Happy Birthday, Pablo Picasso!

Feliz cumpleaños, Pablo Picasso. Today, you would have been 134 years old. And to celebrate your legacy, we bring attention to two great exhibitions of your work and about the influence of your work:

Picasso Mania! in Paris at the Grand Palais, through February 29, 2016

And Picasso Sculpture in New York at the Museum of Modern Art, through February 7, 2016.

Viva Picasso - Long may you reign as the art master supreme.

Beth New York

"Sins" of the Summer Continue through the Fall 2015

Hieronymus Bosch, Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things, 1485

The Fairfield/Westchester Museum Alliance (FWMA) organized a sinned-filled summer and fall with its first united effort: the "Seven Deadly Sins."  Based on the "Eight Evil Thoughts" set down by Evagrius Ponticus, a Greek monk (345- 399 AD), and established by Pope Gregory I in 590 A.D., these moralizing concepts may seem a bit out-of-touch with our relativist 21st-century minds. Moreover, most of the curators missed the opportunity to teach us about the use of morality tales in art history. For traditionally, art was meant to uplift and ennoble, inspire virtuous behavior and give comfort to those afflicted by pain.  Art also promoted fame through portraiture - an act of pride, of course.  Pride, therefore, can do good - recording the faces of yore,

Fay Ku, Juno's Creatures, 2014

Graphite and oil on mylar, 42 x 30 inches

Courtesy of the artist and Claire Oliver Gallery, New York

Deputy director and curator at the Bruce Museum Susan Ball should take great pride in her wonderful selection of artworks and her ability to educate her audience. Of special note, the exhibition includes a mesmerizing Antoine Roegiers video of animated Bosch and Bruegel characters which act out all Seven Deadly Sins in brief humorous vignettes.

Gabriel Schlaching (1850-1912), 

Sweet Reflections, 1886

oil on canvas, 51 x 39 inches

Woodmere Art Museum, Bequest of Charles Knox Smith

Photograph by Rick Echelmeyer

According Dr. Ball: "The Seven Deadly Sins have played a significant role in theology, literature and art since the Middle Ages, Pride, or superbia, represents the mother of all sins and the one from which all others arise – the root of a many-branched tree.  .  . The debate about the definition of sinfulness in general and each specific transgression in particular has raged for centuries.  One might ask, at what point is the line between healthy self-esteem, or pride, and the sin of arrogant self-aggrandizement, or pridefulness, crossed?” 

So true!  I should note that there were attempts to conscious-raise in other exhibitions. 

Diane Burko, Arctic Cyclone, 2012

For example, "Wrath: Force of Nature" at Wave Hill, took on environmental issues with magnificent paintings that address the unpredictability of Mother Nature. Some were tumultuous, others calm. Together, the works delivered such visual pleasure their negative connotations seemed beside the point. (Please click on the title of the exhibition to see digital reproductions of the paintings and read the catalog.)

James Lee Byars, The Golden Divan, 1990

Greed at Neuberger Museum, Purchase College, exhibited Gold organized by the Curator of Exhibitions José Carlos Diaz at the Bass Museum. The press release stated: "Some artists explore the ritualistic use of gold to imbue objects with spiritual and eternal significance. James Lee Byars utilizes gold in pursuit of his idea of sacred beauty and perfection by including a tiny golden sphere in his Self-Portrait and using metallic fabric in The Golden Divan for one of gold." 

What does this have to do with "Greed"???  Plenty of eye-candy, but "Seven Deadly Sin"-ful it is not.(Please click on the exhibition title to view several examples in the show.)

Sylvie Fleury, Yes to All That, 2004

Sylvie Fleury at least has a sense of humor. The absurdity of this gold-plated garbage receptacle evokes a preciousness that teeters between excess and emptiness. "All that glisters is not gold," Shakespeare reminded us, i.e., a gilded veneer may lend value to worthless objects, such as Dario Escobar's 1999 Untitled (a golden McDonald's soda cup) or disguise potential dangers, as in Chris Burden's Gold Bullets (2003).

