I love to craft, to make collages and play with materials, I only wish that my results were as artistic as Nick Gentry’s work. He takes “obsolete” items such as floppy disks and transforms them into portraits. What is great is the points in which the media used can be seen through the paint. This is more than just picking up a bunch of floppy disks and splashing some paint on them.

Image from Lost at Eminor.com

What is even cooler is that he wants people to contribute, he wants people to mail him there obsolete items for use in future pieces. If only I had known this before I could have sent him a huge box of floppy disks and cassette tapes.

Links

• Nick Gentry
• Nick Gentry Flickr
• Lost at Eminor

Napoleon Bonaparte Visiting the Victims of the Plague at Jaffa, 11 March 1799

Antonie-Jean Gros, 1804

The painting can be understood as pre-Romanticism, hinting at Orientalist or Neoclassical. Ultimately the work functions as a Napoleonic History Painting, even if the history it portrays is skewed to function as Napoleonic propaganda.

“The monumental arches compositionally may pay homage to David’s The Oath of the Horatii, but instead of supporting a narrative of Neoclassical stoicism and clarity they contribute a Romantic exoticism and sense of foreboding of horrifying uncertainty.” Davies et al., Janson’s History of Art, 840.

This painting is currently on view at the Louvre in Paris.

Bibliography

Davies, Penelope J.E., Walter B. Denny, Frima Fox Hofrichter, Joseph F. Jacobs, Ann M. Roberts, and David L. Simon. Janson’s History of Art: The Western Tradition. 8th ed. Prentice Hall, 2010.

In March I received my first SAM volunteer newsletter and super excited by all the opportunities to learn more about the museum and take part in activities. The most interesting was a listing to help with an art installation at the Olympic Sculpture Park. I quickly signed up for three days and waited to get my time slot assignments.

The site-specific installation, Encontro das Águas (Encounter of Waters), was created by Brazilian artist Sandra Cinto. The whole work was painted directly onto the walls with silver paint pens, the walls having been extended in some areas and initially painted with several bands of blue paint.

Arriving on the first day I fully expected that the Cinto would have sketched the design on the walls and we would be given instructions on how to follow her sketch with the paint pens. I figured that she would not been there or more likely stand watch but that I would be lucky to have any interaction with her. I guess this was a fairly cynical way to think, but I was completely surprised. Within minutes of arriving I was introduced to Sandra Cinto who took me aside to show me how to use the pens and directed me to a wave she had already painted on the wall. She drew a few lines on the wall to show me where she wanted to me work and then walked away – I was on my own. In all honestly drawing one inch long lines is not a difficult task, but there was no instruction on how close together they were to be placed. I was just allowed to fill the space as I felt right.

Three stages of the section I worked on.

After filling my first wave section, Cinto had me fill a larger area with lines that were closer to three inches long at the base of the wave pattern. She checked in on each volunteer every so often looking at what they were doing. Commenting that my work was beautiful and asking my opinion on whether one area should be filled with lines or left blank.

During a stretching break I watched her start the pattern on another wall. With a larger silver paint pen she created a sweeping curve across the navy wall, using her whole body to smoothly move the paint. Each line was decidedly placed yet unplanned. How she used her whole body to create the lines, becoming a paint brush was wonderful to watch. Cinto explained to another volunteer that her movement was part of being Brazilian, that flowing movement was so much a part of the culture.

The lines grew from a single curve to crashing waves and swirling orbs and we all watched in amazement. By the end of my first day I was asked to create curves within some smaller waves. The straight lines where one thing, but I was a little scared to create curves. I carefully drew on the silver lines and stepped back, my waves were lost in the sea of other waves. Yes!

On my second day I was given a slightly larger area to fill in, spending a fair amount of time checking to see that the lines flowed in the manner I wanted them to. I also listened to several other new volunteers start their sections on the wall, they too were nervous of the freedom Cinto allowed. Asking what happens if a mistake was made, Cinto said that it was not be a mistake, it would become part of the final work and she would incorporate it in with the waves. Every line made was meant to be part of the final work, even those that the individual felt was not as good as the line before.

I would have been there every day if I had known how great it felt to work on the project and how great Cinto was to work with. She took a photograph with several of the volunteers; however I did not get a photo of my own with her. Robert Wade took photographs for the museum which you can see at his website, including a few of me at work and talking with Cinto. The work itself will be up until April 14, 2013.

