tag archives: art exhibit

 

david hockney: something new in painting (and photography) [and even printing]

5 april-12 may 2018

pace gallery | 508-510 west 25th street | new york, NY

 

british artist, david hockney RA, is known for playing with perspective.  recently, reverse perspective.  and recently, manipulating the picture plane by adding corners.  hockney thinks that reverse perspective simulates our depth perception more closely than one point perspective.  and, that a hexagon simulates our field of vision more closely than a rectangle.

 

‘the indentations paradoxically widen the sense of space and invite all sorts of fresh lines of sight.

still, though, as you can see, far from cutting corners, i was adding them.’

-david hockney

 

detail | david hockney | the studio, december 2017 | 2017 | photographic drawing printed on seven sheets of paper, mounted on seven sheets of dibond

artwork: (c) 2018 david hockney photo credit: lisa walsh | innerspace

 

the subject of some of the hexagonal paintings are ‘david hockney’s greatest hits’.  the grand canyon.  nichols canyon, which was once en route from his home to his studio in los angeles, CA.  garrowby hill and the countryside surrounding his former home in yorkshire, united kingdom.

david hockney | grand canyon II | 2017 | acrylic on canvas

artwork: (c) 2018 david hockney photo credits: lisa walsh | innerspace

 

david hockney | nichols canyon II | 2017 | acrylic and black ink on canvas

artwork: (c) 2018 david hockney photo credits: lisa walsh | innerspace

 

david hockney | garrowby hill | 2017 | acrylic on canvas

artwork: (c) 2018 david hockney photo credits: lisa walsh | innerspace

 

masterpieces, such as the avenue at middelharnis (1689), a dutch golden age landscape painting by meindert hobbema, or the annunciation (1438-1445), an early renaissance fresco by fra angelico, provide the subjects for other paintings.

david hockney | tall dutch trees after hobbema (useful knowledge) | 2017 | acrylic on six canvases

artwork: (c) 2018 david hockney photo credits: lisa walsh | innerspace

 

hockney is also known for experimenting with optical technology.  most recently, agisoft photoscan software that performs photogrammetric processing of digital images and generates three dimensional spatial data.

in addition to 17 paintings, the pace gallery exhibition features two, seven panel, floor to ceiling photomurals created with agisoft photoscan.  for each photomural, the software combined over 3000 photographs, shot from multiple camera angles, and processed them into one three dimensional image.  then, hockney and his assistant manipulated the image.  and then, they digitally printed and mounted the photomural.

david hockney | the studio, december 2017 | 2017 | photographic drawing printed on seven sheets of paper, mounted on seven sheets of dibond

artwork: (c) 2018 david hockney photo credits: lisa walsh | innerspace

 

david hockney | inside it opens up as well | 2018 | photographic drawing printed on 7 sheets of paper, mounted on 7 sheets of dibond

artwork: (c) 2018 david hockney photo credits: lisa walsh | innerspace

 

‘i haven’t yet quite figured out what to call the whole process, or for that matter its result.

it’s a combination of photography and drawing and printing, each bringing out the best in the other.’

-david hockney

 

you could call the whole process a success.  especially, considering that hockney originally only intended to take documentary photographs to use in the exhibition announcement before the paintings left his studio.

invitation to the opening reception | 5 april 2018

photo credit via new york social diary

 

click here, here, and here to read my previous posts about david hockney.

click here to read the essay, written by lawrence weschler for the exhibition catalogue.

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*cy twombly: coronation of sesostris

8 march-28 april 2018

gagosian | 980 madison avenue | new york, NY

 

the mythological one day rise and fall of ancient egyptian warrior, conqueror, and pharaoh , sesostris.

drawn, painted, and written in 10 parts.

cy twombly: coronation of sesostris

installation view | gagosian | 980 madison avenue | new york, NY

photo credit rob mckeever via gagosian

 

the rising sun [an ideogram for sesostris]

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | coronation of sesostris | panel 1 | 2000 | acrylic, crayon, and pencil on canvas

collection of françois pinault | palazzo grassi | venice, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via tate

 

the wheeled chariot of sesotris [an ideogram for military conquest]

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | coronation of sesostris | panel 2 | 2000 | acrylic, crayon, and pencil on canvas

collection of françois pinault | palazzo grassi | venice, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via tate

 

the epigraph:

‘eros, weaver [of myth],

eros, sweet and bitter,

eros bringer of pain.’ 

