FILE UNDER: BLU GETS BUFFED at MOCA, LOS ANGELES.
I had to think long and hard about this one. esp out of respect for NYC’s own SURE, a 24 yr.old Brooklyn-bred street sticker bomber who was recently killed while on a tour of duty as an Intelligence Officer for the United States Marine Corps in Afghanistan.
(see post – DEC 2010).
My hard-won conclusion is that MOCA, JEFFREY DEITCH & most likely ELI BROAD and all the other small-minded ‘officials’ in Los Angeles – got it all wrong. period.
This mural by BLU was not an insult to any military group, and particularly not to any veterans. This mural was a mark of respect for those who serve our country – it said: YOU BETTER MAKE SURE THESE BOYS AREN’T GETTING KILLED FOR CRASS COMMERCIAL REASONS.
it ensured a dialog to that point and any dialog to that point – that focuses on the men and women who go off to fight our wars and the fact that they do come back dead in coffins – should be supported, discussed, debated and lauded – not whitewashed.
the fact that the cultural and political skin is so thin – esp it seems in L.A. – makes one wonder – just how close to home – this mural – really was.
R.I.P. L.A. – R.I.P. MOCA.
watch: BYE BYE BLU – MURAL CENSORED BY MOCA, LOS ANGELES – by JetSetGraffiti/YouTube
check out: JetSetGraffiti.com
the best photos and commentary are on: UNURTH STREET ART
from which this sampling is taken:
BLU GETS BUFFED @ MOCA, Los Angeles
PHOTO COURTESY: UNURTH
PHOTO COURTESY: UNURTH
which also posted the official MOCA response:
and, where UNURTH – also posted the absolute bottom-line conclusion & last word:
“To me, this is a terrible explanation. The concept that street art and graffiti must be ‘appropriate’, to the point of not making political statements, is absurd and contrary to the history of the medium. In this context, I doubt the ‘Art on the Streets’ show will be appropriate to its title.”
so . . .
R.I.P. – JEFFREY DEITCH – guess the transition to L.A. from NEW YORK – isn’t working out so well for ya. anybody really surprised. not.
you are either too fake for the place, or the place is too fake for you. go figure – you should have been better able to play – this out. though I do give you credit for putting the mural up in the first place.
as for showing street art in the highly commercial institutional blue chip wanna make money museum art world – always an iffy idea, (didn’t they arrest SHEPARD FAIREY at the opening of his Chicago show ?) – like, we like to say in NYC . . .
if the heat’s too hot – stay out of the kitchen (where the real artists be . . . )
DEDICATED TO SURE.
~FREEDOM OF SPEEECH, R.I.P. |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | January 6th, 2011, 3:20pm
HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO MY FRIENDS ~ 2011 special ~ keep warm and enjoy the oxygen in earth! yum yum!
love and more love and more more butter, misaki and village girls
HAPPY HOLIDAY 2011 From TIBET / LOVE and OXYGEN – MISAKI KAWAI
misakikawai.com
~FROM TIBET: LOVE & OXYGEN, MISAKI !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | January 2nd, 2011, 1:24pm
PHOTO: COURTESY CINDERS GALLERY, BROOKLYN
from KELIE & STO:
The surviving family members of CINDERS GALLERY wish to extend an invitation to the memorial service of their soon to be departed 103 Havemeyer.
Please join us for a final celebration for 103 Havemeyer, who will die on December 22nd, 2010.
