I’d like to thank MARTIN BROMIRSKI of ANABA and JON KALISH of NPR – who both were kind enough to write up my show at OTHER MUSIC. thanks guys.
the show is still up – until the first week of OCTOBER 2009, or so. I tried to use the format of ‘banners’ to showcase examples of – my own art, photography, and artisan skills.
as well – those 4 framed watercolors – on the top shelf to the right – are mine, too.
OTHER MUSIC – 15 East 4th St. NYC
see: NANCY SMITH on ANABA !!
see: NANCY SMITH on NPR !!
and, yes I loved being called a ‘wheeler dealer’ !!
but, right now, I’m feeling more like – a Tricoteuse, …. as in Madame Defarge.
I did a lot of knitting and stitching and repairing of quilts over the summer …
TRICOTEUSE !! WIKIPEDIA
“WILLIAM-ADOLPHE BOUGUEREAU’S painting ‘Tricoteuse’ ironically depicts a young girl knitting …”
. . . and, check out: Madame Defarge !!
~NANCY NOW |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 12th, 2009, 10:57am
coming up soon.
~WE LIVE IN PUBLIC/DON’T LOOK BACK !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 12th, 2009, 10:56am
JOSH HARRIS in the communal shower. WE LIVE IN PUBLIC.
and yep, the shower – like everything else – was under 24/7 camera surveillance.
and yep – the footage was broadcast live – in real-time video streaming.
so, you could look up at one of the many multi-channel monitors – scattered about EVERYWHERE !! let’s say from – your seat at the dinner table – and pretty likely – you’d find yourself watching someone .. who had just stepped in !!
WE LIVE IN PUBLIC – after winning big at SUNDANCE this year – and, having its NYC premiere at MOMA this past Spring – opened its first ‘COMMERCIAL’ run – in NYC – last week, playing at the IFC CENTER downtown – AUG 28 thru SEPT 4th.
see: IFC CENTER !!
the film’s poster: NANCY & THEO.
AUG 28: WE LIVE IN PUBLIC – JUST SCORED A HUGE WRITE-UP in the NEW YORK TIMES !!
. . . titled: ‘EMBRACING LIFE UNDER SCRUTINY, BEFORE THE DAWN OF NONSTOP TWEETS’ and written by MANOHLA DARGIS !! – it can be found on PAGE C6 of FRI AUG 28th’s WEEKEND ARTS . . . one correction, under that small photo – of one the of film’s poster images, titled “Volunteers in the 30-day bunker … ” – that’s me and my son THEO. and, no I was NOT a volunteer – I was a paid member of the crew – my salary: $10,000 … that included both my 24/7 work as an in-house crew member, and my 24/7 participation as an exhibiting artist.
you can catch – the NYT review: online !!
our film reviewer JAN ALBERT also just posted her take !!
see: WE LIVE IN PUBLIC/artlovers movie reviews !!
catch the WE LIVE IN PUBLIC OFFICIAL WEBSITE & TRAILER: here !!
. . . and, small world – convicted BASQUIAT FORGER & current artist-in-residence in CHINA !! – ALFREDO MARTINEZ – emailed to say he had caught my recent INTERVIEW – on NPR !!
how ALFREDO, also a big ‘player’ in the JOSH HARRIS glory days – he ran the infamous ‘SHOOTING GALLERY’ at QUIET – prominently featured in the WE LIVE IN PUBLIC film – ever got into CHINA – with a 2 yr. prison rap sheet – for art fraud – still has all his friends – mystified.
come to think of it . . . it was ALFREDO who first introduced me to Josh. to do artworld P.R. and to find Josh a super special antique American quilt – which he wanted to give away as wedding present !! and indeed, I did find him a most beautiful mint condition guilt. a rare wool Mennonite log cabin (furloughs) circa 1880 . . ($6,000). after I told Josh somewhat about the quilt’s origins and pattern – on top of what he paid me to find the quilt (10% commission) – he then paid me another $1,000 bucks to write up what I had told him – as an essay to accompany the quilt – to its new owner. the very definition of cool, or what . . .
whatever anybody says about Josh – he was a great art patron and he threw the best parties ever. all the time.
the downtown temperature definite went down – when he did. in fact ‘downtown’ is now pretty much just a hollow term, usually affixed by NEW YORK MAG to celebrity spawn wannabes . . in puff pieces that are paid for. what can I say – that’s pretty much the truth. the hood that gave birth to BASQUIAT is long since – dead & gone.
