Hello everyone,

I thought I'd share one of my favorite contemporary artists. Sedrick Huckaby is a Dallas/Ft. Worth based painter. His subject matter usually includes people from his family and generates a feeling of antiquity when seen in person. He paints impasto so heavy that the paint often stands half an inch off the surface. I think it is safe to consider him a regional painter. I discovered him off of McKinney avenue in Dallas, TX at a gallery where paintings of his grandmother's quilts were hanging. His influences include Giacometti, Lucian Freud etc.

http://www.bu.edu/bostonia/winter-spring10/huckaby/

Photography

So I recently stumbled onto photographer Kim Keever who is working with landscape photography in an interesting and contemporary way. For the image, he creates miniature landscapes and otherworldly places in a tank like arena. He then fills the tanks with water and he photographs the scenes submerged in these aquariums with different lighting and the dispersal of pigment in the water. The final outcome is an image of a mysterious other world. The effect is quite unique and haunting and I thought this was a really interesting approach to the typical landscape photograph. Kim Keever is currently showing his work at the Carrie Secrist Gallery in Chicago. Here is a link to the website:

http://www.secristgallery.com/exhibitions/

Art Censorship in Sweden!

Hej you guys,

I thought this was interesting as we just wrapped up art and censorship!! No Sex Please We Are Swedish!

Mats Persson, secretary general of the Association of Swedish Museums said: “I fear that we will now see in Sweden what we have seen elsewhere in Europe: that other political parties adopt the rhetoric of the right. We have to accept that some art might be difficult to understand, but it is this questioning that society needs.”

humanizing poverty stricken areas

Like many graffiti artists, J R prefers to remain anonymous and to be known only by his initials and by his work. He rejects the term "street artist," instead preferring the label "photograffeur." (Graffeur is French for graffiti artist and J R is of French origin.) He may be seldomly seen, but his work, supersized street photography, is recognized in downtrodden areas across the globe. He's also expected to receive the TED prize for 2011...Perhaps it's because I've had many conversations about street art recently, have seen the Banksy film and exhibit, and am living in the art world, but I feel like street art is on the way out. I'm ready for the next big thing - whatever that may be.

Chris Ofili Last Supper

I stumbled across this video of Chris Ofili explaining this installation from 2002-03. It is 13 paintings making up the last supper. Ofili describes the work as acting like a good film where the passing of time doesn't phase the viewer. Underneath the video one Youtube member has commented on the piece explaining the use of pornographic images and elephant dung in Ofili's work. I have no idea if this user is right but it is an interesting interpretation. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvUHucKDUF0

There is also a lesser known sculpture by Ofili from 06 titled "annunciation" that is worth checking out

performance art and its place

So I've been thinking a lot about performance art recently - no surprise given my course work. More specifically, where it fits into contemporary art. A few weeks ago, one of my classes traveled over the weekend to see a performance called Elephant. Here is the link to it's website.

One of our major questions was "is this theatre, or is it performance?"

There is a fine line between the two for sure - one that is quickly vanishing in my opinion. We used to think of theatre as plays that are written and performed involving serious productions. Performance art used to be (and somewhat still is) thought of acts done for shock value or to make statements that take less rehearsal and planning than a strictly theatre piece. Performance art goes not garner profit like theatre.

I am seriously considering performance as a large part of my future, and to be honest I am beginning to see very little difference between the two areas. But that comes from someone that has a background in one and is discovering newly the other.

Where does it fit?

Kansas City, MO

Unfortunately I was unable to attend class this week because one of my close friends was killed in his hometown of Kansas City, Missouri. I was in attendance at his funeral and spent the rest of the day visiting with family and friends. At one point, I was able to explore the town and ran across the Hilliard Gallery, by chance. This gallery featured many artists, one of which was John Marak. His exhibition entitled State of Contemporary Realism caught my eye both for its title and content. Below is a link to some of the pieces that were featured, however, none of them are shown in a way that truly captures the essence of his pieces. "Sycamore" was so much more intense and impressive in person than the photograph shows, for example.

