GERALD FERGUSON’S – CHORAL READING . . . is being presented to-nite at CANADA
SAT, FEB 11, 2012 – the performance begins at 7 PM & a reception will follow.
In 1972 GERALD FERGUSON scored a reading of his Standard Corpus of Present Day English Language Usage Arranged By Word Length in 20 units for a chorus of 26 voices. (seriously !!)
It was performed at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design that same year.
. . . Ferguson considered the ‘Corpus’ one of his most important works, once describing it as “a variable serial sculpture through time”.
read: the complete GALLERY NOTE
this performance coincides with the current gallery showing of an on-point survey of Mr. Ferguson’s works on canvas, ‘GERALD FERGUSON. WORK. STENCIL THROUGH FROTTAGE FROM 1968’ – curated by LUKE MURPHY.
the show opened on Jan 7, 2012 and runs thru Feb 19, 2012.
see: PIX FROM THE GERALD FERGUSON OPENING – artloversnewyork
ART FAG CITY/PADDY JOHNSON has just posted an extensive interview with LUKE MURPHY & PHIL GRAUER regarding the show.
see: GERALD FERGUSON’S BLUE COLLAR CONCEPTUALISM . . . AFC
p.s. I really like that term, Blue Collar conceptualism. even though he was an academic, as in teacher (?) it still fits the bill, though it would take a better, or at least more patient scribe than I, to lay it down for ya. maybe I’ll try to get some thoughts on that – from the show’s curator, and long-time Ferguson associate and student, Luke Murphy. (check back later.)
some talking points from the interview:
1. “Some people who went to school in the Maritime provinces have a special bond. The weather is extreme, the landscape rugged, the population poor and hardworking.” ~ PJ/PADDY JOHNSON
2. “Gerry [Gerald Ferguson] showed at MoMA in 1970 in The Information Show, and a lot of his contemporaries of course went on to build what is Conceptual Art .” ~ PG/PHIL GRAUER
3. “Gerry’s line – and he said it a couple of times – was really the ‘dematerialization of the Art Object’. That was really his thing, we’re going to make something impossible to buy . . . [we don’t want you to buy stuff] because all the people that are buying stuff are supporting the Vietnam War.” (!!) ~ PG
4. “OCCUPY”. ~ LM/LUKE MURPHY
5. “When JOSEPH BEUYS landed in North America, he landed in Halifax.” ~ LM
6. “When [Gerald Ferguson] saw [Lawrence] WEINER . . . go off to [Leo] CASTELLI, he couldn’t believe it. ‘What? You’re selling out?’ ” ~ LM
7. “Lawrence Weiner has a much bigger view of the art world in some ways than Gerry.” ~ LM
8. “[Gerald Ferguson] stuck to the original plan, which was making conceptual art and resisting the dominant systems.” ~ LM
nancy: street art – has some of the same issues.
9. and that’s what he did . . “until 1990, when he said, “you know what, maybe I do like painting. I’m going to start painting again.” And that’s what he did.” ~ LM
10. “He did a lot of language work . . . he did his ‘Standard Corpus’ of the English language [being performed to-nite], organized by word length (!!)I mean, what else are you going to do in your Frenchvillage in Nova Scotia – which is really way bleak.” ~ LM
11. “It’s funny the work doesn’t feel all of this was made yesterday . . . ” ~ LM
12. “. . . like, that dot painting on the wall” (!!) ~ PG
13. “but the paintings don’t have a good international marketplace – that’s the conundrum. . . ” ~ PG
CANADA – 55 CHRYSTIE / BTWN HESTER & CANAL – LOWER EAST SIDE, NYC
~Performance at CANADA to-nite !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | February 11th, 2012, 7:51am
it’s hard to get across just how huge New York City is, I mean just size-wise and energy-wise, let alone ‘stance’-wise and ‘status’-wise. let’s just say it’s true: the city never sleeps, the subways always run, and someone is always out there – jockeying to take over your turf !!
and as big as New York is – the art world is even bigger.
