DIGITAL . . WORK IN PROGRESS / D-WIP ?!!
NICHOLAS STEINDORF . . is re-creating our ‘UNDER THE VOLCANO: SIMON CERIGO, DAN ASHER, NANCY SMITH’ pop-up show – for the VIRTUAL DREAM CENTER platform.
see: VIRTUAL DREAM CENTER
the show took place the weekend of JUNE 6-7, 2013 . . in an empty storefront in Chinatown, on the Bowery.
curated by KATE & THEO CERIGO . . who grew up with us, and all our art and drama . . on Rivington St, smack dab in the Lower East Side, when it was raw and truly popping, in the early 80s-mid 90s.
the show was an on-point ‘group’ retrospective, was very well received, and attracted a huge, and young flash mob – at the opening.
it was like all of Brooklyn came out for the . . underground art scene – of days, long past.
it’s really exciting to see the first early advance . . ‘replica’ – digital ‘photos’ – come to life, below.
if you caught the show – you will know . . what I mean !!
bravo – Nicholas !!
& thank you – Paris-based JEAN-BAPTISTE LENGLET !!
founder/art director of VIRTUAL DREAM CENTER, for your interest in our show !!
and allowing it to come to life, again – in the timeless, digital realm.
the show’s posters, pasted onto the green construction boarding that fronted the empty, and very LARGE storefront, that was under renovation at the time.
the view from the street – The Bowery, in Chinatown, just south of Delancey.
the first ‘wall’ inside the show – as you entered.
large ‘Lemon Head’ t-shirt painting by SIMON CERIGO. I did the the title wall, ‘UNDER THE VOLCANO’ – in spray paint, the night of the opening. and a large scroll ‘painting’ by DAN ASHER, black oil stick on paper.
ps: check out the floor & wall baseboard details, Nicholas is really building up the raw storefront – true to it’s character.
all 3 images: digital re-constructions, based on photographs – by NICHOLAS STEINDORF / courtesy of the artist.
the invite card:
SIMON CERIGO, DAN ASHER, NANCY SMITH, ca. 1981.
archival photo by SHELDON MOSKOVICI, Tribeca loft on Franklin St, NYC. Fall 1981.
the photo was / is mounted to one of Simon’s early, oil pastel . . newspaper collages.
sadly, RIP SIMON, RIP DAN.
KLA / Keeping the Legacy Alive / Nancy: “ya got a platform, use it !!”
funny, how things . . work that way.
‘UNDER THE VOLCANO: Simon Cerigo, Dan Asher, Nancy Smith’
A pop up painting show: Lower East Side 80’s art scene, New York City
June 6 Saturday 2-10pm
June 7 Sunday 11am-6pm
Opening reception: June 6, 2015, 6-10pm
169 Bowery Street New York NY 10002
underthevolcano.les@gmail.com – curated by KATE and THEO CERIGO
the show’s young curators, KATE and THEO CERIGO – on the night of the opening, June 7, 2013.
in front of their dad, SIMON CERIGO’S . . large acrylic painting, ca late 1980s, on found ‘canvas’, un-stretched.
they grew up right in the thick of it, the glory days of the Lower East Side, in a raw, hardcore art-filled storefront, the west storefront.
5 Rivington St. – just 2 doors up from the Bowery.
great photo by – DOUGLAS TURNER.
read his review: ‘Under the Volcano’ – AOT / ARCHITECTURE of TOMORROW / ART & CULTURE
~NICHOLAS STEINDORF . . UNDER THE VOLCANO / VIRTUAL DREAM CENTER |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 7th, 2016, 10:22am
OH, YEAH !!
UNDER THE VOLCANO, watch out !!
MARTOS GALLERY is offering several ‘knock-you-out-of-the-box’ works, of varied sizes & mediums . . .
by the late, great . . DAN ASHER.
they are on view at their BOOTH #2.04, NADA.
ok, so listen up.
DAN ASHER . . has not seen his glory days yet, in terms of the market, but that’s just because – the market is slow, and d-u-m-b.
everybody who is anybody in NYC, has a couple of, if not 10 of . . Dan’s works tucked away.