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | coronation of sesostris | panel 3 | 2000 | acrylic, crayon, and pencil on canvas

collection of françois pinault | palazzo grassi | venice, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via tate

 

the shining sun after rising high into the sky

 

cy twombly (1928-2011)  | coronation of sesostris | panel 4 | 2000 | acrylic, crayon, and pencil on canvas

collection of françois pinault | palazzo grassi | venice, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via tate

 

the arrival of the solar barque [sun barge or sun boat] of sesostris

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | coronation of sesostris | panel 5 | 2000 | acrylic, crayon, and pencil on canvas

collection of françois pinault | palazzo grassi | venice, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via tate

 

an interpretation of the poem ‘when the gods depart’

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | coronation of sesostris | panel 6 | 2000 | acrylic, crayon, and pencil on canvas

collection of françois pinault | palazzo grassi | venice, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via tate

 

the sun boat burns and disintegrates

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | coronation of sesostris | panel 7 | 2000 | acrylic, crayon, and pencil on canvas

collection of françois pinault | palazzo grassi | venice, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via tate

 

the sun boat dissolves into its reflection, and sinks into the sea [an allusion to j.w.m. turner (1775-1851)]

‘they (the gods) are leaving,

glorious but unheeded,

as the mortal body sinks into oblivion,

scarcely registering their passing. 

nunc est bibendum: 

sorrows are drowned,

the boat is a drunken boat.’ [barely legible]

 

cy twombly (1928-2011)  | coronation of sesostris | panel 8 | 2000 | acrylic, crayon, and pencil on canvas

collection of françois pinault | palazzo grassi | venice, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via tate

 

the burnt wreckage of the sun boat

‘leaving paphos ringed with waves’

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | coronation of sesostris | panel 9 | 2000 | Acrylic, crayon, and pencil on canvas

collection of françois pinault | palazzo grassi | venice, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via tate

 

the epigraph, repeated:

‘leaving kypros the lovely

and paphos ringed with waves.’ [illegible]

 ‘eros, weaver of myth,

eros sweet and bitter,

eros bringer of pain.’

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | coronation of sesostris | panel 10 | 2000 | acrylic, crayon, and pencil on canvas

collection of françois pinault | palazzo grassi | venice, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via tate

 

*exhibited concurrently with cy twombly: in beauty it is finished at gagosian | 522 west 21st street | new york, NY.

click here to read my post about cy twombly: in beauty it is finished.

click here to read a tate museum research publication about coronation of sesostris.

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art exhibitions, like the cy twombly exhibition of 94 drawings and works on paper at gagosian gallery in new york, can be more momentous than blockbuster museum exhibitions.

 

*cy twombly:  in beauty it is finished : drawings 1951-2008

8 march-25 april 2018

gagosian | 522 west 21st street | new york, NY


i walked through the exhibition three times.  and then, after i left, i decided to return to look at my favorite drawings again…

one wall, featuring five early, atypically polychromatic, crayon, gouache, and pencil drawings.

cy twombly: in beauty it is finished : drawings 1951-2008

installation view | gagosian | 522 west 21st street | new york, NY

photo credit artwork: © cy twombly foundation | screenshot: video by pushpin films via gagosian quarterly

 

originally, there were six drawings.  twombly gifted four of the six drawings to his friend, abstract artist robert rauschenberg (1925-2008).  then, rauschenberg adhered one of the drawings to one of his combines.

robert rauschenberg (1925-2008) | rhebus | 1955 | oil, synthetic polymer paint, pencil, crayon, pastel, cut-and-pasted printed and painted papers, and fabric on canvas mounted and stapled to fabric, in three panels

museum of modern art (moma) | new york, NY

photo credit (c) 2018 robert rauschenberg foundation via moma

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | untitled | 1954 | gouache, wax crayon, and colored pencil on paper

cy twombly foundation | new york, NY, rome, italy & gaeta, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via gagosian

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | untitled | 1954 | gouache, wax crayon, and colored pencil on paper

cy twombly foundation | new york, NY, rome, italy & gaeta, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via cy twombly foundation

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | untitled | 1954 | gouache, wax crayon, and colored pencil on paper

museum of modern art (moma) | new york, NY

photo credit (c) 2018 cy twombly foundation via moma

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | untitled | 1954 | gouache, wax crayon, and colored pencil on paper

museum of modern art (moma) | new york, NY

photo credit (c) 2018 cy twombly foundation via moma

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | untitled | 1954 | gouache, wax crayon, and colored pencil on paper

museum of modern art (moma) | new york, NY

photo credit (c) 2018 cy twombly foundation via moma

 

the five drawings reminded me of pastel drawings by abstract expressionist artist joan mitchell (1925-1992).

joan mitchell (1925-1992) | untitled | 1991 | pastel on paper

sold for US$98,500 | christie’s new york | post war and contemporary morning session | 11 november 2010 | sale 2356 | lot 235

photo credit christie’s

 

one gallery was filled with calligraphy drawings.  not only calligraphic, but also epigraphic.

cy twombly: in beauty it is finished : drawings 1951-2008

installation view | gagosian | 522 west 21st street | new york, NY

photo credit rob mckeever via gagosian

 

including, one work in 30 parts.  and, 4 drawings from a private collection.

cy twombly (1928-2011) | untitled | 1970 | oil, wax crayon, and pencil on paper, in 30 parts

cy twombly foundation | new york, NY, rome, italy & gaeta, italy

photo credit artwork: © cy twombly foundation | screenshot: video by pushpin films via gagosian quarterly