not only because in this century of internet communication, it runs international, as in world-wide. as opposed to city-state, as in the days of let’s say, the Medicis !! BUT – the art world and its trends, are shaping our culture like never before, while at the same time – giving voice, providing the stepping stones, the talking points, the tipping points . . . that enable our fast moving culture as a whole – to make a pathway through today’s overload of information.
hey, whatever catches your eye – usually catches your soul. if not your attention.
the age-old maxim: a picture is worth a thousand words is still the biggest truth in town. esp if you narrow down ‘picture’ to ‘photo’. it’s a no-brainer that the visual, as opposed to let’s say the ‘mythical’ impulse of the Greek dawn of civilization – rocks our world. ‘image’ – is king, and digital imaging rules, from the internet-based Facebook to the animated billboard advertising of modern mega cities. to the moving picture block buster style-setting celebrity casting movies, to the briefest of super bowl ‘spots’. and it all comes down to you: the style and vibe – of your ‘life’.
let alone how you manage – to move through it. long live the king.
so it’s interesting to note that we have a little mini-battle of the image, not to mention the personalities !! – being played out on the lately very much play-ed out, as in exhausted and mundane Saturday night opening routine – ok, like the term, art world stage, better ? in New York City to-night !!
and it goes something like this: celebrity art vs. the nitty gritty, street art vs. academic art, megawatt nightlife vs. rural isolation, and even Canada vs. France !!
with a little New York ‘slaw’, as in ‘snark’ – thrown in for good measure !!
SO that would be the double-headed openings to-nite of French street artist and nightlife superstar ANDRE SARAIVA aka Mr. A at HALF GALLERY vs. the ‘conceptual’ choral performance of the just barely recognized art theorist, teacher and ‘painter’ GERALD FERGUSON, who travailed up in the remote and nightlife-less wilds of Nova Scotia !!
wow, vs. is such a big force this year !! or, what !!
talk about competing head spaces – competing for your art dollar !! ha. it’s all good.
it takes two to dance. and two to fight. this is the art world – may all sides win !!
you know that other big maxim, tip of the hat to the Chinese !!. . . there ain’t no yin – without that yang !!
and oh yeah, you’re asking . . . but what about the ‘slaw’ !!
ha. that’s ‘coleslaw’ . . . as in what they throw on the food in New York City, to keep things lively, spicy, and just plain ole down home Lower East Side deli – good !!
as in delicious, and decidedly wicked. and a bit unfair I might add – but, hey we just said, jockeying for position is the spice of life. yin needs yang, and so, yo !! no complaints and let’s just set it straight for the record.
why is to-nite is a little more spicy ? and no . . . I would NOT say playful !!
because one of the ‘blogs’ that engage this scene has a foot in both camps – and that might even extend . . . to foot-in-mouth !! (and you can see its giving me no end of delight to observe. esp with the revved-up & absolutely coincidental opening nite pairing.
still WTF ? o.k. here it is, for whatever it’s worth.
it sure ain’t huge, or even that funny – but hey whatever it takes to make the night – just a little more lively, and game plan-wise it’s right on point: it’s ‘vs.’ versus the usual suspects.
WTF: ART FAG CITY in the hot seat to-nite !!
She, ART FAG CITY aka PADDY JOHNSON has got an extensive and ‘academic’ interview with the good people at CANADA re their GERALD FERGUSON show !! (with a performance to-nite) posted on the very same page . . . as she puts down the good people at HALF GALLERY (with an opening to-nite) – getting a little snarky with the, in my book – finger snappy !! BILL POWERS of HALF GALLERY in her (appropriately ?) appropriating, and not all that cutting edge, mean, or meaningful (!!) – but still fun . . . esp as it’s playing out to-nite . . . ROB PRUITT AWARDS *not associated with Rob Pruitt . . .
bye the way the animated glitter job in the logo – is nice, real nice, maybe even the best part of the whole one joke horse shtick.
and if you can’t follow this, I’m done wit ya – always needing the inside edge, just follow the dots !!
