DAN ASHER: UNDERDOG, no more.
I heard that the MARTOS GALLERY, located in Chelsea . . was showing some DAN ASHERS at the Independent Art Fair of last month, and that the work had even attracted some serious media attention, specifically: the NEW YORK TIMES.
that’s so cool . . that Dan’s work could rise above the usual suspects in a cutting edge fair like that. though I’m not surprised, in an increasingly over-populated art world of ‘wannabes’ . . I had no doubt, Dan’s singular intensity was always going to prevail.
so I swung by the gallery, and sure enough . . DAN has found a serious platform here. TAYLOR TRABULUS, the Martos Gallery director . . who personally seems to be very interested in Dan and his world – told me that the gallery will be mounting a major show for DAN, this coming NOV 2014 – and she is working closely with Dan’s executor, BEN BERLOW to make this happen.
Taylor was kind enough to provide me with some images – close to the type of pieces that were shown at the Independent, all larger-sized oil stick, or pastel on paper – from the early 80s.
guess the art world’s best kept ‘dirty little secret’ – that everybody who’s anybody owns a few, and they are looking to make a killing . . is secret – no more.
TAYLOR TRABULUS, MARTOS GALLERY DIRECTOR, NYC. MARCH 2014.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
DAN ASHER IMAGES – COURTESY: MARTOS GALLERY – 540 WEST 29TH STREET, CHELSEA, NYC
DAN ASHER, ‘Untitled’, 1983. pastel on paper.
42 x 30.75 in.
($18,000)
DAN ASHER, ‘Untitled’, 1980s. oil-stick on paper.
42.5 x 30.25 in.
($18,000)
DAN ASHER, ‘Untitled’, 1983. oil-stick on paper.
30 x 22.25 in.
($15,000)
DAN always knew that his day would come !!
a veritable ‘live wire’, if there ever was one – the fact that mainstream support, translate: the not very inspired ‘critics’ who dominated the scene in the 80s/90s – eluded him in his lifetime, only fueled his frustration, while stoking his firecracker personality & uniquely powerful . . creativity.
a contemporary of JEAN MICHEL’s, they were close friends – who lacked Basquiat’s charismatic charm, and back story – DAN nonetheless had that great vibrant 80s ‘juice’ in no short supply. his greatness went over a lot of people’s heads, esp when his obstinate & contrary character kicked in.
but that was Dan, hard-wired from day one, and it’s just this, his very personal primal scream at life, that explodes to life in everything he touched – be it the pencil or ink drawings, oil stick or pastels, the early 70s black & white BOB MARLEY photographs, on through . . his great 90s iceberg & extreme wrestling documentary color photography series.
from the moment his brain engaged – no mater the format or cause – Dan’s huge internal ‘rush’ of self-expression, bubbled-up, and made . . ‘CONTACT’.
his impulsive non-stop creative urge took flight, and as you can see from the above samples, it was total – ‘touch down’.
watch out world, DAN ASHER about to take over, and about . . time.
~DAN ASHER . . NEW POWER |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | April 2nd, 2014, 9:28am
while I was at PACE PRINTS, 521 West 26th St, checking out the HOW and NOSM show, I caught a great SHEPARD FAIREY, down an extended exhibit – hallway.
SHEPARD FAIREY, ‘POWER (Metal)’, 2012.
screenprint in three colors on aluminum plate with spray paint. 56 x 42 in.
Edition of 5.
($25,000)
the message is clear.
the riff . . is bouncing off ROY LICHENSTEIN & comic book art, in general.
though the ‘drippy’ stuff, around the ER – is much more contemporary, makes me think of TAYLOR McKIMENS.
that ‘drippy’ stuff – is what takes the piece to another place.
plus it’s a nice tension/contrast – that it’s drawn so awkward and skimpy, as opposed to more bubbly or robust.
makes the over-all expression of the whole piece come off as more authentic and spontaneous, and in that sense – more powerful, raw.
as opposed to a more ready-made ‘canned’ goods, ‘perfecto’ – stylized-type composition.
of which Fairey is clearly capable.
