Jim Jenkins, Jacaranda, 2009, on display in OsCene 2010
His article, Up Close and Personal: Your Only Chance, reviews his recent trips to two Southern California Museums, the Orange County Museum of Art and Laguna Art Museum. Here is what Goldman had to say about the OsCene exhibition:
"Driving another 20 minutes (from the Orange County Museum of Art), I found myself at the Laguna Art Museum, but it felt like a world away. The current exhibition (OsCene 2010), devoted to contemporary art and culture in Orange County, is a focused, thoughtful presentation of paintings, sculptures, video and photography produced by artists in the roughly fifty cities that comprise Orange County. And thankfully, this time (apposed to redundant information on the OCMA labels) each label succinctly communicated the essential information: the place and the year the artists were born and where they currently live. If you hurry, you can catch this exhibition in beautiful Laguna Beach before it closes this Sunday, May 16th."
To read the full article click here.
Take Goldman's suggestion and come view Laguna Art Museum's OsCene 2010 exhibition before it closes this Sunday, May 16.
Jack Johnson chose to include a Wolfgang Bloch painting from his own personal collection as the center spread of his new To The Sea album artwork. Wolfgang Bloch, one of Jack’s favorite artists, was born and raised in the vibrant Latin American culture of Guayaquil, Ecuador. At a young age, Bloch discovered the joy of surfing along Ecuador’s secluded beaches and, in the process, the coastal scenery that would forever serve as his primary source of inspiration.
To learn more about Wolfgang download the FREE OsCene iPhone app or check out his work on display in OsCene 2010, showing now!!!
Like the music style of Jack Johnson and the surfing-inspired artwork of Wolfgang?? Then, be sure to come check out the Marc B. concert tonight at the Museum and have a chance to check out the OsCene Exhibition for FREE from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
The Museum featured Step (In) Out, 2007 in our 2008 exhibtion, Las Vegas Diaspora: Emergence of Contemporary Art from the Neon Homeland, which exhibited works of twenty-six artists who received their degrees from the University of Las Vegas, Nevada.
© Patrick McMullan Company
James Franco and Lady Gaga have been the talk of the art world ever since the two began dabbling in performance art, but they're hardly the only prominent pop-culture stars to have a glittering foot in the art world. Recently, in fact, a rising tide of interest in contemporary art has led more and more celebrities to enter the gallery and museum sphere, oftentimes as collectors, patrons, or producers — a fact that has brought no end of satisfaction to Los Angeles dealers, who have long sought to tap into Hollywood money (and the celebrity endorsements that come with it) in earnest. While there's no mistaking these stars for the Steve Cohens or David Geffens of the world who spend millions on attention-grabbing historic works, these actors, designers, musicians, and sports gods have been throwing their support behind a number of rising (and established) talents in the art world. ARTINFO has assembled a list of 12 celebrity collectors, some of whom you may not have suspected. Read the full article on ArtInfo...
For more on what's happening in the art world, come and check out Laguna Art Museum website and be sure to come see our current exhibition, OsCene 2010, up until May 16th!
THE EXECUTIVE 
"If you've driven along Melrose Avenue in the past couple of weeks, you probably have noticed a new outdoor mural on the north side of the street near Ogden Avenue, across from Fairfax High School.
Sherpard Fairey DJ-ing at the opening of Laguna Art Museum's Summer 2008 exhibition In the Land of Retinal Delights: The Juxtapoz Factor.
Laguna Art Museum Reveals Vanguard OC Artists with OsCene 
This last Saturday night, M Revelli, Lynzy Blair of FIFTy24SF, and myself headed down to the Laguna Art Museum for an opening of Jeremy Fish's first museum show, "Weathering the Storm." I guess I didn't know what to expect, but once we got there it was amazing to see how many people came out to support Mr Fish; friends, fellow artists, fans, the curious types, members of the museum, all different, joined and made the opening a pretty special evening.
A big contingent of SF folk made the trip down, which I'm sure Jeremy enjoyed. I got to see some friends I hadn't seen in awhile as well, so goddamn, who would have thunk I needed to get to Laguna to see people that live in SF?
Finally, I got to meet Travis Millard and Mel Kadel (three year email relationships are funny things, I almost cried when I saw them, as if we all just got back from the war), Nathan Cabrera is a good dude, Mr Jon Dragonette and Zell Dragonette were great to see, John Trippe, the Grolsch, the Mike Giant look alike that I gave all my drink tickets to... the list goes on.
LAGUNA BEACH – Art lovers, artists and donors celebrated the Laguna Art Museum's two new collections Saturday night.
"Collecting California: Selections from the Laguna Art Museum" and "Jeremy Fish: Weathering the Storm" opened to the public Sunday and will run through Jan. 17.
Laguna Art Museum
Where: 307 Cliff Drive
Hours: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day
Tickets: $12 for adults and $10 for seniors, students or active military. Children under 12 are free.
More information: lagunaartmuseum.org or 949-494-8971
Fairey’s admission, which he made public Friday, threw his legal battle with the news agency into disarray.