& filed under: BEST POTENTIAL – TO BLOW UP . . BIG !!
I would take one DAN ASHER – for any 10 pieces YOU are buying.
that’s for sure.
if you have any art ‘eyeballs’ whatsoever, you’d be rushing over & buying them – up.
MARTOS seems to have priced them – as close to the bone as he can.
DAN ASHER, ‘Untitled’, 1981.
pastel on paper, 16.75 x 13.75 in.
($7,500)
DAN ASHER, ‘Untitled’, 1980s.
tempera on paper, 25.25 x 19.25 in.
($12,000)
DAN ASHER, ‘Untitled’, 1982.
oil stick and acrylic on canvas. 48 x 75 in.
($60,000)
see more images: DAN ASHER at MARTOS – scroll down
all images courtesy: MARTOS GALLERY.
~DAN ASHER . . NADA, MIAMI |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | December 1st, 2016, 12:49pm
OBJECT-IVITY . . . . . !!
JEFFREY TRANCHELL, ‘Jankee Bean’, 2016. (lamp.)
Latex paint, spackle, stucco, concrete patch, and faux stone on wood with light bulb, socket and cord.
at THE JOURNAL GALLERY, NADA Miami Beach – Booth 3.03
image courtesy of the artist.
see: JEFFREY TRANCHELL – PORTFOLIO WEBSITE
~JEFFREY TRANCHELL . . NADA, MIAMI |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | November 30th, 2016, 11:04am
OBJECT-IVITY . . . . !!
ALT ESC presents: ‘CACHED OUT’ – a collaborative installation which is . .
“a sculptural tableau vivant centered around the spiraling paranoia of a fictional protagonist whose fears have manifested into a hoarder’s repository – the installation seeks to explore our future-oriented anxieties & the ways in which we prepare for the unknown.” ~ ALT ESC PRESS RELEASE
ALT ESC / SATELLITE ART SHOW / SUITE 12 / THE PARISIAN HOTEL / NEXT TO AQUA / 1510 COLLINS AVE / MIAMI BEACH, FL.
FEATURING:
STERLING CRISPIN / JAMES MOORE / JESSICA CIOCCI / TRAVIS EGEDY / BRIAN BLOMWERTH / JAMES ORLANDO
CURATED BY: ALT ESC & KATE LEVITT
JESSICA CIOCCI, ‘PROPOSAL for a NEW AMERICAN FLAG.
CROCHETED YARN.
IMAGE COURTESY OF THE ARTIST.
SEE: JESSICA CIOCCI – PORTFOLIO WEBSITE
~JESSICA CIOCCI . . SATELLITE, MIAMI |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | November 30th, 2016, 10:35am
OBJECT-IVITY . . . . !!
LANCE MARCHEL . . is showing work at LOS OJOS, UNTITLED, booth A09
LANCE MARCEL, ‘Pine’, 2013.
foam, resin, pigments, almonds, glitter.
29 x 9-3/4 x 9-3/4 in.
unique.
image courtesy of the artist.
check out: LANCE MARCHEL – PORTFOLIO WEBSITE
~LANCE MARCHEL . . UNTITLED, MIAMI |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | November 30th, 2016, 10:00am
but, if you are in MIAMI, this is probably one of the earliest, & hottest tickets:
MIAMI BEACH – HAPPY ENDING POP UP . . at CUCU’S NEST
incl: HELPER GALLERY / PROJECTS
TUES NOV 29, 2016 – 10 PM
2805 COLLINS AVE./ 27th STREET, MIAMI, Fl.
for tables & reservation: Beni@302broome.com
~HELPER . . PARTIES at MIAMI BEACH / TUES NOV 29 – 10 PM |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | November 29th, 2016, 3:08pm
if you are staying in NYC this week, the big anticipation & excitement – is for this show !!
‘JAMES MILLER, PAINTINGS’
OPENING FRI DEC 2, 2016 / 7-10 PM
the show runs thru JAN 22, 2017
MEYOHAS GALLERY, 181 EAST 90th ST #28B – UPTOWN, NYC.
