DUKE RILEY – ‘An Invitation to Lubber Land’, 2010/FILM STILL/COURTESY & COPYRIGHT: DUKE RILEY
. . . island of Manhattan aside – if you happen to be the mid-west – here’s the opening to make !!
‘DUKE RILEY: AN INVITATION TO LUBBER LAND’ – OPENS TO-NITE – FRI SEPT 10, 2010 / 7-10 PM
On View September 10th, 2010 thru January 9th, 2011
MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART CLEVELAND
8501 Carnegie Avenue, Cleveland, OHIO.
note: there will be an ARTIST TALK – with DUKE RILEY – ‘CIGARETTE TREES & OTHER HOBO FANTASIES’ – at the start of tonight’s opening – 7 PM.
you can read more about the exhibit: here !!
. . . but here are some of the most pertinent & colorful details, that Duke sent along . . . quote:
HISTORY:
Buried beneath the city of Cleveland is a prehistoric river known as Kingsbury Run. Before it was re-routed underground, itinerant workers made their home along its banks. During the depression of the 1890s, a “tramp census” conducted by John McCook indicated 6% of the population of the United States were itinerant. At that time Cleveland was regarded as a “hobos’ paradise” because of the gracious handouts itinerants would receive, and lenient treatment by the city’s police.
During the Great Depression of the 1930s the itinerant population swelled to 30%, and the Kingsbury Run grew into a sprawling shantytown. However, a series of gruesome murders occurred along the Run, targeting the hobos. As a band-aid solution to stop the serial killings, the police department arrested and displaced the population, burning the neighborhood to the ground.
PROJECT:
Today, itinerant cultures both nationally and globally are being marginalized to the brink of extinction. The hobo census, a once respected barometer for the American economy is now obsolete.
Motivated by our current economic climate, I traveled the country by freight train, attempting to re-conduct McCook’s census, ultimately returning to Cleveland. By infiltrating the sewer system. I regained access to the forgotten Kingsbury Run. In search of the lost “hobos’ paradise” I followed the Run, beneath the streets of Cleveland to its headwater.
~DUKE RILEY LANDS IN OHIO !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 10th, 2010, 8:47am
‘DO NOT ABANDON ME – LOUISE BOURGEOIS AND TRACEY EMIN’
OPENING RECEPTION: THURS SEPT 9, 2010
the show runs thru NOV 13, 2010
CAROLINA NITSCH PROJECT ROOM – 534 W. 22 – CHELSEA, NYC.
The new season started – with a bang. Simon stumbled upon last night’s hottest opening – ‘DO NOT ABANDON ME – LOUISE BOURGEOIS AND TRACY EMIN’ – a series of 16 collaborative works completed during the past two years – on the walls – and accompanied by – a beautiful large-scale fully illustrated hardcover catalog.
Simon says: “Too bad Louise Bourgeois recently died – she would have loved the opening. Tracey was there in top form, sporting a sublime tan – that could put the Jersey Shore denizens to shame. Dressed to the hilt and surrounded by a glamorous European circle of friends – they were all British and French – she was in her trademark hard and soft, sweet and sour self. Ashely Bickerton put in a rare appearance, talking shop – with Gary Indiana. The gallery being a small space – was packed to the gills and over-flowing. It’s a beautiful show. Go see it.”
TRACEY EMIN AND LOUISE BOURGEOIS. 2010. PORTRAIT BY BRIGITTE CORNAND
the frontispiece of the catalog – ‘DO NOT ABANDON ME 2009-10’.
Louise Bourgeois did the watercolors, Tracey did the small line drawings, and the texts.
all images from the hard cover catalog:
‘LOUISE BOURGEOIS TRACEY EMIN – DO NOT ABANDON ME 2009-10’
Published in a limited edition of 1,500 – to accompany the exhibition.
PHOTOS – FROM THE BOOK – COPYRIGHT: NANCY SMITH
~DO NOT ABANDON ME, TRACEY EMIN !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 10th, 2010, 8:00am
MORPH TRAITS – A COLLABORATIVE ART EXHIBIT & BOOK RELEASE – BY :
DANIEL HIGGS & KYLE RANSON
OPENS TO-NITE – THURS SEPT 9, 2010 / 7-10 PM
NEEDLES AND PENS – 3253-16th ST. – SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
the show runs thru OCT 14, 2010
44 drawings – that are the result of a collaborative exercise between Kyle Ranson and Daniel Higgs – that began in 1991 and set aside – this back and forth practice continued intermittently over the next 16 years through brief encounters and the postal system. In 2007, the two geographically separated artists re-initiated the game and it was decided to create a volume of these works. Three years in the making, this assemblage evolved into what became known as the ‘Morph Traits’ – a 4 color, 60 page off-set printed book, printed in a limited edition of 500 and published by NEEDLES & PENS.
All images from the book – will be displayed on the gallery walls.
~MORPH TRAITS OPENS AT NEEDLES & PENS |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 9th, 2010, 11:30am
thanks to a lucky alignment of all things good !! – we were able to make the up-state New York – Catskill Mountains – opening of MATT BUA’S – CATAMOUNT PEOPLE’S MUSEUM – SAT SEPT 4, 2010.
unlike the impression we got from the earliest photos – Matt had sent us – that the big wooden cat was the top of the – or the actual roof – of a small building – it was a wonderful surprise – to see that the handmade bobcat – comprised the entire museum building – it was more of a lean-to – though in fact a totally free-standing sheltering structure . . . and, made with great innovation !! how fun.