http://www.hilliardgallery.com/gallery.php?artistID=59

WOW! BANKSY ON THE SIMPSONS

Did anyone else see Banksy's introduction last night on the Simpsons? Holy shit. Controversy in the entertainment world yet again but now it is going to provide a double target because of Banksy's involvement. I can't wait to hear some of the reactions throughout the day and this week.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AA8gEokOhU

This Friday I went to the Pilsen second Friday gallery nights. There, I visited several small galleries. Many of the galleries featured work from several artists whereas only a few galleries highlighted one artist. I really liked visiting these galleries because they had a very intimate, slightly more personal and less formal feel. At the majority of the galleries, the artist was available to talk about their work. It was nice to be able to ask questions and understanding what motivated the artist and what they were trying to convey in their work.

Banksy in Chicago

This may not be news to most of you, but I found out on Thursday in another class that there was a Banksy piece here in Chicago over on Randolph and Peoria so I decided it was probably worth while to check out. What was coolest about the piece was the fact that the stairs that the baby carriage is falling down are just the bricks from the wall where he left them unpainted rather than making them a different color. It's really cool to see and I'm not sure what the city is going to do with it so it might be worth while to check it out while it's still here.

Takashi Murakami, Palace of Versailles, And “Disneyfication” Oh My!!!

Will there be contemporary art in Versailles' royal rooms after Murakami?

In relation to last weeks discussion and the three major currents that contribute to contemporary art do you think the currents can overlap? Can the location change the current and the artist's intent? How would you relate this article to the lecture regarding Historicism, Modernism, and Post Modernism?

Why do you think Murakami refers to himself as, “I am the Cheshire Cat who greets Alice in Wonderland with his devilish grin, and chatters on as she wanders around the chateau.”

strange and beautiful

I ventured out to the Neue Galerie in New York last weekend for a show by the 18th-century Austrian sculptor, Franz Xaver Messerschmitdt. The exhibition featured his character heads which I found to be strange and beautiful. Each character appears to be outwardly grappling with their emotions, almost screaming for attention. I’m drawn to the darkness and discomfort of each of these works. They are almost perverse. Interestingly, Mozart made his greatest hits in Austria during this period as well. Perhaps I should freshen up on my Austrian history...

Critical Mass Art Exhibit

http://culturemob.com/events/6211463-critical-mass-art-exhibit-il-oak-brook-60523-mayslake-peabody-estate

There is an opening this weekend at Mayslake Peabody Estate (1717 W. 31st Street in Oak Brook) that is free to the general public and is focused on how many people it takes to trigger a cultural phenomenon in the art world. I thought this was interesting because of how often Yood references this idea when he talks about "The systems wherein distinction is conferred."

The artists focused on in this event are disabled artists and the event itself is focused on creating awareness for disabled artists so check it out and support the cause.

Xu Bing

I brought up Xu Bing last class. He's a Chinese artist who is making a great deal of work, mainly focused around language and reinterpretation of Chinese traditions/culture. He has made up a new language, adapting English words into formations similar to Chinese characters. The original work this appeared in is Square Word Caligraphy.

He is definitely responding to a post-colonial China where technology is meeting tradition.
I also recommend taking a look at his American Silkworm Series as it highlights focuses on transformation.

Portland Art Museum

This weekend I went back home to Oregon to visit my family and friends. I was lucky enough to be able to squeeze in a visit to the Portland Art Museum while I was there. At the Portland Art Museum they were exhibiting art from a New York city couple who had acquired and collected tons of contemporary art. Over the last couple of years they have been distributing their art collection to different institutes in each state. The Portland Art Museum was the institution selected in Oregon to receive some of their art. They gave 50 pieces of art work to each of the 50 states. I thought it was very cool to get to see a small portion of such a massive collection of art. If for some reason anyone is visiting Oregon in the next couple of weeks, I would highly recommend you visit this exhibit!

Zeng Fanzhi

So this is the artist I was thinking about in class when we were discussing politically charged contemporary art. Although not all of his art contains political content it should be easy to find some examples. Attached is a link to selected works from Saatchi. I think my favorite contemporary artist working in a strong political vein is William Kentridge. His animated films often deal with Apartheid in South Africa. Here is a link to his film Automatic Writing.http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/artists/zeng_fanzhi.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmvK7A84dlk