HRS: by appointment only
THIS IS JAMES MILLER’S first solo show in NYC.
“MEYOHAS presents selections from an ongoing body of abstract works by painter JAMES MILLER.
Raised in the Pacific Northwest, where he spent his teenage years and early twenties working construction, he attended the Yale School of Art (MFA Painting), and was later awarded the prestigious Dedalus Foundation Fellowship in New York.
His paintings approach the fidelity of mechanical representations and misdirect their resemblance to information. These fixed traces call to mind filmic artifacts, blueprints, x-rays, and projections. Using handmade tools, Miller records the surreal residue of his local landscape. Impressions of light and motion appear as retinal afterimages.” ~gallery press release.
IMAGE COURTESY THE ARTIST & MEYOHAS GALLERY
FLASHBACK . . . !!
JAMES MILLER . . .
at the opening of a really really stormy wonderful exhibit of his work – at the DEDALUS FOUNDATION in BROOKLYN, JUNE 12, 2015.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
that was such a great opening, so much fun.
catch it . . . in the artlovers archives,
definite !!
check-out !!: JAMES MILLER & FRIENDS, at the DEDALUS FOUNDATION
~JAMES MILLER . . at MEYOHAS – OPENING FRI DEC 2, NYC |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | November 28th, 2016, 6:01pm
A LOVE – SUPREME . . . !!!!!
YES . . . !!!!!
I caught the new, and totally engrossing . . JOHN COLTRANE DOCUMENTARY – ‘CHASING TRANE’, directed by JOHN SCHEINFELD on the very last night of the superb DOC NYC 2016 FESTIVAL – last Thursday.
totally wonderful experience, the film’s director, JOHN SCHEINFELD attended & we, the enraptured audience . . had the intimate opportunity to hear many sweet stories from behind-the-scenes & to have many of the powerful, inspiring & esp spiritual moments of this talented, beyond-the-beyond ‘spiritual’ man’s life & music journey – brought even closer to us.
the film brings the music and the man to life – what more can you say.
a film that fills the venue with Coltrane’s music, richly accompanied by many many archival clips, even some . . just found . . early color (8MM?) DIY home movies. a long lost old recording studio clip, many various voice-overs, and profound, seriously: inserts/clips of the few surviving jazz era musicians, who knew and played with John Coltrane – were among my personal fave.
to help ‘tell’ the story, DENZEL WASHINGTON reads emotionally – from old John Coltrane interviews (which had been published in magazines throughout the years) . . as if he were the ghost come back. and then, there were some surprises. some very moving, archival, black & white video . . of when John Coltrane, and his ‘deep waters’ / wife ALICE COLTRANE, went to Japan on tour – and stopped in Nagasaki to honor the victims of the horrific atomic bombings.
and even fast forward, an amazing snippet . . of: one-helluva-crazy . . ‘super fan’ in Japan, today.
does this movie ‘catch the Trane’ – no doubt about it.
as much as a man of this stature, can be . . caught.
it tells the story, and it plays . . the music.
notably, the film also features JOHN COLTRANE inspired / illustration / artwork by RUDY GUTIERREZ, who to my total absolute delight was sitting right . . behind me !!
on the left: JOHN SCHEINFELD, veteran documentarian (The U.S vs. John Lennon), Director of ‘Chasing Trane’ – who weaves together a visual & truly spiritual portrayal . . of the music and the man.
at the right: veteran Jazz musician, JIMMY HEATH, aka ‘Little Bird’. his cameos in the film are just so off-the-cuff profound, wise and smooth – as to be some of the most memorable ‘living’ moments in the film.
also not to forget: Jimmy’s super snazzy, but low-key style: that hidden front-buttoned, gray shirt, oh my.
JIMMY HEATH: so vibrant, yet calm. handsome. Soho ‘minimalism’- on point . . !!
this man has had some life, and the strength of inner soul – to prove it.
THOM POWERS, the Artistic Director of DOC NYC.
see: DOC NYC
RUDY GUTIERREZ . . . artist.