celebrity art vs. the nitty gritty
street art vs. academic art
street art vs. conceptual art
megawatt nightlife vs. the rural backwoods
FRANCE vs. CANADA
ART FAG CITY: Gerald Ferguson’s Blue Collar Conceptulaism – An Interview with LUKE MURPHY and PHIL GRAUER
ART FAG CITY: ROB PRUITT ART AWARDS *not associated with ROB PRUITT
CANADA: CANADA & up-date
HALF GALLERY: HALF GALLERY and then google search: ANDRE SARAIVA, which will even branch off onto the RONSON CLAN, via the charming model actress & little half-sis: ANNABELLE DEXTER-JONES !! and if you’re anything like me, you’ll spend the rest of the day in the web world of MICK JONES !! fascinating family life, or what ?
and what happened, did he have an Elton John make-over . . at some point ? oh that breadcrumb trail, that unlying storage library the web can be, that dastardly archive of photos !! can be so harsh. het ts
hey, it’s a harsh universe out there in cyber space – and don’t you forget it !!
and that’s . . . called: ROCKING THE CASBAH for ya !! artlovers style.
as for me, what do I know, I’m just an artiste !! AND HOW COME NOBODY KNOWS IT . . . ?
(like I do, ha.)
PEN & INK ILLUSTRATION: NANCY SMITH
~The battle of the bands . . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | February 11th, 2012, 6:44am
JESSICA BAJOROS works out of a small apartment in New York’s East Village . . .
Jessica’s long time boyfriend cinematographer JASON BANKER – works from a home/office there too.
www.facebook.com/jasonbanker
that is one of Jessica’s earlier paintings on the wall – it’s interesting to see her work evolve.
this is her current work – up on the living room wall. the large room is partitioned off to be a both a storage space and a viewing area.
she works mostly in oil on canvas, though she also has some watercolors tucked away, out of sight.
looks are deceiving. Jessica though outwardly calm – seems to be inwardly pretty intense, and the same goes with her portraits !!
she usually paints from photographs which she takes herself – in the apt studio.
the faces have an inscrutable depth – that belie their ‘realism’.
they can also . . .
veer towards the ‘magic’.
JESSICA was just starting out on a brand new series based on the new ‘it-girl’ and downtown model, NATALIE WHITE – so that should definite be something to watch out for !!
while I was there – she showed me some preliminary photos from her computer. drop dead eloquent decadent or what. as in, no words necessary.
an array of her most recent work – and, yes !! that is NINA SARGENT, the great granddaughter of JOHN SINGER SARGENT just off center to the right – in the long dark stockings. and yes, her studio wall really is painted that gorgeous bright blue. the better to set off the haunting ‘realism’.
funny how ‘realism’ can be just another word for: mystery.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH, NYC. OCT 22, 2011.
~more pix from my visit with JESSICA BAJOROS |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | February 8th, 2012, 3:48pm
. . . speaking of American realism and the vernacular !!
it’s alive and well – on the Lower East Side !!
meet JESSICA BAJOROS – with her ‘realist’ paintings behind her.
they have a natural dead pan archival take, almost totally photographic. but, often with a little bit of magic thrown in – under the radar !!
it was HESH who brought me to meet Jessica and see her work, a few months ago, that’d be last Oct 2011 – to be exact.
JESSICA BAJOROS. oil paint on canvas.
this image reminds me so much of those ‘straight-ahead-faced’, even maybe ‘poker-faced’ !! – 1970 WILLIAM EGGLESTON photographs – just posted.
that’s Hesh with his Jessica Bajoros portrait on the right.
although I immediately liked her work, I didn’t know how to fit in into the ‘dialog’ of October 2011 – it was way ahead of the curve !!
it fits nicely with talk of Americana, archiving, and realism, for sure.
not to forget – the ‘spectacular’ vernacular – of the street. New York City style !!
JESSICA BAJOROS – PORTRAIT OF WIGGS, FALL 2011. oil on canvas.
you can follow WIGGS, on twitter: @FWIGGS . . . all good.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH, NYC. OCT 22, 2011.
