art

the first annual art awards

on oct 29th the guggenheim inaugurates a new annual art event: artist rob pruitt presents the first annual art awards at the guggenheim, which will celebrates select individuals, exhibitions, and projects that have made a significant impact on the field of contemporary art during the past year. pruitt, whose conceptual practice is rooted in a pop sensibility and a playful critique of art world structures, has conceived the event as a performance-based artwork which follows the format of a hollywood awards ceremony. if this catches on though i wonder what effect it may have on remaining or supposed integrity left in the arts, now that film and music are watered down and massively focussed on award-for-funding-cycle, will fine art evolve in a similar fate? or will it open up a world occupied by those who contribute to those who would otherwise not be exposed?

here are the nominees for each category:

 

artist of the year
louise bourgeois
urs fischer
dan graham
mary heilmann

 

curator of the year
klaus biesenbach
daniel birnbaum
connie butler
massimiliano gioni

 

exhibition outside the united states
francis bacon, tate britain, london
jeff koons versailles, château de versailles, versailles
mike kelley: educational complex onwards: 1995–2008, wiels contemporary art centre, brussels
wolfgang tillmans: lighter, hamburger bahnhof, museum für gegenwart, berlin

 

group show of the year, gallery
“a twilight art,” harris lieberman, new york
“who’s afraid of jasper johns?” tony shafrazi gallery, new york
“your gold teeth ii,” marianne boesky gallery, new york
“zero in new york,” sperone westwater, new york

 

group show of the year, museum
“after nature,” new museum, new york
“the pictures generation, 1974–1984,” the metropolitan museum of art, new york
“the quick and the dead,” walker art center, minneapolis
“wack! art and the feminist revolution,” p.s. 1 contemporary art center, long island city, new york

 

new artist of the year
elad lassry
daniel mcdonald
marlo pascual
ryan trecartin

 

the rob pruitt award
to be announced the evening of oct. 29

 

solo show of the year, gallery
cindy sherman, metro pictures, new york
manzoni: a retrospective, gagosian gallery, new york
paul sharits, greene naftali gallery, new york
picasso: mosqueteros, gagosian gallery, new york

 

solo show of the year, museum
“dan graham: beyond,” the museum of contemporary art, los angeles, and whitney museum of american art, new york
“lawrence weiner: as far as the eye can see,” the museum of contemporary art, los angeles, and whitney museum of american art, new york
“live forever: elizabeth peyton,” new museum, new york
“martin kippenberger: the problem perspective,” the museum of contemporary art, los angeles and the museum of modern art, new york


writer of the year
tim griffin
john kelsey
walter robinson
jerry saltz

by kl

CATEGORIES: art

Anish kapoor: the Royal Academy of Arts



this exhibition surveys kapoor’s career to date showcasing new and previously unseen works, including early pigment sculptures, mirror-polished stainless-steel sculptures and cement sculptures on display for the first time. the exhibition also includes highlights such as the monumental work svayambh, the title of which comes from a sanskrit word meaning ‘self-generated’. emblematic of kapoor’s interest in works of sculpture that actively participate in their own creation, svayambh moves slowly through the galleries across the entire breadth of burlington house.

in an interview on bbc anish explains how meaning is not completely in the object, but that the viewer brings meaning through that which is familiar. so… what are you thinking about? by kl

CATEGORIES: art

philips de pury’s latin american art exhibit


below: oscar niemeyers chair and ottoman in bent rosewood as yves would say its “ravishing’


earlier tonight, at the opening of philips de pury’s latin american art exhibit in new york, there where three peices that were desperately begging to come home with me. one was oscar niemeyers chair and ottoman in rosewood (auctioned at: 15-20K), the other was a candida hofer photograph of the library in buenos aires, colegio nacional de buenos aires (auctioned at: 60-80K) and the last darling was a jorge pardo, untitled #6 (auctioned at: 25-35K). as i already have a jorge pardo i had to skip that one, the niemeyer for sure would have required a larger new york apartment and that is not currently an option, the hofer on the other hand (of course the biggest of the three bites) just wouldn’t give up on me…. but what can i say, times are tough for art. be sure to at least check it out. by uh

CATEGORIES: art, design

art sells fashion or is it the other way around?

ryan mcguinness

oh no, look the notorious clocks, see our other post on that topic

chris dorland

in their latest catalog j. crew features nyc artists including ryan mcguinness, chris dorland, glenn ligon, vito aconcci, stephen shore… they are pictured in their studios wearing j.crew apparel of course and talking about the relationship between art and style…

the cool answer is from mcguinness: “many fashion designers want to be considered artist, but no artist wants to be considered a fashion designer.” i guess it sums up the relation here.  besides that, it’s always cool to have a sneak peek into an  artist’s studio with work around. check it online by pp’