MATT BUA – founder & builder of the first ever CATAMOUNT PEOPLE’S MUSEUM.
literally built from the grass roots-up . . . the ‘museum’ collection – is also an on-going grass roots in-progress open to the public – endeavor, too. the way a real folk museum should be – a true people’s museum and community gathering spot.
inside the almost open-to-the-elements – wooden shelter – is a place to contribute artifacts of local lore and comment.
more permanent displays are sturdily framed among the ‘cat’ rafters !! – and perhaps- the most interesting
‘open invitational’ element – a vintage typewriter – on which to leave your own story !!
. . . KATE writes our story !!
that’s CARMEN BORGIA – providing some sweet and low-key music – for the entirely charming & inspired afternoon.
and then pins it to a wall. it was really interesting to read – the other stories too.
LOL !! – the stories stayed brief – it . . .
was . . . hard to type – on a vintage ribbon-fed typewriter – as opposed to a modern-day keyboard !!
it was fun to watch the generation that never had – try to deal with it !!
“NANCY SMITH, KATE & THEO CERIGO VISITED SEPT 4, 2010 – FROM NYC VIA PINE HILLS.”
“we have been coming upstate almost every summer from New York City since we were kids to stay at a friend’s summer house and get some country life in our city systems.
it’s always hard to leave and go back to the city.
maybe we are all just made for the mountains.”
yep, Theo was there too. and he really liked it too.
KATE & THEO CERIGO, CATAMOUNT PEOPLE’S MUSEUM. OPENING DAY. SEPT 4, 2010.
the sign says:
CALL 1-877-679-4283 FOR THE CATAMOUNT PEOPLE’S MUSEUM RECORD-A-STORY HOT LINE.
PRESS 1 FOR THE PAST.
PRESS 2 FOR THE FUTURE. (!!)
another of the charming and very practical, though absolutely rustic – DIY design features – handmade seating, some for individuals, some to share . . . fashioned from found tree parts, mostly branches, and some wood planks & scraps . . .
and, yes – they were comfortable !!
a look from the backside of the “lean-to” !!
well actually, inside the belly of the cat – it was a pretty sturdy free-standing structure – that seemed to grow up from the ground and take on an organic life. cat, museum, artifacts and all. and it afforded more protection than one would imagine – from the elements. Matt expects the structure to be up – for at least a year – and it is open to the public at all times.
(that’s another chair – fashioned from branches – in the foreground)
one of the more fascinating up-close details – the use of vintage bottle caps – as washers.
re-cycling – was obviously – the catch phrase.
of course – the cat’s – shape – esp the cat face . . . took on a life of it’s own !!
and the cat paws – were the among the most awesome and unique – parts of the project !!
another really interesting design element – was how the structure was placed – on the small country town – empty rural lot . . .
from one angle – yep – there was the town of CATAMOUNT !!
but, from another angle – you could swear – you had just stumbled across this Hans-and-Gretel style – in the open woods !!
you can follow MATT’s project, and check out it’s early beginnings, here.
see: MATT BUA/CATAMOUNT PEOPLE’S MUSEUM/bobcathouse.blogspot.com !!
PHOTOS COPYRIGHT: NANCY SMITH
~MATT BUA/CATAMOUNT PEOPLE’S MUSEUM/OPENING |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 9th, 2010, 9:27am
AN EVENING – IN HONOR OF – ACTOR PHILIP LOEB !! – TO-NITE: SEPT 1, 2010 / 6:30 PM
SPONSORED BY THE ACTOR’S EQUITY ASSOCIATION
at: THE MUSEUM of JEWISH HERITAGE – A LIVING MEMORIAL TO THE HOLOCAUST – EDMOND J. SAFRA PLAZA
36 BATTERY PLACE – NEW YORK, NY
DIRECTIONS: SUBWAY 4/5 to BOWLING GREEN, walk west along Battery Place. SUBWAY R to WHITEHALL STREET, walk west along Battery Place to South Ferry, walk north along Battery Park/State Street, turn left & walk west on Battery Place.
FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
IF YOU SAW THAT DELIGHTFUL & ABSOLUTELY NEEDS TO BE HERALDED – DOCUMENTARY – ‘YOO-HOO, MRS. GOLDBERG’ – BY AVIVA KEMPNER – THEN YOU KNOW WHY – THIS EVENT HEADLINES ARTLOVERS TO-DAY !!
. . . forget what you usually see on T.V. shows about the earliest T.V. sitcoms – LUCILLE BALL – did not – initiate the genre. that’s just what they’d like you think. it was GERTRUDE BERG – who played Lower East Side matriarch – MRS. GOLDBERG – who actually kicked off the sitcom ball game !! though the show – didn’t time-travel – culturally – as well Lucille Ball’s – ‘I LOVE LUCY’ – maybe that was because – it was so topical – and therefore a little more prone to appear dated – as opposed to Lucy’s generalized and second generation slapstick comedy. in fact, if you even casually – follow Ms. Kempner’s documentary – which is very very lively, thoroughly entertaining and chockful of vintage clips – it’s not a step too far to conclude that the producer, writer, and star of the show – Gertrude Berg – a native-born New Yorker – was not only the true mother of them all – but – an early blogger as well. well before there was a blogshere !! she was on the air – with her take !!