he didn’t just phone it in, which at this point . . he could easily be doing.
the artist has survived mega-success, and is still – in the room.
beautiful draftsmanship. as grenade morphs into spray can.
very simple, very bold, graceful. eloquent, knock down – graphic info / expressive.
love how the OBEY GIANT logo is half off, and half-toned.
the message is clear, but the pictorial range runs from obvious to . . not.
nice.
adds a third dimension, in what is other-wise a flat plane piece.
it’s like Fairey himself, remains . . in the picture.
the metal plate ground – is very cool, too.
also nice touch, detail: how the circle around the logo is ridge-edged to mimic the barrel of a gun.
what a ride that OBEY GIANT has taken, from the early days plastered all over Manhattan, to sitting on a high-end print !!
nothing April Fool’s day – bout that.
esp since the mainstream press, insert ‘New York Times’, specifically . . ROBERTA SMITH, either totally ignored the work, or trashed it outright when it came off the street, and popped up . . in exhibits.
specifically: DEITCH PROJECTS . . SHEPARD FAIREY, ‘MAYDAY’, MAY 1 – MAY 29, 2010.
(& check out the show’s poster !!)
ROBERTA took one of her first big falls in credibility – with that.
so, happy April’s Fool Day !!
more power – to the mainstream . . ignored !!
the underground is not so underdog – anymore.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~SHEPARD FAIREY . . POWER |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | April 1st, 2014, 8:10am
talking about . . NUKES !!
and, the grand flux . . of LIFE & DEATH.
HOW AND NOSM – ‘WAY THINGS ARE’
MARCH 7 – APRIL 5, 2014
PACE PRINTS, 521 WEST 26th STREET, CHELSEA, NYC.
more info: HOW and NOSM – ‘WAY THINGS ARE’ / PACE PRINTS
HOW AND NOSM, ‘ENLIGHTENING FACTS’, 2013.
silkscreen with hand-coloring and spray painting, 40 x 52 in. monoprint.
($7,500)
note . . the BASQUIAT-LIKE ‘crown’ at the right.
so. is this how we mutate after the bombs fall, or are these the alien invaders who come in, to pick up the pieces ?!!!!
all the action, both painterly and narrative . . fluctuates on a very very shallow plane.
life vs destruction, life, death / future reality – it’s a ‘MESH’.
a grid-based mesh. the MATRIX.
and it doesn’t exactly look: utopian.
but hey, the birds and ferns and light bulbs look . . hopeful.
or are they . . just ghostly half-lives emanating from the past !!
the traditional wall – between life and death has become a . . m-e-m-b-r-a-n-e.
and, opposed to . . MEMORY !!
what the hell, is memory, now. now – that we are wired to the web.
oh oh whatever is coming out of the ‘box’, doesn’t look so . . hopeful.
more like, ‘coming to get . . ya.’
man vs machine vs robot vs sci fi future.
these pieces aren’t so much anger-filled, as just, laying it . . down !!
Japanese-style, German . . precision.
street art – vision.
HOW AND NOSM, ‘FACING YOUR DEMONS’, 2013.
silkscreen with hand-coloring and spray painting, 40 x 30 in. monoprint.
(SOLD).
facing your demons, ha. it’s a big big sea out there. radar aside.
big enough to swallow a jet plane, and it’s ‘hi-tech’ payload.
black box and all.
BOMBS AWAY, into the SEA !!
the deep watery, watery grave.
plus: love how that grid-like background breaks down into diamonds, American colonial quilt patterns !!
and origami – hooray.
also: a kind of literal . . ‘radar’ depiction ?
all art . . is a membrane in flux, telling a story.
it’s just the . . ‘WAY THINGS ARE’.
and, yes – that is a tear drop.
I’m guessing this represents . . us.
civilization as we know it – graff ‘writers’ aka spray painters . . at the forefront.
note the Basquiat ‘crown’ again / chess ‘castle’ game piece . . just below the spray painter’s hand, at center. under the umbrella’s shade.
‘nozzles’, and variable caps/tips – are key . . to a graffiti artist.
shake that can & channel . . future ‘shock’.
oh oh, looks like we be going down the tubes !!