We will be honoring 103 Havemeyer’s life in a memorial service with family and friends on:
THURS DECEMBER 30th, 2010 at 6 PM
CINDERS GALLERY – 103 HAVEMEYER STREET, BROOKLYN.
with performances by – but not limited to:
Bow Ribbon and friends
Tunde Adebimpe (TV on the Radio)
Lucky Dragons
Beach Fossils
Knyfe Hyts
Light Hits (Jessie Rose Vala + Kelie Bowman)
Maya Hayuk
Diane Barcelowsky
MV Carbon
Cassie Ramone (Vivian Girls & Babies)
Guardian Alien
Choos Majik (Todd Pendu)
Sto Temple Pile-Up (DUBKNOWDUB)
Todd Chandler (Dark Dark Dark)
Colin Langenous (USAisamonster)
Mike Colin (Aa & Valentropo)
George Ferrandi (Cloud Seeding Circus)
R.A.F. (Mudboy/Raphael Lyon)
103 Havemeyer FUNeral.
yep, they got gentrified out. it’s a sad day for Brooklyn.
I had this dream a few nights ago.
everyone was sitting around a huge family dinner table, and a happy little bluebird flitted overhead, like gentle music.
merry as it gently flew about among the many guests.
out of nowhere a huge horrible wide-gaping open snake mouth sprung out from under the table – it’s vicious jaws snapping at the sweet little bluebird.
for sure the bluebird would escape unharmed – how could a snake catch a bird /
but the little bird flew too low, lingered too close and the snake grabbed it right in its chest. its belly. and crunched it. crushed it dead.
end of story. no second chances. no looking back.
~CINDERS, R.I.P. |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 30th, 2010, 12:31pm
GIVE ME YOUR SOULZ.
this just in from FAUST:
“At the end of each year I like to create a greeting card to send to all my friends and family. However, this month has been particularly challenging with the passing of my best friend and partner-in-crime Sure. In addition to being one of the most prolific graffiti writers in New York, Sure was an Intelligence Officer in the United States Marine Corps. This year he was based in Afghanistan and on December 5th was killed at the age of 24.
One of Sure’s closest friends came up with the idea to create custom Christmas ornaments to give to his closest friends and family so that they can celebrate the holidays with him every year. So in place of my usual card, I hope you enjoy this tribute.” – Faust
www.faustnewyork.com
IMAGES COURTESY/FAUST
saddened and intrigued – I looked for some more images of the work, or news on the web.
I found Faust had sent out a poignant release to Brooklyn Street Art on Dec 6, 2010 regarding the sad passing of his Brooklyn-born buddy.
. . . . “Last night he [Sure] was killed in Afghanistan where he was stationed as an Intelligence Officer in the United States Marine Corps. Sure was born and bred in Brooklyn and recognized for his exceptional handstyle which brought together elements of classic New York graffiti with ornamental calligraphy. His script signatures could be found throughout the city and were a major influence on myself and countless others.”
SURE portrait courtesy of FAUST/from BROOKLYN STREET ART
“Sure also received great recognition as one of the most prominent sticker bombers of all time. Of the thousands of stickers he put up, nearly every one of them was individually hand done in an incredible array of styles. This was recently exemplified in ‘Stickers: From Punk Rock to Contemporary Art’ (Rizzoli) by DB Burkeman, and in Martha Cooper’s latest book: ‘Name Tagging’ (Mark Batty Publishing) which features an interview with Sure.”
SURE artwork courtesy of Faust/from BROOKLYN STREET ART
Faust continues: “Sure was like a brother to me. He was my partner-in-crime and my best friend. I am grateful for the time we had and that everywhere I go in New York city I see his name and know that his presence will be felt by many long after his passing.”
MARTHA COOPER, the long-time well-known graffiti photo-documentarian posted a brief tribute, along with several of her photos of SURE’S work on 12oz Prophet:
“I heard the extremely sad and shocking news (this morning) that SURE had been killed in Afghanistan while in the line of duty. SURE’S beautiful,
hand drawn stickers have been a constant presence on NYC’s streets for many years, usually alongside those of his writing partner, FAUST. I admired SURE’S elegantly executed handstyles long before I had the pleasure of meeting him. Slender and quiet, he didn’t fit the stereotype of either a writer or a Marine but he seemingly combined the 2 worlds with ease. He had already served two tours of duty in Iraq when he shipped off to Afghanistan a few months ago. He was just 24 years old.”
