial / family-run Hudson River warehouse.
~DANIEL GIORDANO, KATY GRANNAN, KARA HAMILTON . . ‘WE THE PEOPLE’ / Art In America |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 18th, 2020, 7:04am
I don’t know if it’s the gritty times – we are living through,
but right now, I def like my DIY . . hardcore / utility.
JEFFREY TRANCHELL, Utility Installation. 2020. Detroit.
image via Instgram @jeffreytranchell
JEFFREY TRANCHELL, Utility Installation. 2020. Detroit.
image via Instagram @jeffreytranchell
JONNY CAMPOLO, ‘Turn On for Andy & Jordan’s new house’, 2020
electric utility switch with shaped glass.
image via Instagram @jonnycampolo
JONNY CAMPOLO, ‘Turn On’, 2020.
Utility switch ’embellished’ with fused / colored glass.
Image via Instagram @jonnycampolo
it’s super fun to see the pristine fluid shaped DIY glass, against the very
authentic / distressed basement wall.
as well, the black, screw-style . . ‘fantasy’ handle !!!!!
the video is quite the riot !!
sound on !! / you can watch it: here
video by @jonnycampolo
~DIY: UTILITY INSTALLS / JEFFREY TRANCHELL & JONNY CAMPOLO |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 13th, 2020, 1:25pm
DESIGN: YUSUKE HANAI / HENRY HAUZ T-SHIRT
GLASS: EVAN CHAMBERLAIN / JEFFREY TRANCHELL / JONNY CAMPOLO
CERAMIC BRUT: ELISA SOLIVEN / at HESSE FLATOW
FLOWER ARRANGING: KANA TOGASHI / of SAFFRON BROOKLYN & LES
BRASS WORKING: KARA HAMILTON PINS on DANIEL GIORDANO via MOTHER GALLERY, BEACON
A NEW GENERATION of ARTIST / ARTISANS . . is having a light bulb !! moment !!
screenshot / video posted by New York Times Style Magazine
& it’s totally dominated by new age: glass !!
hi-end, low-end. hot or cold process. stained, leaded, or fused / often functional, sometimes purely fanciful, it’s gorgeous to look at, and . . right through. luminous. rich, nuanced or primary bold colors – it’s a serious ‘surface’ that inter-plays with its surroundings, esp . . a window of natural light.
as. even . . the mainstream New York Times has discovered.
see: ‘Murano Glass . . a new generation of artisans’ – New York Times Style Magazine / Sept 30, 2020
here’s a key take-away:
“Brooklyn-based glass artist, ANDREW O. HUGHES 42, attributes contemporary interest in Murano (glass) to several factors (including): a bit of ceramic fatigue, (and) a desire for the luminosity of glass in an era of pared-down interiors…”
we would add, a new found appreciation for skills, and all things hand-made, and one-of-a-kind, and most importantly not able to be fully realized – on a (computer) screen !!
it can be opaque, or transparent, just like, well . . . people.
& in Jeffrey Tranchell’s hands, it’s even . . the new graffiti !!
but, don’t write off ceramics totally, yet. either.
somehow, in response to all this glass swanning, and fluid form, ceramics has become show-stoppingly: brutalist !!
and why do we feel, metal working, esp traditional gold – is the next big thing ?
and flowers of course, done with new flair – are always / the golden cherry – at the top.
Drawing for DIY Tee by HANAI YUSUKE,
for HENRY HAUZ, art gallery & retail store / Tokyo.
image via Instagram @grain_on _skateboards
see: @haniayusuke
see: @henryhauz
one of my very fav designer / illustrator / artists right now, Hanai Yusuke really gets both the outlaw, and the traditionalism of . . DIY.
it’s not just a new word for craft, it’s a community-based, often in-your-face . . attitude.
DIY also conveys indie entrepreneurship / in a way – all artists today are DIY, running their own little businesses, or at least pr / on the web & across social media.
to be DIY, doesn’t necessarily mean to be: functional . . but, it’s certainly cool, that this DIY anthem is !!
it is a basic tee shirt.
I also particularly like how,in Hanai Yusuke’s work, the ‘people’ who run through it – are the Shakespearean-like comic relief / peanut gallery – who are overlooked by the ruling classes, the status quo, the ‘privledged’, but who nonetheless . . dish up the real commentary, just as in the golden age of samurai films.
hand-blown glass / gold fumicello cruet . . by young Brooklyn-based EVAN CHAMBERLAIN.
Evan Chamberlain Glassworks / hand-blown glass art made in America.