‘tubes’ and ‘nozzles’ . . rhyme ?
so, what about . . FAUCETS ?!!!
the seahorse / dragon on the other side – doesn’t seem very happy either, broken chains and all.
the draftsmanship is supreme.
NOSM and HOW, with fellow German graffiti artist, WON aka WONABC in the center.
artwork behind them – by WON.
THE CANAL CHAPTER, NYC. JUNE 3, 2006.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
see: BANNED FROM TELEVISION/artlovers
I crossed paths with these guys back in 2006.
they made a very big, if . . non-verbal impression.
speaking of which . . .
watch: HOW & NOSM PAINT . . the L.A. WEEKLY BUILDING, FEB 2012 – PART I
it’s a good intro, but these guys are not exactly public speaking – stars !!
their ‘animation’ and skills – lie in their ‘hands-to-brain’ . . connects !!
though they do bring up . . life before the internet !! FASCINATING & FAB !!
watch: PART II
this is a GREAT !! CLIP !!
mostly because it’s wordless, and has a great snappy soundtrack.
but, a few key facts emerge:
they don’t like the term ‘street artist’, they prefer to be called . . ‘muralists’.
watch: PART III
the finished project, plus a great rambling discourse on the behind-the-scene . . tech issues.
including how they came to use a ‘limited’, black, white, and red . . palette.
very FAB !!
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH – except the YouTube screen grabs.
~HOW AND NOSM . . last week |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 31st, 2014, 9:24am
so, contrary to what I had thought.
which was quite logical, given the information that first surfaced . . .
Brit-based art & fashion photographer . . TIM WALKER did NOT post that haunting image of colorful dresses hanging from the boughs of a huge old tree.
according to a follow-up media article – the image was “posted” to her Facebook account by her “social media team” – one hour after she was found dead, from self-inflicted hanging.
the clear implication is . . this was her parting thought. and it’s a beautiful one.
one that leads from sadness & death – to new life, new trails, and sweet ‘dreams’.
L’WREN SCOTT left behind a touching, pictorial trail of bread crumbs, and contrary to what that article linked above says, personally I strongly believe it was misguided bullying that took that lovely & personal, very positive and super emotive – ‘parting’ image from us. if a person leaves instructions to post an image, a thought . .
I think to not respect that – is the disgrace.
life and death – have always had shape-shifting dimensions, but never more so, with the advent of the web.
from a tiny tear – a beautiful tree did grow.
it was WRONG to delete L’WREN’S final intentions.
TIM WALKER – “great #inspiration”, “love his #photography #light #colour”.
see: L’WREN SCOTT – R.I.P & TIM WALKER/artlovers
see: TIM WALKER – PHOTOGRAPHY
TIM WALKER, ‘THE DRESS LAMP TREE’, ENGLAND, 2002.
image via MICHAEL HOPPEN CONTEMPORARY
~L’WREN SCOTT / TIM WALKER . . up-date |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 31st, 2014, 9:17am
FOR A WORLD AT NEVER ENDING . . . WAR !!
LAST WEEKEND TO CATCH:
DEVIN CLARK / ANTHONY FREDA – ‘THE DEVIL’S CARNIVAL’
BUNNYCUTLET GALLERY – 158 ROEBLING ST, BROOKLYN
MARCH 7 – MARCH 30, 2014
HRS: WED-SUN / 2-8 PM
more info: BUNNYCUTLET – ‘THE DEVIL’S CARNIVAL’
DEVIN CLARK, ‘AWESOME!’, acrylic on wood, 12 x 9 in.
($250)
THIS WEEK’S – TOP FOUR – YOU CAN FILE UNDER: THAT’S . . JUST AWESOME!
1. OBAMA’S TOP FEAR is Manhattan getting NUKED. Thanks for sharing !!
2. OBAMA ON RUSSIA: ‘This is NOT another cold war’.
3.OMG: THE US AIR FORCE has 450 intercontinental ballistic missiles/ ICBMs on alert at all time – and they want everybody to know !!, never mind the cheating scandals & drug issues / and that’s our side !!
like I said, just great. that’s just frigging awesome – in other words:
we are lucky to be alive on any given day.