The AP claimed in January that Fairey owed it credit and compensation for using the photograph. But in February Fairey sued the AP, seeking a declaratory judgment that the poster did not infringe on the agency’s copyrights and that he was entitled to the image under the “fair use’’ exception of the copyright law. The AP countersued in March, saying Fairey had misappropriated the photograph.
Fairey told the agency - and his own lawyers - that he had used a photograph from an April 27, 2006, event about Darfur at the National Press Club in Washington, where Obama was seated next to the actor George Clooney. Instead, the photograph he used was from the same event, but was a solo image of Obama’s head, tilted in intense concentration.
Fairey admitted that in the initial months after the suit and countersuit were filed, he destroyed evidence and created false documents to cover up the real source. He said he had initially believed that the AP was wrong about which photo he used, but later realized the agency was right.
“In an attempt to conceal my mistake, I submitted false images and deleted other images,’’ Fairey said in a statement, released on his website. “I sincerely apologize for my lapse in judgment, and I take full responsibility for my actions, which were mine alone.’’
Fairey’s lawyers said they intended to withdraw when he could find new counsel.
Srinandan R. Kasi, the AP’s general counsel, released a statement Friday night that said: “Fairey’s lies about which photo was the source image were discovered after the AP had spent months asking Fairey’s counsel for documents regarding the creation of the posters, including copies of any source images that Fairey used.’’
Kasi said: “The AP intends to vigorously pursue its countersuit alleging that Fairey willfully infringed the AP’s copyright in the close-up photo of then-Senator Obama by using it without permission to create the Hope and Progress posters and related products, including T-shirts and sweatshirts that have led to substantial revenue.’’
The new edition of Van Gogh’s letters represents a magnificent achievement. To be published in six volumes, on 7 October, the text runs to nearly 1 million words, with over 4,000 illustrations. It is the culmination of a 15-year project at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.
Vincent van Gogh: The Letters transforms our understanding of the artist. Although there have been earlier editions of the correspondence (notably in 1958), this one presents all the surviving letters in the proper chronological sequence (many are redated and there have been some newly discovered items), and is based on a revised and unexpurgated transcription of the texts, with more accurate translations and detailed annotations.
It will act as an antidote to the Lust for Life-perception of Van Gogh that has become so deeply engrained, as a result of Irving Stone’s novel (1934) and Kirk Douglas’s film (1956). Although Stone’s main source was the letters, he used an early edition published in the 1920s, and admitted that he had added “an occasional stretch of pure fiction”.
In Lust for Life, Van Gogh is presented as writing his letters as a highly-strung personality, slapping his words onto paper in great emotion. This did happen, but only occasionally, usually when it involved a family row. In contrast, reading through the 2,180 pages of the new edition of the letters shows that the artist was highly focused. True, he was an obsessive in one sense, in his dedication to developing as an artist, but the letters are usually carefully (and sometimes beautifully) written, normally with a clear purpose in mind.
The Letters also reminds us that Van Gogh approached his painting in a similar fashion. He did not throw his paint on the canvas in a burst of emotion, but considered carefully the effects he was striving to achieve. This comes through clearly in the stream of comments that he made to his brother Theo and his artist friends, in describing the pictures he was completing.
The new edition of the letters is annotated, recording the literary sources Van Gogh cites. Although his formal education was brief (with just 18 months at secondary school), he became remarkably well read. Some 800 literary sources (by 150 authors) are either cited in his letters or quotations are given from them. To take an example, there are 54 letters that refer to Dickens, although some of these are unattributed quotations that few readers today would spot without the annotations.
Van Gogh was also talented at languages. His French became as good as his Dutch (and from 1887, he wrote to Theo in French), he spoke reasonable English (The Letters includes correspondence with the British artist Horace Livens and the Australian John Russell), as well as some German.
Illustrations
The Letters reproduces the pictures that Van Gogh mentions—usually with admiration—in his correspondence. Until now, many of the less well-known works had not been identified, but most of them have now been found and all these are illustrated. Altogether The Letters has 4,300 illustrations (2,300 individual works, with a further 2,000 small images reproduced again when they are referred to in subsequent letters). Seeing the illustrations provides a vivid musée imaginaire of Van Gogh’s mind. What will come as a shock to many readers is quite how conventional his artistic tastes were, particularly up until his arrival in Paris in 1886.
The new edition of The Letters is fully annotated with footnoted references. These add up to 160,000 words, equivalent in wordage to a very substantial book. Along with the identification of literary sources and works of art, other important details are explained, such as topography, customs, historical context, etc.
In addition, even more material is available (free of charge) on the web, with 700,000 words of detailed annotations (www.vangoghletters.org, from 7 October). The website also reproduces the letters in facsimile (with technical data on the paper, etc), provides a transcript in the original language with line breaks, gives newly translated reading texts in three languages (English, French and Dutch) and the dating of each letter is explained.
