the thing about GREGORY CREWDSON is . . he weaves a mighty fine spell.
who wants to break the MYSTERY, and the ENCHANTMENT . . . by posting the opening pix right away ?
not me.
PIX FROM THE OPENING: THURS JAN 28, 2016:
GREGORY CREWDSON, with his son, . . and KNIGHT LANDESMAN of ARTFORUM.
JARED LeBOFF . . will be a producer on Gregory Crewdson’s next project, a full-length fictional narrative . . film.
“Oscar-nominated ‘Bridge of Spies’ producer MARC PLATT has optioned CARLA BUCKLEY’s novel The Deepest Secret, with the plan for renowned art photographer GREGORY CREWDSON and his partner JULIANE HIAM to adapt it for the big screen. CREWDSON will be making his featuredirectorial debut.
ZOE KAZAN, and PAUL DANO, made the opening . .
so did . . .
PETER SARSGAARD . . .
and, WES ANDERSON. (!!)
GREGORY CREWDSON, ‘Woman in Living Room’, 2013.
Digital Pigment Print.
45-1/16 x 57-9/16 in. framed.
Edition of 3.
I overheard at the opening, that the show was completely sold out before it had even opened.
there was a lot of nudity in these photos – even more notable, as nakedness per se . . is not being seen too much in the art world these days, maybe on some critics’ IG pages, but not in the exhibited works. but it is a very characteristic, and very important tool for Crewdson. the nakedness reinforces the vulnerability, & the sense of alienation and loneliness that seems to engulf and swallow up whole, his rural, small town North East Kingdom lonely hearts characters.
it’s not a sexy or erotic nakedness, it is a kind of scientific, social study nakedness. a visual code – for human behavior . . that is just not going right. It draws you in, esp in the way the vignettes are staged . . . for sure. and that’s part of the magic.
the retro details, are also part of the magic, the mystery, the atmosphere . . and that hard to define . . but definitely tension-filled, wavering Crewdson ‘reality’ . . his signature ‘staged’ or ‘artificial’ narrative & absolutely fictional reality . . contrasting with the authenticity of the tiniest of ‘real’ details.
it’s a strange poet’s naked world, a world of lost dreams, rather than any real steamy passion, or desire. it’s about desire, but not of the erotic vein. desire of the . . soul.
the vintage retro details also serve to set the emotional stage, and the time window. somewhere between post-Woodstock, and . . pre-digital. the landline vs the wireless social media web. communication is there, or rather the device is: but nobody is talking – on the phone.
and you wonder why melancholy seeps up like a toxic invisible force – from these gorgeous, somber photos, that’s one of the answers.
tangible visual symbols, and cues . . at play.
and, on another level, if you ever wonder why ‘vintage’, is so in vogue now / here’s one of your answers.
Gregory Crewdson’s ‘cinematic’ photographs are also about . . ‘scale’. the fragility of the human existence within the broader picture. the singular . . failure of hope ? joy ? family ? infrastructure ? the erosion of ‘organized’ faith ?
which bye the way . . allows the photographer himself . . to reside in a converted local church, which is presumably no longer relevant in its original role to the community – it once bound together.
on another purely technical level, it’s also of interest to note that although these photos are indeed gorgeous, and spaced-out most generously within the gallery, only one to a wall . . and still capable of provoking deep & profound emotions in the viewer – and although the gallery defines them as ‘large’ format – Crewdson’s previous photographs were quite more epic in size/scale. for example in Crewdson’s – ‘Beneath the Roses’ exhibit of spring/summer 2005 – some of the photos were as large as walls, themselves: 56-1/4 x 94-1/4 in. time to evolve, time to move on.
GREGORY CREWDSON, ‘The Shed’, 2013.
Digital Pigment Print.
45-1/16 x 57-9/16 framed.