4. I was RIGHT about the slinky IRANIANS & the YELLOW DOGS !!
a photo-copy mistake. and that’s . . it. end of story ?!!
awesome.
ANTHONY FREDA, ‘DON’T TASE ME, BRO’, mixed media on wood cutout, 24 x 36 in.
($2,000)
DON’T TASE ME, BRO ?
L’WREN SCOTT vs MICK JAGGER.
MY AUNT PIGGY in TORONTO.
YOUR AUNT PIGGY in … IDAHO ?
~DEVIN CLARK / ANTHONY FREDA . . LAST WEEKEND |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 29th, 2014, 10:12am
if you want to check out some art in BROOKLYN, this is the last weekend to catch a small retrospective offering of the work of . . MATT LEINES.
& YES, YOU CAN ALSO FILE THIS UNDER: WTF ?
FOR A WORLD AT WAR !!
‘MATT LEINES – THE ESSENTIAL COLLECTION’
thru MARCH 29, 2014 / FRI & SAT / HRS: 12-6 PM
note: believe the gallery hours have been extended to 6 PM – for this weekend.
GREENPOINT TERMINAL GALLERY – 67 WEST ST #320, GREENPOINT TERMINAL WAREHOUSE, BROOKLYN
ARTWORK BY MATT LEINES
DRAWING – MATT LEINES
MATT LEINES . . at the last & final BROOKLYN COMICS & GRAPHICS FESTIVAL, NOVEMBER 2012.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
ARTWORK by MATT LEINES / image via ART NERD NEW YORK
~MATT LEINES . . LAST WEEKEND |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 28th, 2014, 8:08am
THE LAST BRUCENNIAL – ‘GIRLS ONLY’
MARCH 7 – APRIL 4, 2014
837 WASHINGTON ST, MEATPACKING DISTRICT, NYC – HRS: WED-SUN / 12-6 PM
CRAFTY, with the SKILLS !!
SWOON . . .
SWOON, detail.
Swoon, detail.
note: the ‘pots and pans’.
SOPHIA NARRETT . . .
SOPHIA NARRETT, detail.
SOPHIA NARRETT, does that say: CRUEL VICTIMS . . ???
is this a harsh, soft . . complicated, and sad . . narrative, or what ?!!
did the drunk lovers crash . . on the way to a ‘make out’ spot ?
on their way back from the . . wedding reception.
tragedy unfolds . . on the ‘grassy’ hill.
JENN BOCHYNSKI.
from soft to . . hard.
shiny, abstract – no ‘obvious’ narrative . . but very very curious.
JENN BOCHYNSKI, detail.
KATHLEEN GRANADOS.
both soft, and hard . . surfaced. and narrative.
looks to be crochet / soft . . adhered to a strong and non-pliant . . backing / hard.
the message ?
DON’T MESS WITH ME !!
HANNAH RAWE.
day ‘dress’ . . anybody ?
it’s funny how the stripes and knee pads complete the scenario. and the orange hue, of course.
which otherwise . . esp the black and white hat has post impressionist-in-the-garden overtones ?
HANNAH RAWE, detail.
MARIANNE VITALE.
MICHAEL MILLER ‘liked’ this piece.
a catheter inserted into a water bottle, all of copper, sitting on a vintage wooden chair.
CAROLINE SNOW.
in fact ‘chairs’ were a small sub-text all to their own – in the show.
CAROLINE SNOW, detail.
MY IDEA OF “HELP FROM ABOVE” IS A SNIPER ON THE ROOF.
CAROLINE SNOW, detail.
CATHERINE CZACKI.
JEHDY ANN VARGAS . .
from chairs to . . tables ?
you know, tables and chairs.
girls and . . boys.
the good, the bad, and the ugly.
in-your-face . . BAD !!
ever notice how ‘girls’ can be so romantic, and so deconstructed – all at the same time !!!
GIRLS, ONLY !!