CATEGORIES: art

mark borthwick – if – half gallery

If
These are my`n fruit`s her kind`ly kin
that lift`s these heart`s to begin
as if an embrace picture`s a thousand word`s
anna rose` ~ anna rose`
for if only in this place of mind is in`effable for a time
we` we`lll leave behind
so upon this wake of wonder
“un`vail`s ~ prevail`s”
upon these stake`s of yonder
we shall wander
an walk an explore` all we`ve never seen before`
as if one`s fair well ploy
an ode` to joy
As good`ness sweel`z
dipp`in hand`s in well`z
be`quith`s an abundance` sweel`z
For if there`s no severence
ben`e` fest this reverence`
venerate`s to revere`
“What if were pioneer`s”
So of night`s of no`end
off folly of ac`cumen
an all an alll the mad`men
appeal appeal up hill
lament ament
an over dose` in love`s the most
as … “lewd”… an`nimate`s benevolence
as if there`s no severence
so picture` this in communal bliss
a catalyst
For eye as eye will not discourage the courage, to encourage`
“To return … to return to the land”
for are we … “Are we the last”
to love
so
upon a whim
for these are my`ne fruit`s her kind`ly kin
that lift`s these heart`s to begin
what`if were pioneer`s
we`ll sear these golden year`s
an reveal`s an appeal to feel an heal
so in your garden rose we`ll revere`
No fear were pioneer`s
For if only in this peace of mind
will shift an shift be`quith
this change` of time
So picture this an embrace ~ picture`s a thousand word`
anna rose` ~ anna rose`
If handed down

photographer mark borthwick’s show opened yesterday at the half gallery in the lower east side. it features only pictures of nature and it’s up ’til october 19th. by pp’

CATEGORIES: art, photography

xavier veilhan – versailles – opening


a little plus from the veilhan show at versailles, as we were at the opening, it took place in the “orangerie” where the trees are stored during winter and one of the most amazing places in the chateau, generally not open to public (plus another sneak in some closed part…). also, the “carrosse” take its full meaning at night as it seems to be a ghost from the past… nice sorry about the poor photos… by pp’

CATEGORIES: art, backstage

xavier veilhan – versailles





was in paris last week and happened to check this new show in versailles.  after jeff koons, french artist xavier veilhan placed his sculpture in the anachronistic decorum of the chateau. unlike koons, veilhan made a new series of works that are relevant to this particular place. really nice work, really amazing background. a must see if you happen to be around there sometime. check out the website for behind the scenes and more. by pp’

CATEGORIES: art, backstage

moonmilk – ryan mcginley


i guess by now everybody knows that ryan mcginley has a new show up in london, as it was announced pretty much everywhere.  i just saw the poster and thought it would be nice to share as it’s my favorite image of the new batch and the graphic aspect seems really relevant. by pp’

CATEGORIES: art

metaphysical abstraction

contemporary approaches to spiritual content, curated by jamie brunson & michelle mansour october 1 – november 29, 2009 at the berkeley art center. admission $5. featured work by jamie brunson, david ivan clark, david king, hadi tabatabai, alex zecca and more. by xy

CATEGORIES: art

ThreeASFOUR yoko ono posters

beautiful! if i had the space i would get them immediately… design trio threeASfour collaborated with yoko ono on their line inspired by ono’s rarely seen dot drawings, which the designers turned into limited-edition prints on cotton and silk for the new collection. this set of three individually numbered posters were executed for this occasion. each poster is 20 x 28 inches.

50 poster sets will be made available for purchase exclusively through our bookstore. each set consists of 3 individual designs. posters will be on display september 17, 2009 at milk studios for the debut of the collection during new york city fashion week. each unsigned poster pack is numbered x/50 and will be shipped flat. by dd

CATEGORIES: art, fashion

perfect lovers: felix gonzales torres vs. tobias wong

the original “perfect lovers” by felix gonzalez-torres, 1991. these two identical, adjacent and battery-operated clocks were initially set to the same time; but, within time, they will inevitably fall out of sync. so true.

‘perfect lovers’ by tobias wong. two commercial clocks outfitted with atomic radio receivers which automatically synchronize to the U.S. atomic clock and tells time accurate to 1 second every million years.

it’s funny, just yesterday we were speaking about tobias wong. a love/hate discussion, as one can imagine. in the end, we do love his work, and his ‘devil may care’ attitude in a sea of self-obsessed and self-serious artists and designers.  the two works may appear the same, they even bear the same title; however, i can’t say that wong has stolen anything here as the “idea” is altered which is far superior than the form.  in his own way, he is crushing the romantic notion of felix gonzalez-torres, where the clocks/lovers sadly fall apart in time. tobias’ version flexes its middle finger to all that is sentimental and romantic in the coldest and most rational way of all… the atomic clock. as KL suggested maybe he’s testing our knowledge? he could have credited felix gonzalez-torres for the inspiration… but that would be contrary to this icy-cold-world idea. by dd + kl

CATEGORIES: art, perfect gift