Edition of 3.
light sources, artificial and controlled, along with tightly ‘posed’ subjects – help tell the ‘anonymous’ yet universal, unspoken human story. which sees to be quite the . . tragedy.
the light & the posed bodies .. create the ‘focus’ – amid the seamless clash of . . detailed fictional reality vs hidden but deep, and forlorn . . human emotions.
for me, as for many others . . these photos act as ‘one frame’ films – and the effect is not, any less chilling . . than a recent full-length film, not any less violent in its take on the sad Bio contemopary human condition / the void / the spiritual void. and that would be: ‘THE REVENANT’, which also featured giant Pine trees.
what is it . . about Pine trees ?
how they can morph from Christmas – to desolation . . in a split second.
some more gorgeous, vintage detail. they add a real depth, a profound character to the images. they stand in for: wisdom ? experience ? lost skills ? lost lives ?
lost – ways.
falling into a . . Crewdson, is easy.
and that’s what makes them so EPIC, nothing to do with the actual scale of the photographs themselves. it’s the details, the theatrical set-ups, the lighting. the care. the aim. and in these photos: his aim is true.
GREGORY CREWDSON, ‘The VW Bus’, 2013.
Digital Pigment Print.
45-1/16 x 57-9/16 in. framed.
Edition of 3.
yeah, time-wise: somewhere between Woodstock . . and Facebook.
GREGORY CREWDSON, ‘Woman in Parked Car’, 2014.
Digital Pigment Print.
45-1/16 x 9/16 in. framed.
Edition of 3.
my favorite CREWDSON photo projects, they all involve production crews . . have always been his . . snowy, snowy snow scenes.
the atmosphere, the chill, the warmth of light sources, the coldness of existence.
bleak beauty. almost: brut.
if you have not seen the unbelievably fine, feature-length documentary on CREWDSON, & which includes many epic snow scenes & is all about . . intense behind-the-scenes peeks at his way of doing things . . the amazing ‘Brief Encounters’, 2012 . . by BEN SHERMAN, than that’s – at the top of your to-do list, as of right now.
PABLO SCHLUMBERGER, a visiting artist from Hamburg, wears an appropriate coat . . a faux / artifice . . cold/warm ‘fur’.
CREWDSON – in a nutshell: just as crazy as a ‘faux’ fox. or a lone wolf. or a grizzly bear.
the Millennials . . taking it all in.
‘Cathedral of the Pines’, lived up to its name – and was un-doubtably, the most important blue chip show of the year.
“well, you know – I am from the South West.” – TAYLOR McKIMENS.
TAYLOR McKIMENS at the ‘TOMMO GOKITA – BILL BRADY NYC POP-UP’ opening, MARCH 4, 2016.
Taylor will be leaving in a month or so, for a 3 month residency in Greece, and then he is re-locating to L.A.
I’ve know Taylor since about 2002, when I first started working as an event photographer at artnet. that’s about 14 years now. that’s a long time, by any count. I knew him when he was just pretty much arrived, and working as a studio assistant for DONALD BAECHLER. KENNY SCHACHTER was the first person to seriously promote his work, and include it in his early NYC group shows.
I watched him grow, through some twists and turns for sure, but ultimately: bloom.
and . . finally in the past few years, achieve considerable success.
not a small thing, in this hard-nut-to-crack . . town.
Taylor told me a nice story about this ‘soft’ sculpture by MISAKi KAWAI, behind him in the Johnson Trading Gallery space, in Tribeca.
he told me it was actually part of a much bigger piece . . that Kenny had exhibited and almost sold to IGGY POP !!
but when the deal fell through, storage became a problem, tell us about it !!
and Misaki had no option but to dismantle the piece into smaller parts. the logistics headaches & turnabout of a contemporary NYC artist. but it still looks great – just like this.
recently TAYLOR has been doing a lot of sketches from life, and posts them to his Instagram page .. @taylormckimens.
he also gathers them up, well really photo images of them . . into – DIY books.
TAYLOR used to be really into carton-inspired ‘vignettes’, like western bar scenes & lonely psycho all night diners !! but now he seems to be really into . . heads. portraits. from life, as opposed to the fevered imagination.
though obviously, the imagination is not out for long, esp when it come to color.
this book, of sketches from Sept 2014, often feels like a ‘flip book’.
this page is particular harkens back to his earlier work. you know, the down & out scrubby western character hanging out at the desert gas station, an old pick-up truck, and some scratchy, weedy cactus – nearby.
the ‘hot’ colors also speak to Taylor’s early desert roots.
those are Tomoo’s buttons on the side. they have been friends for quite a while now, too. Taylor included Tomoo – in an early show he curated in Chelsea, called ‘Stranger Town’ – it’s still spoken about.
