"Why do we want these works to turn out to be by Velázquez and Michelangelo? After all, the art is the same either way."

The Wine of St. Martin’s Day, a previously ignored painting by Pieter Bruegel the Elder

 

"In the end we want another celebrity attribution like this one because we want to get things straight. History tries to make sense out of chaos, toward which the world inevitably inclines. Art historians create hierarchies, categories and movements; they attribute causes and effects to conjure an appearance of logic. Attributing a picture to a household deity like Bruegel or Michelangelo affirms our sense of control, our ability to get a grip on our affairs, at least for the moment. We take comfort in mooring some grimy, forgotten canvas, another example of life’s flotsam and, implicitly, of our own fate, to one of the pillars of art history." - Via the NYTimes

Maybe that's the reason; we're so excited by the discovery of a masterpiece we forget we never thought it was great before. Maybe its the thrill of discovery. But I think we could all just be a tad foolish.

Like: Hacking the Paris Escalator

Via Wooster Collective

Anything is Possible

"I Am Not Me, the Horse is Not Mine" excerpt

I finally saw the art21 William Kentridge documentary last night (available for online viewing if you missed it too), and it reminded me what a performative artist Kentridge is. At his MoMA exhibition sometimes, like in the Melies series, one was watching his recorded performance, but I think I forgot about the aspect because I was caught up in the action. He uses his body as a tool without making the work seem about himself. And the results are usually delightful.

Caught My Eye: Ah Xian's Porcelain Busts

China, China -bust no.10, 1998

Stumbled across the work of Ah Xian, a Chinese artist now in Australia, over at Art Inconnu, and really loved these fancifully inked porcelain heads that toy with tradition and representation. More here and here.

From China China series, 1998

I wish I was...

Artoon via Artworld Salon

doing something like this at the Miami Art Fairs, or like this or this or this. But I would also settle for this:

Brrrr...it's cold here in New York.

Copyright Infringement (again...)

Dear ArtRavels:

We have disabled the following material as a result of a third-party notification from Cunningham Dance Foundation claiming that this material is infringing:
Merce Cunningham's Nearly Ninety
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-UpJziweJQ

This is the second copyright strike against your account. A single additional claim against your account will result in the termination of your account. To avoid this, delete any videos to which you do not own the rights, and refrain from uploading additional videos that infringe on the copyrights of others. For more information about YouTube's copyright policy, please read the Copyright Tips guide.

If one of your postings has been misidentified as infringing, you may submit a counter-notification. Information about this process is in our Help Center.Please note that under Section 512(f) of the Copyright Act, any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material was disabled due to mistake or misidentification may be liable for damages.

Sincerely,
— The YouTube Team

Yesterday I received that email. This being the second infringement, I must seem like quite a hooligan. The first video removed for copyright included clips from The Public Theater's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. After learning a lot about Actor's Equity I was less surprised that my video was taken down. It's probably for the best, if only because the stream of comments (which on Youtube seem to be inordinately nasty) was starting to get to me.

This video was also a clip of a performance--about 2 minutes from what I recall--of Merce Cunningham's Nearly Ninety, a performance that happened shortly before the choreographer's death. I don't know if there is a Dancer's Equity involved, but again it's disappointing. I posted it with the best of intents: to share something awesome that a lot of people hadn't had the opportunity to see. Because it was such a short clip giving full credits to the organization and because I wasn't trying to capitalize on it any way, I'm unclear how it harms the Cunningham Dance Foundation. I suppose if I were them I might argue that I make the performance look bad, with my grainy clips taken from my nosebleed seat of a few to 30 seconds breaking up the flow of the piece. I'm amazed that somebody noticed my video of a year or so ago at all, and then proceeded to take action to have it removed.

Le sigh...

John Baldessari: Pure Beauty at the Met

Commissioned Painting: A Painting by Anita Storck, 1969

This work, up at the Met as part of its John Baldessari: Pure Beauty exhibition, was painted by Anita Storck, an artist who, like others in this series, Baldessari found at a local craft fairs selling scenes of landscapes, flowers, and boats at sea. He commissioned them to paint as faithfully as they could an image of their choice from a selection of photographs Baldessari had taken. After, Baldessari had a sign painter hand-letter the painter's name on each canvas. Like much of the work on view, the story behind the object is more interesting than the object itself.

As the first major U.S. exhibition in 20 years to survey the Baldessari's work, this pioneer of conceptual art was a bit of a history lesson for me, as I can see the shadow of his long arm in many contemporary artists' work, but also a reminder of some of my inherent dislike of conceptual art. In Pure Beauty, one can witness the many evolutions of form in his long career, but much of the same focus, such as the process of art making and how we perceive things.

Heel, 1986

The story of how he makes the works, like how he pulled images, for example cinematic stills like the works above and below, and put them back together is more interesting than the end result is visually. (Conceptual art in a nutshell?). For example, to create the Duress series below, Baldessari went through the process of him standing in front of the TV with a camera and taking pictures of movies, blowing up those stills, inking in the figures, and creating depth with foam as an examination of mass media. The process in interesting, but is doesn't necessarily come through in the work.

The Duress Series: Person Climbing Exterior Wall of Tall Building / Person on Ledge of Tall Building / Person on Girders of Unfinished Tall Building, 2003

For me, the continuous focus on structure, rules, media, and the process of art making is a questioning of convention without actually saying anything in response. His work can be interesting, even decorative, but shallow. That said, I feel like I understand contemporary art better for having seen it. 

On view at the Met through January 9.