here are a few of her photos:
SURE – GIVE ME YOUR SOULZ
PHOTO: MARTHA COOPER/12oz PROPHET
SURE – RULER
PHOTO: MARTHA COOPER/12oz PROPHET
to see more of MARTHA COOPER’S PHOTOS of SURE’S WORK, see: 2oz PROPHET/R.I.P. SURE
I found the MARTHA COOPER INTERVIEW with SURE and FAUST posted on the MARY BATTY PUBLISHER website.
yes, you should go there & read it. here is a small sampling:
SURE – STICKER KIT
PHOTO BY MARTHA COOPER/MARK BATTY PUBLISHER
intro from MARK BATTY, the publisher of ‘Name Tagging’:
“Martha Cooper has just passed along the tragic news that SURE – one of New York’s most prolific and talented contemporary graffiti writers has been killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan. I’d met him but can’t say I knew him. He and his running partner FAUST were at the launch party for ‘Name Tagging’, which features an interview with these two masterful letterers (see below). He even mentioned the idea of putting together some sort of graffiti book based on his time over there.
Writing this now reminds me how distant too many of us in the media and creative arts remain from the fact that this country continues to fight two wars. There are so many brave men and women who volunteer to go to these dangerous places and put their lives on the line for us and we take them for granted. Born and bred in Brooklyn, SURE loved New York City. Part of him will forever be part of the city as the remnants of his calligraphic mastery attest.”
SURE & FAUST – PHOTO BY MARTHA COOPER – ‘Name Tagging’/COURTESY MARK BATTY PUBLISHER
this how the fascinating interview begins . . . .
SURE & FAUST Interview from ‘Name Tagging’:
You two have blanketed New York City with stickers. Wherever you see FAUST, you see SURE. How did you team up ?
FAUST: In 2001 when I was in high school I started noticing SURE tags in Soho, Lower East Side, Upper East Side and places where most writers weren’t going. They were original and consistent but not a NY style. I thought he was from out of town but friends said he was a high school kid from Queens. We met up around Astor Place and 8th and Broadway and started writing together.
After I graduated from high school in 2002, I didn’t catch tags in college. I kept my hands clean because the cops were chasing me. We didn’t start catching tags together again until SURE joined the Marines. Our partnership solidified then.
Your handstyles are so distinctive that some writers actually think you’re the same person. Did you develop them together ?
SURE: We’re both big fans of TWIST. I first saw a TWIST tag around 2000. I don’t think anybody uses a chisel tip better than he does. The ideas that he uses have influenced us. We feel that he has great technique in his letters and the way he combines them. His letters are all individually very strong and he uses the letters that precede and follow to fill each one’s negative space. His middle letters are regimented, real solid and go up and down so well. He kicks out the “R” which complements the loop of the “T” and has a lot of form. He has ridiculously good flow” . . .
(note: art readers – TWIST is better known to you as BARRY McGEE.)
as seems befitting, we leave the last words to SURE . . . here, but you can continue to follow the interview on that MARK BATTY LINK . . .
or better yet, order yourself a copy of MARTHA COOPER’S – ‘Name Tagging’ – where his quiet yet intense and very elegant work & words – live on.
check out: MARTHA COOPER – ‘NAME TAGGING’ – MARK BATTY PUBLISHER/96 pages/6.25 x 6.25 in./Casebound/Publication date: MAY 2010
PRICE: $12.95 + shipping
~SURE, R.I.P. |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 29th, 2010, 8:57am
JUST in FROM OUR NORWEGIAN FRIEND – LARS MONRAD VAAGE: SEASON’S GREETINGS, MERRY CHRISTMAS.
LARS says he is currently living in Paris. “I have given up painting, and am now fishing full time for trout, the prettiest sculpture. The picture is from Hardangervidda in Norway, the largest high-mountain plateau in Europe.”
check out: LARS MONRAD VAAGE
if you are interested in the roots of YULE & YULETIDE, here’s 2 good starts:
see: YULETIDE
see: YULETIDE
~SEASON’S GREETINGS FROM LARS |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 26th, 2010, 12:54pm
HAPPY HOLIDAYS !! – ALL !!