~WE LIVE IN PUBLIC/PLAYS NYC |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 9th, 2009, 9:58am
the LaVIOLA BANK SUMMER SALON runs JULY 16 thru MON SEPT 7, 2009 !!
179 EAST BROADWAY – F TRAIN TO EAST BROADWAY – LOWER EAST SIDE
a big group survey – it was exciting for its range and drama !!
here’s some pix from the opening night – THURS JULY 16, 2009.
BRIAN MONTUORI . . . in front of the big wall of his work.
we saw WES LANG come by to congratulate BRIAN MONTUORI, on his work – so we asked Brian,
if he had any Wes Lang tattoo work – yes, he did !!
WES LANG.
BRIAN MONTUORI’S wall of work – was pretty – awesome.
BRIAN MONTUORI, ‘Electric Tower Study 02’, 2009.
oil on paper, 15 x 15 in. ($750.)
ERIK JEOR.
ERIK JEOR’s wall – totally diff – equally awesome.
. . . on the wall – ERIK JEOR.
ERIK JEOR, ‘Saccharin and Melanin’, 2009.
watercolor on paper, 43 x 60 in. ($4,800)
ALLEN GRUBESIC, ‘I was young …’, 2007.
silkscreen on Scandia 2000 vida paper. Edition of 250. ($100)
KASPER SONNE, ‘Logo (Angst)’, 2009.
neon sign, 9 x 28.5 in. ($3,000.)
MAJ ANYA DeBEAR – totally obsessed with NAPOLEON !!
MAJ ANYA DeBEAR – her ‘popcorn’ popper – housing a Napoleonic vista !!
MAJ ANYA DeBEAR, ‘Re Treat’, 2009.
mixed media, 35 x 25 x 12 in. ($2,600)
. . . large ‘femme’ photos – by VIRGINA INES VERGARA.
and towards the left – the small machine-like images – mixed media collages – are by ESKE KATH.
also really loved this wall by BRIAN RAVNHOLT JEPSEN.
‘8 Kitchen Scenes – Point of No Return, From Here On It’s Straight to Hell’, 2009.
color inkjet on board, 19.5 x 16.5 in each. ($400 ea.)
inkjet photo – BRIAN RAVNHOLT JEPSEN.
there was also a wonderful & funny – display of HuskMitNavn work.
(a Danish street artist – his name means – Remember My Name.)
this is: ‘Untitled (Two People on the Floor)’, 2008.
acrylic on canvas, ($9,900).
HuskMitNavn. limited edition silkscreen print, 2009.
24 x 21 in. ($1,300).
from the same series – HuskMitNavn !!
the exhibit – continued, downstairs !!
it was fun to shift through work – on the flat files.
mostly HuskMitNavn – but catch that !! CASEY JEX SMITH – MORMON TABLEAUX – collage – bottom right, ($350).
what a strange mix !!
what a strange world we live in, 2009.
HuskMitNavn.
on the wall – a more ‘traditional’ art world – CASEY JEX SMITH drawing, ‘Stella’, 2007.
still leaves you, w-o-n-d-e-r-i-n-g.
pencil and color pencil on paper, 20 x 16 in. ($1,500)
one last image – JASON McLEAN, ‘Saltybook of Love (in Fall)’, 2009.
ink on paper, 15 x 11 in. ($425).
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~LaVIOLA BANK/last summer show still standing !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 5th, 2009, 11:15am
on the far right – man-in-the-news – art collector & top CITIGROUP energy trader – ANDREW J HALL – or as he is more commonly known in art circles – JOHN HALL – here seated with members of GELITIN – at the closing party for their live-in 7 day performance piece/installation, ‘TANTAMOUNTER’. LEO KOENIG GALLERY, NYC. NOV 23, 2005.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
FIRST POSTED ON THE HOME PAGE: MON AUG 17/2009.