Emilie Clark, Sweet Corruptions, 2012-13

egg shells, fruit peels, bread crusts, shells, on wooden table

(liquids and solids in auxiliary jars)

Emilie Clark, "Untitled EHR/H-1," from The Delicacy of Decomposition series, 2015

Gluttony at Katonah Museum of Art, serves up the sin of garbage-making by aesthetically displaying various food scraps accumulated over a year.  The artist Emilie Clark views her studio as a lab and combines art with science to help us understand her installation Sweet Corruptions, 2012-13. Her  series of delicate watercolors of decomposing edibles (2015) surround a large wooden table groaning with egg shells, bread crusts, fruit peels and cheese rinds, arranged in an attractive composition.

However, one person's idea of  gourmet may be another person's idea of gourmand.  Do we really need 20 ounce servings of soda?  Apparently, Mike Bloomberg said "nay" and his NYC constituents said "forgettaboutit."  Gluttony is in the eyes of the beholder.  And waste, well that's another topic entirely - and suitable for a different show.

Adrien Broom, Envy and Temptation, 2015

Envy:One Sin, Seven Stories, combines digital photographs of actors and 3-D stage sets in order to dramatize classic fairy tales about coveting desirable possessions, from beauty to material goods. Unfortunately, the choice of Snow White set my nerves on edge, as I am a stepmother and believe that today's stepmothers need kinder publicity.  Why not consider the envy of siblings: Cain and Abel, Jacob and Esau, Osiris and Seth, Mufasa and Scar?   Why not an updated examination of Envy in today's media: Cribs, Housewives of Whatever, or The Primates of Park Avenue?

Marcy Freedman, Poster for Performance Piece, July 26, 2015

Lust at Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art proved to be the least appealing of the exhibitions and most inappropriate for its location: the only museum in a family town (Peekskill) should not bar youngsters under 18 years old from art. This decision may be the real sin perpetrated by this lifeless show. Nevertheless, In Bed with a Big, Bad Wolf, performed by Marcy Freedman on July 26, brought intelligence with a twist of humor to this fairly dull take on such a spicy topic.

Sin Najafi with Mats Bigert, Sloth, 2015

Sloth at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Center had the most innovative idea: engage the audience through direct participation.  Here, the visitor can sit in a comfy recliner and watch a video loop of curators explaining the other exhibitions in the FWMA SDS project.  However, right here and right now, as you read, you can out sloth the Aldrich's Sloth-y installation.  For the New York Arts Exchange provides the various links to the FWMA venues so that you can sit in your own easy chair in the comfort of your own home accompanied by gluttonous portions of your own favorite snacks tailored to your own greedy appetite. (After all, this the 21st century and you should be able to curate your own experience of the Seven Deadly Sins in your own way.)  

Two exhibitions have closed already.  Five still remain on view, but not for long.  May I suggest that you put Pride at the top of your to-do list - and take pride in the fact that you didn't miss this excellent show.

Closed:

Lust at the Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art, April 19 - July 26, 2015

Wrath at Wave Hill, June 7 - September 7, 2015

Still open:

Envy  - Hudson River Museum, June 6 - September 26

Pride - Bruce Museum, June 27 - October 18

Gluttony - Katonah Museum of Art, July 12 - October 11.

Greed  - Neuberger Museum, Purchase College, July 12 - October 18

Sloth - Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, July 19 - October 18

If you were to organize an exhibitions on Seven Deadly Sins in our time, which would you choose? Perhaps, an updated list might consider the Seven "Sins" that lead to death, such as murder, neglect, abuse, hazing, drug addiction, "doping" in sports, and excessive measures for beauty.  

Please write to me at nyarts@verizon.net or comment on my FB page.  I would love to hear your thoughts on "sinfulness" in the 21st century.

Best wishes to you all - whether you are atoning for your sins on Yom Kippur or indulging in the pleasures of mid-September or both,

Beth New York

September 11 - We Remember

In Memory of All Who Lost their Lives in the Terrorist Attacks on September 11 

and by working on the site in the aftermath

And to Michael Richards - whose light still shines upon us through his art:

Michael Richards, Are You Down?, 2012

Michael Richards Memorial, 2012

Miichael Richards, Tar Baby vs. St. Sebastian, 1999

Fall Courses 2015 and New Blogs

Michael Pupin's Birth Place in Idvor, Serbia

Happy end of summer and best wishes for the Labor Day Weekend.   I hope you all had wonderful experiences and enjoyed every minute of summer pleasures.