I most certainly was at that opening, it was back in Jan of 2005. it was an incredible incredible night, very high energy. Taylor turned the whole scene onto a lot of new work. the opening photos are no longer online – a casualty of switching to a new online format to accommodate mobile devices, & the new internet routing formats.
lol. maybe I should make a small DIY book – of those pix ????
Taylor . . we will miss you.
I’m just now realizing what a gentle vibe Taylor has always had. always very straightforward, but very tender. ambitious, hungry to get his voice heard, & recognized – but always . . down-to-earth. he always marveled at the visual richness of New York, growing up as he did in a small town in the deep south west. he seems to have unleashed all his inner demons, dreams, and nightmares . . in his work.
and now he’s the riding the wave – back to the west.
packing up and heading . . west. it will be interesting to see what kind of western trail, what new opportunities, and people he will intersect with.
I feel like he’s a smoke signal – already. I’m sure I’m not the only one – who will be watching out for the new works, and shows.
BILL BRADY PRESENTS . . a TOMOO GOKITA – NYC POP-UP
the show of 12 black and white paintings on paper – opened MARCH 4, 2016
and runs . . thru March 31, 2016 JOHNSON TRADING GALLERY, 72 FRANKLIN ST, TRIBECA, NYC
BILL currently has a big TOMOO GOKITA show on, up – at his new MIAMI space.
the show, called ‘Damage Control’ (is that an inside joke, lol ?) . . is the inaugural show for the gallery’s new permanent home at 7200 NW Miami Court – in what I hear is Miami’s very happening, Little River District.
and which same space I heard is, way large & tres beautiful, bye the way !!
congrats, Bill.
TOMOO GOKITA, painting on paper.
yes. the world needs a nurse. and, not a jolly one. a big, mean one.
start to put this place in some kind of global order, a kinder holding pattern – with a big, big . . time out room.
TOMOO GOKITA . . is the only artist I can think of, who is showing in NYC right now, who is hardcore enough to bring to the table, after the recent terror events. in Brussels, yesterday, and in Turkey, was it last week ? losing track – not a good sign.
TOMOO GOKITA, painting on paper.
yes, it’s a harsh world. and not in the R CRUMB context either.
outcomes uncertain, but still the same human bio drives: love, or at least sex. family, drama.
the human bio-reproductive circus – in all its gory, I mean . . GLORY !!
TOMOO GOKITA, painting on paper.
what is: sensuality ?
what is: the life span of a flower ?
is it . . too much to: hope ?
the questions they ask are precious, but the paintings themselves are . . not.
they verge on brut, and then circle right back again, to the timeless, universal human . . tale.
black & white – just dials it up.
to a whole new level of . . raw.
there are 12 paintings on paper that circle the room, and, most effectively. as they tell their open-ended, never-ending stories. we can all relate.
they look to be 16 x 20 in. – something like that.
each one is very unique, and very striking.
Tokyo-based TOMOO GOKITA – at the opening.
Tomoo Gokita (b. 1969) has been showing with Bill Brady since 2003, 2004 ? I do well remember the stir his openings always created at the cutting edge Bill Brady – ATM. Tomoo has gone on to huge success, among many other exhibits – in 2014 he was the honored subject of a large-scale solo exhibition, Tomoo Gokita: The Great Circus presented at the Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art in Sakura, Japan.
re: going onto success, seems like so has . . Bill.
BILL BRADY . . . looking good, and doing even b-e-t-t-e-r.
PAUL JOHNSON of JOHNSON TRADING GALLERY – the GOKITA POP-UP / NYC host.
it was a really interesting venue, in and of its own, but also as a stage for Tommo’s stark, edgy work.
design + vision.
great pairing.
TAYLOR McKIMENS fresh off his big success with those huge head paintings at THE HOLE – Taylor told me he’s off to a 3 month residency in Greece and then . . omg, he’s moving to LA !!
oh no. we will miss you.
and yes, that’s a MISAKI KWAI piece behind him, on display in the Johnson Trading Gallery venue.