VINTAGE ORNAMENT, in the shape of an apron !! (ca. 1940 ?)
found in HOUSING WORKSHOPS THRIFT SHOP/23rd ST, NYC ($2)
~HAPPY HOLIDAYS !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 24th, 2010, 12:32am
. . . f*ck me.
TRON !! – who cares about stories when you are racing through an alternative universe – on a day-glo grid – at the most unimaginable high speed.
if you want a story – read a friggin book. state of the art screen time. you most def walk out a little more perceptually stunned, then when you went in – that’s for sure.
yeah. TRON in 3D – it’s so, so, not about the story, duh. its about speed on the grid. free falls thru vast twisting space. the vortex that is web.
conceptual. not so much. mathematical no. spatial. yes.
even the official website – falls flat – too much emphasis on the narrative – when – really the film is a great . . . big, huge. visual blow-out. the trailer is dumb, don’t let it turn you off. they shoulda just let it run free – like it does in the movie.
it’s #1 – for a reason. and it’s not the story. it’s like people who can’t see the art, unless – there is a story. a background. forget story, think alt. alternative . . . reality. visual mind trip. the story is just the pretext. you don’t need it – and thank god, unlike Avatar – they really don’t serve it up . . .
its all about the production – and they aced it. twisted and tweaked that flat screen, deep. big time.
and, talking about – twist.
as in, talking bout users.
there’s users, you know people who use ya – and then spit on ya – and then there’s users, like in web users. funny / a funny divergence of meaning – for one little word.
I got a fortune cookie with my take-out General Tsao’s Chicken – just the other day.
it said: “throw mud – lose ground”. ha.
so, here’s a question for ya: can you lose ground – on an open-ended infinitely spatial grid. aka the web ?
I guess so. maybe. I mean you can fall thru a shattering spatial crystal. and die. actually – really shatter. turns out, things are really brittle on the grid.
but, can you lose ground – calling a spade a spade in this crummy little island and its narrowing little art world. TRON gonna wipe you out. you are so boring.
unless your art is really . . touching the earth – down-right-to-honest – good. like what makes ordinary day-to-day human birth – equivalent to – paranormal experience !!
in the end, our primitive little celestial globe – aka earth – seems so sweet, just like Justin Samson’s baby photo and all that rad Philly art – (below/previous post) – esp. after the endless day-glo night of the alternative logic board.
talk about hard edged w-i-r-e-d. no let-up. no sunset.
and yeah. speaking of which, yes. I caught the rare lunar eclipse on the winter solstice – last nite. like an eerie sleep walker – totally unaware, a light of moonbeam so strong it woke me – from 2 rooms away – beckoned to me like a strange magic witch on a lonely moor – and called to me – follow the path to the kitchen. where I looked up – what up, with this dumb sleep walking and eerie bright night sky – and then I saw the moon grow dark and be eclipsed. and the room turned dull red.
lucky I didn’t get beamed up, right then and there. kidnapped by aliens – good grief – Disney what are you thinking ? alien races needing our earth moms . . . to raise their kiddies ?
no joke. it’s the animated trailer before Tron comes on. good grief. if that isn’t enough to stop you in your tracks, what is ? maybe Holland Carter in the New York Times, this past Saturday Dec 18, admonishing Huma Bhabha, – sounds Star Wars does it not – not to lose her soul – in the race to fill up on – her new over-size ambitions ? as if we didn’t see that coming.
“Much of the work in both shows is dated 2010, which could point to the problem: overproduction in a short time. It wouldn’t hurt if, at this juncture, Ms. Bhabha slowed down a little and – for sure – forgot about trying to fill Blum’s ridiculously large Chelsea space. She’s coming into mid-career, a period when a style can, without vigilance, turn into a set of moves.”
oops, I feel the ground moving. caught between the web and a hard place.