~JESSICA BAJOROS |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | February 7th, 2012, 12:34pm
photographer WILLIAM EGGLESTON, b. July 27, 1939 – also has work in the ‘Spectacular of the Vernacular’ exhibit currently up thru March 18, 2012 – at the ACKLAND ART MUSEUM in NORTH CAROLINA.
if you checked out that article in the INDY WEEK.COM you would have noticed his photograph of a vintage black car photographed from behind and covered by vines – which headlines their review.
but it’s his color portraits of people, in the vernacular !! that really rock the boat.
1970 COLOR PHOTO PORTRAIT by WILLIAM EGGLESTON.
PHOTO CREDIT: EGGLESTON ARTISTIC TRUST, CHRISTIE’S IMAGES LTD, 2012/image courtesy: THE NEW YORK TIMES
for example this one !! knock-out or what. talking bout realism, archiving Americana, and just plain ole spectacular vernacular … as the Ackland Museum – so rightly calls it !!
and, yet another old school-er . . . right on point.
down to that name-plate golden ankle – ‘bracelet’ dangling just so – above her left foot !! now we’re talking . . . about the (truly) vernacular.
this image made news last week in an article by CAROL VOGEL. apparently Mr. EGGLESTON, is working with Christie’s to bring several of his most famous images to a newer and bigger market, literally.
“In a rare departure Mr. Eggleston, 72, has blown up this image, [a signature photo of a vintage peaches sign] along with 35 others, from their original 16-by-20 inch sheets to a new, oversize 44-by-60 inch format.”
the article goes on to state that “computer technology” did not exist (obviously) “when he took these pictures in and around the Mississippi Delta where he lived.”
further . . . “back then color photography was considered cheesy. That was in the 1970s and 80s, when Mr. Eggleston took shots of anything and everything that struck his fancy.”
“On March 12 (2012) Christie’s will be selling 36 of these works in this new oversize format . . . the sale is expected to total more than $2.7 million, with estimates ranging from $30,000 to $300,000.”
“In recent years Mr. Eggleston’s popularity has soared. In 208, when the Whitney Museum of American Art held “William Eggleston: Democratic Camera, Photographs and Video, 1961-2008′, the show drew about 120,000 visitors, making it one of the most highly attended photography exhibits in the museum’s history.”
“I tried to go there one day after it opened,” Mr. Eggleston said, seeming surprised that people actually went to the show. “And it was so crowded even I couldn’t get in.” (!!)
read the whole article: ‘Eggleston Writ Large’ – Inside Art by CAROL VOGEL, New York Times
‘ADYN and JASPER’ – COLOR PHOTOGRAPH by WILLIAM EGGLESTON, image courtesy: WILLIAM EGGLESTON OFFICIAL WEBSITE
you can see more of his work: the EGGLESTON TRUST – WEBSITE !!
and . . . . regarding the VERNACULAR !!
the term is also in much play, currently – in the music world, as well.
case in point: an article on the legendary archivist ALAN LOMAX, (July 31, 1915 – July 19, 2002), titled ‘FOLKLORIST’S GLOBAL JUKEBOX GOES DIGITAL’, written by LARRY ROHTER, which just came out in NEW YORK TIMES, JAN 31, 2012.
the key sentence:
starting in the mid-30s, “At a time when there was a strict divide between high and low in American culture, and Afro-American and hillbilly music were scorned, Lomax argued that such vernacular styles were America’s greatest contribution to music.”
photo ALAN LOMAX took in a church in Portsmouth, Virginia in 1960. PHOTO CREDIT: ALLAN LOMAX/ASSOCIATION for CULTURAL EQUITY. image courtesy: NEW YORK TIMES
subtitle: ‘THE COLLECTION of the FOLKLORIST and ETHNOMUSICOLOGIST ALAN LOMAX is BEING DIGITIZED for DISSEMINATION.’
also, interestingly for New Yorkers: The Association for Cultural Equity, which is overseeing the project is headquartered at Hunter College in Manhattan, where it is headed by Lomax’s daughter ANNA LOMAX WOOD.
