Armory Highlights 2014

Inadvertent 'selfie' at the Armory Show 2014

This year, for the first time, I went to the Armory Show.  It wasn't due to any particular reason that I haven't ever been.  I've had curiosity in years past but it was always tempered with a bit of anxiety from the stories I'd heard from other people.  I generally avoid situations where people go to 'be seen'.  

But this year a wonderful curator friend invited me to go with her and figuring I could be a tag along, guided by her knowledge, I thought why not.

Below are some of the things I was excited to see.  I apologize in advance for the picture quality and incomplete info on the works/galleries.  You can see the pictures get worse as I go, as it became pretty mayhemic (should be a word) by the time we left.  I hate to get in the way of people looking with their eyes for a photograph so I became quite passive and quick by the end.

Leslie Wayne (this piece is all oil paint on a thin support of wood), Jack Shainman Gallery

Susan Hefuna, Pi Artworks

Hayal Pozanti, Jessica Silverman Gallery

James Krone, Kavi Gupta Gallery

Wall of Peter Doig 

Peter Doig

Morandi (never saw this one before, love love love)

Joan Brown Ink Drawing

Alex Katz  

Kenzo Okada

Milton Avery

John Walker (such a great wall and display)

John Walker

Donald Baechler  

  

I said to my friend at one point, it feels easier in some capacity to look at the work in an evaluative way in this context.  You have ugly gray carpet, walls with cracks to the next stall and artwork and art viewers all trying desperately to be more of the moment than the next.  This strange juxtaposition makes the authentic voices sing louder somehow.  

There was vastly more work that I felt was bad and forgettable but there were quite a few gems.  For convenience sake it was an interesting way to see some new galleries and works in person that I wouldn't otherwise have access to.  So for its purpose I would say it was worth the visit, and a show I would go to again.  

Studio needs (or wants...whatever)

Carol Ross, The Clay Bungalow

A few days ago I had some visitors to my studio who were not close friends or family and were interested in possibly buying a painting.  As I shoddily put things in order, swept and tried to clean paint off the only comfortable chairs, I thought, 'oh I should make some tea for them.'  Which is possible thanks to a studiomate's water heater thing.  But then as the water is steaming, I realize I only have one cup which I drink out of and is totally stained and ugly.  So there was no tea.  Which reminds me that my studio is mainly functional but not quite yet comfortable.  I definitely need to buy a microwave (is that a weird thing to get on craigslist? can't decide)

Jessyca Burke, Luola

Lee West, LeeWestArt

But I thought it would be nice to get some interesting mugs, some that belong in a studio and also support other artists.  So I perused etsy (and 2 hours later) found some really great new shops and ceramic pieces and also some on the border of terrible and awesome.

Stephanie Kantor, stephaniekan

Justin Rothshank, Rothshank

Then in true 'give a mouse a cookie..' fashion I thought, god I should have a good apron to match these stylin' cups....

Erica Browne, MiMo Project

Cyber Witch, Friends4evr

Izzarie K., Izzashop

Maybe next paycheck.

On Chagall

I find Marc Chagall's lesser known ceramic work way more fantastic and suited to his work than his paintings.  The way forms can encircle each other and disappear around the side or be distorted by the shape of the vase is so appropriate.  I think his manipulation of composition is so much better on these, the surfaces look quite beautiful too.

Another thing about Chagall that I hold close to my heart is something he did not make but rather influence.  It is a poem by my favorite poet Kay Ryan and speaks to the whimsy I strive to find in making a painting and making a life.

Every Painting by Chagall

Every twined groom and bride,
every air fish, smudged Russian,
red horse, yellow chicken, assumes
its position not actually beside
but in some friendly distribution
with a predictable companion.
Every canvas insists on a
similar looseness, each neck
put to at least two uses. And wings
from some bottomless wing source.
They are pleasure wings of course
since any horse or violinist
may mount the blue
simply for wanting to.
(In freedom, dear things
Repeat without tedium.)

I love that: ...may mount the blue simply for wanting to.

The Wall of 'Leaps of Faith'

This is the other wall in my old studio space that I recently put back together.  I am calling it the wall of 'Leaps of Faith.'  Usually I wouldn't need to name a wall of paintings  but I just finished reading Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer in which he titles and names everything.  Its very weird prose (if you have read it you know what I mean) but gets in my head, kind of like when I am talking to an English person for a while, I feel the undeniable urge to mimic back to them in an accent.  Does that happen to other people?

Anyway I will tell you a few of the stories as to why I titled it this way.  First, the keystone in the center is a picture of Alex and I at our wedding.  What is more of a leap of faith than committing the rest of your days to someone else?  Even when you had been with them for 11 years previously...  Its in the frame I found a while ago which was a strange leap of faith project on its own...

This picture sort of goes with my story of my humble art beginnings from earlier this week.  It is a drawing I did at age 6 where I guess the teacher posed the question: What would your magic hat let you do?  And so I drew myself doing a self portrait and underneath in the teacher's writing it says "My magic hat would let me be an artist."  My mom found this and surprised me with it framed for Christmas this year.  Pursuing that dream is definitely a leap of faith.

And this little gem is a painting of this exact space, day bed and Nugget.  A few weeks ago Alex and I had a Nugget painting competition.  This was his painting and it won.  I loved it so much I decided to hang it up, because your first painting always requires a leap of faith.  The other pieces required a leap of faith too but they are by other artists and not my stories to tell...

Old Studio Wall Pt. 2

I changed up my 'recent acquisitions' wall again since having my newest favorite painting framed.  Today was a snow day so it was a good project to keep me from going stir crazy.

That painting is by Greg Biché.  It is quite hard to photograph now that it is under glass but see it here, on his website.  Click the link, really, because there are four others in this series and many excellent paintings and drawings.

I also decided to take a better photo showing the John Bokor drawing and Jean Smith painting.  I have access to a computer so I can plug my camera in once more!  Woo, I didn't realize how dependent I am on a computer until it was gone.

I took the other dog painting that was on this wall and moved it to the side wall with a few other serious treasures that I want to share.  I will post that soon, just have to finish it up.

Sunday Pick: Shara Hughes

Your Not Lost Stupid, Your Hiding, 2013

Boo Hoo I'm In Love, 2013

Atlanta-based painter Shara Hughes' work has had my eye since her piece Your Not Lost Stupid, Your Hiding was in the group show Bathers at Morgan Lehman this summer.  

She is in a group show opening in a few weeks at Tiger Strikes Asteroid, Brooklyn.  TSA was originally a Philadelphia-based gallery and now they have opened this second new space over the last year.  Sump Pumped Sentiments opens Friday, February 21 and looks like its going to be a pretty interesting show.