{"id":963,"date":"2010-01-24T11:22:01","date_gmt":"2010-01-24T16:22:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/the-bomb\/2010\/01\/24\/whitney-biennal-a-couple-of-others-bite-the-dust-too\/"},"modified":"2010-03-05T14:51:14","modified_gmt":"2010-03-05T19:51:14","slug":"whitney-biennal-a-couple-of-others-bite-the-dust-too","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/the-bomb\/2010\/01\/24\/whitney-biennal-a-couple-of-others-bite-the-dust-too\/","title":{"rendered":"~WHITNEY BIENNIAL & A COUPLE OF OTHERS – BITE THE DUST, too"},"content":{"rendered":"

hate to be harsh and deflate the balloon – but, looks like business as usual at the Biennial.
\nor, as Jean Michel used to say: SAME OLD SAME OLD.
\nnot counting the suspicious, creepy ?, inclusion of GEORGE CONDO – it’s – looking like – 3 strikes – and you’re out !!<\/p>\n

STRIKE 1. HUMA BHABHA
\napparently 3 days after her name was announced as part of the 2010 Whitney Biennial line-up – HUMA BHABHA informed BILL BRADY of ATM – that she was no longer represented by his gallery and wanted her name off the gallery website. Uptown, tony and ultimately boring to hell – SALON 94 \/ JEANE GREENBERG – now own the ‘brand’. what else is new. though the Biennial is supposedly put on – to promote new art and put some of its institutional power behind the new galleries that put everything on the line – to seek out and show new art in the city – its impact in reality – is clearly – often the quite the opposite.
\nyou’d think the GEDI SIBONY – play of the same nature – a couple of years back – might have dampened the Whitney curse – but apparently, NOT. HUMA – think about it – anybody talking about GEDI SIBONY anymore ? <\/p>\n

\"huma
\nHUMA BHABHA, happy to be included in the BILL BRADY\/ATM Show: ‘EAST MOVES WEST’ – opening Oct 17, 2008.
\nPHOTO: NANCY SMITH<\/p>\n

\"Huma
\nBILL BRADY of ATM at the same opening.
\nBILL confirmed that Huma requested that her name be dropped from the gallery line-up – but would only say: “I’m glad one of my artists – has become a big deal”.<\/p>\n

\"huma
\nHUMA’S big piece in the show: the show’s title: ‘EAST MOVES WEST’.
\nup-date: make that downtown moves uptown. or: plain & simple: b-o-r-i-n-g. on every level – except the money jump. and that’s boring, too. <\/p>\n

\"huma
\nI remember going to SALON 94, when I “worked” for WALTER ROBINSON at artnet, back in the day (2002-2004) – though I had posted many terrific pix and commentary – for the gallery – when it first began – I was always treated like a lower class dog. no better way to put it.
\nworking for free for artnet and then being looked down by Jeanne – talk about a loser’s proposition – if there ever was one.
\nif that wasn’t a telling indication of the limit and ceiling of Jeanne’s ‘leadership’ role in the New York art scene – what is ? read anything interesting about her gallery, living room, really – lately – or ever ? it still plays out – without any real inspiration – but loads of dough – generating no real critical success, or buzz. but hey, now they’ve got an artist in the Biennial.<\/p>\n

see: HUMA BHABHA in the 2010 BIENNIAL<\/a><\/p>\n

see: JEANNE GREENBERG\/ART LOVERS NEW YORK\/ARTNET\/FALL 2003<\/a><\/p>\n

STRIKE 2. “IT’S AN INSIDER – CLIQUE ” – !!
\nduh – what else is new – can’t these curators pretend pound the streets – even in a token way ?
\ndon’t want to name my source – because then nobody, apart from Jeanne, Huma, and Erik Foss – that is – will talk to me – but my source is in the show – and when I asked him – how the hell he got in there – he said: it was all friends of friends. I was surprised. I’m always hoping for the best. I can’t believe I’m still not that jaded – not to see that coming. <\/p>\n

STRIKE 3. BRUCE ALMIGHTY
\nchecked out the trumped-up BRUCE HIGH QUALITY FOUNDATION UNIVERSITY – at SUSAN INGLETT. B-O-R-I-N-G.
\nI passed by the installation at least 3 times, it looked like such a schlock window – before I realized this dry poop, I mean prop, show – was it. any talented elementary school in New York City routinely does better than this – for the school play. BHQFU were better when they were adrift on the raft. I guess making ‘product’ that Susan could shill for $10,000 a pop via VITO SCHNABEL – was the deciding factor. too bad for their legions of fans – who deserve a better kick-off.
\nbut even worse for the rep of one our leading art critics – ROBERTA SMITH !!
\nwhose quote from back in the summer – leads off the gallery press release.
\n“…a project that could make the coming season especially exciting: the unaccredited, free art school (started by) the artist collective known as the Bruce High Quality Foundation…” – ???
\n“Whatever happens, this latest move by the Bruce High Quality Foundation adds inspirational heft to tits motto: Professional problems. Amateur solutions”.
\nwill that was witty – until you see the product – it’s not even ‘raw’ amateur – it’s just one trick pony.
\nhaven’t seen any buzz coming off this show, either. most telling – the collective didn’t merit a mention, not a word – in Roberta’s recent summary look-back take on the scene – ‘Make Room for Video, Performance and Paint’ – NEW YORK TIMES SUNDAY ARTS & LEISURE\/JAN 3, 2010.
\nthough we did get: “At ATM, Huma Bhabha took figurative sculpture back to its ancient origins.” !!<\/p>\n

