Ryan McNamara at Louis Vuitton

Just happened to linger into Louis Vuitton on 57th Street last Friday for Fashion Night Out and got the best surprise of the year.....

Art in America article

Friday is the new Saturday (at least in August)

Thanks to unofficial "Summer Fridays" at work and non-Saturday gallery hours, this Friday was a typical Saturday for me. Lunch by myself at Trestle followed by a brief gallery tour (just three today).

Started off at Andrea Rosen to see two group shows. In the main gallery was Carol Bove, Sterling Ruby and Dan Schutz. There were some interesting pieces - Sterling Ruby created clean sculptures that mixed simple clear plastic with heavy metal lacework. It was a great organized combination of an everyday product with a protective armored material. The back gallery featured  sculptural pieces, fitting for a show titled "Crystalline Architecture". My favorite was this piece which resembled a distorted baroque mirror from a Disney film -

I also was drawn to small spools of thread in the back gallery - not sure I completely understand the piece - but love the creativity. 

Also in the back gallery was this great painting with small text that I just loved (that's my reflection in the glass, not some hidden image) - 

The  next stop was a personal fav - Luhring Augustine where Ragnar Kjartansson  showed all 144 paintings he created last year at the Venice Biennale. I was lucky enough to see him create these pieces last year in Italy. The artist set-up residence in the ground floor of an Italian palazzo and painted a hired model on a different canvas everyday.  It was great to see all the pieces hung professionally in a gallery,  however the tragedy of the space and the timing of the global economy collapse is hard to capture a year later with just canvases.

 

In the back of the gallery was a great video made this year titled "The Man". It is a 49 minute continuous piece of Pinetop Perkins playing the piano and interacting with the artist/camera in a laid-back, playful way while he plays different songs on the piano. Not only is a a pure tribute to the genius and talent of Perkins but the landscape with which he is set speaks to the South, nature, farming, history and so much more I've even yet to process. The video seemed to be shot in hd (not confirmed) highlighting the texture of the landscape, especially the long, wild grass with which the piano was set. It was a great video and really brought a smile to my face

  

Finally it was a stop at Gladstone 24th Street to see The Mass Ornamental, a show curated by John Rasmussen. The most interesting piece was the first one - a collection of high school lockers squeezed together - it spoke to scale, tension and strength. 

 

 Otherwise, the show was very sculptural and specific - my other favorite were these crustacean-octopus pieces that appeared to be ceramic, just laying in the middle of the gallery floor. It was one of those pieces that stayed with you and was better with time... 

 

 Picture from Gladstone Gallery 

Dog days

As we enter the dog days of summer, the galleries are (true to form) nearly shut down (aka open M-F 9-5). This provides time to research new artists that are not getting exposure or shows I've missed. Almost all new artists I've been interested in have been photographers and (true to form for me) they are all character shots that act almost as films stills. Current favorites include:

David Benjamin Sherry
Part of Greater New York at PS1
http://www.davidbenjaminsherry.com/
http://www.ps1.org/

Steven Beckly
http://www.stevenbeckly.com/
from the series "little wolf let's make some memories"

Stefano Marchionini
http://www.stefanomarchionini.net/photography.html
Not sure if I am dying for him - but definitely intrigued

I was recently in Atlanta with limited time to explore galleries. I did come across the Westside Provisions District - which I am in love with as an urban renewal project - could be reason enough to move to the South.... maybe.

Jackson Fine Art represents some very interesting artists. Specifically, David Hilliard (above- Sought, 2008) and Mona Kuhn, among others. http://www.jacksonfineart.com

Other Atlanta galleries we are researching Tony Hernandez at Astolfi Art (below) and almost everything at Tanner Hill 

 

 

http://www.stevenbeckly.com/myheart/myheart.html

Chelsea June2010

Chelsea Early Summer Gallery Review

Photo from the NYTimes.com

 

Bjarne Melgaard

Greene Naftali

http://www.greenenaftaligallery.com/

I read briefly about this show in the New York Times and of course was immediately intrigued and added it to my Chelsea to-do list. The show was brilliantly curated, however the content and the work was not as great. As soon as you walk off the elevator, you are hit by the severity of the show – chapters out of a book are tapped letter-by-letter on the floor of the gallery which forces you to walk over these letters careful not to destroy but you are literally walking on the work. This set the tone for the space- the destructiveness of the work and language and the pure chaos that existed throughout the space.

I was excited for the show, but was ultimately let down. There was a lot going on and therefore I left with a lot going through mind. I am hopeful to see more from this artist. 

NY Times article

Edward Kienholz

David Zwirner

http://www.davidzwirner.com/

 

There were a lot of other misses that weren’t inspiring or moving. I was very grateful, however, to stop at David Zwirner to see Edward Kienholz’s Roxy, 1960-1961- a disturbing, beautiful, historic, gruesome environmental installation.  The piece was great, very moving and very creepy. It was a great space and again amazingly curated with the room off-center in the gallery, out of the light of the street where you could be a true voyeur in the dark of the gallery. Reading the press release about the inspiration from a 1943 pre-war brothel, made the space truly amazing – still contemporary 50 years later.