Links

• samblog
• city arts online

For the first time I have taken a second look at an exhibit in a different museum.

Last year I saw HIDE/SEEK twice at the National Portrait Gallery. Today I experienced HIDE/SEEK at the Tacoma Art Museum.  This viewing was a completely different experience for many reasons.  Many of the well known pieces were on view in Tacoma; some were replaced with similar work, an adjustment clearly presented by the museum with a small reproduction of the original work accompanying the wall text.  Eakin’s, Hartley and Warhol were all on display again, there were different Demuth and O’Keeffe paintings shown and I did not see Keith Haring’s work (the brochure says one is at Tacoma) or Annie Leibovitz’s photograph of Ellen DeGeneres.  This re-arrangement of the pieces, in a chronological order versus a thematic one did draw my attention to Minor White’s work and Grant Wood’s Arnold Comes of Age.

The most interesting charge as far as the pieces displayed was Untitled (Portrait of Ross in L.A.)by Felix Gonzalez-Torres.

(Photo of a museum visitor interacting with untitled (Portrait of Ross in LA) by Félix González-Torres photo credit Molly Robert via Smithsonian Mag)

My image of the same piece from Tacoma Art Museum

I don’t want to sound as if I am putting down the Portrait Gallery, I love the museum and thought that the exhibit they displayed was great. The controversy surrounding the exhibit however seemed to permeate my viewing at the Portrait Gallery, it led to the space being filled with people on both visits. Anyone who has spent time in a crowded gallery understands how hard it can be to really see the individual pieces much less understand the overall conversation presented. Tacoma, with only a few visitors allowed for more time to reflect on the works and see the emotion connected with the exhibit that I had missed before.

And yes, Tacoma had A Fire in My Belly playing – some people watched it, others decided not to. Guess what, the world did not end.

Eleanor Antin is another artist I discovered reading Art Talk. In truth much of her work is too conceptual for my taste, however I love her “break out” work – 100 Boots.

In 1971 Antin created 100 Boots, a multi-part project in which she arranged and Philip Steinmetz photographed 100 rubber boots around southern California. The result was a 51 picture postcard narrative with the boots acting as the main character.

While the concept itself is interesting, what drew me to the work is that she produced it as postcards. Cindy Nemser’s interview she asked Antin why she invented the boots. Antin’s response speaks to how art was, and probably still is consumed.

“I was tired of coming into New York to put on shows that were always going into a vacuum once they were over. I wanted to do something that lasted longer… So I thought of the mails which are an obvious method of distribution that reach everyone with an address. Besides, people like getting mail.”

Antin mailed these 50 postcards over two and a half years to 1,000 people at random intervals based on the boot narrative.

“At one point, 100 Boots trespasses, and since this was their first crime I couldn’t wait for another month to pass for the m to make their getaway. They would have been caught. So a week later, I sent out the next card: 100 Boots on the Road, which was 100 boots on the lam – fast.”

The receivers never paid for the cards and at the time no one was able to purchase the cards or images from Antin (she has published a book). Ultimately in 1973 MoMA asked her to put together a full show for the boots, with the museum serving as the boots “crash pad” after their long journey.  Not only where the boots themselves on display, the 51 postcards were gathered together in full and 27 new images of the boots were displayed specifically for MoMA.

from artnet galleries

I wish I had been one of the lucky individuals on the mailing list, to be surprised when one arrived  and never knowing when the next would come.  In someways Antin’s work with 100 Boots feels like the start to so many series of photographs today. People take toys with them to places around the world for photographs or I even saw two friends who had their photograph taken in front of a post office of every town they visited. I tried to capture my shoes for one year – I actually started twice and made it about four months at one time, maybe it is time to try again or search for a new goal with Antin as my inspiration.

The word of the day is Chryselephantine.

Meaning “fashioned of  gold and ivory” this word is most often used in reference to Greek statues, particularly the Athena statue which was housed in the Parthenon. Typically the ivory is used to represent skin. Art Nouveau and Art Deco movements lead to a revival in the style, with bronze often replacing the gold.

Since I am spending my time in Seattle until the Fall semester starts I am volunteering at the Seattle Art Museum for a few months. I am only a part time volunteer for the current special exhibit, Gauguin and Polynesia, but it is one of the best things I have ever done. My shifts include working in coat check, handing out audio guides and greeting museum guests, ultimately tasks that I did not think could be life changing. Turns out they kind of are.