With such an extensive body of words, all in three languages, occasional errors are inevitable, but the standard of accuracy is admirable, which is testimony to the dedication of the research team. Material on the web will be updated.
Revelations
So, what is new in The Letters? Although most letters were published in earlier editions, some lines were left out for a variety of reasons. For instance, one delightful and telling phrase was omitted simply because it had been crossed out by Van Gogh. On 7 December 1883, while living with his parents in Nuenen, he had written: “People are like brushes—the ones that look the best do not work the best.” This very much reflected his philosophy, and his family often criticised his scruffy clothes.
Sometimes details were withheld, even as late as in the 1958 edition, because they were still sensitive to the family. For instance, in Van Gogh’s unsent letter to Theo and his wife Jo of 7 July 1890, in the last month of his life, the words “while there are disagreements between you” were omitted.
Occasionally material was worded obliquely on taste grounds. When Van Gogh wrote to Theo on 25 September 1888 about his soldier friend Paul Milliet, the 1958 edition of the letters recorded (using dashes) that Milliet had had to “return to his f------ garrison”. The new edition spells out what was really written, which is rather wittier. This was that after Milliet had said his farewells to the tarts of Arles, “his prick has gone back to the garrison”.
Some new letters have been discovered. Twenty-one were found earlier, but had only been published in Dutch, in a 1990 edition of the letters, so these are almost unknown to English readers. These include three telegrams Vincent sent to Theo after the death of their father in Nuenen. The first baldly states “Sudden death, come, Van Gogh”, which must have come as a terrible shock for Theo, since it was unclear who had died.
One of the most important letters to emerge after the 1958 English edition was from Van Gogh to Gauguin, sent on 21 January 1889, just a month after Van Gogh mutilated his ear, and the two artists had parted company. An acquaintance told me recently that in the early 1980s he had been visiting friends, and had casually taken a book on Van Gogh from their shelf. Out fell a folded piece of paper, which turned out to be that letter. His friends had bought the book from a bouquiniste in Paris for a few francs, and had not got round to reading it and thus hadn’t spotted the enclosure. When it was auctioned in 1983 it was bought by the Musée Réattu in Arles—the only Van Gogh letter to return to the town.
The most important completely new discovery is a letter from Van Gogh to his former boss at Goupil’s gallery in The Hague, where he had his first job. Van Gogh is said to have eventually written up to 300 letters to Hermanus Tersteeg, but all were apparently thrown into the fire late in his life when he wanted to warm his room. Recently, one letter surfaced, which had been given by Mrs Tersteeg to an autograph collector in around 1900 (it remains with the collector’s descendants). Sent on 3 August 1877, after the death of Tersteeg’s infant daughter Marie, it is a rambling condolence letter, peppered with Biblical quotations, and written at a time when Van Gogh had a deep religious fervour.
England
In terms of content, The Letters is replete with new details about Van Gogh’s life, and we can give some examples from his period in England, where he was an art dealer and later a teacher. Van Gogh visited Dulwich Picture Gallery on 2 August 1873, a bank holiday Monday. Since it is mentioned in a letter, the Van Gogh Museum researchers followed this up and discovered his name in the gallery’s visitors’ book (giving his address as The Hague, he signed in for another visitor, a German who was lodging with him).
On his arrival in Ramsgate in April 1876, where he taught for two months, he posted Theo two pieces of “seaweed” that he picked up on his first walk along the beach. Astonishingly, they have been preserved with the letter (they have now been analysed, and are not actually seaweed, but plant-like animals—a bryozoan and a hydroid).
While in England, Van Gogh wanted to become a missionary, and in June 1876 he wrote to an unnamed clergyman, explaining his qualifications and humbly asking for assistance.
An annotation in The Letters provisionally identifies him as Edmund Fisher, vicar of St Mark’s in Kennington, close to where Van Gogh had lodged the previous year.
Moving on to later years, The Letters will hold surprises even for those who think they know their Van Gogh. In August 1879 his sister Anna suggested that he should earn his living as a baker (this seems an astonishing idea, since he was a terrible cook—after concocting an inedible soup in Arles, Gauguin complained that he mixed the ingredients “the way he mixed the colours in his paintings”).
In January 1881 Van Gogh wrote from Brussels to say that he hoped “to see Mr Horta one of these days”. Research has confirmed that this was indeed Victor Horta, who was starting to train as an architect. All these points may be tiny details, but added together they help build up the picture of Van Gogh’s life.
Death
Reading The Letters may even bring us closer to understanding the tragic end to Van Gogh’s life. On 10 July 1890 he wrote about his latest picture (possibly Wheatfield with Crows), saying he was painting “immense stretches of wheatfields under turbulent skies, and I made a point of trying to express sadness”. Before posting it, he added to the letter the phrase “extreme loneliness”. Since it was in the wheatfields above Auvers-sur-Oise that he shot himself just 17 days later, these additional two words could well have had a deep significance.