KAWS . .
I’m liking KAWS even more, be-KAWS !! I hear he’s been going around buying up young NYC artists’ work.
name one ? a very happy ANDY CAHILL, who painted those wild, crack-crazy pieces in the recent ‘Anthem of the Sun’ group show at CANADA.
TODD JAMES – REAS.
BRIAN WILLMONT, had some crazy big shows of his own work going on recently, and he owns/runs the totally trippin’ GREENPOINT TERMINAL GALLERY, in Brooklyn.
ERIC SHAW . . had a great piece in that way-ahead-of-the-curve, big ‘DUCKS’ group show, RYAN TRAVIS CHRISTIAN curated at GREENPOINT TERMINAL, last OCT 24 – NOV 29, 2014.
Eric’s piece was a crazy flat rendition of Donald . . Donald Duck, lol – called ‘DuckDuck’.
wtf, here’s the link – it was a great show.
see: ‘Duck’ – artlovers archive
PETER SUTHERLAND, with TOMOO GOKITA, at the opening.
you can begin to see how interesting the Johnson Trading Gallery venue is.
preservation, history, architecture + cutting edge design + painterly vision . . on this night, with: TOMOO.
I mean, where else would you get to just casually lean up against a classic, mint condition .. JUNZO SAKAKURA lounge chair from 1957 ?
or check out the contemporary .. ROBERT LOUGHLIN painted chair ?
yeah, I want that.
collector EUGENE HU . . looked comfy in a FELTRI armchair.
he had brought Tommo’s huge book, ‘TOMOO GOKITA – 777’ . . for Tomoo to sign, which he did.
table by – WILLY RIZZO
just . . . BE-KAWS !!!!!!
yep, that’s KAWS’ reflection in the mirror.
I used to see this guy walking the streets, in Bushwick in fact. way before he was famous. 16 yrs ago.
now, it’s funny to see his original, raw ‘roofies’ in Jersey, coming in off the tunnel. pure gold and nobody here much knows it. ain’t that the truth. was really so outraged when the city didn’t go crazy over his MACY’S balloon, too. remember writing a big rant about it. but, now . . it’s Tomoo coming up = big.
I wonder if they will give Tomoo – a MACY’S Thanksgiving balloon . . as if !!
‘they’ would never be cool enough, but just imagine – what a world it might be, if everybody were just that much more . . cool ?
TOMOO GOKITA, painting on paper.
ah, Tommo. you have us – in your black and white . . cross hairs.
oh, the drama.
of the hardcore romantic imagination.
yes – you do !!
THE NEWSSTAND ZINE SHOP, which existed throughout 2013 in the LORIMER St. subway station . .
has spent the past 5 months resurrected – in MoMA’s . . ‘New Photography 2015’ exhibition.
today is the last day of the show, and MoMA is allowing THE NEWSSTAND to stay open after hours . .
until 10 PM, tonight !! !! !!
COME ON BY !! !! !!
PAR-TAY ON !! !! !!
SPECIAL: HALF-PRICE / AFTER-HOURS ACCESS / 5:30 – 10 PM / TONIGHT, SAT MARCH 19, 2016
‘THE NEWSSTAND / LELE SAVERI’ . . installation is on the 3rd FLOOR
in the . . . ‘OCEAN of IMAGES: New Photography 2015’ exhibit MoMA / MUSEUM of MODERN ART – 11 W.53rd St., Manhattan, NYC
WINTERERISE: LOREN MUNK, ROBERT SELWYN, PETE GOURFAIN & RUTH HARDINGER
opened SAT JAN 16, 2016
the 4 person show runs thru MARCH 20, 2016 / this weekend !! 490 ATLANTIC, 490 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn
PIX FROM THE OPENING . . . SAT JAN 16, 2016
LOREN MUNK, ‘History of Art Timeline’, 2004-2006.
oil on linen, 54 x 96 in.
($40,000)
LOREN MUNK, detail, ‘History of Art Timeline’.
LOREN MUNK, detail, ‘History of Art Timeline’.
LOREN MUNK, ‘Minimalism to Neo-Expressionism’, 2014-2015.
oil on linen, 42 x 42 in.