DM for pricing wholesale & inquiry on IG @chamberlandia
image via Instagram @chamberlandia
fused glass art by JONNY CAMPOLO.
on the other extreme, boldly more art expressionistic, though great craft vestiges echo though-out.
& well, it is functional – if you consider uplifting your spirit & changing your head-set – a service.
but, no – no way craft, or DIY has to be functional, we got over that decades ago.
it’s more a working with traditional materials, and blowing upthe traditional – conventions.
image via Instagram @jonnycampolo
note: Jonny has a big / little (!!) show of his new fused work, titled: ‘The Big Orange’ . . . !!!
opening at the very indie / Calendar Gazebo space in Jonathan Hartshorn’s rural New Mexico backyard (!!)
Sun Oct 4, 2020 / tomorrow / more on that . . tomorrow !!
see: @jonnycampolo / @calendar.gazebo
JEFFREY TRANCHELL . . leaded ‘stained’ glass suncatchers.
I have to credit Jeffery Tranchell, a long time friend of mine / & more recently a founder/member/curator at Essex Flowers, who is now based in Detroit . . with turning me onto the new wave of DIY glass.
He’s always been into my DIY (!!) . . . repairing old quilts / all by hand-stitch and with a lot of ingenuity.
it’s interesting to note how vastly dissimilar the surfaces of glass (hard) and quilts (soft) are / as well as the techniques of working them. yet, (patchwork) quilts and glass – both have a very mosaic effect.
as well as a great potential for pattern, or non-pattern, total free-fall & artistic expression.
both are ancient hand-made arts providing both warmth, and symbolic wishes: stay safe / enduring marriage wedding bands, etc (quilts) / while we find stained glass windows in glorious cathedrals, and also humble abodes . . giving comfort, and allowing in light, as well as inspiration to the divine.
image via Instagram @jeffreytranchell
JEFFREY has . . followed the light (!!), by placing his glass suncatchers outdoors, and then in fact a-fixing them to gates, etc.
image via Instagram @jeffreytranchell
in effect, they become a new age ‘graffiti’, which is often very much prized by the new owner.
image via Instagram @jeffreytranchell
the stained glass projects, then evolved into bringing the lightweight, but weather-durable leaded glass pieces into the city, NYC city, specifically Brooklyn . . where they are basically non-invasive, although functioning as graffiti / & where people capture them ‘in the wild’ and post the I-saw-it photos. he’s even made a map.
& he even tries to hang them onto those ubiquitous NYC construction gates – with peep holes, or temporary windows !!
image via Instagram @jeffreytranchell
but mostly they are rather like this. stained glass – for contemporary ‘parkour’ worship.
image via Instagram @jeffreytranchell
Jeffrey screws them in with bits of wire and ‘one-way’ screws, so they are pretty much not easily removed.
these are all soldered, or leaded glass works – so pretty durable.
image via Instagram @jeffreytranchell
ELISA SOLIVEN, ‘Memory in the Shape of a U’ . . up thru OCT 17, 2020 / at HESSE FLATOW
read more / see images: Elisa Soliven – Hesse Flatow / gallery website
installation shot via Instagram @hesse_flatow
this weekend includes a flower arrangement / collab with . . KANA TOGASHI / of SAFFRON BROOKLYN, & L.E.S.
this is just one shot, there are larger arrangements thru-out, even in the bigger vessels !!
image via Instagram @hesse_flatow
ELISA SOLIVEN . . the vessels at first appear to be almost concrete, very brut / though I suppose that’s . . brutalist !!
but, because of the tiny colored tile or jewel-like / colored glass-like (!!) fragments imbedded into the clay surface, they also take on the aspect of those heavy metallic ornate, medieval be-jewelled manuscript covers.
image via Instagram @hesse_flatow
Elisa with a flower bouquet / designed by Kana Togashi.
flower arranging !! an equally revered traditional skill, esp in Japan – now caught up with the DIY 2020s.
Kana owns her shop, now with 2 locations / so she’s def a DIY artisan – entrepreneur.
note . . the DIY wrapping paper.
image via Instagram @saffronbk
DANIEL GIORDANO . . wearing DIY brass pins . . by Canadian artist . . KARA HAMILTON !!
yes, this is how the mighty !! love to play !!
DIY !! FOREVER !!
image via Instagram @mothergallery story / Photo: KATY GRANNAN
see: @danieljgiordano
see: @jkarah
DIY !! FOREVER !!
t-shirt / glass, glass, & glass
ceramic clay / flowers / brass.
note: DANIEL GIORDANO will be in the next group show at MOTHER GALLERY along with . .