A real multi-tasker, and thinker – not just a gifted comedian and entertainer – Gertrude Berg – stepped out of her home each morning – with the issues of the day on her mind – and a story to tell – fresh – for each day’s live broadcast. She absolutely generated her own whole show, and she did this day after day. Unlike Lucille – she had no outside writers – it was all Gertrude – 24/7 and on point. She wrote the scripts – that had the first T.V. audiences in stitches – as she brought ethnic immigrant life – the newcomers from the old country – who landed on New York’s Lower East Side – to life – for a vast new national T.V. audience – national as in country-wide – even in the heartland – who had previously no real inkling of what was afoot in America’s biggest city. and along with the hilarious family ups and downs – she served up – gentle but insightful takes on the politics of the day and the world – New York City style !!
probably – therefore – it comes – as no surprise – that her show got caught up in the national embarrassment – that we now so plainly see those sorry blacklisting days of the 40s and 50s to be. seeing the original clips – it’s hard to understand what antagonized these small-minded censors – so much. All of Gertrude Berg’s writing comes across as very gentle chiding – even when it touched on national issues. She wrote from such a heartfelt and truly concerned place. yet the co-star of the show – PHILIP BERG – who played JAKE GOLDBERG – Molly Goldberg’s husband on the show – and – therefore the first father knows best !! – took a heartbreaking fall for the gang – and was blacklisted. As Aviva Kempner details so poignantly in ‘Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg’ – it was for his union activities – and not for his role on the program per se – that got him into hot water. but he was forced from the show – signaling not only the beginning of the end of the show, but of his own life as well. Heartbroken and well – just plain broken – he took his own life on Sept 1, 1955. and the union activism that got him blacklisted ? – he was one of the first founder activists for an actor’s union – or – as it is called today – the Actors’ Equity Association – and so, no wonder they are the honoring sponsors of this event to-nite. the eve of Labor Day weekend and the 55th anniversary of his untimely death.
I believe he jumped from a hotel window – he had been at the height of his acting career. as for the show, ‘Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg’ never found a replacement – for the depth of heart and warmth of humor he brought to the role -and it went off the air, rather unceremoniously, as Ms. Kempner notes – to be replaced by the more stylized and innocuous – ‘I LOVE LUCY’.
excerpts of ‘Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg’ – along with other clips related to Philip Loeb and his career will be shown to-nite.
to-nite’slive panel guests – honoring the memory of Philip Loeb will include:
AVIVA KEMPNER, director, ‘Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg’
ANNA BERGER, actress on ‘The Goldbergs’
PETER FREIDMAN, an actor who is writing a play about Loeb
Dr. STEVE LOEB, Loeb’s grandnephew
Dr. GLENN SMITH, a Loeb biographer
and JIM BROCHU, an actor, and playwright of ‘ZERO HOUR’.
. . . and if you want to spend a really entertaining and thoughtful moment – on Labor Day weekend !! – check out – the official website for – Aviva Kempner’s – ‘Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg’ – and meet GERTRUDE BERG – the “most famous woman in America – you never heard of” – !!
see: YOO-HOO, MRS. GOLDBERG !!
~IN HONOR OF PHILIP LOEB/YOO-HOO, MRS GOLDBERG !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | September 1st, 2010, 11:44am
. . . talking about shelf life, wow – even your local supermarket can of string beans says: BEST BY DEC 2012.
talk about a hot potato – expiration date !!
CAMPBELL SOUP CANS – MOVE OVER !!
speaking of which – CONGRATS !! – TO JIMMY FALLON & CREW & CAST !! – YOU GUYS ACED THE EMMYS – !!
– BEST AWARDS SHOW – HANDS DOWN – IN A LONG LONG – TIME – !!
ALL PHOTOS: COPYRIGHT: NANCY SMITH
~SHELF LIFE . . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 31st, 2010, 12:27pm
FEELING THE HEAT – !!
OR: MY SUMMER OF 2010 & THE UP-SIDE OF UNEMPLOYMENT – MORE TIME FOR CELEBRITY MAGAZINES & DAYTIME T.V. !!
OR: THE CELESTIAL – SIGNS – I HAVE SEEN !!
JOSH HARRIS – INTERNET GURU, FOUNDING C.E.O. OF JUPITER COMMUNICATIONS and PSEUDO.COM – & – STAR – OF – 2009 SUNDANCE WINNER – WE LIVE IN PUBLIC – a kind of bio pic on his adventures in the internet bubble – and the hardcore gang of artists – he surrounded himself with . . .
JOSH HARRIS . . . LANDS BACK IN NYC – WILLIAMSBURG – AND IN SO DOING – ALONG THE WAY – SAVES ALFREDO MARTINEZ – A SORRY BROOKLYN NATIVE SON – IF THERE EVER WAS ONE – FROM THE BLACK HOLE OF SECRET PRISON DETENTION – IN CHINA.
JOSH & ALFREDO MAKE LIKE ANDY (WARHOL) and JEAN MICHEL (BASQUIAT) – TAKE ONE !!
but really all Josh wants to do is paint. now that his huge internet fortune has (pretty much) burst – along with the rest of that fun bubble – it seems he can no longer contract-out his painting ‘concepts’ – to Ethiopian street artisans – the Gilligan’s Island paintings that pop up in WE LIVE IN PUBLIC – and so, its hands-on !! for now !! but actually not without – still landing, as ever – on the proverbial – dot.