Please send me your list of art adventures.  Did you see "China" and Sargent at the Met?  Van Gogh and Whistler’s Mother at the Clark?

Hans Hofmann and "Pride" at the Bruce Museum?  "Alice" at the Morgan?

Did you see "Storylines" and Doris Salcedo at the Gugg?  Lots of old friends there (including a few from the New Museum Triennial we saw last May).  The Salcedo show is among my favorites this summer.

There is still time to catch them all.

This semester I won’t be able to give tours.  I agreed to give 3 courses at Purchase:

• Pop Art, Mondays and Wednesdays, 4 – 5:45 pm at RCC campus (starts today)
• Picasso, Thursdays, 6:30-9:50 pm, Purchase College campus (starts tomorrow)
• Museum History and Fundamentals, Tuesdays, 6:30-9:30 pm, Purchase College campus (starts Sept. 15) – this is for the certificate program in Museum Studies.

You are welcome to register for the credit class with Friends of Humanities – only $65 per course: https://www.purchase.edu/Departments/AcademicPrograms/LAS/Humanities/friendsofhumanities.aspx - if you are 60 years young or 60+.

If you would like to join the Museum Studies course, please let me know. This is a non-credit course and may not accept the Friends of Humanities privileges. Nevertheless, it's a great way concentrate on museum culture and have your say during our lively conversations.

Also – I started two blogs (in addition to this NY Arts Exchange blog):

"Summer in Serbia" http://summerinserbia.blogspot.com/    where I will add my pictures taken this summer, one batch at a time.

And Postmodern Mom: http://postmodernmother.blogspot.com/    where I post personal essays that have been rolling around in my brain for a while (inspired by the "Envy" exhibition at the Hudson River Museum).

I am sharing these blogs on Facebook, so if you are not on FB (or have not friended me on FB) and would like to receive these posts separately, please sign up to follow the blogs.  Many thanks!

I also started the Museum of Kindness on Facebook and have a blog for that too.

Please, please send me information that might contribute to this virtual museum. I would greatly appreciate it.

Please stay in touch – WRITE, CALL, TEXT!   I would love to hear from you.

And, please feel free to drop in to my classes. 

Love and hugs,

Beth

Beth S. Gersh-Nesic, Ph.D.

Director

New York Arts Exchange

www.nyarts-exchange.com

Last Call: Hans Hofmann Murals at the Bruce Museum, through Sept 6th

Hans Hofmann

The Gate, 1959-60

oil on canvas, 75 x 48 1/2 inches

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, NYC

Now is the time to visit the Bruce Museum, if you haven't already savored their most exciting summer yet!  Four excellent exhibitions are still on view through next weekend: 

• Walls of Color: The Murals of Hans Hofmann (through September 6th)
• Pride, one of the Seven Deadly Sins series in Westchester and Fairfield Counties (through October 18th
• Theodore Nierenberg: Photographs from His World Travels (through November 29th)
• Madagascar: Ghost of the Past (through November 8th)

Each in its own right is worth the trip to Greenwich, CT.  Altogether, Bruce delivers a perfect outing for families - great art and fascinating science that everyone can enjoy.  (I love looking at lemurs since my daughter and I read Lunch with Aunt Augusta by Emma Chichester Clark years ago.)

Hans Hofmann
Awakening, 1947, oil on canvas, 59 ¼  x 40 ¼ in.

Private Collection, Photograph by Paul Mutino 

Works by Hans Hofmann used with permission of the Renate, Hans and Maria Hofmann Trust

Of special note for art history fans: Hans Hofmann's iconic The Gate, 1959-60, which belongs to the Guggenheim Museum's permanent collection, makes a cameo appearance in this intimate setting. Often reproduced in art history textbooks (and selected for Wikipedia), this oil painting exemplifies Hofmann's well-known "push-pull" interpretation of Cubism that galvanized the New York School movement. Its luscious impasto slathered on neatly executed forms ("figures") cannot be appreciated in digital reproduction. Here is a physicality of expression that we find in Jackson Pollock: the evidence of "Action Painting," which was the critic Harold Rosenberg's description for Abstract Expressionism.