CAITLIN MacQUEEN & MARCY HERMANSADER / titled ‘HUNCH’ . . opening: Sun Oct 31, 2020.
see: MOTHER GALLERY, BEACON
~DIY: DESIGN . . GLASS, GLASS & MORE GLASS / CERAMIC BRUT, FLOWER ARRANGING, and . . BRASS WORKING !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 3rd, 2020, 11:35am
‘CUBED’ – GROUP SHOW
THE HOLE, NYC
UP THRU . . OCT 11, 2020
read more: ‘CUBED’ – THE HOLE, NYC
JONNY NIESCHE, ‘Atoms Encode (Scarlet), 2020.
Aluminum, wood, autolack and voile / 63 x 48 x 1 in.
($13,000)
LUKE MURPHY, ‘Pixels, Stream, Speed’, 2019.
LED Matrix panels, MDF panels, mini PC, driver cards, power supplies, cables, software
30.5 x 25 x 25 in.
($20,000)
KRISTINE MORAN, ‘Mad Cap Swimmers – Opposing Strokes’, 2020.
oil & acrylic on linen / 60 x 48 in.
(inquire)
at left:
LUKE DIIORIO, ‘Untitled’, 2020.
oil on canvas over panel / 46 x 46 in.
($12,000)
detail:
LUKE DIIORIO ‘Untitled’.
ANDREAS ANGELIDAKIS, ‘KION’, 2020.
foam blocks, digitally printed vinyl upholstery
138 x 39 x 39 in.
($35,000)
LILAH ROSE, ‘Seabed’, 2020.
foam, muselin, fabric dye, plywood.
72 x 24 x 13 in.
($6,500)
detail:
LILAH ROSE, ‘Seabed’.
frame grab / “FAMILY”
ARA PETERSON, ’12 Ball’, 1997.
16 mm animation / duration: 3 min 29 sec
frame grab / “THANKS”
ARA PETERSON, 12 Ball’, 1997.
16 mm animation / duration: 3 min 29 sec
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH / DATE: SEPT 10, 2020
~’CUBED’ . . THE HOLE / more pix from the opening !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 26th, 2020, 11:00am
don’t ever underestimate . . the power of heading into the . . light !!
LUKE MURPHY, ‘Pixels, Stream. Speed’, 2019
LED Matrix panels, MDF panels, mini PC, driver cards, power supplies, cable, software
30.5 x 25 x 25 in.
image courtesy: THE HOLE
Ushio Care 222 UV lamp / New York Post SEPT 22, 2020
“about the size of a hardcover book” . . !!
Ushio Care 222 UV lamp / New York Post SEPT 22, 2020
see: JAPANESE FIRM DEVELOPS FIRST UV LAMP THAT SAFELY KILLS CORONAVIRUS / NYP
in short:
“A Japanese company that teamed up with Columbia University has developed a first-of-its-kind ultraviolet lamp that can kill the coronavirus without harming people’s health.
Light equipment maker Ushio’s Care 222 UV lamp is expected to be used to disinfect heavily trafficked spaces where people run the risk of {infection}.
UV lamps have been widely used . . in medical & food processing industries, & JetBlue recently announced plans to use the technology aboard its planes.
However, conventional UV rays cannot be used when people are present because they cause skin cancer & eye problems.
Ushio’s UV lamp emits rays with a wavelength of 222 nanometers, as opposed to the conventional 254-nanometer wavelength, making them deadly to germs, but harmless to humans . . . .
The 2.6 pound Care 222 device which is about the size of a hardcover book, costs about $2,800.”
*well, they hope it is harmless to . . humans /
I mean ‘nano’ / begets .. nano, lol.
but sounds – good !!!
~LUKE MURPHY . . ‘CUBED’ / called it !! Japanese develop UV lamp . . !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 26th, 2020, 10:17am
A PENNY – FOR YOUR THOUGHTS !!
PIX . . . FROM THE OPENING / SEPT 10, 2020
‘CUBED’ / GROUP SHOW
THE HOLE / SEPT 10 – OCT 11, 2020
READ MORE / SEE GREAT INSTALL PIX: ‘CUBED’ GROUP SHOW / THE HOLE
LUKE MURPHY . . .
LUKE MURPHY, ‘Pixels, Stream, Speed’, 2019
LED matrix panels, MDF panels, mini PC, driver cards, power supplies, cables, software.