Last Spring I took The Museum, a great class were we discussed various aspect of how a museum functions, how exhibits are assembled and the politics involved.  Until now that was all abstract. In the training session at SAM we were told about the elements which are part of the exhibit; the brochures, micro web sites, apps and audio tour downloads. Traveling around Seattle everywhere are posters, banners, advertisements and marketing for the exhibit. Then add to those elements the special events and lectures being held in conjunction with the exhibit. The planning and organization needed to host an exhibit of this size was something that I would have never understood. It is only after spending some time behind the curtain that I am starting to realize the years that have gone into this one exhibit. Each day I am there I see more of how things work, how visitors view the museum and really enjoy talking with the visitors. Some of it is people watching, but ultimately I am watching how others interact with the art.

The learning does not stop with watching, I have already purchased my ticket to hear Stephane Guegan talk about Gauguin next week and am debating the purchase of the exhibit catalog. There are also a chances to take part in all sorts of educational activities just for volunteers. Last year the idea of taking a whole semester off from classes had me worried, I was in the school mind set and to step away for a while was scary. Being a volunteer has completely adjusted that fear, I know that I am still learning . There is a information tour of the Northwest Coast gallery coming up that I hope to take part in and some volunteer work with a local artist in April as well.

The other day I was asked what to see in the museum. The guest only had another 30 minutes to spend and wanted some guidance. For a split second I was scared, what do I say! I have only started to read about a small segment of the total museum collection and here I was on the spot. It did not take me long to tell her that she should check out the native arts pieces on display in the Northwest Coast gallery. They are something very few museums have on display and that I would look at the American Art collection. It gave me warm and fuzzy feelings.  It was the chance to share with someone else something I love. That moment was the reason I returned to school, it confirmed for me that I want to be part of this world from now on. So a big thanks to everyone at the SAM for letting me experience this and a bigger thanks to my husband for supporting this crazy direction I am taking my life.

Even though I am not in school this semester and I have not found an internship I still need to hit the books. It is fact that I am bad with numbers, so I find dating art work particularly hard. Since most of the classes I have taken focused on art form the late 19th and 20th centuries starting at the beginning and brushing up on the earlier centuries is key. This has me revisiting the Paleolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic periods in both Janson’s and Gardner’s to start with and have started a timeline.

One of the main works I remember form prior years of study is the Venus of Willendorf, or the Woman of Willendorf. The small limestone carving is important to art historians because it is an example of a typical sculptural representation created during the Paleolithic period. The Willendorf Venus was found by archeologists in Willendorf, Austria and named Venus due to the fact that it is a nude representation of a female. While not believed to have any connection to pre-historic deities the emphasized female characteristics, which are seen in other stone carvings, suggest that it is associated with fertility. The absence of any facial features is also an important note as it suggests that it carving is not a representation of an individual woman The Willendorf female dates from 28,000 to 25,000 BCE, other female figures including the Venus of Moravany date from 22,000 BCE.

The art work that is new to me, is the Two Bison reliefs found in a cave in Le Tuc d’Audoubert, Fance. Created around 15,000 to 10,000 BCE these two animals were created by the building up of clay rather than carving away at the stone. This clay was brought into the cave to form the animals and worked with tools and the artists hands, proving that planning went into their creation. I really wonder why they were created, if we considered that most of the sculpture from the period was small and easily portable these site specific, two foot long, clay bison represent a change. Hopefully more such animals will be found so we can get a better idea of why these were created.

I have ignored the best known Paleolithic art, cave paintings. We currently know of three main sites; Altamira, Spain (12,000 – 11,000 BCE), Pech-Merle, France (22,000 BCE), Lascaux, France (15,000 – 13,000 BCE) and Vallon-Pont-d’Arc (30,000 – 13,000 BCE).

The first was discovered in the late 1800s in Altamira, Spain on a cave ceiling. All the animals are depicted from the side which allows for a full representation and it is important to note that the paintings have no ground, no horizon line distinguished. The animals are on different planes not placed in relation to each other or in a specific place. The value in depicting the landscape was not important for some reason that we cannot understand. At first my thought was that maybe they only understood their current environment. Thus it was not important to document something that was a constant. The thought however is very naïve, to think that the cultures did not see changes in seasons, understand that there was different types of terrain and or did not travel over areas for hunting is impossible. Clearly the animals held a greater value, one that required documentation.