. . . MR. HALL finds himself at the center of an escalating WALL STREET CONTROVERSY – REGARDING “OVER-SIZE” BONUSES – being paid out by “tax payer” bailed-out CITIGROUP … even though he had a contract with CITIGROUP, and made them over a BILLION DOLLARS in the last year – as head of their energy trading desk.
see: artnet/AUG 4/2009
see: DAILY RADAR/JULY 25/2009
for more on: the 2005 GELITIN EVENT/artlovers 2006-02-04 !!
and a background essay: GELITIN ‘TANTAMOUNTER’ !!
and p.s. – yes !!
that is JIM DRAIN and NAOMI FISHER – making out – on the left, of the photo.
in fact, Miami-based artist & photographer NAOMI FISHER was – and was the only female – in there – with those wild and sex crazy GELITIN guys !! They were all ensconsed in the TANTAMOUNTER ‘replicating’ installation for 7 days, never surfacing until the closing party, so – guess they were pretty happy to see each other, though JIM seemed to have been visibly relieved to see Naomi in one piece, safe and sound. Naomi on her side of things, though obviously happy to see him and apparently oblivious to everything else – looked like she had had – the time of her life. and no wonder, it was one of the best art performances to hit NYC – e-ver !! and that’s saying a lot.
~MAN IN THE NEWS/& HOPEFULLY NOT SCREWED/ANDREW J HALL |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 29th, 2009, 7:32pm
ZIEHER SMITH – the new daddy financed 3,500 S.F. – D.O.A. (DEAD ON ARRIVAL).
no talent. no content. no vision.
p.s. buzz on the street – has it costing him more than half a million big ones – to build this sand castle to himself !!
ZIEHER SMITH – the new I-20 !!
like I said: dudes – if you can’t take the heat – STAY OUTTA THE KITCHEN !!
~D.O.A./DEAD ON ARRIVAL |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 28th, 2009, 10:32am
in production.
~OD’D & DEFINITE DEAD/DASH SNOW |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 27th, 2009, 7:06pm
JONAH FREEMAN – JUSTIN LOWE: BLACK ACID CO-OP
DEITCH PROJECTS / WOOSTER ST.
JULY 2 – AUGUST 15, 2009
SEPT 24, 2009:
sorry for so long in getting this up – but who wants to write about the dead ? esp when a couple of weeks later, Dash Snow really died ?
of drugs. alone. and distressed. for real.
who wants to trash artists, when just being one is already bad enough. but esp when they are friends of your friends. when they’ve done stuff – you’ve really really liked. and were expecting a huge success.
the summer of 2009 was really tough – and – the last thing you needed was to find yourself invited to a party – that you really were left out of ? where the hype was high – but, the hospitality was low.
it was, sadly – the blockbuster that blew it.
though Roberta gave it a nice enough write-up. but I think that was mostly because it was a narrative-friendly type thing. not an art-magic type thing.
she had a nice descriptive take, but not a very cutting edge. I guess what I am trying to say, was you can’t deny there was a lot to look at, and wander through, but bottomline for what supposed to be real knock-out – there was just not enough: wonder. magic. or visual punch.
art wise – it was a simply a big production that just didn’t fly. distressed sinks, and all. painted t-shirts and jars. but no real light bulbs. like ? look no further than Michel Gondry’s recent Deitch exhibit, ‘Be Kind, Re-wind’. a brilliant set construction, a brilliant ‘construct’, as in idea . . even DAN COLEN and DASH SNOW’S ‘NEST’, also at Deitch – and a very simple deconstruct – killed this one, hands down. actually all the woodiness of Black Acid Co-Op brought to mind the URS FISCHER installation, of a few years back – his Bird House made of bread, at GBE – which if placed side by side in time and space – with Black Acid Co-Op could have taken this whole month-long multi-construction down – with one dough-y arrow.
even the opening night party – that wasn’t – was a bust. this was the kind of scene that yelled for an all out open bash – instead it was a hush hush private dinner only for the chosen few. no beer, and everybody else who made it there on the opening night, through buckets of pouring rain – was left feeling like losers. and too bad, because NYC was open to embrace the guys whose METH LAB had put the MARPA BALLROOM on the map – and had blown everybody away – at ELEANOR CAYRE’S MIAMI STATION, ART BASEL DEC 2008.
even Jeffrey is scaling back on the cards and posters. there were none. but this was the email invite.
actually pretty cool. but the change of name – from some variation of METH LAB – and the underscoring of the DEITCH PROJECT BRAND – might have been a bad sign, of things going south in the north.
JUSTIN LOWE
JONAH FREEMAN
unfortunately the first room in the labyrinth – looked like a Holiday Inn bland – exam room. I hated it.
even with the see-thru window.
this room was blaringly white with crazy lighting that messed up the pix. I also hated it too. I can’t remember ever hating something so much before. that’s pretty bad. and those wigs. it wouldn’t have made it past a high school art class.
it was funny to watch the captain of the ship, JEFFREY DEITCH, in a room I hated.
