Below find my installation from the residency at Art Institute of Boston in January.
Mound Stop, acrylic on canvas, various sizes from 6″x6″ to 30″x30″; reinforced plastic, acrylic paint, 8″x8″x 84.”
Paintings – January 2012
February 10th, 2012Gallery Tour – New York – November 17-18, 2011
November 24th, 2011
Maurizio Cattelan: All
Nov 4, 2011 – Jan 22, 2012
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
1071 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY
This retrospective of Maurizio Cattelan’s work features all hyper-realistic sculptures produced by the artist since 1989. It is strange to see all of these iconic works hanging intermingled in the Guggenheim atrium. The display resembles a giant puppet theatre with dark undertones. Here and there, figures are hanging by their throat as if executed. I remember seeing several of his sculptures exhibited at the contemporary art museum at Rivoli castle outside of Torino, such as the lifeless horse hanging from the baroque ceiling and little Maurizio looking out the window with the pen stuck through his hand. Here, in the Guggenheim atrium, the same sculptures have lost some of the intimacy and emotional weight. Instead, the numerous sculptures evoking themes of death, religion, history, and popular culture become the center of attention of a mass procession of amused visitors walking down the spiraling ramp. Cattelan is retiring from art is the message on the Guggenheim wall. He might, but his sculptures will remain an active part of contemprary art.
Maurizio Cattelan
Maurizio Cattelan
Maurizio Cattelan
Maurizio Cattelan
Byron Kim
James Cohan Gallery
Nov 4- Dec 17, 2011
533 West 26th Street, New York, NY 10001
Through a series of large-scale black paintings Kim depicts the atmospheric night city sky. The subtle abstract shifts in color are beautiful especially when framed by solid black stripes featured on some of the edges.
Byron Kim
Byron Kim
Richard Serra: Junction/ Cycle
Sep 4 – Nov 26, 2011
Gagosian Gallery
555 West 24th Street, New York, NY 10011
A beautiful maze like installation by Richard Stella. In these sculptures, possibly the most complex ever produced, Serra investigates the mysteries and disorienting effects of interlocking sinusoid curves. Visitors are continuously confronted with situations when a choice of path has to be made.
Richard Serra
Richard Serra
Betsy Kaufman: Many Paintings
Nov 10 – Dec 23, 2011
Leslie Tonkonow
535 West 22nd Street, New York, NY 10011
Small geometric paintings are mounted in irregular groups on the gallery walls. Each painting displays a seemingly simple geometric pattern; however, upon closer examination each painting includes an unexpected event.
Betsy Kaufman
Betsy Kaufman
Betsy Kaufman
Betsy Kaufman
Betsy Kaufman
Betsy Kaufman
Betsy Kaufman
Sherrie Levine: Mayhem
Nov 10, 2011 – Jan 29, 2012
Whitney Museum of American Art
945 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10021
In this exhibit, Levine has “transformed and recontextualized images and objects in her work since the late 70’s.” I found it very difficult to focus on any of the series of displays. Very homogeneous, diagrammatic, I felt that it lacked engagement or surprise.
Sherrie Levine
Josephine Halvorson: What Looks Back
Sikkema Jenkins
530 West 22nd Street, New York, NY 10011
These paintings feature close up details of utilitarian objects that supposedly “look back” at the viewer. The palette is very well calibrated with greys in various blue and green hues, neutrals, and occasional splashes of color. For me this palette evokes the color selection of the Purists painters, such as Amédée Ozenfant.
Josephine Halvorson
Josephine Halvorson
Richard Artschwager
Oct 27 – Dec 3, 2011
David Nolan
527 West 29th Street, New York, NY 10001
Artschwager has produced objects, paintings, sculpture and furniture since the 50s. His work has comprised materials like formica, wood, and celotex. This exhibit features landscape paintings in acrylic, on handmade paper and celotex fiber board. Noteworthy is a vertical sculpture with faux wood grain.
Richard Artschwager
Michael Krebber: “C_A_N_V_A_S, Uhutrust, Jerry Magoo and guardian.co.uk Paintings”
Greene Naftali
508 West 26th Street, 8th Fl., New York, NY 10001
In this site specific installation, Krebber painted and copied text found on four art blogs.