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~THE BRUCENNIAL – OPENING PIX – PART IV |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 27th, 2014, 9:53am
THE LAST BRUCENNIAL – ‘GIRLS ONLY’
MARCH 7 – APRIL 4, 2014
847 WASHINGTON ST, MEATPACKING DISTRICT, NYC – HRS: WED-SUN / 12-6 PM
BEST HYPER-REALIST PIECE, WATERCOLOR or colored PENCIL ? . . AUREL SCHMIDT
but, what . . snake goes for WHOLE WHEAT ?
aren’t they . . gluten-free ?!!
BEST ‘HYPER-GRAPHIC’ PHOTO . . MORIAH SEE.
reminding me of RICHARD PRINCE, JEFF KOONS and .. STEFAN SAGMEISTER.
but what seals the deal for me – here, is how her calves are so . . ‘chunky’, and not airbrushed, it’s a curious tension, over all.
BEST REALIST, DOCUMENTARY / NAKED PHOTO, GOES TO . . MARGARITA JIMENO
so FRESH. so HAPPY. so SELFIE !!
so far past, so over the heads of all those other in-your-face explicit ole school porn dawgs.
we get it, ALREADY !!
get HAPPY !!
BEST NAKED / ‘INFORMATION GRAPHICS’ / ‘STREET ART STYLE’ PAINTING . . MORGAN ST. EVEREST
BEST CROWD SHOT, mostly because . . competing for my heart along with that ‘rough’ and ‘ready’ MORGAN ST. EVEREST painting above, that is MY OTHER FAVORITE, ‘INFORMATION GRAPHICS’ & ‘STREET STYLE’ PAINTING . . just, just visible on the right.
detail, PAINTING BY . . CHRISTINE TIEN WANG.
detail, PAINTING BY . . CHRISTINE TIEN WANG.
including, BEST ‘MANHOOD’ PAINTING . . IN THE SHOW.
detail, PAINTING BY . . CHRISTINE TIEN WANG.
N is for . . NANCY.
NO !!!!!!
detail, PAINTING BY . . CHRISTINE TIEN WANG.
wow, third reference to JESUS, in as many months, gotta be an art world record.
in front of CHRISTINE TIEN WANG’S painting,
BEST BOY ARTIST, IN HAT HAND-KNIT BY MOM !! – RAPHAEL GRISWOLD.
AARON KUHN, currently at COOPER UNION.
RUNNER-UP BEST BOY ARTIST – CROWD ‘CRASHER’.
INTERLOPER ‘BOY’ ART . . by AARON KUHN.
ha, so cute, what a man cave !!
note the dirty sneakers at right. love it. cracked iPhone screen and all.
and I mean is that Phallic, or what.
just staying on topic, ‘GIRLS ONLY’ !!
and, the winner is: CROSBY – !!
BEST BOY ARTIST – THE LAST BRUCENNIAL – ‘GIRLS ONLY’ . . CROWD CRASHER !!
‘POST YORK’ – a multi-media project – a comic book illustrated by his dad . . JAMES ROMBERGER, inspired in part by Crosby, which comes with a musical flexidisc, music by CROSBY . . just garnered a very prestigious WILL EISNER AWARD – NOMINATION 2013 for BEST SINGLE ISSUE (One-Shot).
congrats, James and Crosby. seriously !!
and see, growing up in a storefront with artist parents on the Lower East Side, back in day when the 80s, and the L.E.S. (!!) were the real deal – doesn’t seem to be such a bad way to bring up a kid, after all.
(just ask Kate & Theo !! 5 Rivington St / East Storefront)
CROSBY – PERFORMS: ‘POST YORK’ image via The Rumpus
most definite, check out: CROSBY, JAMES ROMBERGER, ‘POST YORK’ . . THE RUMPUS – THE NEW YORK COMICS SYMPOSIUM – !!
with many great illustrations & good background info.
IMAGE via SLATE
CROSBY’S parents . . JAMES ROMBERGER and MARGUERITE VAN COOK have been in the news as well, big time.
for another project.
they worked with the late DAVID WOJNAROWICZ on his critically acclaimed autobiography, a graphic novel – ‘7 MILES A SECOND’ – which was just re-released 2013 in a deluxe edition by Fantagraphics, and which received a ton of fab fab press, and a place on the NEW TIMES best seller list.