($14,000)
LOREN MUNK, detail, ‘Minimalism to Neo-Expressionism’.
LOREN MUNK . . at the opening.
PETE GOURFAIN, detail, ‘HANS EYS TRUILE’.
PETE GIURFAIN, detail, ‘HANS EYS TRUILE’.
PETE GOURFAIN, ‘HANS EYS TRUILE’, 1993.
ink on Pang Pi paper, 21 x 25 in. (framed).
($2,400)
PETE GOURFAIN, ‘Finnegans Wake’, 1990.
ink on Okuwara paper, 38 x 50 in. (unframed).
($10,000)
PETE GOURFAIN, detail, ‘Finnegans Wake’.
ROBERT SELWYN and PETE GOURFAIN . . .
Robert’s painting is behind them – on the wall.
ROBERT SELWYN, ‘Rupture’, 2016.
oil on canvas, 43 x 45 in.
($14,500)
ROBERT SELWYN, ‘Bouquet’, 2015.
oil on linen, 23 x 27 in.
(6,800)
ROBERT SELWYN, ‘Arrangement’, 2015.
oil on linen, 34 x 40 in.
($14,000)
RUTH HARDINGGER, ‘Boxing with Time’, 2016.
Cardboard, string, rope, wood, 12 x 8 x 4 ft.
($15,000)
PITR . . is also an urban-focused, ultra-graphic artist, who showed alongside DANNY SOBOR in that 2 man DEC 2015 show, ‘JUNGLE’
. . at CHICAGO TRUBORN GALLERY.
PIZZA IN THE RAIN, ‘watercolor, aerosol, Gold Leaf . . on 140 lb. cold press paper’.
image via Instagram . . @pizzaintherain
this is a recent post of his.
it’s interesting, because like many Instagram posts ‘in the genre’, it shows the scale, of the drawing, and the art ‘utensil’, in this case – a fine point watercolor brush. it feels very immediate. and intimate.
I also really like it, because it’s got this great throw-back ‘Beavis & Butthead’ vibe.
the profile. the white empty, but still expressive eyes. the macabre aspect.
PLUS: this is exactly how I feel right now – that slit throat, dis-associated from his n body proper.
lol.
yes !! – that’s me. no doubt about it.
I’m totally short circuiting, I just can’t keep up with posting all the OPENING PIX – I take in real time. it’s impossible. I am already behind by 7 posts !!
and it’s just been Feb. what happened to . . Feb !!
too much. I’d rather run and catch the shows, then stop and post the pix. obviously.
plus, I like to stop and think about things, sometimes. imagine that.
but, mostly it’s because . . I’m so contrarian !!
even to myself.
what ? a great celebrity-driven + awesome deep large format naked photos . . opening, GREGORY CREWDSON, no less – lol.
what ? TOMOO GOKITA at JOHNSON TRADING ?
what ? the new kids on the block, GRETTA JOHNSON & ANDY CAHILL, who I just meet last week at CANADA, pop up the very next weekend. and the even newer ones: LAUREN HILL, and NICHOLAS MOENICH at his show – at the new Brooklyn apt pop-up, run by MICHAEL FLEMING . . called MOUNTAIN ?
and, what about that YALE MFA GRAD CLASS crew at EMMY THELANDER’s closing. omg. omg. my head is just cut off from my body.
I gotta get on it.
damn.
put this site back together – like Humpty Dumpty.
in the meantime – of course, total distraction of the Instagram feed – reigns !!
so, take just one more little ride of the ‘URBAN IMAGINATION’ – with me / SKILLS !!
and, then tomorrow, I promise – I will get back on schedule.
PIZZA IN THE RAIN, ‘Flight 2932 (MDW-SMF) / 8:30 a.m.’
again, digging the ‘scale’ and, the ‘utensil’.
image via Instagram . . @pizzaintherain
PIZZA IN THE RAIN, ‘Flight 872 (OAK – ORD) / 4:15 p.m.’
love how he articulates urban architecture.
damn. that’s good.
steely, and POETIC. imaginary, and fierce. realist & playful. graphic and, novel.
skills.
image via Instagram . . @pizzainthereain