Micahel Krebber
Rashad Newsome: Herald
Oct 20 – Dec 3, 2011
Marlborough Chelsea
545 West 25th Street, New York, NY 10001
Newsome explores symboles of hip-hop culture in highly detailed collages, which are exhibited in ornate frames in color and gold.
Rashad Newsome
Keith Smith: Book by Book
Nov 18 – Jan 5, 2011
Bruce Silverstein
535 West 24th Street, New York, NY 10011
Thirty unusual and inventive book creations are on view exploring themes of love, desire and homosexuality.
Keith Smith
Keith Smith
Keith Smith
Keith Smith
Kristen Schiele: Beyond the Rocks
Oct 27 – Dec 3, 2011
Freight + Volume
530 West 24th Street, New York, NY 10011
Kristen Schiele
All Systems Go! (Group Exhibit)
C24 Gallery
514 West 24th Street, New York, NY 10011
All Systems Go
All Systems Go!
Laura Watt
Nov 17 – Dec 17, 2011
McKenzie Fine Art Inc.
511 West 25th Street, NY, NY 10011
Laura Watt
Esther Kläs: Nobody Home
Nov 17 – Jan 7, 2012
Peter Blum
526 West 29th Street, New York, NY 10001
Esther Kläs
Leslie Hewitt: Blue Skies, Warm Sunlight
Oct 29 – Dec 23, 2011
D’Amelio Terras
525 West 22nd Street, New York, NY 10011
Leslie Hewitt
Jim Isermann
Oct 29 – Dec 17, 2011
Mary Boone Gallery
541 West 24st Street, New York, NY 10011
Jim Isermann
Gallery Tour – New York – October 6, 2011
October 20th, 2011De Kooning: A Retrospective
Museum of Modern Art
11 West 53rd Street
New York, NY 10019
The Museum of Modern Art now shows a retrospective of Willem de Kooning’s work. This is the first time all periods of de Koonings paintings are exhibited together. The exhibit starts with pieces produced during school and finishes with his very last paintings. It is a remarkable production by one person. I gravitate to the later abstract gestural works. I admire his sensibility of color and composition; as well as his ability to reinvent himself through his long and productive career.
Willem de Kooning
Frank Stella: Geometric Variations
September 22-October, 2011
Paul Kasmin gallery
293 10th Avenue, New York, NY
Concentric Squares and Mitered Mazes were part of Stellas work since the early 1960s. This exhibit features his beautiful geometric compositions in grey scale and in primary colors. Many of them are pairs presented together. When in front of the paintings, the shapes recede or protrude due to the optical illusion. Below you will see from top to bottom For Picabia, 1961, Malcolm’s Bouquet, 1965, Untitled, 1966, and Grey Scramble X (Double), 1968.
Frank Stella
Sterling Ruby & Lucio Fontana
September 10-October 15
Andrea Rosen Gallery
525 West 24th Street, New York, NY 10011
Works by Sterling Ruby (1972-) and Lucio Fontana (1899-1968) are her exhibited together to form an elegant and expressive exhibit. Both artists base their research on material and process. Noteworthy are three slashed bronze reliefs by Fontana and the colorful and dramatic Basin Theology series by Sterling Ruby.
Lucio Fontana
Sterling Ruby
Jack Whitten
September 7-October, 2011-10-19
Alexander Grey Associates
508 West 26th Street, # 215, New York, NY 10001
The witty blue painting Aps for Obama is a beautifully rendered piece, addressing politics and electronic media. Whitten uses his own signature mosaic technique that consists of collaged square pieces of acrylic paint. The exhibit also features work on paper.
Jack Whitten
Heim Steinbach: Creature
September 8-October 22, 2011
Tanya Bonakdar Gallery
521 West 21sr Street, New York, NY 10011
The artists brings everyday mass produced objects to the level of art by the way he arranges them in a gallery environment. Using wedge shaped shelving, miscellaneous figures are lined up and form presentations that are both fun and imbued with meaning. With this work Heimback examines “the social ritual of collecting, arranging, and presenting.”