The Hall of the Bulls in Lascaux, France provides scholars with evidence that the documentation did not happen in one day or even one year, rather it was continued over time. The paintings include both carefully shaded animals and outlines of animals, they are different sizes and cross on top of each other. These different styles of representation could represent the evolution of artistic representation occurring in Paleolithic art.

Last summer I started to clear some things out, mostly to make my craft space more workable but ultimately I just had too much stuff. In the process I donated the last computers we owned with floppy disk drives, not before I pulled all the files off stacks of floppy disks. Only now am I taking the time to look through what all I had saved on this disks. Among these wonderful moments from my past was this report / essay on droog from undergrad. I have updated this for posting, rather I decided it shows how far, or more likely how little, my writing style has grown in ten plus years.

Who is Droog?

In 1993 Gijs Bakker and Renny Ramakers, two Dutch designers, started a company named Droog. Today the Dutch collective has grown in numbers and has pieces for sale in fashionable New York shops and on the Internet. The Dutch word Droog means dry, however the design being produced is not. Even as each member has there own style and choice of materials, as a group they reinterpret simple designs by using either different materials or giving them new functions. Where as their products are not highly technical, they do not involve computers to function, many rely on new technology in reference to materials. This is part of the reason that their designs don’t always make it to production. A fellow designer said of the group, that they use “uncommon materials blended with traditional forms, and in juxtaposing these with new technologies.” There designs have some very forward-looking elements, they use new materials, the Internet to sell their products, they took part in rebuilding a city and there designs are following the bad design trend.

This idea of high fashion being non-functional, often ugly design comes from the mass market of attractive designs in stores like the Pottery Barn and Ikea. This has pushed people in search of original designs to buy products that are the opposite. These are people who are looking for products that make statements, “bad taste is becoming high fashion.” These products they are buys are about looks, and are not always functional. Droog is a company that has been taking advantage of this trend. One member, Hella Jongerius, has a product entitled Soft Vases that can be seen in Channel Ads. The vases are made of flexible material and comes in a rainbow of colors. She has also been asked to work with Donna Karen on a upscale line of products for the home. Not everyone is buying into this idea.  The Droog designed Milk Bottle Lamp, does not provide enough light to light a room, as many expect.  The piece was designed to work on the European power system, and thus only puts out a low light.  The designer says it is only intended to be used for mood lighting. This has not kept the lamp from selling, it can be found for sale on the Internet and at Moss in SoHo.

www.droog.com/store/lighting/milk-bottle-lamp/

This is only one example, other products such as the Green Jar is another mood light.  This light designed by Marcel Wanders costs forty-four dollars and is a large Dutch pickle jar half filled with pasta and a small lamp in the lid. The lamp has a slight green hue and can be special ordered in other colors.

These products may seem to be interesting but with out much use to the everyday man, Droog however is a globally conscientious group, not just about interesting objects.  When the Dutch government invested money in to bringing tourism and culture to a depressed area in East Germany (a location where a Dutch castle was located) Marcel Wanders with the help of other Droog designers set to work.  They designed products for the town to produce and sell from area materials. They designed the packaging, a disposable wooded bowls (no available plastic resources) and orange peelers (the area has a high orange tree population). This was all a free service to the people of the town and is known as the “Couleur Locale”.

Elements of Droog’s work also show that they have looked to the past for some of there inspiration, even the bad taste movement can been seen as a resurgence of the past. It has been compared to the 1960’s when after the order and mass markets of the 1950’s there was a flood of furry furniture and plastic everything. However this was not Droog’s goal, so as they may have looked at this trend they were not actively trying to copy it. The influence of the past can be seen in greater detail in some individual pieces, for example Hella Jongerius’s Soft Sink, reflects Surrealism and Duchamp at the same time. The sink is made of the same flexible polyurethane as her Soft Vases.  It was designed for small bathrooms so that they could be pushed out of the way. A sink costs $886, and Jongerius has one in her own home to make sure that they last (she has had hers for over two years with out any problems).

http://www.architonic.com/

The Milk Bottles Lamp is a different look at the past.  The designer has taken an object that was formerly a functional item, a milk bottle, and due to technology is no longer in use. The bottle has been replaced by the non-breakable plastic milk jug and paper carton which both are not as elegant as the former bottle. He was able to take the bottle and make it a marketable object. The shape is being reused to make a very elegant lamp, which is also nostalgic and a commentary on the ugliness of our present everyday objects.