Most poignant of all is a detail that is not explicitly referred to in The Letters, but which can be viewed on the facsimiles on the web. One letter to Theo was never posted, and it was found with Vincent after his suicide. On it, Theo later wrote in pencil: “The letter he had on him on 27 July, that horrible day.” On the bottom of the folded page are several dark stains, presumably blood.
Leo Jansen, Hans Luijten and Nienke Bakker (eds), Vincent van Gogh: the Letters. The Complete Illustrated and Annotated Edition (Thames & Hudson), six volumes and a CD with complete text versions in French and Dutch, 2,180 pp, £325 until 31 December; thereafter £395 (hb) ISBN 9780500238653
The exhibition: “Van Gogh’s Letters: the Artist Speaks”, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (9 October-3 January 2010).www.vangoghmuseum.nl. Another selection of his letters will be shown in “The Real Van Gogh: the Artist and his Letters”, Royal Academy, London (23 January 2010-18 April 2010).
Michelle Obama hosted a concert this morning at the Pittsburgh Creative & Performing Arts School for its students and the spouses of international leaders deliberating at the G-20 economic summit. She gave an 11-minute address about the arts as a prelude to performances by guests Sara Bareilles, Yo-Yo Ma and Trisha Yearwood. Here are excerpts from her speech, from a transcript issued by the White House:
“We believe strongly that the arts aren't somehow an 'extra’ part of our national life, but instead we feel that the arts are at the heart of our national life. It is through our music, our literature, our art, drama and dance that we tell the story of our past and we express our hopes for the future. Our artists challenge our assumptions in ways that many cannot and do not. They expand our understandings, and push us to view our world in new and very unexpected ways…..
"It's through this constant exchange -- this process of taking and giving, this process of borrowing and creating -- that we learn from each other and we inspire each other. It is a form of diplomacy in which we can all take part….
“[T]oday ... we're presenting the gifts of these wonderful American artists to our friends from all around the world. And these artists are passing on the gift of their magnificent example to these young people who are here today, studying in this school -- showing them that if they dream big enough, and work hard enough, and believe in themselves, that they can do and achieve some uncommon things in their lifetime….
"That is the core of my mission as first lady -- to share the gifts that come with life in the White House with as many of our young people as I possibly can find. That's why I've worked to make the White House a showcase of America's rich cultural life….
"[T]he truth is, is that even though many….kids are living in Washington, D.C. and in cities across the country, just minutes away from the centers of culture and power and prestige, many of them feel like these resources are really miles away, very far beyond their reach. That's something that I felt growing up.
"And my husband and I are determined to help to bridge that distance. It is critical that we begin to bridge that distance.
"We want to show these young people that they have a place in our world, in our museums, our theaters, our concert halls.... We want them to experience the richness of our nation's cultural heritage, one on one, up close and personal, not on TV. We want to show them that they can have a future in the arts community -- whether it's a hobby, or a profession, or simply as an appreciative observer….
"In the end, those efforts, and the performances we're enjoying today, and the work these artists do every day here in America and around the world -- all of that reminds us of a simple truth: that both individually and collectively, we all have a stake in the arts, every single one of us.
"And you don't need to be rich or powerful to lift your voice in song or get out of your seat and shake your groove thing. [Laughter.] You don't need to be a Van Gogh to paint a picture, or a Maya Angelou to write a poem. You don't need a Grammy or an Oscar or an Emmy to make your work on the cultural life of your community or your country a valuable one.
"And ... people who might not speak a single word of the same language, who might not have a single shared experience, might still be drawn together when their hearts are lifted by the notes of a song, or their souls are stirred by a vision on a canvas.
"That is the power of the arts -- to remind us of what we each have to offer, and what we all have in common; to help us understand our history and imagine our future; to give us hope in the moments of struggle; and to bring us together when nothing else will. That is what we celebrate here today.”