I had noticed Mr. Gutierrez, earlier that evening, when I was standing in line to enter the SVA theatre. he seemed really super-charged and very dynamic. animated. my inner radar went: ping. so when John Scheinfeld, said the artist who had contributed the drawings at the beginning of the film, was in the audience, & gave him a shout out, & asked him to stand up, to much applause – I turned around and there he was, same guy. right behind me. indeed, I got a little spooked.
backtrack slightly: Mr.Scheinfeld, besides using words & interviews, historic photographic footage – and most of all . . plenty of the music itself !!
to get across John Coltrane’s infinite musical ‘universe’ – esp as the music evolved, also tries using visual ‘art’ to engage the viewer more fully with the music. the film opens with the infinite cosmos, the stars and skies. and then at some point Mr. Gutierrez’s raw and powerful drawings, with their African American roots & free-form, sensuous vitality – are called into play.
spiritual, rambling, rolling, evocative – they have the feel & visual depth of black folk-telling, ‘outsider’ art, & ancient/contemporary woodblock design, the influence of the great Black Panther artist – Emory Douglas ? in a word: cultural illustration at its best. they hold in their fluid lines, and honey gold colors the inherent celebration of our country’s black roots / soul, blues and jazz. slavery, gospel, spiritual heartful-ness. America – the whole damn mess & the once invisible, black African cultural attainment – coming forth, poring forth painfully, and yet ultimately: joyfully . . just as John Coltrane’s music surely did. and does.
the colors of these paintings are not just the color of so-called ‘folk art’ but they are radiant, like colored glass. truly: the light they cast is radiant, like that of a stained glass window, in a church.
stained glass windows . . in the Cathedral of Jazz.
see: RUDY GUTIERREZ on FACEBOOK
I don’t want to get too into it, but Coltrane’s music is not just for / or a case for: the ‘initiated’. plenty of the participants, like the wonderful showman / philosopher CORNEL WEST . . knew Coltrane’s life well, and ‘got’ the intent of the music . . but, as he himself readily admitted, Mr. West could not fully ‘fly’ with the sound / that is, some of the initiated, people who loved & admired Coltrane, just could not fully let go & do the free-fall, follow the musical stream of conscious / while others – who might not know his whole life story at all – barely had words for the rapture they felt on just, just: hearing the music.
the art of Rudy Gutierrez danced to the music – and, hopefully opened a sensory pathway.
JOHN COLTRANE – SCREEN GRAB from the trailer
DO YOURSELF A FAVOR:
go to the film’s official website . . ‘CHASING TRANE – The John Coltrane Documentary’ . . scroll down a bit & watch the trailer !!
RUDY GUTIERREZ, “John Coltrane, Divided Soul’, 2011.
Acrylic and crayon on board. 25.5 x 40 in.
image courtesy: the artist
RUDY GUTIERREZ, ‘Slavery, Blues, Church and Jazz’, 2011.
Acrylic, collage, mixed media on board. 30 x 40 in.
image courtesy: the artist
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH, SVA THEATRE, CHELSEA, NYC. DOC NYC FESTIVAL / NOV 17, 2016.
unless otherwise noted.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING – TO ALL.
~’CHASING TRANE: THE JOHN COLTRANE DOCUMENTARY’, feat. artwork by RUDY GUTIERREZ |
Posted in Movie Reviews, The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | November 23rd, 2016, 11:35am
DRAMA, FIRE, ROMANCE . . REALISM.
CLAY, FIRE, MAN: SACRED.
PAT McCARTHY . . ‘BORN TO KILL’ – ISSUE 90 – ‘BUILDING A FIRE – IN EDEN’
PRINTED IN NEW YORK CITY – OPEN EDITIONS ONLY – FALL 2016
8 x 10 in. copy paper sheets / folded in half & bound with 2 staples at the ‘spine’.
to accompany:
‘SYLVAIN COUZINET-JACQUES: EDEN’ / which included a PAT McCARTHY ceramic clay miniature replica of the historical school house, & made on-site in North Carolina, & fired using a DIY kiln – also built by PAT.
that’s a really nice quality, hi-contrast color photograph, 4 x 5 in. on shiny photo paper, scotch-taped to the cover – really nice touch. nice contrast to the low-fi quality of the black & white ‘zine’ and totally . . pumps up the DIY vibe.
like how it slightly lifts off the page, from where the corners are taped down. very sculptural.
very interesting, dramatic . . heat seeking to the imagination.
romantic.
that must be a view, looking down – of the DIY kiln, Pat built on site to fire the ‘school house’.
fire burns bright, but so does that cold steel blue – metal.
flips easiest / brand new – to the center page / double page – spread.
gorgeous, silent, profound.
the height of the sky – is awesome. is it day ? is it night ? is it special ?
yes.
let’s go back . . towards the beginning.