read the whole article: ALAN LOMAX: FOLKLORIST’S GLOBAL JUKEBOX GOES DIGITAL
~WILLIAM EGGLESTON . . . also in the news, & ALAN LOMAX . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | February 6th, 2012, 3:43pm
WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY is NOT just in the mix – he’s in the news, part & parcel of a real-time THREAD . . .
when I googled him, after posting those 2006 exhibit pix, post previous – lo, and behold, I found him in a far-out contemporary exhibit on Americana at the ACKLAND ART MUSEUM – of the UNIVERSITY of NORTH CAROLINA at CHAPEL HILL.
the exhibit titled ‘The Spectacular of Vernacular’ (!!) is a diverse group show of 25 contemporary artists that “embraces the rustic, the folkloric, and the humbly homemade . . . as well as the crass clash of street spectacle and commercial culture.”
the show which opened Jan 14, 2012 runs thru MARCH 18, 2012.
see: ‘The Spectacular of Vernacular’ – ACKLAND ART MUSEUM
in a sad note of just how much in the mix . . .
the Ackland Museum’s write-up on the show begins with a quote from MIKE KELLEY, who was found dead of an apparent suicide – this past Tues, Jan 31, 2012, and it goes thus:
Inspired by artist MIKE KELLEY’S observation that “the mass art of today is the folk art of tomorrow.”
see: MIKE KELLEY dead at 57 of apparent suicide/LA TIMES
see: MIKE KELLEY, influential artist/NEW YORK TIMES
well death will stop you in your tracks, won’t it. but in his honor . . .
vernacular – the everyday native ‘language’ is a great word to pair with Americana. let alone rhyme with spectacular. they sure have some peppy theorists and writers – over there in North Carolina. not to mention on point.
back on the web – Urban Dictionary pretty much nails it: vernacular – Urban Dictionary
according to the Independent Weekly, out of Durham, North Carolina, in a lively review of the show by JULIE THOMSON:
“Critic and theorist MAURICE BLANCHOT wrote the following about the everyday in 1969, saying that it is ‘what is most difficult to discover.’ This elusive quality about the things and places we see and experience every day extends to the vernacular . . .
The Ackland Art Museum’s current exhibition, ‘The Spectacular of Vernacular’ expands upon this term to include art that also encompasses local traditions and characteristics . . .”
Julie Thomson writes that William Christenberry has one of his small scale hand-built wooden replicas, of which he is almost, but not quite as well-known for, as his photographs . . . in the show: the ‘Palmist Building’ (1979) – “a detailed model of a country store owned by his great uncle in a small Alabama town.”
see: The Ordinary becomes Exceptional – at the Ackland, Independent Weekly
I’d say that calls for a few more pix !! and in fact these archival Christenberry photos, they do have a kind of sadness to their beauty, and they do offer a wordless but poignant reflection upon the relentlessness of time, and the ultimate end of all things, esp vernacular.
don’t they.
I’m also thinking, they sure do echo that quote of Mike Kelley’s: “the mass art of today – is the folk art of tomorrow.”
Amen, R.I.P. Mike Kelley.
from the exhibit, ‘WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY PHOTOGRAPHS: 1961-2005’, APERTURE FOUNDATION GALLERY, NYC – SUMMER 2006
PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY.
a storefront porch – maybe the very one mentioned above ?
if not – pretty much in the same vernacular !!
detail, PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY.
PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY.
PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY.
PHOTOS FROM THE SUMMER 2006 APERTURE – ‘CHRISTENBERRY’ exhibit: NANCY SMITH
~WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY . . in the news. right along with MIKE KELLEY, sadly. |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | February 3rd, 2012, 10:01am
also from the artlovers photo vault . . . and back in the mix: American ‘realist’ photographer – WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY.
if you don’t know this guy’s work – you should !!
