Supply and Demand, by Skewville at Factory Fresh. (Image courtesy of Factory Fresh.)
- The Art Industrial Average seems to be showing signs of life — at least when it comes to the old school stuff. Plus: Sotheby’s returns to profitability. (Arts Journal.)
- On the New Museum controversy, “art collector, heir” Adam Lindemann takes to the Observer to announce: Get over it whiners, it’s a rich person’s world — and y’all just live in it. A coupla things: One, Lindemann forgets to inquire how the Joannou show fits in with the New Museum’s mission of ‘new art, new ideas.’ (As far as I can tell the only thing ‘new’ in the show is the paint job on the museum’s walls.) Secondly, he says that as long as “the public gets a great show” then that’s all that matters. Um, except the show isn’t great. It’s kind of a hot mess. Top floor reminds me of standing in line at Universal Islands of Adventure…except I don’t get the joy of riding the Hulk roller coaster when it’s over. (@hragv.)
- ¡Celebrity Curator Smackdown! Jeff Koons versus Shaquille O’Neal. Thank you, Ben Davis.
- Marina Abramovic, the minimalist. Holland Cotter at the NYT reviews the show here.
- In related news: Jerry Saltz makes “genital contact.”
- Harry Benson totally annoyed to see one of his pix “appropriated” by Whitney Biennial artist.
- A profile of Christophe de Menil in W — aka Dash Snow’s grandma.
- Booby-trapped art work. (@KnightLAT.)
- Plus, in NYC: Sculptures that look as if they are about to leap to their death.
- Man Bartlett’s balloon pile.
- Abstract expressionist stamps.
- Create your own Chiquita Banana’s stickers.
- Photo Essay: Curse of the Black Gold: 50 Years of Oil in the Niger Delta.
- Welcome to Your Parents New York. (Flaming Pablum.)
- Today’s Street Art: Stinkfish in Bogotá.
- RIP Bruce Graham, the architect who designed the Sears Tower in Chicago.
- Sorry Wallpaper, you have it wrong: This is not the world’s first artificial floating island. These have been around for hundreds of years.
- The Big Lebowski morality continuum.
Os Gemeos at Galleria Patricia Mocida in Milan. See more flix at Fecal Face. (Photo by *fab*.)
High Five. From the Love Letters series by Steve Powers (aka Espo) in Philly. (Photo by Becki Fuller.)
- The Knave Abides: The Big Lebowski as written by Shakespeare. (@roo370)
- L.A. MoCA was going to be announcing its new director today (but apparently, the press conference has been postponed because it interfered with the broadcast of Lost). On the short list: commercial gallerist Jeffrey Deitch. (Read about the other contenders here.) Either way, expect an awesome art world knotted-panty clusterfuck of coverage in the coming days. Update: It’s gonna be Deitch, says Christopher Knight of the LAT. The paper’s arts blog has the (very short) story. Roberta Smith of the NYT chimes in. The paper’s main story here.
- Edward Winkleman has a very thoughtful post on the whole Deitch schmegagie over at Art World Salon.
- The envelope please: The judges for Bravo’s art reality show — called Work of Art — have been announced! They will be NY Mag’s Jerry Saltz, curator Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn (who will be representing the art-industry’s pixie haircut cartel) and auctioneer Simon de Pury, with “art enthusiast” China Chow as host. And is it me, or do I see China’s Spanx in this press photo? (@TwoCoats.)
- Important Warhol negs go missing.
- Wu-Tang Clan’s The RZA, celebrity artiste.
- Where art and Google Streetview intersect.
- This is art: Dude goes to Best Buy for 24 hours and doesn’t buy anything.
- Cloud Prototype #1.
- A stock photo of Dash Snow used for a story about teeth cleaning. (Anaba.)
- The last days of the El Dorado Hotel: Photographs by David Sotelo. (Coudal.)
- Elvis at 21.
- Today’s Street Art: Tosco in Lisbon.