The Little Red School House – BUILT 1887.
these must be the 4 views Pat took – to help model the mini replica school house, a 3-D building in the – round, in this case almost: square.
close-op of that page / so architectural.
so historical. I bet Pat’s finished clay piece mimicked a lot of this detail, esp the brickwork, though you couldn’t see it, in the exhibit.
the hand lettering / casual notes . . made the project – come alive !!
so intimate / so sharing . .
so, PIRATE !!
the DIY propane – kiln.
“300 degrees F, 30 min. in . . . ”
“2000 degrees F, 3 hours in . . .”
this must be the ‘fired’ school house – as it first emerged from the fire & heat . . of the kiln.
detail PAT McCARTHY – the little red school house, in . . SYLAIN COUZINET-JACQUES’ – ‘EDEN’ project.
so raw, so evocative. tiny architectural details.
doors swing – open.
PAT concludes with a few ‘travelog’ – North Carolina . . notes !!
“are you kidding me ? Are You Kidding Me ??
2-stroke 100 cc trail bike by COLEMAN.”
THE VIEW FROM MY DESK.
THEY SHOULDA . . BLOWN UP THESE 4 x 5 in. pgs & PLASTERED – THEM ALL OVER THAT APERTURE – GALLERY.
AS A BACK-DROP.
or, at least in that gloomy – entry.
it’s like the true beauty, mystery, stark history + potential of the show, got cut off at the knees, by a lack of inspiration – in the exhibit design.
ironically, it’s amazing how it comes so alive – within the flimsy pages of a low-fi . . zine.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~PAT McCARTHY . . ‘BORN TO KILL, ISSUE 90 – BUILDING A FIRE – IN EDEN, N.C.’ |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | November 21st, 2016, 3:00pm
SYLVAIN COUZINET-JACQUES: ‘EDEN’
with additional works by FRED CAVE, THOMAS HAUSER, JESSE HOYLE, AMELIA RINA, PAT McCARTHY, and UGO SCHIAVI
NOV 16 – JAN 19, 2016
APERTURE FOUNDATION GALLERY
PIX FROM THE OPENING – WED NOV 16, 2016
PAT McCARTHY at the opening, with his ceramic . . ‘mini mini mini me’ tiny little ‘replica’ school house, sitting on a stack of low-fi zines, which he had also made – for the project.
and they are wonderful.
though you couldn’t get to them obviously – or even divine what they were, in this stodgy and misguided presentation.
‘BORN TO KILL’ – ISSUE 90 – ‘BUILDING A FIRE’
‘IN EDEN’ – !!
luckily Pat laid a copy on me.
get ready for a rant – KANYE more over !!
because then, as you will see, burn baby burn, then it’s all downhill, from there.
ps: in the background, higher up, . . that is a ‘composite’ photographic / historical piece / collage by JESSE HOYLE.
nice. I most definite wanted to step in closer to see it, but no could do. there was a serious glass wall in front of this constructed wall box – display ???
sometimes . .
no matter how much you to look forward to the actual ‘hard copy’, esp when, as was the case here, the online images are so exceptional – and, the accompanying concept just jumps double time – it just doesn’t pan out, and unfortunately this evening was one of those ‘things gone – south’ quickly . . kinda nights.