Heim Steinbach
Brian Jungen
September 8-October 22, 2011
Casey Caplan
525 West 21st Street, New York, NY 10011
He focuses his practice on modernist concerns and contexts. In this exhibit he wrapped modernist furniture designed by Charles and Ray Eames, Eero Saarinen, and Verner Panton in elk skin. He also displays silver colored prints on sagging black foam panels along the walls.
Brian Jungen
Ann Pibal: DRMN’
September 8-October 8, 2011
Meulensteen
511 West 22nd Street, New York, NY 10011
Painter Ann Pibal paints on aluminum and produces series of well composed small scale hard line paintings. In this show, her geometric work features interesting color combinations. Paintings appear designed but result from an intuitive process.
Ann Pibal
Nick Cave: Ever-After
Jack Shainman Gallery
513 West 20th Street, New York, NY 10011
The mannequins are beautifully dressed in Cave’s latest fantastic creations. Sound Suits is a series of suits featuring silvery buttons and cone shaped head pieces. Mating Session is a group of male bunnies covered with long white hair. Especially note worthy is the video showing a man dancing in one of Cave’s hairy colorful outfits. Finally the static costumes come alive.
Nick Cave
Peter Halley: The Gallatin Cycle
Permanent Installation
The Gallatin School
715 Broadway, New York, NY
The Gallatin Cycle consists of several series of wall prints installed at elevator lobbies and corridors at the Gallatin School at New York University in NY. The juxtaposition of colorful “explosions” that look like flowers, walls of quotes and line drawings is energizing and interesting.
Peter Halley
Raul de Keyser: Freedom
September 20-October 29, 2011
David Zwirner
525 Est 19th Street, New York, NY 10011
Keyser’s paintings make me feel good. If these paintings are in a gallery, mine certainly would have a chance. That is the point of Keyser’s art, that they are so bad that they are good. Because, there is so little paint on the canvases, it leaves a vacuum for the viewer’s personal interpretations.
Raul de Keyser
Yutaka Sone: Island
September 20-October 29, 2011
David Zwirner
525 Est 19th Street, New York, NY 10011
Noteworthy is the large marble sculpture Little Manhattan, which features the island Manhattan transforming into soft drapery.
Yutaka Sone
Nicola Tyson
September 8-November 5, 2011
Friedrich Petzel Gallery
537 West 22nd Street, New York, NY 10011
Tyson’s psychological paintings are difficult to look at due to the distorted and twisted figures and the unusual color combinations. I feel that something is wrong, but I do not know who the figures are, or what is actually happening.The unique technique and expression bring a message of supense and tension.
Nicola Tyson
Rosy Keyser: Promethean Hub
September 15-November 12, 2011
526 West 29th Street, New York, NY 10001
Keyser uses many different materials in her paintings such as saw dust, burlap, industrial metal panels, house paint, nails, and spray paint. Besides hammering nails and painting, she also burn holes in her supports. The title refers to “themes of transmutation and rebirth to the concept that energy can neither be created nor destroyed.”�
Rosy Keyser
Black Mountain Collage and Its Legacy
September 15-October 29, 2011
Loretta Howard gallery
525 West 26th Street, New York, NY 10001
Exhibit features 100 works from 35 artists, who used to attend or teach at the Black Mountain College. Especially noteworthy are the John Cage sound and video installations showing the 1964 World Tour.
Susan Weil
Kenneth Snelson
Fluxus and the Essential Questions of Life
September 9-December 3, 2011
Grey Art Gallery
New York University, 100 Washington Square East, New York, NY 10003
The Fluxus artists’ thoughts and art, relating to the Essential Questions of Life, are both fun and revelatory.
Daniel Buren
Molly Zuckerman-Hartung: Speak to my ass, the octopus is sick
September 8-October 22, 2011
Anna Kustera
520 West 21st Street, New York, NY 10011
Molly Zuckerman-Hartung
Frederick Hammersley: Organic & Geometric
September 8-October 8, 2011
525 West 22nd Street, New York, NY 10011
Frederick Hammersley
Paintings – October 2011
October 19th, 2011This month, I set out to transfer the painting technique I used for the September paintings on paper onto canvas. First, I selected the images that I liked the most from previous month. A reoccurring motif was a multi-angled shape held in from the edges of the paper. I like the straight lines of the form and how the expression of it can change depending on the angles. I am searching for flexible geometric forms that are not the typical square, rectangle, triangle or circle.