. . . well, they designed a room to be spied upon, not I.
all the rooms had break away exits into other rooms or hallways. or dead ends. the newspaper collages are not very inspired.
this doorway to nowhere – was a little more – impressive.
the meth lab – still the best part. totally awesome.
if you followed ALEXANDRE SINGH’S work, who had been a partner in the earliest METH LAB days – you might think he had a hand, esp in the empty soda bottles. he had done a few big sculptures using empty soda bottles in NYC. like at White Columns a way back.
of course if you were lucky enough to catch JUSTIN LOWE’S ‘HELTER SWELTER’, (see: HELTER SWELTER/scroll down !!) at OLIVER KAMM’S GALLERY, way back in the heady days of 27th Street, SUMMER 2006 – you might wonder – what went wrong, this time. ‘HELTER SWELTER’ was not only a brilliant re-creation, minutely detailed, of a NYC bodega in the small entryway of the gallery, but it opened up into an amazing communal and totally off-the-wall open space, where gallery goers could sit in a dark space on hand knit rugs !! and they did !! – and this ’empty’ space actually took up most of the remaining the bulk of the gallery – behind the magic school bus. guess you had to be there. esp opening night. believe me, that was some party. but, even then, it was almost as if Mr. Lowe’s ambitious intentions over-shot the small gallery and aimed (sorrowfully) for a big-time DEITCH BLOW-OUT. How sad but true, sometimes you have to watch out – for what you wish for. and although the bodega and the school bus were a re-creationist’s dream – again the contrast between the highly detailed storefront entrance and the bus – against the empty inner room – was the dynamic that made the whole – take off. that gave the painstaking re-creations – heart and soul. took it one big step up – into legendary. they for sure could have used something along these lines in Black Acid Co-Op Summer 2009. the minute detail amidst the spatial ‘construct’ was what blew the ‘HELTER SWELTER’ out of the water. it was the contrast between the highly involved ‘sets’ and the mysterious, cave-like people space that made magic. there were even seats to sit on, on the magic school bus !!
totally love love this scenario. they should have just had the whole place empty and then, the METH LAB.
or created like a faux trailer trash park diorama around it. with lots of cheap folding garden chairs to sit on, and a few strings of desolate XMAS lights. and then with all the money they would have saved – they could have thrown a huge bash all month long. with lots of free beer and red wine, and BBQ !! quelle vie.
brilliant, or what.
I think they got it all wrong. was it the Deitch input ? instead of filling the whole place with so much other (and for the most part dead !! noise) all around it – they should have done the complete opposite. taken a cue from ‘HELTER SWELTER’ and made it: void. and METH LAB. or party and METH LAB.
I didn’t see the Marfa METH LAB, or see enough pix or buzz – but I think the big success and impact of the METH LAB, in Miami, must have been that it was done the stairs, in the basement, of this gorgeous brand new hi tech hi rise tower !! must have made it feel even more, like a clandestine Meth Lab, for real !! and, of course apart from all the raves about the cutting edge art – all you hear about the MIAMI STATION – was what a great party ELEANOR CARYE threw – so voila. there you have it. METH LAB in play, artists at work, vs. Black Acid Co-Op – totally co-opted.
Roberta loved this part, too.
but then you had to leave the METH LAB .. and it was all pretty much, downhill.
oh oh another room – I really hated.
it was like they had to have small pieces – to move. to sell.
and it was pretty desperate going.
the next room was even more tedious.
there was some half-hearted attempt with real-time camera surveillance – and, these were the only 2 monitors.
myself, having lived through the surveillance juggernaut that was JOSH HARRIS, ‘QUIET’ and ‘WE LIVE IN PUBLIC’ – I could only gasp – with shock – at the missed opportunity, to say the least.
well, this scene – was what it all should have been like, around the METH LAB !!