-- Mike Boehm
Related:Photo: Michelle Obama hosting concert in Pittsburgh (top); Obamas at Kennedy Center in February, to see Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre performance. Credit: Eric Feferberg / AP/AFP/Getty Images; Joshua Roberts / Pool/EPA
| It's so interesting how Warhol drew inspiration from Byzantine icons in his creation of images of iconic celebrities. This exhibition is surely a must-see! via artdaily.org Double-Header of Warhol Exhibitions Opening this Fall in Athens |
 Andy Warhol, Alexander the Great, 1982, |
| ATHENS.- Potnia Thiron and Haunch of Venison will present a double-header of Warhol exhibitions in Athens this autumn. Opening simultaneously, Warhol/Icon: The Creation of Image at the Byzantine and Christian Museum and Warhol: Screen Tests at Potnia Thiron Gallery, will explore Warhol’s obsession with fame through his work as a painter and filmmaker of ‘icons’. The emphasis across both exhibitions will be on the relationship between his Byzantine religious beliefs, Slavic background and devotion to his mystical mother, and his apparently unfettered celebration of an American celebrity culture. Warhol/Icon: the Creation of Image Set against the backdrop of the world’s greatest collection of Byzantine icons, Warhol/Icon: The Creation of Image brings together a selection of the works which helped Warhol reinvent portraiture in the second half of the twentieth century. Curated by the distinguished Warhol scholar Paul Moorhouse, the exhibition probes the enduring significance and value of the icon, connecting historic sacred antecedents with Warhol’s modern icons: images of the famous created in a celebrity-obsessed secular era. Common to the historic and modern concepts of an icon, the idea of worship is central. Warhol’s work endorses, dissects – and employs – those processes by which a real person’s identity becomes progressively obscured by their glamorized, iconic representation in the mass-media. Seen in the context of the Byzantine and Christian Museum’s historic icons, Warhol’s modern ‘icons’ are presented as the outcome of a complex metamorphosis in which the real has been transformed into a complex but glorious abstraction. Highlights of the exhibition include a poignant medley of paintings of the bereaving Jackie Kennedy, and several exceptional images of Marilyn Monroe, Mao and Warhol himself. Each of these figures are idealized to the point where their ‘image’ transcends their private, personal identity. Warhol: Screen Tests The exhibition at Potnia Thiron, a few hundred meters from the museum, will present the largest ever assembly of Warhol’s classic Screen Tests. The gallery will screen 100 of the short film portraits in a fascinating counter-point to the Warhol/Icon exhibition. While in his paintings, his declared ambition ‘to make everybody look great’ is perceived unequivocally, the Screen Tests suggest a more ambiguous position. From 1964-66, 189 individuals came to his Manhattan studio (the silver painted loft known as ‘the Factory’) to sit for portraits; the sittings involved each participant remaining immobile for around three minutes while being filmed. There was no sound, no action, no narrative and no script. Each film was a record of the sitter’s response to the situation Warhol had created. The range of sitters is diverse – including early Warhol superstar ‘Baby’ Jane Holzer, actor Dennis Hopper, filmmaker and Warhol’s chief assistant Gerard Malanga, actress and socialite Edie Sedgwick, singer Lou Reed and artist Salvador Dali. As with the paintings, the films are underpinned by themes of sequence, repetition and series, but whereas the portraits on canvas focus on the transformation of a media-derived image, the films engage with changes produced by the sitter over time. Projected at a slightly slower speed than the three minutes they took to record, the films reveal the sitter with a dispassionate but ruthless objectivity. Rather than making ‘everybody look great’, the Screen Tests promote an entirely different quality – not fame, but humanity at its most vulnerable. This pair of exhibitions, which are supported by the Warhol family, the Andy Warhol Foundation and the Andy Warhol Museum, present the twentieth century’s quintessential artist in a new light. Warhol/Icon: The Creation of Image and Warhol: Screen Tests provide an unprecedented and unrepeatable illumination of Warhol’s Byzantine sensibility and his interest in the religious roots of celebrity adulation. |
 In this photo taken Monday, Sept. 21, 2009, women walk past rubbish heaps and unfinished homes in a neighborhood at the base of the nearly-completed 50-meter-high (328-foot-high) bronze statue dubbed the Monument of the African Renaissance in Dakar, Senegal. The statue is supposed to symbolize Africa's rebirth, its liberation from what octogenarian President Abdoulaye Wade has called "centuries of ignorance, intolerance and racism." Instead, the monument has fueled outrage among a poverty-stricken population struggling to survive in an expensive city slammed by electricity blackouts, flooding and water shortages. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) By: Todd Pitman, Associated Press Writer |
| DAKAR, SENEGAL.- Towering on a hilltop overlooking the Atlantic, the 160-foot-high bronze statue depicting a family rising triumphantly from a volcano is supposed to symbolize Africa's renaissance. But on a rutted trash-strewn path below, the old Africa is still in view: one where a poverty-stricken population endures incessant power blackouts and flooding — and considers the $27 million monument just another outrageous example of wasteful government spending. "Senegal is going through a profound crisis," said Djiby Diakhate, a sociologist at Dakar's Cheikh Anta Diop University. "Our economy is dying. People are struggling to eat. We should be spending money helping people survive." Perched on the westernmost tip of the continent, Senegal has gained notoriety as a launch pad for migrants who risk their lives crossing the high seas on flimsy wooden boats bound for Europe, hoping for a better life — or at least illegal employment. Countless numbers have died attempting the voyage. They have left behind a capital filled with jobless