Willie Doherty

Alexander and Bonin

http://www.alexanderandbonin.com

I spent about 20 minutes in Alexander and Bonin’s gallery to watch Willie Doherty’s Unfinished, 2010. I thought there would be a highlight or a finality to the video piece, however it just looped and before I knew it, I realized I was watching it over it again. I actually liked the video – good for a rainy day. Sadly I was totally wasted to watch the other video. 

Other highlights from the day included these great photgraphs by Vlatka Horvat -

And also a pop-in to Phillips to see some "affordable" Bruce Naumans that were sold at auction last Tuesday. 

Art Chicago and Next 2010, Chicago

For my first Art Chicago, I was more rushed than expected and only had two hours to get through both fairs. I was happily surprised to see the scale of Art Chicago as it spread across an entire massive floor at the Mercantile Mart. I was also happy to see some of the controversial pieces at the Next Art Fair. I wish I had more time and more coffee, but I pushed through as I only had two hours before I had to leave for the airport.

I hit Art Chicago first, which was a smart move as there was a lot to see there and it was by far the better show to see more established artists. There was, as expected, some cross over from the Armory Show and Basel Miami, but there were some new artists I was really happy to learn about.

First up was Daniel Gonzalez who sewed sequence onto large canvases to create beautiful and delicate pieces that shimmered and shined in the light – total eye candy. When I realized that these seemingly “pretty-only” pieces were actually inspired by other artists (see Cy Twombly below), they became more profound and more fun.

Marc Trujillo painted mundane American scenes that looked to be inspired by photographs and definitely harkened back to Andres Gursky work. My favorite were a shot of a Target or Wal-Mart aisle set up for Valentine’s Day as well as 200 East Cypress, below, which captured a typical suburban mall setting. The paintings were expensive - $45,000 – but really fantastic in their realism and the way they capture the everyday America. 

I was happily surprised to see White Cube made the trip to Chicago to exhibit (and to that point, I’ll be looking forward to seeing how the galleries did in this unique time in the market). They had a lot of the superstars, including some great Damien Hirst, who usually bores me. They had a great Nauman study and some Irwin light sculptures, but my new find was large photographs by Gregory Crewdson. The pictures seemed staged, Id be shocked if they weren’t. They were beautiful, mystical landscapes that had a great voyeuristic quality – like a kid on a hill overlooking a fascinating situation. I loved the moose standing in a suburban neighborhood and the couple “caught” in the action under an overpass. 

Speaking of Hirst, David Datuna seemed to have a full show that was either inspired by or knocking off Hirst classics. The booth was filled with medicine cabinets all filled with needles standing straight up, most filled with a blood-red liquid. There were even some butterflies in some of the cabinets. I was surprised to see pieces that I assume were clearly dreamed up in Hirst’s mind, but created by an artist I never heard of – further investigation required. 

Jean Wells had fun, poppy sculptures that I wish I had the $1500 for – my favorite were the Kisses (probably for their affordability) but the ice-cream cone was great too. I would love to have taken one back to New York with me. 

Again, the photograph love continued with Naoki Honjo’s photograph of the Millennium Bridge in London – shot in a new style where the focus and lens allow the landscape to feel like scale models. It’s a great interpretation and play on a scale and the way we are able to read a photograph. 

David Drebin also took amazing large photographs both of cityscapes and also portraits. My favorite was a shot of Hong Kong that showed the trees of the hills bleeding into the towers of the city – the glow and the juxtaposition between city and nature was really beautiful – the price was astronomical. The print, “Girl in Orange Dress” was another favorite  (not shocking since I have some cardinal draw to photographs of women in undescribable situations”). The setting is the new Standard Hotel in New York and the “girl“ is dressed to hit the town, but she sitting on the floor looking at the window – I assume she was stood up or maybe she’s just drunk from a night out and just got in. The pop of color against the hard rainy landscape of the city was the best part.

Finally, the affordable mountain pictures from Thomas Kneubuhler were the final highlight. It was great to see someone capture the extreme light that glows from mountains for night skiing against the extreme darkness since most of the resorts are part of national parks. 

Overall it was a really great show and since I have family in the area and hope to have stronger funds next year hopefully to add some pieces to my “collection”. There were a lot of $7500 pieces, but also some really great $1500 pieces that I would have loved to have been able to afford and look at all day. Maybe next year.

Henri Cartier-Bresson: A Modern Century at MoMA

Sharing the sixth floor with Marina is the newly opened exhibit of French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson. I was running super later to the curator-lead tour, but apparently didn’t miss anything. It was great to get the background on the artists from the curator, who has been at MoMA forever, but after a crazy workday I couldn’t handle too long a lecture. The photographer has a very interesting past, born in France just after the turn of the century; he began photographing in the 1930s before he was drafted into the French army in the 1940s. He was then a German prisoner of war for almost three years. After the end of the war, he continued to photograph as he traveled the world. The way he captured people in everyday life was the most profound. This is especially true as his photographs were taken before globalization and you can still see individual culture in a single snapshot. The curating was amazing at times but a letdown at others. Smaller photographs are always hard to appreciate at an institution as popular as MoMA, as I always feel pressure not to lag too long in front of a particular photograph. And even those moments when I loose myself in a photo, some child or entitled Upper East Sider starts hovering right beside me and the moment transitions to frustrating.