In these paintings, I attempt to study this multifaceted shape and what happens when it is adjusted to different formats and types of support. I produced several series of these. The paint is pure pigment paint with an acrylic binder. The canvas paintings vary in sizes: 6”x6, 12”x12”, 12”x 24,” 24”x 24,” and 12” x 30.” All canvas panels have three layers of gesso, plus a layer of absorbent ground. I am glad that I was able to maintain the loose and quick strokes on canvas. I have started to think of the possibility of combining several panels. This would relate to the “combination panel” work that I did previously in the program. In my opinion, the best combination so far is the “mound” on the ground. I think it relates to the combination panel pieces; however, now broken on the ground.�
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Mound Test, 2011, acrylic on canvas, 36″x36″x10″
Combination Test 1, acrylic on canvas, tape, 48″ x 42″
Combination Test 2, acrylic on canvas, tape, 12″ x 18″
Combination Test 3, acrylic on canvas, tape, 18″ x 24″
Combination Test 3, acrylic on canvas, tape, 10″ x 24″
Mentor James Hyde created the taped areas as demonstration.
Untitled, acrylic on canvas, tape, 12″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on canvas, 12″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on canvas, 24″ x 24″
Untitled, acrylic on canvas, 24″ x 24″
Untitled, acrylic on canvas, 12″ x 24″
Untitled, acrylic on canvas, 12″ x 24″
Untitled, acrylic on canvas, 12″ x 30″
Untitled, acrylic on canvas, 12″ x 30″
Untitled, acrylic on canvas, 10″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on canvas, tape, 12″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on artist board, 15″ x 20″
Untitled, acrylic on artist board, 15″ x 20″
Untitled, acrylic on water color paper, 9″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on water color paper, 9″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on water color paper, 9″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on water color paper, 9″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on water color paper, 9″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on water color paper, 9″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on water color paper, 9″ x 12″
Untitled, acrylic on water color paper, 9″ x 12″
Philip Morsberger & Anita Huffington: The Eye of the Beholder
September 18th, 2011On September 9, the show The Eye of The Beholder featuring work by Anita Huffington and Philip Morsberger opened at the Steffen Thomas Museum of Art In Madison, GA. More than a year ago, the Madison Artists Guild went to Augusta for a tour of Morris Museum of Art and to visit Philip Morsberger’s studio (see post on this blog). The Guild artists were very enthusiastic about Philip’s work and as a result decided to try to bring his work to Madison. Philip introduced his friend Anita Huffington as a possible partner in the show; a suggestion, that was welcomed by the Guild. The show was co-curated by Karen Strelecki and Liselott Johnsson of the Madison Artists Guild. It is thanks to a fantastic team of volunteers, donors and sponsors that this show can take place. Many thanks to all of you.
The photos shown below feature the show on opening night! Brilliant photography provided by Greg Strelecki.
Paintings – Part II – September
September 17th, 2011Below follow three different sketch books, which explore materiality, geometry and texture. I attempt to use materials in ways that they are not ordinary used. Materials that are made to serve a functional need are used as art materials. Package material, rubber bands, office stickers, masking tape, staples, paper towels, and ribbons act as paint and support. Compositions emerged from the characters of the materials themselves.
Shaggy Note Book – In Progress
This is Shaggy Note Book before being painted:
Rubber Band Painting 1
Rubber Band Painting 2
Deconstructed Note Book – In Progress
Paper Towel Note Book
Paintings – Part 1 – September, 2011
September 17th, 2011This series of acrylic paintings on 18″x24″ paper was inspired by the previous group of small paintings. Some of the paintings also include Benjamin Moore paint as a background.I increased the size of the brush and the taped marks to allow for the shift in scale. I made the paint smooth enough so that I could pull it across the surface of the paper in one stroke. In addition, I masked off areas of the paper before painting and during the process. It is not possible to keep track of masked areas while painting; the process becomes half blind. Only, when the layers of masking tape are removed is the painting revealed. I will pin these up on the wall of my studio and study the transparency of the layers of paint, the edges, the geometry and the white versus painted areas.