university graduates, half-day power outages and rains that wreak havoc on the city's outdated infrastructure, flooding homes with stinking, shin-high sewage that has to be scooped out by hand. The mammoth statue, atop a 330-foot hill, shows a muscular man in a heroic posture, outstretched arms wrapped around his wife and child, who is balanced on one of his biceps. It is to be completed in December. Octogenarian President Abdoulaye Wade has compared the work to France's Eiffel Tower and America's Statue of Liberty; it is 13 feet taller than the latter. And he has sparked outrage by maintaining he is entitled to 35 percent of any tourist revenues it generates because he owns "intellectual rights" for conceiving the idea, with the rest to go to the government. Local media have lampooned the monument. One cartoon depicted its figures as a ragged, dripping family climbing onto a tin roof surrounded by flood waters. Another replaced them with Wade's own family, alluding to allegations it was his way of leaving a mark on the nation before he dies. Presidential spokesman Sitor Ndour defended the project, saying unoccupied government land was sold to fund the endeavor and no state funds were used. Critics say the money from the sale could have been put to better use — like purchasing badly needed medicine for public hospitals, assisting families who eat only one meal a day or helping combat rising crime. "Before we spend money on prestige, or tourism, we have to deal with local emergencies," Diakhate said. "Why not use that money where we need it more?" Ndour countered that the government already spends money helping Senegalese and "we believe culture is also a factor of development." Wade's administration has plans for a series of major projects, of which the monument is but one. He has called for a new airport and a cultural center that will house a national theater and a museum of African culture. Last year, the government completed other ambitious infrastructure, including a highway that cuts through the traffic-clogged heart of the city. It has also sold public land to developers building the country's first mall and international hotels. Only the wealthy, however, can enjoy the $15 pinacoladas overlooking the seaside Radisson SAS's Olympic-sized pool, and rains have flooded the tunnels of the new palm-tree-lined seaside artery, engulfing cars up to their windows. Nearly 50 North Korean workers from the state-run Mansudae Art Studio in Pyongyang were brought in to build the statue because of their expertise with bronze art, and some Senegalese have complained of its communist-era design. Abdoulaye Elimane Kane, a former culture minister and spokesman for the main opposition Socialist Party, said it reminds him of statues in North Korea — which he visited while a Cabinet member — and not of African art. The statue has also drawn complaints from Muslims — who make up 94 percent of Senegal's population — because of Islamic prohibitions on works that represent the human form. Wade insists any money he makes from the project will go back to the people, channeled through a foundation to help children's schools and education. And he says he hopes the monument will show the world that Africans are rebounding from a history of enslavement, subjugation and neglect, that "after six centuries of darkness, we are headed toward the light." To critics like Kane, it smacks of "unlimited presidential power, an absence of consultation, state privilege" — the autocratic tendencies Africa is trying to shed. Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. |
| This is such an awesome idea; I hope they actually do the event annually. I love that the announcer is referred to as "The Voice of God" and that celebrities and Calvin Klein, Inc. are participating. via artdaily.org Guggenheim Museum Announces Nominees for New Artist-Conceived Awards Event |
 Rob Pruitt. Photographed by Adrian Gaut, styling by Akari Endo. Commissioned by Dominic Sidhu for V Magazine. |
| NEW YORK, NY.- The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum today announced with event partner Calvin Klein Collection a new art event premiering in 2009: Rob Pruitt’s The First Annual Art Awards at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in Association with White Columns, to be held on Thursday, October 29, 2009. Artist Rob 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. The Art Awards will be an annual celebration of select individuals, exhibitions, and projects that have made a significant impact on the field of contemporary art during the previous year, specifically, for this year’s ceremony, from January 2008 to June 2009. According to Mr. Pruitt, “This annual gesture will function as a community-building and philanthropic event for the Guggenheim Museum, White Columns and, in 2009, Studio in a School, while simultaneously mobilizing the wide ranging talents and energies of the international arts community, focusing on our mutual admiration and support for one another's unique endeavors.” Mr. Pruitt continued, “With one eye on supporting our great institutions, and the other on injecting our community with a renewed sense of energy, spirit, and a dash of showbiz glamour, we are pleased to announce this very unique event.” Richard Armstrong, Director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and Museum, stated, “As the impresario behind the First Annual Art Awards, Rob Pruitt presents a daring new event model injected with the humor that underscores his work. Pruitt’s orchestration of this performative piece—with the rotunda as center stage—is aligned with the Guggenheim’s mission to continue to engage and present contemporary artists.” "The First Annual Art Awards, held at the Guggenheim Museum, will celebrate today's most interesting and respected artists, in an entirely innovative way," said Malcolm Carfrae, EVP Global Communications, Calvin Klein, Inc. "Calvin Klein, Inc. has always been a huge supporter of the arts and we are thrilled to be a part of such a groundbreaking event that celebrates the arts community and gives it the recognition it deserves." Pruitt has invited the Delusional Downtown Divas to preside over the event as Masters of Ceremonies, and Glenn O’Brien will step in as