One wall feature these fabulous elderly women in Lincoln Nebraska, looking their finest for the State Legislature beside a picture of a similar set of women in Salamanca, Spain – both from the 1960s. It was great to see the similarities between two worlds that presumably couldn’t be more different. The show more than anything feels like a fantastic view of the past and therefore was appropriately named A Modern Century.  From Wall Street bankers to the growth of Asia, the show feels like a great look back. Furthermore, the way Besson captured people in the everyday pushes the pictures beyond historical to romantic. I especially loved “Jean-Marie Le Ciezio with His Wife” as Jean-Marie looks like the modern day son from a Patek Philippe ad but his wife is giving you ‘60s – hardcore. It was great pairing of trendy and timeless.  Another love was “Home Economics Show, La Defense” – the idea that a home ec show was held 50 years ago in a neighborhood of Paris that is the new symbol of modern commerce and finance. 

It’s a great show, definitely worth seeing and a clear departure from recent highlights at the MoMA that were much more contemporary.  I would go back to see the pictures again, but it has to be an off day when the crowds aren’t swarming – hopefully it wont be such a madhouse now with Time Burton gone (great show but good riddance)!

Spring 2010 Gallery Update (part two)

Chelsea Part 2 - 

Pace Wildenstein, Yancey Richardson, 303 Gallery, Paula Cooper, Tanya Bonakdar, Anton Kern and David Zwirner 

I had already peeked into Pace Wildenstein to see Sterling Ruby’s sculptures 'Bus' and 'Pig Pen', two massive, oppressive, apocalyptic pieces that seemed simultaneously hot and scary. They were hot as I could see them as part of an S&M session- the interlocking cages seemed perfect for some sex slave games. The hardware all seemed very sexual. Scary as it seemed prison-like and very controlled, almost against one’s will. In the end I found them very fun, albeit terrify and intoxicating. 

Pig Pen (Pace Wildenstein)

Next up was a quick pop-in to Yancey Richardson gallery to see the Esko Mannikko photographs, which were almost all animal profiles. The most interesting was the human-like stare of the gorilla, but the prints overall celebrated the beauty and perfection of wild animals. Highlights included the symmetry of a zebra’s behind, the grey tounge of a presumed bull and the way a flamingo can twist its neck. It was a great small show and worth stopping by. 

 

Untitled, from the series Harmony Sisters (Yancey Richardson)

Mike Nelson’s massive interactive sculpture at 303 Gallery was fantastic. Thankfully I have friends who have more patience then I do so we waited five minutes to go into the sculpture which was a collection of four travel trailers. It wasn't until later that I realized how haunting the experience was and I then felt like I had trespassed into someone else’s home. You did walk away feeling a little dirty and also very voyeuristic. It was great to see the piece, as I realized Nelson was the artist who transformed the Essex Street Market into fairytale funhouse of sorts on the Lower East Side in 2007, a piece called ‘A Psychic Vacuum’.  Once I made the connection it was clear to see the similarities. 

Quiver of Arrows, 2010 (303 Gallery)

A Psychic Vaccum (Creative Time)

Up next was Sam Durant’s huge platform sculpture at Paula Cooper titled “Dead Labor Day”. The platform was elevated 7 feet above the floor with nothing but a water cooler and trashcan which visitors were welcome to ascend to retrieve a cup of water. I, of course, was too cool for school to sign the waiver and go up there, but luckily one of my companions did. Again, at the time the piece didn’t really move me, but in hindsight, the more I think about the title, the homemade feeling of the platform and the presence of the water cooler, it makes me think of all those breadwinners in the suburbs who take on a big project over a holiday weekend instead of actually enjoying the holiday. It reminded me to enjoy those few holidays granted in corporate America. 

We totally missed Tanya Bonakdar, but I made everyone walk back to see Olafur Eliasson as I was blown away by his show last year at the MCA in Chicago. Even though the gallery workers, of which there were a dozen, were acting like self-important snobs, the main piece on the ground floor – a play on light/reflection/shadow/color was fun and engaging. The rest of the show was mostly research pieces for more of his well-known works. The employees turned me off, so we did not stay too long. It’s ok; I still love his work and often close my eyes and picture ‘Beauty’ and smile. 

The John Bock show at Anton Kern was not at all what I expected. From the picture below I expected intricate small sculptures, but instead the space was very DIY with fabric, sculpture, videos and even loose everyday items like pepto bismol bottles. I think I missed some performance element to the work, so further investigation is needed. Also, the video piece in the back of the gallery seemed odd and cliché for no reason I can point to. The whole show seemed a little immature, so I am looking forward to learning more the artist and hoping to change my mind.

 

Finally, and definitely not required was a stop at David Zwirner to see Marlene Dumas paintings that seemed interesting. Being the last stop on our tour, we needed to be wowed, and I know I was definitely underwhelmed, and ready for a cocktail. The pieces seemed interesting, and I would like to learn more about the artist, but was too tired by that point in the day to make the effort.