Monthly Archive for March, 2009

Page 4 of 5

The Digest. 03.12.09.


Sweet Enuff, 1988 by Martin Wong, at the de Young Museum in S.F. (Photo by C-M.)

Imagined Artist Vacations: Christopher K. Ho at Pulse.


& Leisure, Christopher K. Ho’s project for the artiste with wanderlust. (Photos by C-M.)

When I’m not not making a living as a blogger, I spend a fair amount of time doing travel writing (a genre that is as sublimely ridiculous as arts writing). Which is why Christopher K. Ho’s travel-related project at the booth manned by Mexico City’s EDS Galería, at the Pulse NY art fair, caught my eye. In it, Ho’s fictional travel consultancy, & Leisure, plans vacation itineraries for well-known artists. Suggested trip for Barbara Kruger: a shopping excursion in Dubai. Olafur Eliasson gets blasted off into space for a zero-gravity flight experience. And the naughty Santiago Sierra is dispatched off to Rome for a session with the Pope.

You can view the entire project at the Winkleman Gallery, where it initially debuted in 2007. (Boy, am I timely, or what?) Better yet, scroll down for a few of my pix from Ho’s installation at Pulse.

Click on images to supersize.

Continue reading ‘Imagined Artist Vacations: Christopher K. Ho at Pulse.’

The Digest. 03.11.09.


Halo, Las Olas Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale, Fl., 2007 by Francie Bishop Good. (Image courtesy of Francie Bishop Good.)

Happy 12.

xox, C.

Calendar. 03.10.09.

 
The Present, by Thomas Campbell.

The Digest. 03.10.09.


Some days are just like that. Detail of a man-lion avatar of Vishnu from India, from c. 1000, at the Norton Simon Museum of Art. (Photo by C-M.)

Posting notice: Edward James Olmos meets Larry Gagosian edition.

If there’s one thing I love about any movie or TV show that features Edward James Olmos (think Miami ViceBlade RunnerBattlestar Galactica) is that at some point in the proceedings, the bad guys will be off doing something truly awful and Olmos will seethe — under his breath — something along the lines of “Find them” or “Get them.” And it always sounds really badass. (See video above.) I like it so much that I’m hoping to incorporate this into everyday conversation as much as possible. (Eg. Husband: “Do we need milk?” Me: “Get some.“)

In other news: no Digest today. I’ve got a ton of frackin’ work to do. But, in the meantime, you can enjoy this terrifically speculative story in the New York Times business section about Larry Gagosian, which quotes nobody of real significance, but which concludes that the gallerist could get hit really hard by the economy or he could just ride it out. (How’s that for definitive?) Sadly, it barely makes reference to Damien Hirst. 

Plus: Jonathan Jones at the Guardian is P.O.’d at art. “It has become the enemy of truth, the murderer of decency.” Whoa, Jonathan! Time to get on the happy pills…

And, late update: A rad video of the Saltz-master groping the wares at Armory. What I would give to party with this guy. For reals!

Volta NY: Marilyn Manson meets tacos meets Dr. Seuss.


Fly away: Detail of a photograph by Rina Castelnuovo at the Andrea Meisler Gallery at Volta. (Photos by C-M.)

It’s Friday and I have an imminent appointment to go get my drink on. So, without much commentary, and further ado, are photos from Volta NY, where there were wonderful photos by Rina Castelnuovo, fascinating videos by Regina Jose Galindo and some creeped-out paintings by Marilyn Manson — not to mention one seriously bizarre-looking hammock. Sadly, this year, there was no pop tart of evil.

The show is up through 9 p.m. on Sunday

Click on images to supersize. Way more after the jump.

Continue reading ‘Volta NY: Marilyn Manson meets tacos meets Dr. Seuss.’

Scoping Scope. (After this, I promise, no more pun heads.)


I’ll have what she’s having. A detail of an installation by Camille Rose Garcia at Jonathan LeVine’s booth at Scope. (Photos by C-M.)

Knowing that life as we once knew it is, like, totally over, it was reassuring to visit Scope on opening night and see the place totally hopping. A real improvement from last year when everything seemed kinda humdrum. Unfortunately, no one was giving out Twinkies or Devil Dogs (though there was some sculpture made with food), but it was a good time nonetheless — part of which had to do with the generously-poured shot of bourbon I’d inhaled at J. Mac‘s prior to my tour of the fair.

On a somewhat related note… I have two words for all of these fair operators, especially the ones located in the boonies: TACO. TRUCKS. I’ve had it with slimy chef’s salads and soggy turkey wraps. Bring on the carne asada. Or do like the Queens Museum of Art and get a Vendy Award-winning pupusa cart. Cheap food can be good.

Scope is open through 7 p.m. on Sunday

Continue reading ‘Scoping Scope. (After this, I promise, no more pun heads.)’

Taking the pulse at Pulse New York.


Detail of an installation by Curtis Mann at Kussenneers Gallery from Antwerp, at Pulse New York. (Photos by C-M.)

If I had to pick one word to described Pulse, it would be “shiny.” That’s probably because I can’t get the visual of Kristian Kozul’s bedazzled mechanical bull out of my head – swinging around the café area like a giant designer handbag. That doesn’t mean there wasn’t plenty of non-blingy (and highly interesting) stuff to ogle, from Curtis Mann’s bleached-out pictures at Kussenneers, to Anetta Mona Chisa and Lucia Tkacova clever porn parody shots at SPACE, to the serene black-and-whites of Sarah McKenzie Beth Dow at Jen Bekman to the installation of pictures and video by Eve Sussman and the Rufus Corporation at Edward Winkleman. (While at Winkleman, don’t miss Joy Garnett’s apocalyptic landscape paintings, hanging on the outside wall.) There’s an eyeful to see and plenty to buy — including, hilariously, a booth shilling condos by I.M. Pei.

The fair is up through 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Click on images to supersize. Lots of photos after the jump.

Continue reading ‘Taking the pulse at Pulse New York.’