UP-DATE: FRI DEC 24, 2010 12:34 AM
. . . . ok. ok. if you are a cool dude under 21 – and live in a 24/7 wired man cave – you might find the TRON #2 narrative “corny”, and the fight scenes . . . just so-so !!
esp the bit with the slick chicks and the evil DJ Brit dude – duh is nowhere near BATMAN the movie – resonance.
but then again – KICK-ASS (ha) might just be your favorite (groan) release of the year.
if you are a serious film buff – esp sci fi – you might also find the narrative lacking.
but, if you look at art, esp gallery art 24/7 – and, you are a big big comics fan – illustration zombie and computer animation geek – hands down, you’ll agree – the spatial ride – the computer animation, I guess – is the word ? – is superb, far-out, flung-out, beyond comprehension and absolutely flawless. it’s not just special effects – it is space travel at amazing speed. thrilling. and multi-dimensional beyond current vocabulary definition. and it is 99% of the movie anyways, so. from my art world perch, or is that porch ? I still say – hell yeah – TRON 2 – FLIES !!
~T-R-O-N !! |
Posted in Movie Reviews, The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 22nd, 2010, 2:12am
. . . forget about next year in Jerusalem !! – it’s a big big par-tay !! to-nite in PHILLY !!
or FILE UNDER : SPEAKING ABOUT . . . . RELICS FROM OTHER REALMS !!
it’s the huge ‘PHILADELPHIA OUT OF PHASE’ – BOOK RELEASE PARTY & GROUP SHOW !!
to-nite FRI DEC 17, 2010 / 8PM – 11:30 PM
BODEGA GALLERY – 253 N. 3rd St. – PHILADELPHIA, PA (PENNSYLVANIA)
CURATED BY JUSTIN SAMSON
WITH PERFORMANCES BY:
DARREN FINIZIO, CHARMAINE’S NAMES, HOTT TUBB, ATHENA LLEWELLYN, MISS JANNEKE RAAPHORST & ERIN DUNN
‘PHILADELPHIA OUT OF PHASE’ – is PUBLISHED BY JUSTIN SAMSON
the book & the show features the artwork of PHILLY’S PROFOUNDLY & PROUDLY OFF-THE-WALL VIBRANT UNDERGROUND ART SCENE
INCL ARTWORKS BY:
LOGAN WHITE, DREW GILLESPIE, MATT BERRIAN, SAMANTHA GURRY, SIENNA CORDOBA, COLT HAUSMAN, MIKKI OLSON, RAUL DENIEVES, RELICS FROM OTHER REALMS, JUSTIN SAMSON, PINK HOUSE, HOWARD KLEGER, BOBO (!!), ANDREW SUGGS, KATIE MILLER, BRENT COWLEY, RYAN TRECARTIN, LIZZIE FITCH, JESSE GREENBERG, APRIL GLASER, BRANDON JOYCE, REDEMPTION CENTER, LINDSAY KOVNAT, ALEXANDRA GORCZYNSKI, BEN PHELAN, JONATHAN STEVENS, SOUTH PHILLY BIENNIAL, MULTIFACETED FEMALE, SLOW MO, BRIAN BELOTT, ANNIE PEARLMAN, ERIN DUNN, NICK PAYNE, PIFAS PLACE THE QUEUE, LINDSEY DICKSON, JONATHAN SANTORO, NETTLE FIZZ, PHIL COTE, LINDSEY BEEBE, and BRIAN MCKELLIGOT . . . over 40 artists altogether.
the e-poster was designed by DREW GILLESPIE
here’s the cover of the book:
and here’s just one page – but you gotta love that message . . . talk about writing on the wall.
HELLO GOD / ARE YOU THERE ? IT’S ME / SPACE 1026 !!