I probably might not have found these painting so interesting 10 years ago – but now – how time flies and things change – and voila – you couldn’t find a better cross – between evolutionary pictograms – and ‘MAD MEN’ retro chic !! you could just imagine them up there – on the background walls – of any one of those ‘MAD MEN’ sets with their vintage bric- a-brac and huge ceramic ash trays !! talk about retro color palettes.
but, it’s the evolutionary pictogram angle – ‘internet guru – me have message’ – that sets them apart. and makes them damn spooky. not to mention – popular culture signifiers.
First, if you ever watch any of those new daytime HISTORY CHANNEL science programs – that are now up-market geared to the new T.V. audience of over-educated under-employed at-home masses – like moi and perhaps vous – you know it’s a super great time to be watching science programs, esp those on archaeology, geology, astronomy, and yes, even – space travel !! and it’s no wonder – it’s these sciences that have been making the huge great amazing leaps. and it’s mostly because of the new hi-powered state-of-the-art hi-definition digital orbiting photography – beaming back. not only up-close images of way distant planets and stars – but helping us locate new archaeological data – such as immense pictograms – that can only be seen from aerial heights !! – carved into mountains on earth – that cannot be denied (and who made them ?) – and locating otherwise overgrown, eroded, and for centuries overlooked – and apparently absolutely accurate cosmically-aligned free-standing monuments – newly attributed to the Mayans, who are turning out to have been much more far-ranging travelers – than previously thought . . . and are now – the ‘it’ culture. in a kind of – spooky – proverbial – karma-like way – wouldn’t you know – in our very own historically overlooked-as-primitive cultural backyard – Mexico and the South Americas !!
Mexico – what a 21st century hot potato !!
of course. the fact that – aerial pictograms – in very contemporary-style graphics – of earth animals such as a spider and a pelican speak to – ‘outer-world-visitor-was-here’ – they can only be seen from a great height over the globe – as opposed to caveman pictograms that speak to the first humans – is freaky enough. but the Mayan texts, inscriptions, and monuments – which turn out to be 3-D pictograms – pointing to planetary alignments – like Stonehenge – absolutely parallel with pinpoint accuracy – the newest conclusions of the hardcore science – American astronomers !!
and, damn if those ancient MAYANS – weren’t right. according to the programs – the newest scientific data tells us – some kind of huge – cosmic event – which will greatly affect our planet – will result from a huge gravitational pull of a major celestial alignment – to occur – Dec 21, 2012. the very day the Mayan Long Calendar ends.
and Age of Aquarius aside – which is also tapped to occur that very same day – it doesn’t look to be shaping up to be – a nice new age Woodstock party – as much as it’s looking to be a huge global wipe-out. so big – they say – a gravitational pull on earth – that we are feeling the effects now. as in extreme weather. double dip recession. global gridlock. war. conflict.
factoring in the – Mayan take – it’s the end of their cyclical calendar – and, watch out. apart from the thought – that they might have been ‘visitors’ – and I’m inclined to agree – they were renown for their harsh world view – human sacrifice was aplenty – skulls tumbled down the steps of their temples – according to the early Spanish explorers – not to mention – I remember reading somewhere – that recently they found huge charnel houses, down there. for an artist – its very plain to see from their graphic inscriptions – and pictograms – that their culture was hard-edged, cruel and all about pretty much – just about war. I guess, well, what else is new. hello world. going all the way back to prehistoric times.
but very little poetry compared to say the earliest inscriptions of the playful Hindu culture. or the gentler Mother Earth lore of our Native Americans.
but, isn’t it – so fun – ironic – to find the ‘it’ ancient culture of the moment – in whose pinpoint observations – we now turn to for keys to the future – right here on this side of the globe – as opposed to all those previously way fawned-over Greek, Egyptian or even ancient Roman ruins – the previous fulcrum of all art history – so fought over and hoarded, in our museums.
Josh himself says the “paintings take about a week to do after much angst” . . . and aside from having titles like “dead mother” – he says “the paintings are an anamorphic representation of human consciousness that the singularity can process.” singularity – I think corresponds to the same primal ‘pictogram’ stick figure configuration found in each canvas. look it up – anamorphic means – “pertaining to gradual evolution from one type of organism to another” !! – so maybe we aren’t so off track. in linking his attempt – to primal code. artwise – think ZUNI . . .
of course Josh isn’t the the only art world mogul – feeling the heat – of the portending 2012 gravitational alignment !!
in today’s NEW YORK POST – real estate developer and big time art collector – ABY ROSEN – is outed for letting one of his properties – 400 PARK AVE. – go for the measly sum of $35 MILLION. he has been reported as having been caught in debt-driven financial straits on and off throughout the past year . . . but yikes. just $35 million – for a whole 21-story office building, in Manhattan !! a good Picasso at auction could net you more than that . . . what happened to the DAMIEN HIRST – shark or beef – in formaldehyde – tanks ? weren’t a couple of those supposed to net a sum close to that . . . guess not – or he wouldn’t be selling the building.
no wonder Deitch split the scene – to become a curator in la la land. not that I think Aby Rosen was a friend or even a client of Jeffrey’s – but Jeffrey obviously saw the writing on the wall – when these moguls hit the red side of the ledger books – it’s a sad bad day for the art scene. I’m not crowing – it’s bad. for us all. for the game in general. for the trickle down effect – to the people who make a living on the fringe – taking the pix and talking the talk- and – for the artists they collected in particular – who definite – look lame now, too.