American photographer WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY at the opening of an extensive retrospective of his work, titled: ‘William Christenberry Photographs: 1961-2005’, APERTURE FOUNDATION GALLERY, CHELSEA, NYC. JULY 6, 2006.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
born in 1936, at the time of this opening William Christenberry was a vigorous 70 . . .
he comes to mind – because of the way 2012 – is unfurling, art-wise. I came across these pix – as I searched thru my hard copy 35mm archive for the Eric White photo, previous post. the photos were taken in the same month, July – back in the summer of 2006 . . . they rang so true – I had to put them – up !!
WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY (1936-)
“Born in Tuscaloosa, Alabama in 1936, William Christenberry grew up in the ‘deep south’ where the old road signs, deteriorating buildings, and dirt roads shaped his boyhood memories. In 1954, Christenberry began his academic career at the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa where he studied the fine arts and graduated with a Master of Arts in Painting in 1959. During his early career, Christenberry was primarily a painter, but began incorporating the use of a Brownie camera into his working procedures. In 1961 he moved to New York (that would make him 25 !! take note – oh, current Brooklyn hipsters !!) . . . It was here that Christenberry befriended Walker Evans” (!!) . . . “Christenberry believes that all objects leave their individual mark on the landscape as time passes, even when the object is destroyed in reality.” – source: AMERICAN ART/PHILLIPS COLLECTION
PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY
William Christenberry is known for his iconic photos of the American south . . . where he grew up.
PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY
some of the most fascinating images were the portraits of a shrub-like weed called KUDZU, ‘devouring’ abandoned houses.
detail, PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY
KUDZU is actually a “climbing, coiling, trailing vine” that climbs over trees or shrubs (or houses !!) and grows so rapidly it kills its
host by its heavy shading, which deprives them of light. wow – it’s a plant-eater, house-destroyer – organic bio hazard kill-ah.
Native to Japan – this predator weed was most interestingly introduced (unknowingly ? I’m guessing . . ) into the United States through the Japanese Pavilion of the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. (!!) It is now “common among roadsides and other undisturbed areas throughout most of the southeastern United States. Kadzu has been spreading at the rate of 150,000 acres annually.” (!!) source: WIKIPEDIA/KADZU
PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY – an old house, just about to be ‘organically’ – bio-attacked and accelerated in its natural decomposition !!
and looks to be, not just by Kudzu, either. all the other ‘domestic’ southern vegetation is taking over, too.
detail, PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY
PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY . .. oh oh – pretty far gone.
detail, PHOTO by WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY
WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY EXHIBITION PHOTOGRAPHS BY: NANCY SMITH
~WILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY . . . in the mix |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | February 2nd, 2012, 10:32am
FILE UNDER: flash from the past !!
painter ERIC WHITE – at the RICH JACOBS opening, FUSE GALLERY, NYC. JULY 23, 2006.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
I knew I had a photo of this guy. if not a couple. here he is at the memorable Rich Jacobs opening – a few years back. make that 6 years back.
ERIC WHITE is the moving-to-the-forefront-quick ‘realist’ painter whose ‘magic’ realism portrait of MIE in the show: ‘MIE: A Portrait by 35 Artists’ – was hi-lighted in our JANUARY 2012 posts.
the show is still up at FREIGHT+VOLUME – it runs thru FEB 25, 2012.
see: the Jan 2012 post !!
American realism and portraiture – seem to be the trends going into the new season.
as opposed to 2011 – which could be called: THE YEAR of the ANIMAL, from MAURIZIO CATTELAN at the Guggenhiem with his swinging taxidermied dogs and horses, onto the imaginary realm of the ‘snoop-doggy dog‘ of the J.T. YOST comics, published on Bird Cage Bottom Books, no less (!!) and even including Andrew Guenther’s ‘Talking to a Fish’ !!
yep, look back over the coverage. almost every exhibit of last year had some animal reference, even if it was just the ROCKAWAY FESTIVAL of the BEES happening the same day as the skateboarder ‘SERGEV VUTU & LELE – LIVE IN THE USA’ show at, where else: ELK (!!). even that URS FISCHER laminated & illustrated table show – had some little bird, or chick and egg . . table accessories !!
not to forget – the grandaddy of them all . . . ‘Put A Bird on It’ – oh, PORTLANDIA !!
and yes, !! even down to the that yummy pit roasted pig – that got made and eaten right on the spot – at RIRKRIT TIRAVINJA’s ‘Fear Eats the Soul’ !!