JUSTIN SAMSON . . . IS POSTING A BLOG ON THE SHOW:
YES !! CHECK IT OUT: OUTOFPHASEPHILADELPHIA.BLOGSPOT.COM
it’s already – h-a-p-p-e-n-i-n-g !!
PHOTO COURTESY: JUSTIN SAMSON & PRINT LIBERATION
and there’s a wonderful totally h-a-p-p-e-n-i-n-g off-the-wall p-i-c-t-o-r-i-a-l !! interview with JUSTIN SAMSON
recently posted – DEC 14, 2010 – on – INTERVIEW BY KATIE MILLER – on – PRINT LIBERATION – !!
most def, check it OUT !!: JUSTIN SAMSON INTERVIEW / PRINT LIBERATION
(just scroll down a few entries !! you’ll find it !! ha.)
here’s few examples – from the interview !! . . . for the lazy guys.
IMAGES/COURTESY: JUSTIN SAMSON & PRINT LIBERATION
~to-nite in PHILLY !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 17th, 2010, 8:33am
. . . yep. how time flies when you are having fun . . .
these are the very last few days to catch that ANSELM KIEFER show at GAGOSIAN on 24th St – that everyone is talking about. and, yes it is the blockbuster, that everybody says it is – so better get your sorry Miami busted-out partied-out self up in time to get there in person – because there is only one way to see this show – and that is in person. it’s a huge 3-D production – the artworld equivalent of movie IMAX – magic. in fact pretty much the scope and scale of this production is bigger and better – than the art works individually themselves . . . not necessarily saying that’s a bad thing. either. just saying – it’s not about standing still and looking at. it’s about moving around and seeing through, looking up and feeling . . . lost among !!
talk about magic. I didn’t expect such a thrilling perceptual experience from all the wailing and goings-on about biblical “wasteland” – what wasteland ?
it’s more like the battle zone after the fact – and you are walking through it. looking up at the ceiling – and wondering how they measured all these
glass cases to fit in the space exactly so. so compactly. so densely, and yet so soaringly – and, well – where will they fit next ?
the paintings themselves are the most boring part of this standing still action – though I guess they might be the commercial product, more like by-product !! – most easily moved, i.e. so forget that damn stupid and boring installation video they have posted on the gallery’s website. it does the show more harm, than good. I wasn’t even gonna go after viewing it – so go figure. so, just in case you are relying on that – and the still installation pix – that’s a no-no. ya gotta get there, on your own two little feet. even as a photographer myself – ya just gotta love the kind of art and action – that defies archival intention. ANSELM KIEFER – ‘NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM’ – 3-D experience. period.
well, my first thought was, at least you don’t need a haz mat team – to keep it up and running, in your living room.
but then the DAMIEN HIRST tank pieces could cast a definite startle – all on their own, individually. I mean here you might have to buy a more than a few to catch the game – to throw to your impressed house guests and/or staff – but then again it might even out. the haz mat team overhead vs. the huge huge industrial-sized, museum-sized ? viewing room ? maybe you could, you know build your own specialized townhouse, in the city – or your very own museum on your country retreat – for housing these rusted relics in glass vitrines – how collector- friendly can you get ?
ok. they were still awesome. the vitrines. the contents left me a little underwhelmed. but who am I ?
you’d have to buy the whole thing. who knows – maybe, that’s the way it is being sold ?
of course the gorgeousness of the gallery. didn’t hurt. esp the skylights !!
the ceiling and tops of the vitrines – the glass cases – were the most fascinating part of the show – for me.
though I loved this particular one. this is the one – I would buy. and watch dangle – in space. as I contemplated my good fortune with a cocktail in hand.
anybody else bring ATM mobile artist – ANNE EASTMAN – to mind ? and big time.
how could a painting on canvas – esp these pompous thugs – compare with the complexity and mobile-like delicate and ever-changing beauty of a 4 walled glass transparency ?
so, do you have a maintain a thin layer of water at the bottom ?