Hans Hofmann

Lonely Journey, 1965, oil on canvas, 50 x 40 ⅛ in.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art. (1989.397), 

Gift of Renate Hofmann, 1989

Image copyright © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 

Image source: Art Resource, NY

Works by Hans Hofmann used with permission of the Renate, Hans and Maria Hofmann Trust

Adjunct curator Kenneth Silver, a professor of art history at NYU, rightly points out that Hofmann was famous for "his dynamic approach to color."  "He was a towering figure among New York painters. . . a teacher and theoretician" for the AbEx generation, most notably Lee Krasner, Helen Frankenthaler, and Joan Mitchell (among many others ), 

Born in Bavaria on March 21, 1880, Johann Georg Albert Hofmann settled in Paris in 1904 (as the Fauve movement was about to take over the avant-garde at the Salon d'automne in 1905). By 1908, Cubism was on the rise and Hofmann found his footing in this new movement, leaning toward to the non-objective spin-off Orphism. From here he concentrated on the tension between figure and ground.  In 1930, he came to the US to teach at the University of California in Berkeley and by the mid-1930s, he ran two schools - one in New York City and the other in Provincetown, Massachusetts. In 1963, the Museum of Modern Art gave him a retrospective.  He died on February 17, 1966.

 

Hans Hoffman

Mural, 711 Third Avenue (in situ), 1956

Walls of Color marks a significant moment in Hofmann's oeuvre: his mural projects made with mosaic tesserae (tiny tiles) rather than paint - very old medium that posed a new challenge for this seventy-six-year-old artist. (Mosaics made of tesserae, as opposed to natural stones, date back to the middle of the 3rd century BCE, invented in Hellenistic Greece.)

In an exciting model set up in the gallery space, we have the opportunity to study Hofmann's first foray into mosaics: a mural in the lobby of 711 Third Avenue, wrapped around a bank of elevators. In the Bruce Museum, this miniature room invites the visitor inside to view an excellent video on Hofmann's work. Today, still radiant in a cool white and gray lobby, the 711 mural reflects the zing of post WWII, 1950s exuberance. The building was completed in 1957.

Hans Hofmann
Mosaic Mural, 711 Third Avenue, New York, 1956 (detail)
Photograph by Paul Mutino
Works by Hans Hofmann used with permission of the Renate, Hans and Maria Hofmann Trust

439 West 49th St. (former School of Printing),1958

Not far from 711 Third Avenue (near 44th Street) is another Hofmann mural on the facade of the School of Graphic Design, commissioned by the New York City Board of Education.  It is 64-foot long and 11-foot tall, produced for the High School of Printing that is now the High School of Graphic Arts Communication at  439 West 49th Street. Here Hofmann's signature geometric forms seem to simultaneously advance and recede against a pure white background (his "push-pull" effect).

Hans Hofmann

Mural Fragment (Chimbote), 1950, oil on panel mounted on board, 83 ⅞ x 35 ¾ in.

Photograph by Doug Young

Works by Hans Hofmann used with permission of the Renate, Hans and Maria Hofmann Trust

Finally, the exhibition features nine studies that are seven-feet tall for a collaboration with the architects Jose Luis Sert and Paul Lester Wiener. They were meant for a church in Chimbote, Peru. This project, meant for the bell tower, was never realized.

Walls of Color: The Murals of Hans Hofmann occupies the main galleries in the Bruce Museum.   Rush forth! And then slowly take in Hofmann's great works of art.

Best wishes as we end the Summer of 2015 -

Beth New York

aka Beth S. Gersh-Nesic, Ph.D.

Director

New York Arts Exchange

www.nyarts-exchange.com 

Brooklyn in Westchester this Summer, through August 21st

Steven Hirsch, Doris, 2014

digital O print on dibond, 24" x 36"

Diana Buckley, Assistant Director at Madelyn Jordon Fine Art in Scarsdale, has brought Brooklyn to Westchester in a beautiful show that celebrates the establishment of Brooklyn as more than a borough - and  more than a brand. Brooklyn is a state of mind ("a New York state of mind," Billy Joel might say) that fosters becoming one with the art of one's making.