I was wondering where I had gotten that image of a folding garden beach chair.
you know at some point you came across a Chinese herb shop.
but I still hate that cold long oblong window type structure used again. so blah. what kind of entrance way is that for an herb shop.
it was like a great idea, but poorly conceived. like they didn’t have enough time or money to do it right.
and the lead-up, was all wrong. just a waste of a good idea. it became distracting. strenuous to keep turning into mind-eating replicas.
like so what. give me the METH LAB.
ok. but save it for another time, another exhibit, another year.
though there were some hand painted t-shirts down here, that were to die for !!
of course, there was a tour de resistance at the top of the stairs.
these guys tried their best to out-do – all past DEITCH PROJECT ghosts.
you know I love all things cowboy and Indian – but this just didn’t take off – for me. it just seemed tedious.
more me me me. they shoulda just hung some real quilts.
it made me cry for the days of the CLARE ROJAS exhibit. if you saw it, you know what I mean.
look it up in the Deitch archives.
these guys should stick to sinks. they do the best sinks, ever.
ok. but so what when the day is come and gone.
and yes, the shelves were good. but missed out in the – whole treatment, the whole show gone awry.
an interesting detail.
ok. awesome.
outside on the street, reality mirrored the distressed re-creation, but for real.
the sign says: where’s my bail out ?
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
FROM THE HOME PAGE – THURS JULY 2, 2009:
to-nite – an opening at DEITCH PROJECTS on WOOSTER. Jeffrey D is probably gonna wipe the summer must-see block-buster spotlight – right out from under Gavin — with the opening of his, Jeffrey’s, brand new NYC version of the JONAH FREEMAN & JUSTIN LOWE – ELEANOR CAYRE/MIAMI STATION hit – ‘HELLO METH LAB’ – resurrected here as ‘BLACK ACID CO-OP’ !! bet both openings will be huge mega-crush – events.
WRONG !!
Gavin’s was a huge party. Jeffrey’s was a dud.
turned out the Black Acid Co-Op opening wasn’t really a public opening. though if you braved the pouring rain, you could get in with the invited guests ? which was alright if you didn’t mind feeling like a loser, since it was a close quartered maze – that was much better navigated with lots of space. as opposed to crowds. the dense & detailed installation covered every inch, literally, of the gallery space.
that alone was awesome, I guess.
I heard it took the 2 artists, JUSTIN LOWE and JONAH FREEMAN, with 10 full time interns, a whole month of 24/7 to complete. but overall, it was uneven and it didn’t look they had had enough time to sit back and get it – 100%. it was uneven. there were some amazing parts, there were some static parts, and there were some dead zones. put it this way: it lacked the fire power to catch your imagination and run with it – of the recent MICHELl GONDRY installation, created on a lot less labor and parts. and though one had to marvel at how hard these BLACK ACID CO-OP artists had worked to create their best, finely detailed grimy environs, is that an end to itself ? though I did love the METH LAB kitchen. it was great to see it up close and personal.
but the experience became unrelenting. deadening your senses to what lay around the corner of the many twist and turns. in fact the whole show became a kind of JEFFREY DEITCH vs. GAVIN BROWN … enterprise … in my head. whereas Gavin provided a huge welcome-all BBQ, and all the beer you could drink – with picnic tables, and even overhead tents on the sidewalk in case of rain, hard core art fans who made it through Friday’s super heavy rains the night of the Deitch opening found naught to greet them, except the spectacle of the unsocial and uptight Deitch ‘leader’ in his yellow linen suit, reveling in his usual self-congratulatory state, amidst the smug uncoolness of the disproportionate number of ‘insiders’ – who made sure to tell you – they were waiting around for the private afterparty !! It left a bad taste – to what should have been a huge street bash.
only made the more pathetic – by the spectacle of the dude who was handing out about 2 dozen homemade chocolate cupcakes he had brought along to disperse in honor of his girlfriend’s birthday !! if that didn’t capture the irony of the moment – and so poetically, I don’t know what could.
yeah, I had been really looking forward to seeing what those 2 METH LAB dudes were all about, but DUDES – if you are going to have a party – have a party !! better to have deleted just one of those grimy re-creation dead-end corners, and at least budgeted for some beer.
maybe even – a few stacks of your own cupcakes ??
and as the night progressed with very little flair or fun, I found myself wishing it had come off with just a little more inspiration – and a lot less detail. It ultimately devolved into such an unrelenting – look at me me me me. it took real no new leaps of imagination. for NYC, anyways. I hated the white room, the white paneled entranceways. the bookcase-surveillance room was totally underserved and unawesome. I dunno, maybe some old time deck chairs strewn about for people to sit on and to let them watch the comings and goings – would have made it more accessible, and strange. not to mention less stifling. physically and intellectually. after awhile it got to be so – so what … o-v-e-r-l-o-a-d. which was too bad. maybe it just needed some more old time – art !!
come on, you can take 2 steps directly out the gallery’s front door, and across the street – are the same dirty corners, except, for real.