- Paul Goldberger on architecture on Charlie Rose: “It’s not a cure for cancer.” Plus he says he’s working on a story about women architects who aren’t La Zaha. Interesting. (architecture.mnp.)
- Defending the Burj Khalifa: Blair Kamin and architecture.mnp.
- Twin Towers, the firm started by Minoru Yamasaki, who designed New York’s Twin Towers, is folding due to debt.
- Best description I’ve ever read of Jay Leno.
xoxox in Berlin. (Photo by kriskong.)
I wanted to begin the year by giving a shout-out and thank you to the awesome dudes at Culture Pundits and the sponsors that regularly inhabit the space you see on the upper right hand corner of this blog. I’m part of a network of arts and cultural blogs (which includes long-time online buds like Eyeteeth, Bloggy and Hrag Vartanian, as well as newcomers such as The Rumpus and Hilobrow — among many others) that are supported by the galleries, museums and companies that rotate through this sponsorship space (such as the Brooklyn Museum, SyFy, TekServe and the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts, to name a few). To be clear, I’m not getting rich off this. But it does help me cover expenses like server fees and other Internet miscellany. So, if you want to support bloggas like me — and get the word out about your exhibit/product/show — get in touch with Culture Pundits (you can do that here) and they can set you up.
Thanks to all the folks who read C-Mon and the fellow bloggas who are kind enough to link to our ridiculous antics. I really appreciate it.
Happy 2010! May the ridiculosity be with you.
xox,
C.
Th3 Violinist annd h3r Window of Opportunity, by NohJColey. (Image courtesy of NohJColey and Brooklyn Street Art.)
- Alec Soth’s Glass Jars.
- The art world is a like a “high school cafeteria.” Then who’s the lunch lady?
- Grant Mandarino at ArtNet reads all those ArtForum Top 10 lists so you don’t have to. Sentence I wish I’d written: “Nobody dresses up the fecophiliac antics of young Italian aristocrats with quite the same sonority.” Awesome.
- Plus, More Obligatory Year-End Coverage: Christopher Knight of the L.A. Times does his end-of-decade round-up, includes references to gigantism and New-York-isn’t-the-center-of-the-universe declarations. Plus: his ‘09 top exhibits listicle. Excited to see LACMA’s super-awesome Art of Two Germanys on the rundown.
- And: Jonathan Jones of the Guardian apologises to all the artists he’s insulted. Except Damien Hirst.
- The art industrial average is in a coma: Sotheby’s Christie’s sales of contemporary art plummet 75 percent after the auction houses abandon price guarantees. (Arts Journal.)
- “Look, to me it was white, beautiful white, and then the white was shrieking for the green, and the little triangle created a force field. People see very sexy things — dirty minds! — but to me sex is sex, and triangles are triangles.” — Carmen Herrera.
- Jenny Holzer loves doing laundry.
- Eggs.
- Surrealist sketchbooks.
- Larry Sultan talking to NPR, back in 1989.
- In Paris, art and commerce go together like…art and commerce!
- Ramón Coronado’s Mercado Negro. Great use of a shopping cart.
- Help support art in schools: Support Modern Art Notes‘ 2009 DonorsChoose.org drive.
- Plus: Art Fag City is having a fundraiser to help support her blogging work. Donations, made through Nurture Art, are tax deductible. C’mon folks, help a blogga out.
- Measuring that old book smell. (IIC.)
- Nuclear reactor wall charts.
- Today’s Graff: Teck in the Ukraine.
- Fascinating: The architecture of megalomania, focused on, of course, the Burj Dubai. See the photo essay. (BLDGBLOG.)
- Spock is a badass.
Cash for your Warhol, by Hargo. From an upcoming exhibit at the Montserrat College of Art in Beverly, Mass. (Image courtesy of Cash for Your Warhol.)
Happy Birf-day to my boo.
A truck by Sqon. (Image courtesy of sqon_cat.)