the Announcer, or, as Pruitt describes his role, as “the Voice of God.” An additional distinguished list of presenters will participate in distributing the awards, created by Pruitt to resemble a celebratory bucket of champagne that also serves as a fully functional lamp. The presenters will include Cecily Brown, Sofia Coppola, James Franco, Knight Landesman, Nate Lowman, and Mary-Kate Olsen, among others. Original music has been composed by Matthew Friedberger of the Fiery Furnaces, who will perform at the event. Christine Muhlke, food editor of the New York Times Magazine, is curating the cuisine for the seated dinner. Lifetime Achievement Awards, determined by Rob Pruitt along with organizing partners the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and White Columns, will be awarded to Joan Jonas and Kasper König. In addition, a group of more than four hundred art world professionals has been invited to form a Nominating Council that will select four nominees in nine categories that focus primarily on exhibitions and projects that took place over the preceding eighteen months (January 2008 to June 2009), in the United States, as well as one category recognizing an international exhibition. The Rob Pruitt Award is being decided solely by the artist. Of the following list of nominees, a larger group (including the Nominating Council) will establish the eventual winners, who will be announced at the live awards ceremony on October 29. The ten categories—in addition to the Lifetime Achievement Award—and the nominees for each category are: Artist of the Year • Louise Bourgeois • Urs Fischer • Dan Graham • Mary Heilmann Curator of the Year • Klaus Biesenbach • Daniel Birnbaum • Connie Butler • Massimiliano Gioni Exhibitions Outside the United States • Francis Bacon, Tate Britain, London • Jeff Koons, Versailles, Château de Versailles, France • 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, 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 October 29, 2009 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, Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and Whitney Museum of American Art, New York • Lawrence Weiner: As Far as the Eye Can See, 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, Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and Museum of Modern Art, New York Writer of the Year • Tim Griffin • John Kelsey • Walter Robinson • Jerry Saltz |
| via artdaily.org British Museum Presents First Exhibition to Examine the Semi-Mythical Statues of Moctezuma |
 This Monday Sept. 21, 2009 photo shows a woman walk by a basalt fragment, in the form of a serpent tail with maize cobs, which originally formed part of a much larger sculpture from around 1500, during the exhibition entitled: 'Moctezuma: Aztec Ruler', in central London's British Museum. Moctezuma II was the last elected Aztec Emperor that reigned between 1502-1520 and the exhibition will run from Sept 24, to Jan. 24, 2010. Loans of material from Mexico and Europe will be displayed and according to the museum, this is the first exhibition to examine the semi-mythical statues of the ruler and his legacy. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) |
| LONDON.- Completing its series of exhibitions exploring power and empire, the British Museum focuses on the last elected Aztec Emperor, Moctezuma II. Moctezuma: Aztec Ruler is the first exhibition to examine the semi-mythical status of Moctezuma and his legacy today. Loans of iconic material from Mexico and Europe will be displayed, most for the first time in this country. The exhibition anticipates the anniversaries in 2010 of the Independence of Mexico (1810) and of the Mexican Revolution (1910). Moctezuma (reigned 1502-1520) inherited and then consolidated Aztec control over a politically complex empire that by the early 16th century stretched from the shores of Pacific to the Gulf of Mexico. Moctezuma was regarded as a semi- divine figure by his subjects charged with the task of interceding with the gods. As a battle-hardened general he was appointed supreme military commander and headed the two most prestigious warriors orders: the eagle and jaguar warriors. He was elected as Ruling Lord (huey tlatoani) in 1502, built a new palace in the heart of Tenochtitlan (modern day Mexico City) and restructured the court. The arrival of the Spanish, during Moctezuma’s reign, witnessed the collapse of the native world order and the imposition of a new civilization that gave birth to modern Mexico. Uniquely, the exhibition will present a biographical narrative of Moctezuma II and reveal the dual nature of his reputation. On the one hand, he is recognised as a successful and cunning warrior but he is also widely perceived as a tragic figure who ceded his empire to foreigners. Divergent interpretations of his mysterious death will be re-examined in the exhibition. The exhibition will present masterpieces of Aztec culture including the impressive stone monument known as the Teocalli of Sacred Warfare, amongst other works commissioned by Moctezuma himself which bear his image and his name glyph. An exquisite turquoise mask and goldwork will showcase the consummate craftsmanship of artisans employed in the Aztec court and masterly paintings known as “Enconchados” (oil paintings on wooden panels with inlaid Mother of Pearl detail) portray the events of the conquest in vivid detail. Idealized European portraits of Moctezuma and stunning colonial Codices have helped shape our interpretations of Moctezuma and his world. The exhibition The exhibition tells the story of Moctezuma II, the last elected ruler of the Aztecs, more correctly known now as the Mexica. From 1502 until 1520 he presided over a large empire embracing much of what is today central Mexico. This exhibition examines his life, reign and controversial death during the Spanish conquest. The Spanish arrived on Mexican shores in 1519, led by Hernan Cortes. They were initially well received in the Aztec capital, but distrust and violence ensued. Moctezuma was captured and met his death shortly afterwards. Overcoming resistance, the Spanish went on to conquer his empire. Moctezuma’s life and dramatic death are explained through objects ranging, from sculpture, gold and mosaic items