BLACK ACID CO-OP, for all its good intentions, hard labor, and parts – was just one big conceptual grind. an overbearing hype job, that had left its initial party – way behind.
~BLACK ACID CO-OP/PRETTY MUCH DEAD |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 27th, 2009, 5:22pm
GAVIN BROWN FLIPS THE BURGERS, HIMSELF !!
‘THE LIVING AND THE DEAD’, GBE. OPENING NIGHT PARTY. JULY 1, 2009.
SUMMER 2009 – GAVIN BROWN THREW THE BEST PARTY – HANDS DOWN !!
A BIG SURPRISE STREET BBQ – OPEN TO ALL – TO CELEBRATE THE OPENING OF HIS SUMMER GROUP SHOW – ‘THE LIVING AND THE DEAD’, running JULY 1 – AUGUST 7, 2009.
. . . it was a big big street party/BBQ with Gavin himself grilling up the burgers all night long. Rare sunny summer weather held, as if to smile down on the festivity, though there were some tents put out as a precaution. Gavin is a great host and everybody had a great time. Happy spirits prevailed, as friends got on their cellphones and word of the good time quickly spread. the only complaint – the long line for the free flowing beer inside – but, hey you got to stand under that – really funny – URS FISCHER piece !!
Gavin was still flipping, non-stop – well into the nite. you could go back for as many as you wanted !!
the scene from across the street – Gavin Brown’s enterprise – in the West Village.
(hi, KATE !!)
BORIS RASIN, (above), KENNY KOMER, and JERRY BLACKMAN have work in the show – the main reason I came by !!
BORIS RASIN. happy to see us, too.
we got to meet . . . JENNY BORLAND, who works behind the front desk at GBE – and who curated ‘THE SUM AND ALL PARTS’ – independent venue show – in BROOKLYN – recently featured on artlovers.
. . . as well as BEAU RUTLAND, the co-curator of ‘THE SUM AND ALL PARTS’.
with him, his charming girlfriend – artist LANA SYNDER – whose work was included in that off-the-beaten track – but worth the trek – exhibit.
we got there . . . just in time to catch – GEORGE CONDO !!
George, or Georgie, as his old pals call him – has been recent fodder for thought on artlovers. the MUGRABIS apparently consider him the next BASQUIAT !! sorry, but think DASH SNOW just edged you out on that crown, George. but, look on the bright side – you are still alive and well and walking around. and your piece in the show doesn’t look too bad, either. artlovers aside !!
but tell, me – if GEORGE CONDO isn’t a dead ringer for SEVERUS SNAPE – aka – POTIONS MASTER and PROF. of DEFENSE AGAINST the DARK ARTS at HARRY POTTER’S HOGWARTS, who is ?
and, look what he names his painting, LOL !!
GEORGE CONDO’S painting – ‘The Apparition’, 2009. oil on linen. 40 x 36 ins.
(I’d be interested to know the price ?)
our fav piece – cause it caught the spirit of the SUMMER of 2009 – right on !! no doubt about it.
KENNY KOMER & BORIS RASIN – aka ronkom – ‘Economics 101’ !!
you put your dollar bill in – you get 3 quarters, back.
(and it worked.)
on the right – KENNY KOMER !! with pal TOM LUCZAK.
KENNY KOMER had an individual piece in the show – a fishing rod, whose pretty much invisible line – was attached to the opposite wall – at a very precarious angle, to passersby.
another young artist – MICHAEL CAPUTO – had an opening night – showstopper.
a 2 person crew had to be engaged in a non-stop mop up – it was one – quickly melting block of ice.
MICHAEL CAPUTO.
HAIM STEINBACH was there with his young son.
. . . and, he actually leaned over to fine tune his piece !!
HAIM STEINBACH, 2009. ‘Untitled (Hulk)’.
another of our fave pieces – just cause it was so dismembered, so deconstructed !!
in the midst of that – just a little bit – very – serious company !!
DAN COLEN !!
work in progress. 2009. glass backboard, hardware, rocks, silver leaf, oil paint.
the other really deconstructed piece – we really dug, also on the floor …
MICHAEL E. SMITH, ‘Untitled’, 2009. vomit, sweatshirt.