While working on the paper paintings I also worked on two stretched paintings, one in linen with transparent medium as base, and one in cotton duct with gesso. Since the weave of the fabric was so irregular I used thicker paint on these. I wanted to see what “thick” application of paint could do to the expression of the painting. The process of working with thick paint is very different from using thin paint. It feels sticky and thick, and it shows in the paintings.
Protected: Mentor Meeting #2
September 16th, 2011Gallery Tour – New York – September 2, 2011
September 15th, 2011Friday before Labor Day seems like a perfect day to visit art galleries in Chelsea, New York. Up and down flights of stairs, elevators, streets after streets, I confronted signs like “UPS please deliver next door,” “closed for installation,” “open by appointment only,” or simply “closed.” Only a few courageous galleries were open: Matthew Marks, Peter Blum, Leo Koenig, Fred Torres and Asya Geisberg. As a result, I ended up revisiting the permanent collection at MOMA. A good thing since they have reinstalled the art work in these galleries. Now the exhibit feels energized and is both playful and informative. Over all, I was glad to review works by some of my favorite artists and see their work from a new perspective.
MOMA – Permanent Collection, 4th & 5th Floors
11 West 53 Street New York, NY 10019
The permanent galleries at MOMA have been reconfigured. It was a good experience to wander the new installation. This time I particularily studied how each artists treated edges between shapes and colors in their work.
Joseph Beuys
Willys de Castro
Lygia Clarke
Lyubov Popova
I really like the absurd quality in Josephe Beuys art. His performances and “space activation” installations were daring and provocative. Willys de Castro’s Active Object, 1961, is a clever painting/object reminiscent of Barnett Newman’s The Wild from 1950. Castro and Lygia Clarke were founding members of the Brazilian Neo Concrete movement. Lyubov Popova was part of the Russian Avant garde and painted both Cubist and Constructivist paintings. The combination of forms in her painting is simple but it works well.
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Henri Matisse
Henri Matisse
The colors and shapes found in Les Mademoiselles d’Avignon by Pablo Picasso are very complex and beautiful. In addition, I appreciate the simplicity and large shapes of color of Matisse’s paintings.
Ferdinand Léger
Ferdinand Léger
Le Corbusier
Amédée Ozenfant
Emilio Pettoruti & Gertrude Green
Amédée Ozenfant and Le Corbusier developed the Purist movement in Paris in the late teens and also collaborated on the magazine L’Esprit Nouveau in the twenties. Ferdinand Léger soon joined the group. These artists are interesting because of their thoughts relating to form and color. As can be seen in these paintings, the color is downplayed in favor of the form. Emilio Pettoruti was a cubist artist from Argentina. Gertrude Green was born in Brooklyn and belongs to the very first generation of abstract artists in the United States. Inspired by Constructivism and Cubism she created the first relief paintings in the United States in the 30s.
Ben Nicholson
La Carte d’après Nature – Curated by Thomas Demand
Matthew Marks Gallery
523 West 24th Street, New York, New York 10011
This installation features rare drawings and paintings by René Magritte exhibited together with sculptures, architectural models, and film. In total eighteen artists are participating and the common theme is nature. Like in the woods, if you take the time to look, you will find little treasures here and there. It is an intimate exhibit that contrasts with the exterior New York street life.
Luigi Ghirri
Unknown
René Magritte
Ger van Elk
The Woods are Lovely, Dark and Deep – Group Exhibit
Asya Geisberg Gallery
537B West 23rd Street, New York, NY 10011
This group exhibit features paintings, video and photography that explores “the thrope of the foreboding forest.”
Anat Betzer
Sigmar Polke: Photoworks 1964-2000
Leo Koenig Inc.