see: ‘400 PARK GRABBED FOR $35M’/LOIS WEISS/NEW YORK POST – AUGUST 26, 2010
and then there’s newsprint mogul, INTERVIEW publisher, Andy Warhol pal, and major major art collector PETER BRANT – who seems to be a pretty nice guy – at least from a distance – fighting to keep his money and his sanity – in a huge messy hurtful mind spirit if not body-bashing divorce . . . from his wife of 15 years – and mother of his 3 youngest children – VICTORIA’S SECRET and SPORTS ILLUSTRATED MODEL, PLAYBOY COVER GIRL model – STEPHANIE SEYMOUR. apparently the union was pretty real at the get-go and Mr. Brant did not get a pre-nup. the only up-side . . . Mr. Brant got into financial woes several, quite a several years back, that landed him a short stint in prison. the mainstream press, and some clueless bloggers – myself included – inferred from that – that he was a thief. he has gone on to say – notably in a recently published interview – that he was just stupid. guess what. a lot of people believe him on that, now !!
and in fact – he did recently sell, I believe at auction – a later Picasso for what – upwards of $20 maybe even $30+ million to shore up his businesses, lifestyle and I guess million dollar lawyer fees.
see: ‘DIVORCE CELEBRITY STYLE’/LAURA HOLSON/SUNDAY STYLES/THE NEW YORK TIMES/AUGUST 22, 2010
PHOTOS COPYRIGHT: NANCY SMITH
EXCEPT FOR THE 2 NEWSPAPER SCANS
~JOSH’S PICTOGRAMS & OTHER ART WORLD MOGULS . . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 27th, 2010, 7:40pm
JOSH HARRIS and ALFREDO MARTINEZ – MAKE LIKE ANDY (WARHOL) and JEAN MICHEL (BASQUIAT) !!
UPON ALFREDO’S – SAFE RETURN – FROM A 3 MONTH DETENTION IN CHINA – AND A SWIFT 24 HR. DEPORTATION – BACK TO THE HOMELAND – OF – THE U.S.A. – AND – NEW YORK CITY !!
WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN. SUN, AUG 15, 2010.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
OK . . . where to begin.
so, JOSH wants credit, and rightfully so, for putting out the initial – APB – ALL POINTS BULLETIN – alert that apparently saved Alfredo’s scruffy little 300+ lb. native Brooklyn-born Puerto Rican American neck !! yep the ENGER BROS – aka EXPLODING SKY – got it right – their friend was being held – in the dark, scary and creepy Chinese Prison system. and supposedly without anyone’s knowledge – !! it’s estimated by Alfredo that he was in there for approx 3 mos. and it was not looking to have a happy ending – any time soon. According to Alfredo – he was hauled off the streets – no reason was given – restrained, and deprivation-tortured, denied outside contact and kept literally in the dark – about where he was and how long he would be there. he was also told to keep his mouth shut about it – but since he is now out – here goes !!
back to the beginning. luckily Josh’s APB included Alfredo’s friend & patron in China – the so-called “rich kid” BYRON HAWES. and apologies to Mr. Hawes !! it seems anybody who can buy their own set of shoes – is termed a “rich kid” by Alfredo . . . anyways it turns out BRYON HAWES is a writer/contributor to TIME OUT MAGAZINE in CHINA and luckily besides being a huge fan of Alfredo’s artwork – he is diplomatically connected, in a way that Alfredo needed big time. Apparently he is the son of a former ambassador of Canada’s to China, and his mom was an ambassador to France (maybe) – or something like that – Alfredo also claims Byron dated the granddaughter of Chinese Premier DONG CHOU PING – but that’s another story for another time – anyways Byron, just like in the best B grade movies – knew exactly who to call to – to locate Alfredo, and surprise surprise, within a couple of hours of Byron’s well-placed phone call – Alfredo was unceremoniously deported and sent home – on a one-way flight on Quatar Airlines – courtesy of the Chinese government !! talk about a hot potato.
looking pretty weary, after his long flight, not to mention his black hole of a Chinese prison ordeal – Alfredo is happy to reunite with a New York Post – at Josh’s local headquarters in Williamsburg.
although you have to take everything Alfredo says with a grain of salt – he can spin as good as he can whip up a working gun from spare parts – a big part of the ‘hot potato’ problem – obviously. usually the weirdest parts of his stories – are the truest. at any rate – we had caught him – right upon arrival – not quite long enough for him to get rested enough to embellish any colorful details and – according to him – the facts were harsh enough to stand alone. He certainly looked shell shocked enough to support his claims of abduction, torture and illegal detention.
He thinks, or claims at any rate, that the whole thing was set-off by his rather arrogant statements regarding the handmade guns and weapons drawings that littered his hotel room – in a small rural area – in China – where he was a bonafide American artist-in-residence (hard to believe, but true) – that caused panic to the hotel maid – who in turn blew the whistle – that brought Alfredo an impromptu visit from the local cops. The ‘in-your-face-Chinese-cops-take-that’ exchange that played out, according to Alfredo’s macho telling – was repeated – verbatim – in that NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE – referenced in our preceding post – and that probably did not help !!
here’s that NEW YORK TIMES link again: “For China’s Western Expatriates…”
you can find Alfredo’s (notoriously stupid) quotes on the cop hotel visit – in the captions under his photo allotment – in the ‘more photos’ segment . . .
you can also evaluate for yourself – what the local Chines cops encountered. the fearfulness, awesomeness ? top drawer DIY skills ? hot potato for sure scale – of Alfredo’s gun making skills – in the pix posted in our previous post, ‘Where in the World is Alfredo’ ….