Crosby’s dad JAMES ROMBERGER penned the drawings, while his mom, MARGUERITE VAN COOK did the inking/coloring, via . . very vivid watercolor.
see: ‘7 MILES A SECOND’ – Fantagraphics.
and, definite, catch: a great review in . . SLATE !!
watch: CROSBY, ‘Are You Listed ?’ . . on YouTube, AUG 2007 – DEITCH PROJECTS.
of course, one of young CROSBY’S . . most amusing 15 mins of fame, to date !!
would have to be this clip of him, doing manual labor, and boring !! – with a few other (also bored) downtown denizens, in support of the very last DASH SNOW exhibit: ‘NEST’ – at DEITCH PROJECTS !!
well, who do you thunk, ripped up all that paper !!
ps: if you listen closely, you can catch taskmaster KATHY GRAYSON admonishing Crosby to get back – to it !!
yeah . . way to go Kathy.
take a kid who does graphics for SWIZZ BEATZ !! and have him rip up phone books, for Dash Snow.
priceless.
good crashing – CROSBY, or what !!
MORE PIX – TO FOLLOW.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH, unless otherwise noted.
~THE BRUCENNIAL – OPENING PIX – PART III |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 24th, 2014, 4:10pm
HANGING ARTWORK by IVANA BASIC, THE LAST BRUCENNIAL 2014.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH.
IVANA BASIC . . is the name of artist who did that ‘GIRLS ONLY’,
ghostly strange haunting transparent beautifully realized and articulated, melancholy and erotic,
a hanging piece – in the window of the BRUCENNIAL 2014 exhibit.
it hangs like a heavy gauge piece of mylar, as opposed to fabric.
so it doesn’t flutter, but upside . . it is both transparent, and opaque depending on the light,
time of day, and . . how you walk around it.
a self-described ‘multi-media’ artist, according to her website – she was born in BELGRADE, SERBIA.
no date of birth is provided.
she holds a Master’s Degree from the TISCH SCHOOL of ART, NYU & a BFA from the School of Art & Design, University of Belgrade, Serbia.
and, wouldn’t you know . . she has an amazing online / portfolio website.
AND, the site is very playful . . tech-wise.
she is definitely a ‘materials’ person, as well as an incredible draftsperson.
this is: the link to her website / IVANA BASIC,
where you first encounter this beautiful ethereal image:
it is animated, with the wind blowing through the leaves on the tree, and the long blue grasses shiver.
the image can also be ‘pulled’ out – horizontally – neverending / infinite panels keep repeating across the screen.
if you play around a bit, one of those endlessly articulating panels will turn . .
into an animation of ‘rushing’ water under your cursor.
if you ‘TAKE THE BLUE TOUR’ – and then, if you are really persistent . . you will become a ‘traveler’, whether you are saying good bye or hello – is up to you.
if you follow the ‘SELECTED WORKS’ option, you will find her ‘ABOUT’ & . . PORTFOLIO.
where you can find:
IVANA BASIC, ‘THE SKIN’, c-print. year 2009.
a series of photographic portraits.
model: ALEKSANDRA ZIRAVAC
location: Belgrade, SERBIA
IVANA BASIC / THE SKIN
~THE BRUCENNIAL – FOCUS: IVANA BASIC |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 20th, 2014, 3:10pm
THE LAST BRUCENNIAL – ‘GIRLS ONLY’
MARCH 7 – APRIL 4, 2014
837 WASHINGTON ST, MEATPACKING DISTRICT, NYC – HRS: WED-SUN / 12-6 PM
VICTORIA CAMPBELL . . with her self portrait behind her.
CATHY MOOSES, in the MFA Program at YALE, with her portrait.
LEILA FEUER has work in the show . .