545 West 23rd Street, New York, NY 10011
Sigmar Polke
Luca Pizzaroni: Gone with the Wind
Fred Torres Collaborations
527 West 29th Street, New York, NY 10001
Luca Pizzaroni
LANY – Group Show
Peter Blum
526 West 29th Street, New York, NY 10001
Kevin Appel
James Melinat
James Melinat
Flower Power
No Name Bodega
8th Avenue, New York, NY 10011
Blinky Palermo and Gianni Vattimo: A Weak Juxtaposition
September 14th, 2011In the late 60s and early 70s, Blinky Palermo, a painter who lived and worked in Germany and New York, produced an intriguing body of work that extended the boundaries of painting to include objects and architectural space. His drawings, paintings, and objects, when installed in gallery spaces, establish various relationships between artworks, surrounding architectural space and viewers. As an artist, I want to understand what allows the boundaries of the paintings to “open up” and interact.
Palermo’s work changes meaning depending on who is looking at the work, where and when. For instance, his work has been considered Spiritual in Germany and Minimalist in the United States. Palermo was open to influences and had extensive knowledge of German, French and American post-war art; consequently, Joseph Beuys, Palermo’s teacher and friend, used the term “porosity” to describe Palermo’s art (Cooke, 15). Gianni Vattimo’s theory of “weak thought” —piensero debole, was developed in the late eighties. In this essay, I will use his definition of Post Modernity described in Transparent Society, 1989, as a “weak” structure to help me understand Blinky Palermo’s fascinating work. This approach vaguely mimics the way I blindly super impose geometric grids and mask areas in my paintings, with the hope of finding unexpected imagery. Could it be that Palermo’s art is “weak” rather than “porous”?
Vattimo proposes that Post Modern era starts when, “the ideal of emancipation modeled on lucid self-consciousness, on the perfect knowledge of one who knows how things stand, is replaced by an ideal of emancipation based on oscillation, plurality and, ultimately, on the erosion of the very ‘principle of reality’” (Vattimo, 7). Oscillation is tied to the world of mass media, which, through the constant changes of images and information, creates a flickering quality of how we perceive the world and how we receive information. Plurality is related to the realization that the affluent western world (dominated by white heterosexual men) does not dominate history of culture anymore. In this world, women and minorities now have a voice. Erosion of Reality is due to disorientation caused by the destruction of a central view on rationality of the world; instead multiple co-existing world views exist. Vattimo proposes that nowhere is this more evident than in aesthetic experience (Vattimo, 45). I am eager to know if these three notions can be observed in Blinky Palermo’s work.
Vattimo proposes that mass media and reproduction create forces of oscillation and destabilization that change the nature of art. An understanding of this new essence of art can be reached by combining Martin Heidegger’s concept of Stoss and Walter Benjamin’s concept of Shock (Vattimo, 47). Stoss is decribed by Heidegger as “the setting up of the world and the setting forth of the earth.” This phenomena can be experienced in Palermo’s Blaue Schiebe und Stab (Blue Disk and Staff), 1968 (Fig. 1). Two blue objects, one elongated staff and a circular disk are placed in close proximity to each other leaning against the wall. Seen from afar the objects appear familiar as if they were either tools or parts of some sort of semaphore signal system. Vanessa Joan Müller, an art writer, describes the pieces as an exclamation point (Müller, 76). Despite their undefined nature, these objects seem familiar and rooted in western culture, “the world has been set up.” The destabilizing notion, “the setting forth of the earth,” happens when the viewer moves closer to the objects. The rod and disk are much larger than expected; the length of the staff is 8-3” and the disk has a diameter of more than 2’-0.” The blue surface, reminiscent of Yves Klein Blue, is fabric tape meticulously wrapped around the objects. A similar destabilizing effect is experienced in Graue Scheibe (Gray Disk), 1970 (Fig. 2). This grey irregular wall mounted oblong disk is only 5 1/8” high, 10 3/8” wide and ¾” deep and is composed of oil and synthetic paint on cotton canvas on wood-core plywood. The disk appears insignificant at first, placed at eye level, surrounded by vast empty white wall space. Suddenly, there is a shift in perception of the room. This piece activates and reveals the surface of the gallery wall space, like a beauty mark enhances a pretty woman’s face. There is a reversal between the role of the gallery and the exhibited art. The little grey disk negates the role of the gallery as a show case for art. Susan Küper says, “Palermo ceased to regard the painting as an autonomous unit. Instead it was composed of the painted shape on the wall together with its negative” (Küper, 74). Many of Palermo’s Objects, produced between 1964 and 1974, share this destabilizing effect.