to codices and European paintings. The objects are drawn from Mexican, European, US collections and the British Museum’s own collection. Introduction According to myth, the ‘Aztecs’ were the ruling lords in the land of ‘Aztlan’. One subject group managed to escape their rule and began a long migration, adopting the name ‘Mexica’. The Mexica settled in the Basin of Mexico, founding their capital Tenochtitlan in about 1200. They spoke Nahuatl, one of many indigenous languages. ‘Aztec’ has been popularly but incorrectly used to describe the Mexica civilisation since the 1800s. The name ‘Mexica’ (pronounced ‘Mesheeka’) was recognised by the conquering Spanish, hence the name for modern Mexico. Moctezuma’s fame is more celebrated in Europe than in Mexico itself. The exhibition opens with an idealised European portrait of Moctezuma from the 1600s. It is accompanied by a stone box that was owned by Moctezuma. This bears his identifying name-glyph, which will be encountered again in later sections. The exhibition will reveal what we know of Moctezuma’s life before the arrival of the Spanish. The Aztecs (Mexica) The Mexica capital city, Tenochtitlan, was located on an island set in Lake Tetzcoco in the Basin of Mexico. The first section of the exhibition looks at the foundation myth and features objects relating to this mythology, including a greenstone heart and a large eagle sculpture. From its beginnings in about 1300, Tenochtitlan rapidly grew to become a thriving metropolis. Moctezuma was the last in a long line of Aztec rulers and lived in a palace adjacent to the main ceremonial precinct in the heart of Tenochtitlan. His immediate predecessor was his uncle Ahuitzotl. Moctezuma as ruler Moctezuma is introduced through his coronation stone. We will explain how, once nominated to succeed his uncle, he had to prove himself through military campaign before being formally invested. At his coronation in 1502 he was given the insignia of office including treasured turquoise and gold items of personal adornment. Moctezuma built a new palace to administer the empire and lived there with his wives, children and the courtly entourage. A number of architectural fragments from the palace excavations will be on display. Religion and the gods Moctezuma was a vital intermediary with the Mexica gods and was himself regarded by his subjects as a semi-divine figure. He worshipped at the Great Temple, a huge stepped pyramid in the heart of the ritual centre of Tenochtitlan. We will display a model that will show the Temple and other ritual buildings. Moctezuma would have carried out blood-letting rituals, and ordered the sacrifice of captives. We will examine the most important gods, including Quetzalcoatl. It is a popularly held belief that Moctezuma considered Cortes to be a personification of the returning deity Quetzalcoatl, although this has been challenged by recent scholarship. The end of the section focuses on the New Fire Ceremony. This marked the end of a 52-year period in the Mexica calendrical cycle that occurred during Moctezuma’s reign and can be dated to 1508. Warfare and empire Moctezuma was a formidable warrior and head of the Mexica army. We will display a range of ceremonial weaponry as well as an imposing monument sculpted with Mexica warriors. Particularly important was the site of Malinalco, where the elite Jaguar and Eagle warriors were based. Moctezuma consolidated the Mexica empire and secured tribute, or taxes, that poured into Tenochtitlan. Exacting tribute in the form of raw materials or crafted goods contributed to the opulence of the court but meant that Moctezuma was feared and resented among subject towns. Conquest The Spaniard Hernan Cortes landed on the coast in 1519 along with a few hundred men. At the same time, the Mexica are said to have witnessed strange omens and signs that are later depicted in the codices. Moctezuma sent emissaries to the coast with gifts for Cortes. Cortes forged alliances with bitter rival of the Mexica in the course of his march to Tenochtitlan. Moctezuma greeted Cortes but made the fatal mistake of allowing the Spanish into Tenochtitlan and housing them in a palace. The Spanish captured Moctezuma and unrest broke out in the city following a massacre of Mexica nobles by the Spanish. Shortly afterwards Moctezuma died – and it is widely believed that he was stoned to death by his own people. However, other sources claim that he was in fact secretly murdered by the Spanish. The main events of the conquest are documented by a series of colonial paintings. Moctezuma in history After Moctezuma’s death, the Spanish conquered the Mexica Empire with assistance from Moctezuma’s enemies. We will display items that were later repurposed by the Spanish, such as a serpent sculpture that was inverted to form a baptismal font. Moctezuma’s daughters Isabel and Mariana and son Pedro survived the conquest. Codices show how they went to Spain and intermarried with the nobility there. Moctezuma has an ambivalent reputation within Mexico today, but his fame lived on as a figure of fascination within Europe. The exhibition ends with European portraits of Moctezuma. There depict him as a once-proud warrior and tragic figure who surrendered his empire but whose fame live on. The exhibition will be the first ever in Europe focusing on the great age of Mexican printmaking in the first half of the twentieth century. Between 1910 and 1920 the country was convulsed by the first socialist revolution, from which emerged a strong left-wing government that laid great stress on art as a vehicle for promoting the values of the revolution. This led to a pioneering programme to cover the walls of public buildings with vast murals, and later to setting up print workshops to produce works for mass distribution and education. Some of the finest of these prints were produced by the three great men of Mexican art of the period: Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiros. The exhibition will also include earlier works around the turn of the century by the popular engraver, José Guadalupe Posada, who was adopted by the revolutionaries as the archetypal printmaker who worked for the people, and whose macabre dances of skeletons have always fascinated Europeans. |