Buckley explains:

"The exhibit title, I am What I am Not Yet, is inspired by a quote of the late philosopher of aesthetics, Maxine Greene.  Greene believed that artworks we encounter are 'situated encounters', meaning, an audience of a given artwork apprehends that work in the light of their backgrounds, biographies, and experiences.  In I am What I am Not Yet, 22 Brooklyn based artists have each experienced Brooklyn through their own unique lens, and try to relate their own 'situated encounters' in a way that, in aggregate, conveys a multi-faceted interpretation of Brooklyn."

Above, Steven Hirsch's Doris, comes from his Gowanus series, photographs of this well-known toxic canal. Describing how he became involved with photographing the waters, he said:“It was mesmerizing– and when the tide would start to come in and the water would move– it would create a kaleidoscope, an explosion of colors, shapes and designs. Its intensity is mind-boggling, and I tried to capture that in the images I made.” (Doris means "gift" and in Greek mythology, she is the daughter of Oceanus, mother of the Nereids.)

Sun You, Untitled 2, 2015

found objects, 1" x 1"

Sun You's found objects belong in tiny universes of wonder.  Here she tangibly captures Brooklyn as a repository of the ordinary moments that can burst into creative miracles. Moreover, she understands Brooklyn as a playful environment - pulsating with innovation, energy and daring. Brooklyn's residents have synthesized their rich diversity into an exquisite integral whole - precious and appealing in its own distinctive way.  We find this delicious complexity in Sun You's delicate assemblages.  Sun You was born in Korea and completed her BFA and MFA in Detroit.

Xiao Fu, Cross, 2014

Steel, 7.5" x 17.5" x 9"

Xiao Fu's sculpture, Cross, introduces an artist whose elegance matches her precision and skill.   Born in China, she completed her undergraduate studies in her hometown Shenyang and her MFA at San Francisco's Academy of Art University in 2014. Her migration from China to the US has brought enormous changes to her mind and the direction of her art, freeing her to explore the human spirit beyond the restrictions imposed the Chinese government.  She wrote: "I know that I don’t have the power to change the world, but I do hope that people can look at the world beyond the surface after seeing my art." 

Deborah Brown, Green Hat, 2015

oil on canvas, 36" x 36"

Deborah Brown is a name I have know for years and was delighted to see her latest work in such a lively context - it affirms her characteristic verve which has made her work so memorable.  Here, Green Hat, seems to riff on Vermeer's Girl in Red Hat (in the National Gallery in DC), as we know Brown appropriates the Old Masters with her own brand of whimsy. Is this Brooklyn humor?  Maybe - or just plain NY chutzpah.  Explosions of pink surrounding a tangle of zesty greens has just the right amount of moxey for an artist who has always been a 

Willie Wayne Smith,  Things to Bury, 2013

airbrush on canvas, 40" x 50"

The well-chosen variety of media ably demonstrates the range of creative work developing among these artists of all ages.  Willie Wayne Smith alone offers several media to choose from.  For this exhibition, Buckley selected a surreal paintings that reflects the biomorphic shapes we might find in his sculptures and installations.  Smith received his BFA from Maryland Institute of Art and his MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan.

There are 23 artists in all: Nichole van Beek, Christian Berman, Erik den Breejen, Deborah Brown, Maria Louisa Calandra, Jaqueline Cedar, Austin Eddy, Charlotte Evans,Matthew F. Fisher, Xiao Fu, Charlotte Hallberg, Steven Hirsch, Benjamin King, Osamu Kobayashi, Lauren Luloff, Katherine Newbegin, Gary   Petersen, Sarah Peters, Willie Wayne Smith, Letha Wilson, Birgit Wolfram, and Sun You    An excellent sampling of the vast amount of art found in Brooklyn studios these days.

Bravo, Diane Buckley!  Thank you for taking on this challenge and delivering the goods to the initiated and the newbies whom - we hope- will discover the bounty of Brooklyn in situ during the coming 2015-16 season.   Subscribe to Brooklyn Rail to keep abreast of events.

Viva la Brooklyn - 

Beth New York

aka Beth S. Gersh-Nesic, Ph.D.
Director

New York Arts Exchange

www.nyarts-exchange.com 

Yinka Shonibare Celebrates 250th Birthday of the Morris-Jumel Mansion through August 31st

Yinka Shonibare MBE, The Ghost of Eliza Jumel (Sculpture) (2015), 

fiberglass mannequin, Dutch wax printed cotton textile, and steel plate, 

installed in the 1826-30 Eliza Jumel bedchamber.