Some other products by the group, like the Milk Bottle Lamp, appear to be studies in the elegance of the materials used. Two such designs are the Table Chair and 85 Lamps both can be bought online. The Table Chair designed by Richard Hutten, and falls in the non-functional category, due to the fact that it is not a comfortable seat. The wood of the set is clearly more important than the comfort, because it is allowed to be seen, not covered by a dark paint or varnish. The cost for the combination piece is $1,500. 85 Lampson the other hand is a functional piece, but as one homeowner found out, it was hard to find anyone to install it. The electrician and the contractor which were hired to hang this lamp in a new home where afraid that it was too breakable and refuse to install the piece.  The light is $2550 and is made up of 85 light bulbs; this is taking a typical object and by repletion making it elegant.  We can see the elegance of the object that we over look in our everyday. The homeowner eventually had to return the light, not everyone has these problems, and Droog does sell many of their products worldwide.

www.droog.com

Droog has made an impact on the design of today, there are several books out which tell of there style and talk of what they have done for design.  Even with so many almost negative reports in magazines and papers as far as the non-functionality of the products and the ugliness, Droog is unbothered and continues to design by there own definitions of style.

Bibliography

•  Antonelli, Paola. “Going Dutch.” Harper’s Bazaar. NY: June 99. pg. 154-157
• Codrington, Andrea. “Downloading Design.” Metropolitan Home. NY: 11 Dec. 99. pg 92-94
• Daspin, Eillen. “Your Money Matters.” Wall Street Journal. NY: 11 Feb. 00. W14
• Kabat, Jennifer. “At Home at Habitat.” ID. NY: May 99. pg 72-75
• Marty, Martin E. “Already Avant-garde.” The Christian Century. Chicago: 23 Feb. 00. pg. 223
• “New and Notable.” ID. NY: June 99. pg 31
• www.unicahome.com

The first week of February I went on a discovery visit at the Seattle Art Museum (SAM). I am sure many are surprised I waited several weeks after my move to Seattle before making it to the museum; however as an unemployed college student free entrance on the first Thursday of every month proved a good reason to wait. Now with my volunteer badge in hand I plan on making the visit as often as I can.

Seattle Art Museum - south entrance

That being said, for my first visit I was not disappointed. Ultimately I found many new “friends” on the walls and was very excited about the upcoming shows and events that the SAM hosts. Starting in the American Art gallery I played the “name that artist” and was impressed by how many I knew, or at least was kicking myself that I could not place the name, yet knew who it was. I believe Professor Todd would be a little disappointed in my accuracy; however she knows that I did have trouble identifying which were Church, Cole and Bierstadt on my exams.  To my credit, I did get Sargent and Sullivian right away, both which are more my area of interest and study.

Léon Delafosse, ca. 1895 - 98 John Singer Sargent Copyright (c) 2011 Seattle Art Museum.

The gallery included Church’s Niagara from 1856 which made me a little home sick for its big brother, but I loved the stained glass piece by John La Farge. The mix of furniture and silver pieces included in the gallery was great and ultimately I was delighted by the representation of early American art on display.

The next gallery I looked at was the Native Art of the Americas; an experience which made it very clear to me is that when I am back in D.C. this fall I need to visit the National Museum of the American Indian – anyone interested in joining me? Of the pieces on display I found the the Soul Catcher very interesting and I loved all the Argillite pieces.

My favorite piece in the gallery was The First People by Susan Point. Susan is a Coast Salish artist from Musqueam, a First Nation in Vancouver, British Columbia. This piece was created in 2008 for SAM and I believe does a really wonderful job of being modern and traditional. The inclusion of active artists within an area of the museum that many would think of as only holding artifacts forced me to readjust my view point.

I also loved Leaves by Gloria Petyarre, which was included in an exhibit of Australian Aboriginal art. The gallery had several wonderfully patterned pieces and walking through it after looking at the Native American art had me considering all the post-colonialist art essays that I have read. The wall text even mentioned the word “modern” to describe pieces and I could hear my methods classmate’s comments in my head. It was comforting that other visitors were heard making comments along these lines, to me it means that people are thinking about more than the physical aesthetic and the actual creative process behind the works on display. I do not envy the curator who organizes these exhibits, finding the correct balance and placement so that the works are read as part of a continual culture. It is handled quite well I believe with the traditional, “old” soul catcher placed with a modern interpretation by a native artist in one instance.