I would state that Alfredo’s gun making skills are self-taught – but he did tell me once he learned how-to – from guerillas in the South American jungle – so who knows – though I personally think, that was a small embellishment – but with Alfredo – trust me, you never know. I do know Alfredo’s gun making skills can come in handy. JIM JARMUSCH used him as the gun ‘consultant’ in his film – ‘Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai’ (1999)
in fact, many of Alfredo’s friends saw him – in the title character played by the hulking and strange Forest Whitaker – though Jim has denied basing the character on Alfredo. but . . . many of the hand-made weapons that are bandied about in the film – are Alfredo’s handiwork, if not also his lumbering gait and shady, sketchy ? under-dog world view. to put in a kind word – yes, this the guy you would most want to be – beside you in a terror attack end-of-the world scenario. let’s leave it at that.
anyways – Alfredo says he was at his local rural internet cafe in China – and although he says yes he had overstayed his visa – that’s no problem – in China – you just pay a fee and life continues – that’s what he says – when he noticed the arrival of a very intimidating wave of all black-clad heavily armed extremely serious high level pumped-up big Chinese security force – in effect – a squat team – swarm the place. he was curious and drawn to the action – like a moth to a flame. when all of a sudden he realized – it was he – who was the object of the heavy-duty hunt – a burlap hood was thrown over his head – with no further ado, no warning, no questioning, no words. he was scared like he was never scared before and taken off – he knows not where, nor for how long. weeks. days. He was subjected to hi-tech hi-level deprivation torture. that is he was held in a cold cold small room – where he was strapped into a hard cold “stainless steel” chair … that … “looked like a Phillipe Stark design – if Phillipe Stark designed torture chairs” – he could laugh now – but being somewhat stouter than the average torture detainee, in China – they had to improvise restraining straps, he adds, but it was harsh. he was allowed no sleep. no movement. he had cramps and was harangued incessantly “to sign papers” and “squeal” on his “contacts” in China .. he says he kept saying he was just an artist and an American version at that – but that didn’t seem to go over too well. he said he truly feared for his life and this is the one fact I most certainly believe. he says being aware of the big gun power around him, their make, and even his “intellectual” knowledge of hi-level deprivation torture – did not make it any easier. he says he lost track of time . . . of how long he remained imprisoned there – in what he surmises was a high level high security secret detention center – till he was removed and driven away to a regular Chinese civilian detention center – where he was placed with . . . “you know, ordinary criminals like pick pockets . . . and the food was pretty good, well ok compared to the last place” – all in all, totaling almost 3 months of unlawful detention – as far as Josh can decipher from Alfredo’s last email – till he put the – APB.
it sure looks like Bryon Hawes, and Josh Harris saved Alfredo’s sorry Brooklyn ass . . . without Josh’s APB and definitely without that one well-placed (high-level we assume) diplomatic phone call of Bryon’s – Josh says, impressed: “Bryon knew exactly who to call” – Alfredo was looking to be eating mangy Chinese prison food – for the rest of his life. Once Byron made the call – it was less than 24 hrs and no questions asked – that Alfredo found himself on a one way ticket home.
now he just has to scramble, like rest of us among the sorry recession ruins of the 2010 NYC art scene !! welcome home – back to the real art world – Alfredo !! he got the most upset of the whole interview – when I asked him if he was eligible for food stamps.
Josh’s current digs, c/o Jeff Gompertz. the spare-to-bones – but wired – Josh Harris headquarters in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. apparently, it’s funny to a lot of people, especially those who were at QUIET, or have seen WE LIVE IN PUBLIC – that Josh now finds himself in Williamsburg. and, why not / it’s pretty much the center of the world. or close enough. if you want to throw the near-by – Bushwick into the mix.
it’s basically – a nice empty loft space – with great light – on the top floor of a 5 story building – where Josh, ever the aspiring artist – for real – can paint. forget that internet guru bit. though his as yet un-realized project – the WIRED CITY – still seems to pop up in conversation.
one of Josh’s canvases.
another one. he says it takes about a week to realize – one.
I didn’t even know Josh knew how to stretch a canvas !!
the top floor place – has nice light coming in from the former ‘industrial’ use windows . . .
just in case you are wondering – a space like this – in the heart of currently super trendy Williamsburg – easily goes for about $2,500/mo.
you can look out – across the roof – past the East River to a bird’s eye view of midtown Manhattan !!
and sure enough, just in time to give credence to the claim that Williamsburg – is indeed the center of the world – or the center of all that really matters !! – in strolls – OBASH – !! – leader of the Iranian Ex-Pat band – the YELLOW DOGS !!
no surprise here – of course we knew him. in fact we caught the hard-driving band in one of their earliest NYC performances at the JASON GRUNWALD exhibit – closing party – they played along with SISTERS – at EASTERN DISTRICT – in Bushwick !! way back in March – March 21, 2010.
I’ve been meaning to get those pix up – maybe this will finally – seal the deal.
OK. I know – I’m about as good as Alfredo – with the real-time promises !!
and, sometimes – out of sheer stubborness – and maybe, hard times – I just like to keep the best pix – to myself.