I got completely undone – by the exhibit’s ‘construct’. so frustrating.
put me in such a bad mood.
the problem was with the display production & the exhibit design more specifically. it was hung badly. the worst. if there is a word for poetic – then what’s the word, for . . NOT ?
the room, the displays were too dark, to the point of no visibility. the pieces staggered against their backdrop and could realize no conversation with their neighbors.
this display ‘wall-box’ was how the show began, and it was totally un-accessible, both visually and physically. the gallery itself, was a huge space, so why was crowded up against wall ? and barricaded behind a floor-to-ceiling . . shallow, airless box of a viewing ‘window’ ? here you see Patrick is standing in front of the glass wall. the wooden beams support it. you couldn’t walk into the actual display space.
it was a construct that made no sense, and took away – even more.
and, if trying to view the show was frustrating, forget trying to photograph it.
and this from a venue that specializes in photography shows, and has done so, for decades.
yep that bad.
the works might have been good, they sure looked good online – and I know for sure Pat’s is, and JESSE HOYLE’s piece was also so so intriguing, but it was just like looking at the road – through a downpour, there was – no seeing it.
it was possibly the most appalling and frustrating show ‘design’ – that I have ever stumbled upon, and since I’m not one to endure poor quality workmanship / vision . . after saying hello to Pat, I abruptly left. and I didn’t see the rest of it, and if it got better, that’s good, but . . you lost me at the first wall,
if you think these words be cruel, this is a tough town, and people have to work very very hard, and be very very sharp to stay in the game, be at the top of their game & make their money.
there’s no free lunch in this town.
if you can’t take the heat, this is one kitchen you should stay out of, altogether.
put it this way:
I see indie, shoe-box venues with poverty line budgets – muster better showings, ALL THE TIME !!
and by that I mean visually dynamic, accessible and damn it . . ‘inspired’ presentations, that run the gamut from straight-up classic . . to free fall deconstructed, all of which make you shiver when you walk in, all the time.
name two recent ones ?
still up: ‘Aethelred Eldridge’ at ESSEX FLOWERS, & the ‘SHROOM SHOW’ at HELPERS.
so if you think this is harsh, you are walking the wrong streets, with your head – on the wrong setting.
sorry to crash your party, but . . you break the vase, you buy it.
who dropped the ball, here ?
PAT McCARTHY, ‘Eden Schoolhouse’ 2016. stoneware, steel, paper, epoxy resin.
approx 12 x 12 x 16 in.
well, I don’t know what the hell was happening on the left, could anything be more dim, more black and more un-view-able ?
it’s only because I know Pat’s work so well, that I know how much they bungled this.
this is a painstakingly & lovingly hand-built, piece that needs to stand, or sit . . . on a pedestal at eye-level, so you can really gaze at length, and with clarity – at all the glorious / poetic / industrial detail.
it needs to be perched on a pedestal or table,
so you can walk around it and get the ‘big picture of the little wonder’ . . from all angles.
this was the only view. this is a 3D piece, a miniature replica of a 3D building.
this is . . NOT A PHOTOGRAPH.
. . . you need to WALK AROUND IT.
and even that STATIC view – was un-accessible, lying as it was, despite the stacking of the zines, too low to the ground.
like they say:
what I was supposed to do, twist my head off my body . . and lay it down on the floor – the better to see ?
not to mention the lighting is horrible.
the floor and walls couldn’t be more boring if they tried, where’s Yayoi Kusama when you need her.
just joking. desperate.
a classic standard ‘gallery’ setting – would have been quite fine.
like how they did up that decade old . . WIILLIAM CHRISTENBERRY retrospective. (google it)
anybody out there – catch that ?
JESSE HOYLE, ‘(re)Write Yesterday’, 2016.
cyanotype on glass, paint, vintage photograph on loan from the Eden Historical Society, 28 x 12 in.
I mean, I guess this was meant to be ghostly, but I don’t think, quite as ghostly / as in absolutely un-viewable . . ghostly – !!
which is too bad, because it was . . really intriguing.
and I do so love . . photographs, all things vintage. history, rarely seen documents, and esp . . black American ‘story-telling.’
ps: they have a nice post card of that great, romantic / fizzy red SYLVAIN COUZINET-JACQUES ‘schoolhouse’ . . . at the front desk.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~PAT McCARTHY . . bringing it all, home |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | November 18th, 2016, 2:44pm