30.5 x 25 x 25 in.
yes !!
a penny for your thoughts . . as you fall into the wonderment of this 21st C. . . wishing well !!
if only it could suck in . . viruses !!
now, what a pretty ‘humidifier’ . . that would be.
imagine: everyone & every place . . would have one, twinkling away.
changing colors – as the light beams clean the air.
small ones like toasters / big ones like trucks.
maybe, even . . sooner than you think.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~LUKE MURPHY . . ‘Pixels, Stream, Speed’ / ‘CUBED’ / THE HOLE . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 17th, 2020, 1:14pm
LUKE !!!!!
LUKE MURPHY . . in THE HOLE / ‘CUBED’ / GROUP SHOW
OPENS THURS SEPT 10, 2020 / 6 – 9 PM
THE HOLE, 312 BOWERY, NYC, NY 100012
LUKE MURPHY, ‘Pixels, Stream, Speed’, 2019.
LED Matrix panels, MDF panels, mini PC, driver cards, power supplies, cables,
software / 30.5 x 25 x 25 in.
image courtesy: THE HOLE
& YES !!!!
that is Luke’s . . ‘Resist’ LED-Deli sign – that runs across the top of this page !!
you can even, catch some of the same color palette / in both the LED matrix sculpture, and the online digitally animated ‘LED’ banner.
and, don’t we all need to . . . RE-ACCESS: RESIST, FOCUS & DE-BUBBLE !!
get your heads – into the future, people !!
see: LUKE MURPHY / LUKELAB / ARTIST WEBSITE
~LUKE MURPHY . . in THE HOLE / ‘CUBED’ / BIG !! OPENING !! THURS SEPT 10 / 6-9 PM |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 10th, 2020, 8:19am
FREDDY . . is a curatorial project by New York based artist, JOSHUA ABELOW.
this t shirt was produced to celebrate 5 years of programming / 2014-2019.
please visit: FREDDY / for more info
Artwork by: TED GAHL
Layout Design by: JONNY CAMPOLO
Silkscreen & production: ANDY MISTER aka HELEN SAID THIS
6 oz. 100% ring spun cotton tee
free shipping in the USA
from . . . $34
to order: FFREDDY’S DEAD – HELEN SAID THIS
the back is like a band tour T . . . it lists all the FREDDY shows & projects.
ALL IMAGES via: FREDDY’S DEAD – HELEN SAID THIS
~FREDDY’S DEAD . . . GET THE T- SHIRT !! |
Posted in If I had $200, The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 8th, 2020, 1:00pm
BABA YAGA has just posted . . some great install shots !!
see: installation photos & some very good editorial commentary . . ‘ENTERTAINMENT & HISTORY’ – BABA YAGA GALLERY !!
note: CHARLES WASHINGTON & CHARLIE SMITH, are both artists living & working in Hudson, NY.
here are a few of my personal favs:
CHARLES WASHINGTON, NEWBURGH – BEACON BRIDGE
CHARLES WASHINGTON, GEORGE WASHINGTON BRIDGE
CHARLES WASHINGTON, TAPPANZEE BRIDGE
CHARLIE SMITH, ‘LOOPER’, sculpture
CHARLIE SMITH, ‘LOOPER’ / from angle
CHARLIE SMITH, ‘Big Sculpture’
installation shot – for scale.
ALL PHOTOS VIA: BABA YAGA GALLERY WEBSITE
~CHARLES WASHINGTON, CHARLIE SMITH / ‘ENTERTAINMENT & HISTORY’ / BABA YAGA / UP-DATE |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 7th, 2020, 2:59pm
6 – 9 PM
WEAR MASKS
JOHN-ELIO REITMAN & SCOTT KEIGHTLEY . . . ‘INTERLUDE’
are showing some work, tonight . . THURS SEPT 3, 2020
CHARLES WASHINGTON & CHARLIE SMITH, ‘ENTERTAINMENT AND HISTORY’ . . is still up, too.
BABA YAGA , 5821 NY-G Hudson, NY
JOHN-ELIO REITMAN / PHOTO VIA INSTAGRAM @babayagagallery
I don’t know if you could call these guys, ‘matchey matchey’ to their face and live,
but . . great color palette.
if it weren’t a 2-1/2 hr. drive for me / one way . . . I’d def be there.
~JOHN-ELIO REITMAN & SCOTT KEIGHTLEY / BABA YAGA / HUDSON, NY / THURS SEPT 3 |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 3rd, 2020, 12:14pm