In his 1936 essay “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction,” Walter Benjamin used the word “Shock” to describe the character of the changing projected images of the movies (Benjamin, 238). I propose that Palermo’s last body of work To the People of New York City,1976, features cinematic characteristics (Fig. 3). This monumental 15 part series consisting of 40 aluminum panels, painted in yellow, red or black; the colors of the German flag, is on permanent display at Dia: Beacon in the Hudson Valley, north of New York City. Most of the acrylic on aluminum paintings feature contrasting horizontal or vertical bands on monochromatic backgrounds and are arranged in groups of the same size according to installation specifications by Palermo. The cinematic nature of the work is revealed by walking around the vast gallery installation. Due to the optical effect of the colors, it feels like the paintings reach out and surround the viewer. The thin aluminum panels reference the reflective quality of a screen. The repetition of the colors, sizes, and compositions, can be read as interpretation of how mass media, through reproduction and exposure, flattens the meaning of symbols and images. Vattimo says, “the rapid diffusion of information tends to render every message immediately banal” (Vattimo, 57). Stoss and Shock are relevant concepts in understanding the intangible character of the world of today.
The concept of Plurality is developed by Vattimo in his essay titled “Utopia to Heterotopia,” which describes how Utopian ideologies and views of the world have been replaced by Heteroptopia. That aesthetic beauty today does not emerge from a singular ideological vision, but allow for plurality and inclusiveness (Vattimo, 62).
Palermo’s work consists of a wide variety of techniques and materials: drawings and paintings on paper, painted objects, wall paintings, metal paintings, stretched cloth panels, wall paintings and projections. The site specific wall drawings bring forth selected aspects of the architecture that under regular circumstances would not receive any attention. Fenster 1 (Window 1), 1970, is a wall drawing featuring the grid of the gallery storefront window reduced fifteen percent (Küper, 74). In the gallery, the viewer can simultaneously look out the storefront window and at the same time view the wall drawing (Fig.4). Palermo’s work engages the viewer as he or she moves around in the room. The hierarchy of the art, the materials, the exhibition space and the role of the viewer are altered. Through the variety of materials, methods and installations Palermo’s work seems to embrace a pluralistic view on the world.
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The Erosion of Reality is the realization that man has created everything, including laws and values, that there is no objective reality. The real world is in a state of dissolution and disenchantment and what remains is “nothing but a play of forces.” Similarily, Palermo’s work reaches out in different ways beyond the physical limits of the paintings and invites relationships or dialogues that might be more important than the objects themselves. The physical edges of the works and are imbued with meaning, there is a sense of a “weakening” of the boundaries of the work, the exhibition space and the viewers. This is obvious in a work like Schmatterling II (Butterfly II), 1969, which is a wall mounted diptych consisting of a staff like object and a small irregularly shaped flat board mounted very close to the staff (Fig. 5, Fig. 6). The staff is covered with irregularly stretched canvas wrapped around the edges; the face is painted black while the sides are red. The red painted edge subtly reflects on the wall and makes the wall participate in the aesthetic experience of the piece and invites the viewer to look at the piece from a diagonal angle. The little disk, maybe an abstraction of a butterfly, seems to be attracted to the red side of the staff; maybe the same way as a viewer is attracted to it. The black painted face acts as the frame bringing forth the red painted edge. Susan Küper notes, “A central theme of Palermo’s work is edges, which should be regarded not as boundaries but as transitions” (Küper, 74). In this simple diptych, there is an understanding that reality as we know it has changed; the edges are the new front. Anne Rorimer, says that through this shift Palermo redefines “the traditional aspects of painting with regard to its planar frontality” (Rorimer, 49).