(well, it really spoke, volumes – and, most eloquently – to me . . . shows you where my head’s at – an out-of-time – oracle – swimming, mostly unrequited – in a vast sea of artworld losers. or is that posers. funny how losers and posers – don’t rhyme.)
instead of artlovers – should’ve called this site: ‘MINORITY REPORT’ !! as in, yeah – the movie !!
but our most fav piece, right up there with KENNY KOMER & BORIS RASIN’S money-stealin’ ‘Economics 101’ – was JERRY BLACKMAN’S free-standing – ‘lips’ – ‘Untitled (To Amelia)’, 2008. mixed media.
(and, now we EVEN like it, maybe even more – than his Dam anchor !!)
OMG, we didn’t even get it – the first time around – that it was – FAUX WOOD !!
but someone else did !!
ROBERTA SMITH scrutinizes Jerry Blackman’s – ‘tongue-in-cheek’ – lips !!
. . . wow – she even bent over, to touch it !! caught red-handed !!
the man – JERRY BLACKMAN.
(behind him, GEORGE CONDO’S – ‘The Apparition’ !!)
early supporter of Boris, Kenny and Jerry. artlovers critic-at-large, gossip maven, music critic, and WOODSTOCK veteran (and some would say, note the shades, indoors – he never came back) . . . SIMON CERIGO.
a lot of class A losers in this town – made their art collection fortunes off Simon’s smarts, paying
him, only in good times, as in weed – not the other green stuff – $$ – that really matters. that’s what happens – when you are a class A push-over for partying.
well lookey here – BORIS RASIN had a stand alone piece in the show, too. one of his (now known !!) small paintings.
BORIS RASIN, ‘Tonight on Charlie Rose’, 2009. acrylic on canvas. 22 x 28 ins.
cool, or what. I wish GBE would put prices – on their work description sheets.
we spied – BRICE MARDEN.
also celebrity artists – RACHEL FEINSTEIN and JOHN CURRIN.
Rachel had a cut-out piece in the show.
RACHEL FEINSTEIN, , ‘The Orphan’, 2009. wood, aqua resin, and oil enamel.
a serious looking, ANDREA ROSEN.
the party was still going on strong – outside, as we got ready to depart. and, the summer sun was starting to set. KANA TOGASHI and KATE CERIGO.
Kana and her mom are about to open a small vintage clothing and flower shop – in Greenpoint – called SAFFRON. Good luck with your new venture.
see, the sun has set, and people are still coming to join the fun !!
IVORY and SHELTER SERRA.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~THE LIVING AND THE DEAD |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 27th, 2009, 5:21pm
THE SUM AND ALL PARTS – CURATED BY JENNY BORLAND & BEAU RUTLEDGE
featuring work by: PAUL BRANCA, GORDON FAYLOR, RYAN FOERSTER, JAIME GECKER, KENNY KOMER, BORIS RASIN, DAVID ROTHENBERG, RYAN ROWLETT, KIRBY SALVADOR, LANYA SYNDER, LeROY STEVENS, HEIDI TURPIN.
the show ran: JUNE 18 – JULY 26, 2009.
at a vacant storefrontish space in BROOKLYN, near McCARREN PARK and MATCHLESS.
THE SUM AND ALL PARTS – was the best show – in an independent alternative venue – SUMMER of 2009.
Its young independent curators, JENNY BORLAND and BEAU RUTLEDGE put a very potent group in action.
The opening, a big party, at the beginning of the summer – was kind of eerie, and special, too.
First up, it was a somewhat coolish and rainy night – not enough to keep you sidelined, but a drizzle that turned you wet – as you made your way to the space – which was far from mass transit, and led you through what felt like a vacant no man’s land. At one point you could intersect with the huge ghostly spooky McCARREN PARK playing fields. but you could also just as easily wander into local fav dive band bar MATCHLESS for some of the best MAC & CHEESE around – $4 bucks – buys you a pretty good portion.
Second, it was the first chance to see some new work by KENNY KOMER and BORIS RASIN, in a while, but what made it so special – was that their piece ‘ECONOMICS 101’ – totally rocked !! the spirit of the summer, and also we got to see some of their individual works. never knew Boris was a ‘realist’ painter !! never knew Kenny was an abstract ‘fielder’ !!
check out: KENNY KOMER/BORIS RASIN/website !!
PHOTOS FROM – THE OPENING – JUST POSTED !!
check out: THE SUM AND ALL PARTS/2009-09-02 !!
~THE SUM AND ALL PARTS |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 27th, 2009, 5:20pm