I mean even CHARLIE FINCH’S dingleberry is an animal – albeit a whole colony of micro-bacteria. well, it sure ain’t a fruit – you’d be want to be popping into your mouth, any time soon, let’s leave it at that.
yep, no doubt about it 2011 – was the YEAR of the ANIMAL.
by contrast 2012 – is the year of the head-space, the mind, and its mental archive. not to forget that any ‘mind’ definition most def includes – the polar opposite mental activity . . . of archiving: andthat would be: the imagination.
abstract art kinda blew in, or tried to – but only in the mainstream press. in the underground we always knew – 2012 THE YEAR of the DRAGON was all about ‘magic’ realism and portraiture. including of course, photography and archiving. nothing abstract bout that.
p.s. except of course – we let in GERALD FERGUSON, because that was more like man thinking – than man making abstract art.
p.s. except of course – we let STEVE REINKE’S spotted hyena – onto the 2012 scene, as our animal mascot & totem – why ?
for its timely survival strategy !! that’s why !! and that’s a thinking thing, get it ?
as in, the realm of the human mind.
I mean wouldn’t REINKE translate roughly . . . as – the ‘king’ ?.
2012 – THE YEAR of the ‘MAN’ KING – NO ANIMALS – ALLOWED . . .
~ERIC WHITE . . . no animals allowed (!!) |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | February 2nd, 2012, 10:20am
so all things considered – it looks like fashion scribe EDWARD BARSAMIAN and the NEW YORK TIMES nailed it when they published (Jan 15, 2012) this most on-point dress from PRABAL GURUNG’S first pre-fall collection.
the exquisite, thin shirt-collar dress with its black edging and elegant black & white ‘cosmic’ geo-print – caught the very essence and edge of the black water (!!) Chinese New Year of the Dragon – 2012.
and dig those shiny black shirt sleeve cuffs !! so tailored, or what.
at first I wasn’t sure about that extra flap at the back – but now I absolutely adore it. it’s so fashion forward. it’s so like, empowering. when (lucky !!) you wear that dress – you know – you are state-of-the-art.
and the big pink translucent shades – !!
at first you wondered: what the hell, in winter . . . til the solar storm hit and the weather goes south in the North East. wow, maybe they weren’t kidding – about how much we need that ozone layer.
read: ‘In Rehearsal’, by EDWARD BARSAMIAN – NEW YORK TIMES
PRABAL GURUNG, at the Spring 2008 Bill Blass fashion show/GETTY IMAGES/THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.
He spent almost 5 years at Bill Blass before launching his own line in 2009.
. . . and, here’s a sweet web journey !! check this out.
not just a fashionista’s dream – it’s also a feast for any graphic designer worth their weight in clean machine design.
well, seriously – anybody visual will love it. incl cutting edge comic book artists !!
check out: PRABAL GURUNG – OFFICIAL WEBSITE – with a link to a video – of that right-on pre-fall 2012 collection.
~PRABAL GURUNG . . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | January 31st, 2012, 8:47am
. . . this is what it feels like – to be a blogger.
Fu Baoshi’s ”Goddess Crossing the Xiang River’, an undated hanging scroll.
image from: THE NEW YORK TIMES, FRIDAY, JANUARY 27, 2012
you feel ethereal, as you move forward, you leave a trail not much more tangible than a series of wisps of smoke on the ‘web’ – a trail of smoke signals, a plume of brush strokes behind you. as you pass, like a transparent ghost . . . through the ever-bubbling human mind, plural.
there is no hard copy – the smoke signals exist only on the flutter and wind of the unseen wireless web . . . if this crashes, so does the info.
it is all about motion.
and so is this pen-and-ink brushwork . . . all about motion.
well, when you look at this Chinese painter’s work – these are the kind of thoughts that come to mind, even though the works are ‘realist’, as in earth-bound . . . they take off into the unknown and the divine – the timeless mysteries of mankind, looking backwards . . . while plotting the specifics of the here-and-now from which they spring.