 

cy twombly (1928-2011) | untitled | 1970 | oil and wax crayon on paper

private collection

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via gagosian

 

another gallery was filled with blackboard drawings.

cy twombly: in beauty it is finished : drawings 1951-2008

installation view | gagosian | 522 west 21st street | new york, NY

photo credit rob mckeever via gagosian

 

layer upon layer of lines, marks, and erasures.  made with crayon, pencil, or pen over oil on paper.

cy twombly (1928-2011) | untitled | 1969 | oil and wax crayon on paper

cy twombly foundation | new york, NY, rome, italy & gaeta, italy

photo credit (c) cy twombly foundation via gagosian

 

‘his work is based not upon concept (the trace)

but rather upon an activity (tracing).’

-french philoopher, roland barthes (1915-1980), who wrote about the work of cy twombly

 

*exhibited concurrently with cy twombly: coronation of sesostris at gagosian | 980 madison avenue | new york, NY.

click here to read my post about cy twombly: coronation of sesostris.

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elliott pukette: new work

19 april-9 june 2018

paul kasmin gallery | 297 10th avenue | new york, NY

 

elliott pukette: new work

installation view | paul kasmin gallery | 297 10th avenue | new york, NY

photo credit lisa walsh | innerspace

 

part painting, part drawing, part writing.

part gesture, part construction, part process.

elliott pukette | a love letter | gesso, kaolin, and ink on dibond | 2018

photo credits lisa walsh | innerspace

 

elliott pukette | wallum | gesso, kaolin, and ink on board | 2018

photo credits lisa walsh | innerspace

 

elliott pukette | torusflex | gesso, kaolin, and ink on board | 2018

photo credits lisa walsh | innerspace

 

transfers, doodles, sgraffito, erasures.

all over patterns.

background washes.

influenced by paul klee (1879-1940).

 

i wonder if cy twombly (1928-2011) also influenced elliott pukette?

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ai weiwei: good fences make good neighbors

12 october 2017-11 february 2018

new york, NY

 

ai weiwei, the chinese artist, dissident, and activist, is building fences.

all over new york.

the city wide public art installation is so large that the sponsor, the non-profit public art fund, initiated a kickstarter campaign to help finance the project.

for the installation, the artist created fence themed sculptures for 17 public and private sites.  plus, 200 banners and 100+ documentary images to be installed on lamp posts, bus shelters, news stands, and advertising kiosks.

ai weiwei: good fences make good neighbors

rendering of the fence installation at doris c. freedman plaza | central park | 5th avenue and east 60th street | new york, NY

the plaza, which was named after the founder of the public art fund, has been the site of temporary art installations since 1977.

photo credit courtesy of ai weiwei studio/frahm & frahm and the public art fund via huffpost

the title of the exhibition is an excerpt from a poem by robert frost (1874-1963):

‘good fences make good neighbors.’

‘mending wall’ | north of boston | robert frost (1874-1963) | published in 1914

so, it seems ironic that the washington square (neighborhood) association is protesting the location of the ai weiwei fence installation in washington square park.

ai weiwei: good fences make good neighbors

rendering of the fence installation inside of washington square arch | washington square park | washington square north and 5th avenue | new york, NY

mckim, mead and white designed the arch, which was dedicated in 1895, to celebrate the centennial of the inauguration of president george washington.

photo credit courtesy of ai weiwei studio/frahm & frahm and the public art fund via huffpost

it also seems ironic that ai weiwei is fencing in the centerpiece of the 1964-1965 new york world’s fair, which had a theme of ‘peace through understanding’.

ai weiwei: good neighbors make good fences

rendering of the fence installation around the perimeter of the unisphere | flushing meadows-corona park | 111th street | queens, NY

landscape architect gilmore d. clarke (1892-1982) designed the unisphere for the 1964-1965 new york world’s fair.

photo credit courtesy of ai weiwei studio via vulture

when it was founded in 1859, the cooper union for the advancement of science and art revolutionized higher education by making it accessible to anyone.  both ai weiwei and the public art fund believe that art should be accessible to and experienced by everyone.  so, it seems unsurprising that they chose the cooper union as an installation site.  because of historical events that occurred in the great hall, the cooper union foundation building also symbolizes democracy, free speech, and equality.

ai weiwei: good fences make good neighbors

rendering of the fence installation on the facade of the foundation building | cooper union | 7 east 7th street  | new york, NY

designed by frederick a. peterson (1808-1885), the foundation building opened in 1858, one year before the opening of the cooper union.

photo credit via the public art fund

 

‘ai weiwei is unique in having combined the roles of

preeminent contemporary artist, political dissident, and human rights activist

in such a prominent and powerful way.’

-nicholas baume, director and chief curator, public art fund

 

for a complete list of installation sites,

click here to download the press release.

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