ALL PHOTOS COPYRIGHT: NANCY SMITH
~ALFREDO/LOST & FOUND !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 19th, 2010, 3:45pm
T-SHIRT DESIGN & CONCEPT & PHOTO COURTESY: MATT ENGER/EXPLODING SKY
. . . the international search for ALFREDO MARTINEZ, who has been an artist-in-residence in China !! for the past several years which began last week, has been resolved. and MATT ENGER of EXPLODING SKY – called it right !! surprise, surprise, NOT !!
the week long search for Alfredo began last Sunday Aug 8, 2010 when – JOSH HARRIS, the star of SUNDANCE winner WE LIVE IN PUBLIC – sent out an intimate mass email asking if anybody had heard from Alfredo recently . . . apparently they have been regular email correspondents, and Josh had not heard from his old pal in a while. Alfredo made that huge big basement shooting gallery – equipped with real assault rifles – and a real movie props permit – to shoot them !! – featured in the film . . .
On Tuesday Aug 10, BYRON HAWES, who, the street buzz story relates as a “rich” kid with diplomatic connections who meet Alfredo in China a year or so ago – and had reportedly been his most recent collaborator and patron – and who now seems to be re-located in NYC – got in on the search . . and said he was also “a little concerned as well. . .” as he had not heard from Alfredo, either. in a long while.
Meanwhile, also on Tues Aug 10, 2010 – MATT ENGER of EXPLODING SKY – knowing Alfredo from way back – that is for at least 2 decades+ longer than Byron, and just about the same amount of time Josh has – jumped into the email game of search – with his take – the FREE ALFREDO t-shirt !!
looks like it doesn’t a take rocket science – to figure out what happened to Alfredo – already a convicted felon here in the USA for his notorious JEAN MICHEL BASQUIAT scam of 2002 !! – that rocked the international art world of blue chip auction markets & “certificates of authenticity” – another story for another time !! – surprise surprise, NOT !! turns out MATT ENGER had his art world pal – down right !!
In his first email with the T-shirt image, dated Aug 10, 2010 12:16;33 PM EDT – MATT stated that “these shirts will be available on explodingskywear.com by this Sat nite Aug 14, 2010. all proceeds will be used to get Alfredo out of a Chinese Gulag (800. fine) and a ticket to the States (?). I suggest we fly him to L.A. with winter coming, it will be easier for him to survive and meet new friends.” ( I think Matt made up the gulag part ? esp the fine bit – and I’m pretty sure all proceeds will remain, LOL, at EXPLODING SKY !!
though you gotta put your hands together for Matt’s presentience – right on the mark !!)
though it took BYRON HAWES diplomatic connections to come up with the real nitty gritty.
this email from BYRON HAWES greeted me as I checked my email first thing this morning, it is dated AUGUST 12, 2010 1:28:03 AM EDT !!
“Just got off the phone with someone from the Consular Section of the US Embassy here, and they managed to locate Alfredo.
He’s been in custody here for a few weeks, and will be deported back to NYC the day after tomorrow (or thereabouts). Both the embassy and police have promised to let me know as soon as his flight arrangements have been finalized, and I will let you all know.
I spoke with Fredo, and he seems in pretty good spirits. In classic Fredo fashion he said the jail was quite comfortable, and that he has probably been eating them out of house and home. He laughed his big boisterous bear of a laugh for ages when I told him about your ‘free Alfredo’ t-shirts, Mark.” (sic) – (it was Matt who made ’em – oh well what can you do – Matt & Mark Enger – who are EXPLODING SKY – are identical twins – and its damn hard to tell anything about them apart – except that they are very touchy about their respective credits !!)
anyway – Byron concludes with “I’m going to meet him at the airport when he’s off (he apparently has no shoes, so I guess I’m going shopping). Updates forthcoming. B ”
ALFREDO MARTINEZ was profiled recently in the NEW YORK TIMES – in their big spread on EX-PATS in CHINA !!
see: ‘For Expatriates in China, Creative Lives of Plenty’ – by DAN LEVIN. Published Jan 8, 2010. THE NEW YORK TIMES
these 2 photos of ALFREDO – are in the accompanying photo ‘link’ . . .
the caption reads:
“While some expat artists find fame in China, others seek anonymity (sic). One afternoon in August 2007 the Beijing police burst into ALFREDO MARTINEZ’S hotel room, which was filled with drawings of guns and bombs, and demanded to know if he was a terrorist. The maid had found the sketches, which looked very much like blueprints, and the hotel alerted the authorities.” PHOTO BY MIKA MATTILA
“Mr. Martinez, a 6-foot-2-inch, 300 pound Brooklyn native, stood his ground. ‘You idiots,’ he said. ‘I’m an artist. Either artist me or get out.’ The men in uniform left, but Mr. Martinez, 43, did not. Today he remains in Beijing, spending time at a 24 hour Internet cafe and squatting ata friend’s countryside hut, where he assembles models of assault rifles and draws weapons on paper.” PHOTO BY SHIHO FUKADA/THE NEW YORK TIMES
so, just in case you are just joining us !!
~ here’s a brief summary of ALFREDO’S BASQUIAT CAPER !! as first reported by artnet !!
see: FBI BAGS PURPORTED BASQUIAT FORGER/6/25/02 !!
~ a quick pictorial flashback to the JOSH HARRIS / PSEUDO DOT.COM / QUIET GLORY – DAYS !!