FU BAOSHI, ‘The Far Snows of Minshan Only Make Us Happy’, (1951). image: NEW YORK TIMES
just dig – that small trail of soldiers along the bottom – right !!
the show at hand, titled ‘Chinese Art in an Age of Revolution: Fu Baoshi (1904-1965)’ just went up at the MET/Metropolitan Museum of Art, and ROBERTA SMITH gave it a wonderful write-up in this Friday’s (JAN 27, 2012) NEW YORK TIMES Weekend Arts section. not only does she lay-out the basic ‘geometry’ of the show, and the ‘history’ of the artist superbly – but in this case – she does so with that magic literary touch – that lets the artwork escape back into the ‘magic’ realm from whence they came. after all this is an artist who more than not, stamped his brushwork forays: “Often After Being Drunk.”
which is a lot like being on the web too. and, you are talking to who ? and you are reaching out into what ? and going where ?
and somehow it all adds up to a ‘realism’ – an aggregate collective consciousness greater than the parts. we used to be star gazers, now we are . . . web gazers.
I also really liked how the pen and ink brushwork of FU BAOSHI resonates with the brushwork of the contemporary young artists in the previous post, ELIJAH BURGHER and STEVE REINKE. from the paranormal, through the magic realism to the lyrical earth-based animal fables. from time immemorial man always picked up pen and brush to capture this world – but also to travel, to stretch the imagination and along the way, possibly, yes !! – open the pathways of knowledge . . . grabbing with inspiration and intuition the: just beyond – knowing. connecting the dots and following the bread crumb trails . . . to the future.
I also liked how she wrote about “Fu, a fervant devotee of the ancient tradition of Chinese brush-and-ink painting . . . often walked a kind of tightrope through the tumultuous times” of Chinese history from the 1911 Chinese Revolution, through the Sino-Japanese War of 1937-45, and finally through the aggressive Communist upheavals of the 40s. she continues: “His trajectory is the subject of an intriguing up-and-down survey. . . It suggests that Fu, who came from very humble circumstances and was largely self-taught, was sustained by exceptional talent and a steely yet flexible dedication to his art. His skill and refinement, as well as his willingness to adapt, pervade this show, which is serene on the surface but less so beneath.”
so much like the bi-polar survival instinct of the ‘spotted hyena’ – profiled immediate post below, or what.
FU BAOSHI’s struggles to retain the ‘magic’ realism of Chinese brushwork vs. the color-block literalism of Soviet-style ‘Social Realism’ – as Communist China played out – also receives an interesting mention in this article.
also of note: apparently the MET has so graciously brought us an under-hyped artist – as their first featured 20th century Chinese pen-and-brush master !! that’s so magic unto itself !!
though it’s also interesting to learn from Roberta that better-known figures, “like Fu’s contemporary ZHANG DAQIAN (1864-1957) or the elder QI BAISHI (1864-1983)” have made art world headlines recently, whose work “thanks to the enthusiasm and wealth of Chinese collectors, has ranked first and second in earnings at auction last year, above Warhol’s and Picasso’s.” (!!)
read: FU BAOSHI – ‘History Unfolding On A Hand Scroll’ by ROBERTA SMITH/NEW YORK TIMES – JAN 27, 2012
see: ‘Chinese Art in an Age of Revolution: Fu Baoshi (1904-1965)’ – at the MET !! the show is up thru APRIL 15, 2012.
FU BAOSHI. detail . . . image c/o THE MET.
up-date: TUES JAN 31, 2012
yeah, and I know (!!) . . . my website crashed just mins after posting this. like they say in the comix: yikes !. and it wasn’t just my website – it was the entire server system that keeps it up – in the first place. so much for: no hard copy. talk about walking on a steely edge, and twirling like a plume of smoke.
~FU BAOSHI . . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | January 29th, 2012, 10:37am