Have you ever seen a ghost?  Yinka Shonibare MBE (our champion of hybridity) mixed reality and virtuality in a sly new way - among his cleverest concepts to date - for the Morris-Jumel Mansion, New York City's old mansion, 65 Jumel Terrace and 160th Street in Roger Morris Park, Washington Heights. But no spoilers here. You must see the whole effect for yourself at this historic New York landmark.

Morris-Jumel Mansion

Morris-Jumel Mansion is celebrating its 250th birthday.  To make this occasion especially festive, the mansion's director Carol Ward decided to cook up a special treat.  In collaboration with James Cohan Gallery, she brought in one of their most brilliant contemporary artists, Yinka Shonibare MBE (born in London and raised in Lagos, Nigeria), who had already installed his work in the period rooms at the Brooklyn Museum for his retrospective there and at the Newark Museum in 2010.

Yinka Shonibare MBE, Boy Doing Headstand (2009), 

fiberglass mannequin, Dutch wax printed cotton, mixed media, 

installed in the 1776 George Washington bedchamber and study.

The entire exhibition through out the house combines new work with older inventions.  Most notably, Shonibare interpreted the house's formidable hostess, Eliza Jumel, in a magnificent dress, fashioned out of his signature Indonesian batiks that we associate with Africa. This haunting figure brings new meaning to our image of Eliza, whose life-story deserves a soap-opera series of its own. Her first husband was the French merchant Stephen Jumel, whom she married in 1804. Jumel purchased the Morris Mansion in 1810.

Colonal Roger Morris built the house after the French and Indian War (1754-1763), in which he fought under General James Wolfe (as in Benjamin West's famous painting.)  A loyalist, Morris and his wife Mary Philipse, of the Westchester Philipses, fled to England during the American Revolution, returned to New York after the war, and then ended their days in York, England.

  

Yinka Shonibare MBE, The Ghost of Eliza Jumel (2015), 

modified antique mirror, 

installed in the 1830 front parlor room.

Eliza Jumel inherited the house from her husband Stephen,who died in 1832. She married the former Vice President under Thomas Jefferson, Aaron Burr, in 1833, after a whirlwind courtship. He was 77 and she was 58.   (Burr, you may recall, murdered first Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton in a duel on July 11, 1804.) Their Burr-Jumel marriage was tempestuous. Burr, an inveterate gambler, nearly cleaned out Eliza's fortune.  However, as luck would have it, their lengthy divorce proceedings proved auspicious. Burr died shortly before the papers were signed and Eliza became the heir to his property as well as the socially advantageous "widow of the former VP of the US" or WOFVPOTUS.

Eliza Jumel lived in the Morris Mansion for 55 years - the longest residency of anyone who lived in the house.

Yinka Shonibare, Girl on a Scooter (2009), 

fiberglass mannequin, Dutch wax printed cotton, leather, and wood, 

installed in the 1820-30 Mary Bowen’s bedchamber.

Those are only a few of the many stories that belong to this grand estate. George Washington also directed the Battle of Harlem Heights from this location (and slept here, of course). These maneuvers produced one of the first victories during the American Revolutionary War.

Yinka Shonibare, Seated Girl (2009)

fiberglass mannequin, Dutch wax printed cotton, mixed media, 

installed in the 1826-30 Eliza Jumel dressing room.

The Morris-Jumel Mansion is one of New York's best landmarks and memorable history lessons. With Yinka Shonibare MBE's installations (on view until August 31st), now is the time to savor the tour and these temporary additions. Don't forget to bring your house-guests - it's a perfect choice for visitors to the Big Apple.

Yinka Shonibare MBE, Planets In My Head, Arts (2011), 

fiberglass mannequin, Dutch wax printed cotton, fiberglass globe, violin, and leather,

 installed in the 1790 dining room

By the way, the Morris-Jumel Mansion hosts loads of activities all year round. Please visit their website for their schedule of events and directions to the house and garden.

Best wishes for August,

Beth New York

aka Beth S. Gersh-Nesic

Director

New York Arts Exchange

www.nyarts-exchange.com