I mean I am thinking of when I first saw Damien’s ‘OB GYN’ chair in a tank full of water – and this comes up a bit short – although maintenance- free ? unless of course, you need a lot of unspoken text and biblical reference, not to mention gruesome footnotes to even grimmer history – to go with your visual experience. and I don’t. well – only as a footnote.
see, it starts to get better, when the glass and metal case – comes into the picture.
and wow – the overview – is best. esp as it changes – infinitely !!
see why – you gotta see it in person ?
and, when you go, don’t forget – to look – up !!
wow. action movie. wasteland – not so much . . .
it’s actually a marvel – of a gallery installation.
and of course, right smack in the middle – a bunker.
I found this to be – a bit of STERLING RUBY game plan.
just like I found the fading dresses to be too much of a KIKI SMITH hand print. the glass and metal ‘tanks’ – cases Hirst-like. the over-all profoundness Gavin Brown-like. whatever. at least we know the guy looks at contemporary art – and doesn’t just live in a shell. wants to be part of the dialog.
but wow. it was more than just a box – it was so cool. it housed a series of hardened canvases hanging like frozen dead meat carcasses – which reminded me of that GBE – meat locker show – last summer.
if you walked around it – you found a series of doors. that you could not enter – just like Alice in Wonderland. well physically you could, if the security guards had let you.
yes. I tried, of course. it was an experience begging to be had . . . to bad I’m not on personal friendship terms over there – or I would for sure have gotten in. it was like a magnet. a dark hole – for intelligent researching . . .
esp for someone like me – archivist that I am – as it held hanging canvases with images !!
curious and curiosity foiled – even, driven mad – come to mind.
a view of the artist as a young rebel. from one entryway – into hell ?
an archival school photo – that almost got our hero – expelled. yes we get it. politically incorrect.
the joke is on you and lucky – you lived long enough for the generation that gets it – to get it.
whatever were they thinking back in the old days ?
now we have cyberbullies. malicious hackers . . . not to mention ridiculous DMCA copyright laws that defy their very purpose. digital death threatens to jump from the future and fry us en masse again – like a million of these Hitler bad guys – in clone formation – wait and see. mark my words.
(or: if you are gonna be TMZ – ya shoulda been a lawyer).
there is such a stark beauty to evil – or is it just – that wonderful sky behind him.
all my mother’s mother’s side of the family – fried in the WW II ovens – they just couldn’t let go of their up-scale Austrian, Vienna lifestyle. my grandma was just 16 and the poor relative – so it was easy for her – she just left. and so, here I am – but you can see my Viennese intellectual roots sometimes, can’t ya ?
and didn’t I just read a Chinese sonnet – that said something like: I am unfettered to this life and its material goods – but I would miss the sight of sky – if I were to die – or something like that. the master plan – is the universe.
this is profound, esp when you step back – and let the art – and installation design – take over !!
but I also kept coming back – to that ceiling view. 3 D, sides, top and bottom. and lighting. and cold metal.
meat locker anybody ?
what about – hurt locker ?
I actually did get pulled into this doorway, like a moth to a flame – I thought it was logical to enter . .
wow. an archival photo – of an ancient ROME !!
but the guard told me I couldn’t enter. hey, I was just happy they were letting me take pix, at all !!
so, it remained – the bunker from hell.
where else did I hear that ‘charming’ phrase – as in ‘underground bunker’ – oh yeah – WE LIVE IN PUBLIC !!
(and in the early WE LIVE In PUBLIC promos – Josh did compare – our sleeping 24/7 wired & stacked sleeping accommodations – it with archival pix – of the American GI’s first stumbling upon the horror of rows of starving concentration camp victims in bunker formation – rather than the (stacked) pod hotels of contemporary Japan.
but we’ll give a glass case – the last word – as these hi-tech glass and metal cases – skewer the show – with their ever-shifting perceptual magic . . . and meaning . . .
and don’t let the star wars monster – bite. for heavens sake – look up.