JOSH HARRIS (center) and ALFREDO MARTINEZ (at right) – when they strode the streets of downtown NYC – as the kings – they were – of the underground art scene – supported by Josh’s multi-million dollar, as in $86 million !! – internet gold pile, (Josh founded and IPO’d – JUPITER COMMUNICATIONS – the very first internet trend tracking company – for those of you who read the business pages !!). and yes !! they ruled !! this was the start of QUIET – Josh’s million dollar Millennium party – later to become the starting point of Ondi Timoner’s Sundance winning (2009) WE LIVE IN PUBLIC. This photo footage was taken in Dec 1999 – as QUIET was just evolving from the seed of an idea, a distraction to offset Josh’s chagrin – that his girlfriend had taken off to go skiing in Aspen without him !! – to the full-blown mind-boggling party and first 24/7 live streaming surveillance internet all-artist, as in hard-core artist, not Bravo baby-steps artist !! – ‘reality’ show – mother of them all !!
PHOTO COURTESY: WE LIVE IN PUBLIC
ALFREDO MARTINEZ (center) designed, built and ran – the QUIET shooting gallery featured in the film. He acquired all the legal permits to run it as a movie ‘prop’ with all the necessary safety regulations. anyone could come in and learn to shoot – assault rifles, real ones of course. under supervision, of course. and everyone did !!
PHOTO COURTESY: WE LIVE IN PUBLIC
see: WE LIVE IN PUBLIC – THE MOVIE / OFFICIAL WEBSITE !!
NANCY SMITH. since people always ask me – here is the earliest photo I could find – of me – when I first hooked up with Alfredo – some time pre-1999. in the streets of Soho. I did his p.r. and helped him build his guns and papier-mached the big pieces on paper – for his early shows. I had met him at an early Mariko Mori show – and was willing to work for trade of (his) artwork – so there ya go !! the galleries would also kick in, sometimes several thousands of $$ – to make sure my organizational skills – kept the shows on track !! it was Alfredo who brought me to Josh – when Josh wanted to buy a mint condition historically important – Early American quilt for a pal’s wedding present – and the rest is history. I guess. I actually brought him a Mennonite antique wool Log Cabin quilt – from the 1880’s !! (it cost $5,000 at the time.) I even remember Josh’s first words on learning about those early American quilts – “are you telling me – this is a spiritual artifact ?” Josh was nothing – if he wasn’t a quick study !! you guys – still really haven’t caught up to him !!
PHOTO: VALERIA
(note: I’m clutching the protective pouch – of my just beginning-to-be ubiquitous 35mm camera !! which my friend Valeria – had used to take the photo.)
~and, more to the point:
below are some pix Alfredo sent me last year or so, from China. I believe they were taken in the heyday of his time with BYRON HAWES – !! though no credit was given for the photographer.
~WHERE IN THE WORLD – IS ALFREDO ? |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 12th, 2010, 8:52am
meanwhile, closer to home – MATT BUA has an ‘organic’ site specific art project – installation/event – going on upstate !! in the Catskills !! and, most strikingly – it’s in the shape of a cat !! a big cat, a bobcat !!
it’s an open-to-all ground-root’s up – “people’s museum” !!
. . . “a handmade People’s Museum has been constructed in Catskill, NY in the form of a lounging bobcat using discarded tree branches and cut offs from local mills. The interior of this over-sized Lynx Rufus houses a collection of materials and displays celebrating the people, stories and history of the Catskill Mountains. Content for displays are collected from both historical organizations and the surrounding community. The museum has a unique focus of seamlessly blending the stories, visions and personal collections of residents with the voices of historians The folk legends, urban myths and favorite, almost forgotten tidbits on display make this new public space a place to soak in what this area is really all about.
Do you you have a favorite story your grandfather told you ? An old photo of the state that you really like ? A memory of a building that once stood ? . . . A vision of the future ? Bring it ! Tell it !”
you can see & read more of Matt’s “new museum”, as well as go back thru his initial sketches, thoughts and research,
here: bobcathouse.blogspot.com !!
MATERIAL COLLECTION DAY: SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2010 / noon – 3 PM !!
when – you can get a sneak preview of the town’s newest museum – and make sure to bring your OWN !! local stories, ideas, books, xeroxed notes of interest, photos and artifacts to add to the museums growing collection . . .
THE OPENING DAY – CELEBRATION – WILL TAKE PLACE: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2010 / noon to 6 PM !!
you can find a map to the area here: THE CATAMOUNT PEOPLE’S MUSEUM !!
p.s. this calls for another – little flashback – from the artlovers’ archives !!
the very first time we encountered MATT BUA was at a funny great show in the summer of 2005 !!
it was called – SASQUATCH SOCIETY !!
MATT BUA – beside his ‘collective’ piece (made with JESSE BERKOWETZ) – it’s the crazy wooden hand-built framed canvas to his right – in the background !! SASQUATCH SOCIETY, Sixtyseven, Chelsea, NYC.
opening night reception, JULY 28, 2005.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
in fact, here’s the link to the report: GOOD-BYE TO SUMMER 2005 !!
it’s only a short 5 years ago, but how things have changed !! – but, it’s a definite fun trip back – !!
and yeah, even there among the bigfoots – you can find some seeds – to this summer of 2010’s hand-made ‘wood-based’ – harvest !!
ALL PHOTOS COPYRIGHT: NANCY SMITH
~MATT BUA/CATAMOUNT PEOPLE’S MUSEUM !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | August 9th, 2010, 7:48am