LEILA FEUER.
it was a kind of listening/watching post – with a blanket to lie on placed on the floor, and a video loop that screened on a small monitor, close to the ground.
needless to say, it was all digital. LIGHT, LIGHT, and more LIGHT. almost psychedelic.
music, sound, and . . strange strange soft ‘porn’ naked / musing ?!!
not to forget the ‘aboriginal’ weaving, the artisanal Indian blanket – a nod to traditional women folks art / folk art. that fronts the piece, think on that. and that you ideally rest on, to watch the . . ‘contemporary’ female – photo dance.
LEILA FEUER, screen image.
LEILA FEUER, screen image.
the only art dealer I saw . . AMY LI – of ALTERNATIVE ART SPACE/166 MOTT ST.
AMY has put on some very interesting & cutting edge shows since she opened her storefront gallery, this past Fall 2012. the most striking that immediately come to mind – the ‘glyph’ drawings of W.C. BEVAN, and the larger wall-scaled mystical, and drama-filled works . . of ALEXANDRA EASTBURN.
there is some buzz that she is collaborating with JOSH HARRIS of QUIET, PSEUDO and WE LIVE IN PUBLIC . . to present a series of 2 week shows highlighting the art of some of the artists who worked on those projects. stay tuned.
I see her space is now going under the name . . AMY LI PROJECTS !!
nice.
and her gallery Facebook page is . . looking good !!!
DEFINITE, check out: AMY LI PROJECTS/Facebook
artist MIDORI OKUYAMA, with alternative downtown gallerist . . AMY LI.
Midori has work in the show.
AMY LI grew up in the rough but colorful streets of Lower East Side CHINATOWN – so that’s always great to see a kid from the hood, who grew up in those very streets, make a stand – very authentic.
as they say, the real deal.
painting by MIDORI OKUYAMA. strange, dramatic. Asian, and I mean that in a good way.
PHOEBE MORRIS . . ‘KUNST’ / art.
great signage.
thinking about it, the show was not as ethically diverse as you might expect – being supposedly ‘from the ground up’ – in NYC.
LUBA DRUZD.
though cultural diversity, and even more important . . ‘conceptual’ diversity could be found, if you looked hard enough.
KIM ALTOMARE.
IVANA BASIC. mixed media.
a strange ghostly piece, beautifully articulated. it was transparent, and played with the ‘light’.
it was distinctly sad, it really seemed to be saying something profound about . . the darker side of being a woman, a girl.
to-nite it makes me think of L’WREN SCOTT, the ‘glamorous gazelle’, as they call her in the fashion press, who sadly took her own life this week – I guess she just had had . . enough. she had long legs, too.
life is . . hard. esp if you have . .. feelings, as tender as these.
IVANA BASIC.
seen from the reverse.
LOLA MONTES.
LOLA had an array of 3 matching, small paintings on paper. this is the last of the series, I liked it the best.
it was also very passionate, dramatic. though coming from a much more expressionistic canon – it also seemed to address dark sides, confusion, and inner conflict. (purple) emotions that burst forth from a deeper place.
heartfelt.
free form.
detail. LOLA MONTES.
at the BRUCENNIAL 2014 – GIRLS ONLY !!
it was reported in the press that one of L’WREN SCOTT’S last social media posts was:
“FASHION IS THE ARMOUR TO SURVIVE THE REALITY OF LIFE”.
I think what was so sad about her suicide, was how she came from really nowhere . . culturally. adopted Mormon small town Utah. yet there was something in her unknown gene pool (?), in her genetic gift re her model looks, and in her soul – that propelled her to dream, to believe in herself, and accomplish much. that was so so far beyond the scope or imagining . . of her actual childhood, and upbringing.
unless you want in include . . making dresses for her Barbie dolls.
you look around at all the hurtful greedy things people do to each other, even between lovers, even between family, let alone strangers, ethnic groups, and competitors, and you really have to wonder . . what the hell were they thinking, and . . how do we survive at all.
painting . . by OLGA SOPHIE KAUPPINEN.
howling, howling at the moon. battle scars, and all.
MORE PIX – to follow.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~THE BRUCENNIAL – OPENING PIX – PART II |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 19th, 2014, 4:18pm