PHOTOS: COPYRIGHT NANCY SMITH
ANSELM KIEFER – ‘NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM’
NOV 6 – DEC 18, 2010
GAGOSIAN GALLERY – 555 WEST 24th ST.
~ANSELM KIEFER/NEXT YEAR ?/LAST WEEK !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 15th, 2010, 10:59am
the KENT DORN painting show and the concurrent JENNIFER SULLIVAN video at FREIGHT+VOLUME, up thru Jan 4, 2011 – received a really nice review by KEN JOHNSON in the NEW YORK TIMES, last FRIDAY, DEC 10, 2010. I really liked it, not only for it’s take – but because instead of a bunch of descriptive text – it actually offered up – a lot to think about.
the take – was that: “Many young artists these days seem to be haunted by the legacy of their parents’ – and now grandparents’ – hippie revolution. Some like the group Assume Astro Vivid Focus, try to keep the tie-dyed euphoria of the ’60s alive. Others, like the painter Kent Dorn and the video performance artist Jennifer Sullivan, who are perfectly matched in this affecting show, obliquely and sadly reflect on the lingering memories of these bygone days.”
I’m not sure that is a perfect end-all encompassing summation of Kent Dorn’s work – it would be interesting to ask the artist for his take !! – but it is an intriguing sentiment for both – and it definitely serves Ms. Sullivan’s work – esp. this particular video anyways – well.
I personally enjoyed Ms. Sullivan’s video visually – but was hard put to frame the experience in words. Mr. Johnson did an excellent job of illuminating the context of the short clip, as follows:
“In her charmingly slight, bittersweet video ‘One-Week Walden’, the winsome Ms. Sullivan narrates her attempt to emulate Thoreau with a childlike voice. That meant a week in a pop-up camper in the weedy far end of her father’s suburban backyard. Nicely understated and deadpan funny, Ms. Sullivan’s video is a canny satire of foolishly romantic, extended-adolescent narcissism.”
right on.
Jennifer’s pop-up look at Walden – included a glance at contemporary litter . . . and culture . . .
Ken Johnson was right – Jennifer’s video – was understated. and that’s a funny thing to carry off – when you’ve donned a come-hither wig, not to mention – a revealing go-go get-up !!
JENNIFER SULLIVAN at the opening, a very different persona in reality. (or maybe not.)
nice job, Jennifer.
KENT DORN, ‘Untitled (Van)’, 2010. Mixed media on canvas. 45 x 65 in.
Ken Johnson’s take on Mr. Dorn’s work was also intriguing:
“Mr. Dorn’s painted scenes of feral youth in forest settings similarly evoke baffled nostalgia for back-to-nature counterculturism. Color is muted, creating a dank, gloomy atmosphere that dims the feebly glowing sun. Broad areas of the paintings are rendered in watercolorlike staining, while selected parts are built up into crusty, greasy, absurdly thick impasto. The image of an abandoned, broken-down van titled ‘Van/Hideaway2’ suggests that we are closer to the world of ‘Kids’, Larry Clark’s mordant paean to juvenile delinquency, than that of ‘Woodstock’. It is a mental landscape of loss and repressed grief where the promises of yesteryear hang in the air like fading echoes. One painting depicts a rustic signboard bearing spray-painted letters. They spell, fittingly, ‘The End.’ ”
. . .
KENT DORN, ‘Fall’, 2010. Mixed media on canvas, 54 X 36 in.
read KEN JOHNSON’S FULL REVIEW: NEW YORK TIMES/ART IN REVIEW/ART & DESIGN/FRIDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2010
KENT DORN – ‘Remains’ & JENNIFER SULLIVAN – ‘One-Week Walden’ – up thru JAN 4, 2011
FREIGHT+VOLUME – 530 + 542 W245th St.
~KENT DORN & JENNIFER SULLIVAN, in NEW YORK TIMES |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 14th, 2010, 9:44am