\"bruce
\nBHQFU at SUSAN INGLETT – the window is as under-performing – as the show’s card !!<\/p>\n

\"bruce
\napart from its display in a big picture window – the painting is as underwhelming … as the whole installation.
\nI mean I think, even true amateurs could come up with something more exciting.<\/p>\n

\"bruce<\/p>\n

\"bruce<\/p>\n

\"bruce<\/p>\n

\"bruce<\/p>\n

\"BHQFU\"
\n. . . . the show’s dismal card – I kid you not. talk about amateur solutions to professional problems . . . whatever.<\/p>\n

and:
\ntalking about the city’s dynamic art scene critical ‘premiere’ duo – what’s with JERRY SALTZ ?
\nis he playing with a full deck ?
\nI mean I think I have to go with my colleague BROMIRSKI – in saying hey, anything else, but make that a: pass on the saltz !!
\nok. give the guy credit, every now and then he can nail the (mostly political) issues. but it’s rare to see any real insight on any new talent. case in point – JOE BRADLEY !! he didn’t get JOE when Joe first surfaced, and he still doesn’t get him, except to know that he should ??!! or look like the truly untalented flack he really is.
\nhe posts a feature blurb on Joe’s current curatorial effort at ZACH FEUER in NEW YORK – but really not knowing what to say or make of it – let alone being able to critically assess it (Jerry – take note: it’s bad, dry and boring !!) he relies on his usual filler – when insight fails – “where are the women” !! and the show is titled: “Jr. and Son’s”.
\nJoe Bradley must have had a cow – when he read that – talk about going right over someone’s head – esp a head – that should know better.
\nactually there is one, yes just one – interesting entry in the show – an archival signed postcard – from a R. CRUMB show !! and accredited to the estate of DASH SNOW !!<\/p>\n

\"joe<\/p>\n

\"joe<\/p>\n

\"joe
\n. . . so who the hell – was RICK JAMES – that’s what I want to know !!<\/p>\n

ok, in the hope of redeeming some of my (now) lost or bad karma – here’s a few priceless pix from the past – JOE BRADLEY & DASH SNOW at Joe’s one man show at CANADA, last year !!<\/p>\n

\"Joe
\nPHOTO: NANCY SMITH<\/p>\n

\"Joe
\nPHOTO: NANCY SMITH<\/p>\n

and finally – PS 1 – has come up with a rare and original thought – they are going to have a STUDIO VISIT – section on their website. LOL – couldn’t they have called it STUDIO TOUR or something . . . as a supposedly new art leader – they don’t really want to be seen as riffing off of – artlovers – or, as those JERSEY SHORE GUIDOS say: ROBBERY !! – you got my “sloppy seconds” !!<\/p>\n

ALL PHOTOS & …. OPINIONS: NANCY SMITH <\/p>\n

AFTER-PARTY\/AFTER-THOUGHT:<\/p>\n

\"bruce
\nok. so SIMON CERIGO made the BRUCE ALMIGHTY opening – he said it was a great crowd and they seemed like fun guys, and
\neveryone wishes them well – just “the work was all the same” – he was more taken with this t-shirt which one of the BHQF gang was wearing, and he actually bought it for $10 – off the guy’s back !! but he has no clue who made it – or – who he did the dirty deal with – except it was the tallest of the Bruces. <\/p>\n

\"bruce
\nnow – that’s – more like it !!<\/p>\n

p.s. we just found out – that awesome eyeball – t-shirt is made & designed by NIK GELORMINO !!<\/p>\n

NIK also writes to say that “he makes other t-shirts” – and he has many different ones available. so, we are pleased to advise that if you want a hand-made most cool New York City artist-produced t-shirt – you can reach him directly at: ngelormino@gmail.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

hate to be harsh and deflate the balloon – but, looks like business as usual at the Biennial. or, as Jean Michel used to say: SAME OLD SAME OLD. not counting the suspicious, creepy ?, inclusion of GEORGE CONDO – it’s – looking like – 3 strikes – and you’re out !! STRIKE 1. HUMA […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/963"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=963"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/963\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=963"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=963"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=963"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}