Through “weakening,” henceforth inactive components of the art such as the edges, installation space, and the viewers have become active (Fig. 7, Fig. 8). In this post modern world of communication and plurality, there no longer is one history of humankind, or one centralized view on aesthetics. Boundaries, paradigms, and truths have “weakened.” In an absurd sense, “weakening” of art might instead strengthen and activate the overall position of art in today’s world. In my own art, I currently attempt to “weaken” the creative process of my paintings to allow for more spontaneity. So far, I have introduced mechanics in my production to reduce control. For instance, I build my own paint, blindly mask off large areas of my paintings, work with paper, which in my mind is a “weak” material, and use the geometry of the brush to determine the width of strokes rather than tape. I trust that this will result in paintings that allow more freedom of expression while giving viewers more access to my work.
Art is constituted as much by the experience of ambiguity as it is by oscillation and disorientation. In the world of generalized communication, these are the only ways that art can (not still, but perhaps finally) take the form of creativity and freedom.�
(Vattimo, 60) Gianni Vattimo
Fig. 1 Blinky Palermo, Blaue Scheibe und Stab (Blue Disk and Staff), 1968, fabric tape on wood, staff: 99” x 3 1/8,” disk: 25 5/8”x 3/4”
Fig. 2 Blinky Palermo, Graue Scheibe (Gray Disk), 1970, oil and synthetic paint on cotton on wood-core plywood, 5 1/8”x 10 3/8”
Fig. 3 Blinky Palermo, To the People of New York City, 1976, Installation view at Dia: Beacon, NY, 2003, 15 parts, including 40 panels ranging from 8 ¼” x 6 3/8” to 39 ¼” x 78 ¾”
Fig. 4 Blinky Palermo, Fenster 1 (Window 1), 1970, Installation view at Kabinett für Aktuelle Kunst, Bremerhaven
Fig. 5 Blinky Palermo, Schmetterling II (Butterfly II), 1969, oil, canvas, wood and composite board, 119 ½” x 36 5/8” x 1 ¾” overall
Fig. 6 Blinky Palermo, Schmetterling II (Butterfly II), 1969, Portrait Palermo, 1970, Photo: Barbara Klemm
Fig. 7 Blinky Palermo, Tagtraum I (Daydream I), 1965, Two parts: oil, synthetic textile, canvas, and wood, 23 5/8” x 24 ¾” x 2,” oil, canvas, and wood, 9 ¼” x 18” x 2/3”
Fig. 8 Blinky Palermo, Tagtraum I (Daydream I), 1965, Installation view with viewer at CCS Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY, 2011, digital photo
Works Cited
Benjamin, Walter, Hannah Arendt, and Harry Zohn. Illuminations. New York: Schocken Books, 1988. Print.
Cook, Lynne. “Palermo’s Porosity.” Blinky Palermo:Retrospective 1964-77. Palermo, Blinky. Ed. Cooke, Lynne,
Karen J. Kelly, and Barbara Schröder. New York: Dia Art Foundation, 2010:11-24. Print.
Küper, Suzanne. “About Space and Time: Blinky Palermo’s Wall Drawings and Paintings.” Blinky Palermo:Retrospective 1964-77. Palermo, Blinky. Ed. Cooke, Lynne, Karen J. Kelly, and Barbara Schröder. New York: Dia Art Foundation, 2010: 61-80. Print.
Lange. Thomas. “Seeing as Feeling.” Palermo: [on the Occasion of the Exhibition Palermo, Kunsthalle Düsseldorf and Kunstverein Für Die Rheinlande Und Westfalen, 21 October 2007 - 20 January 2008]. Palermo, Blinky. Ed. Susanne Küper. Köln: DuMont, 2007. Print.
Müller, Vanessa. “Blinky Palermo:Look At Me”. Flash Art. Oct 2010: 74-77. Print.
Rorimer. Anne. “Blinky Palermo: Objects, Stoffbilder, Wall Paintings.” Blinky Palermo. Palermo, Blinky. Ed. Gloria Moure. Barcelona: Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona, 2003 :49-71. Print.
Vattimo, Gianni. The Transparent Society. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992. Print.