the 3 Rs: ROUGH, RAW & RELEVANT
‘KEITH HARING – FDR 1984’
OPENED WED APRIL 11, 2018
ON VIEW / THRU . . MON APRIL 30, 2018
99 CENTS FINE ART, 167 CANAL ST., CHINATOWN NYC 10013
HRS: SAT & SUN / 12-6 PM or by appointment
note: the original FDR MURAL / section is VISIBLE 24/7 . . via the storefront & a long, side street window / on ELIZABETH St.
PIX FROM THE OPENING / WED APRIL 11, 2018
CHINATOWN TAKE-OVER / rough & raw & reverent / totally in the street art spirit of the 80s.
an old gritty storefront . . works its magic.
NYC street art art history pop-up / at its best.
though a ‘digital’ screen looping in the window . . was a great touch / running through great archival images,
that helped bring the history alive / and nail all the right – references.
the 3 Rs: ROUGH, RAW & RELEVANT
inside, the rawness of the venue – added to the impact of the historic work.
there’s nothing that beats seeing the original, even if just a section.
2 original panels, (from a heavy metal fence – that ran around the FDR Drive).
KEITH HARING, ‘Untitled (FDR NY) #3 & #4’, spray enamel paint on metal, 48 x 204 x 3-1/4 in.
can’t help but also note: how those ‘KEITH HARING-FDR 1984’ colors / are so in fashion. right now.
red, black. white.
this was the 80s. there was no social media. there were no cellphones.
this was how you communicated, if you really felt compelled to say . . something.
though you might call Keith Haring the godfather of . . the modern emoji.
his images were bold, simple. animated even though standing still / graphic.
but they touched a common nerve.
they really set the city . . on fire.
seeing the rawness of the big steel fence that ran along the FDR, was stunning.
stunning, like a bee sting.
the images just rolled off his tongue onto the gritty belly of the inner city. via spray paint.
it also made you think about the concrete ‘bruteness’ of communication, & the collective / ‘illegal’ street art scene back then, as opposed to the clean-cut / non-stop millennial digital stream that flows incessantly online.
now.
the pop-up exhibit: it def, stopped people in their tracks, for whatever reason.
meaning: for many reasons.
it was an experience / not just a ‘4 white walls’ viewing.
it was immediate.
just around the corner, where the side wall meets the end of the room, was a small array of never-before-seen archival photos by ERIC KROLL.
rare black & white photos of HARING & ‘FDR – 1984’ . . .
bringing spiritual depth to the pop-up exhibit, in the best of ways.
then down the other side was a counter with books, that you could flip through / the neon nightlights & bustle of Chinatown, coming through.
in the early 80s, we used to go knife off these chalk pieces and sell them to collectors, who showed up at the openings. we got pretty good money, too.
you could almost pay a whole year’s rent, with one.
the way the Lower East Side was back then, before the real estate got crazy.
though things started getting dicey, too.
but that’s how it was.
one of his most iconic images. A true grand-pappy of the emoji.
at his later openings, he had stickers of this image, about 3 x 4 ins. / printed on huge rolls, and he used to hand them out.
someone else – can write the paper on what the seemingly simple image – means.
I just want to say: SWIZZ BEATZ too bad, you missed out, on some real juice.
no words.
you can see the mural through the side window on Elizabeth / 24/7.
pretty much just how you walked or drove by the work, integrated into the city, back in the day – when it was done.
EBONY HAYES, the Martos Gallery director, at center.
JOSE MARTOS, his wife, artist SERVANE MARY, and filmmaker/writer VERONICA GONZALEZ PENIA.
Martos was the guy with the vision, who put up this pop-up / with all 3 Rs intact. ROUGH, RAW, REVERENT.
to which you can add an A+ . . for archival, informative, and moving.
his main gallery is just around the corner on Elizabeth.
it’s also a beautiful space, with another profound / historic show up now, too.
the also dead & departed, but still haunting, still powerful: DAN ASHER. don’t miss it.
thru April 22.
but the art lives on.
DANNY CASTENDA, who runs workshops for ‘kids of color’, through an artist collective called, MINORITY REPORT, located at the Canal St. Market, just down the street.
with him, with actress ALINA CARSON.
see: https://broadly.vice.com/en_us/article/qvw7qm/the-nyc-collective-providing-free-art-workshops-to-kids-of-colorMINORITY REPORT NYC
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~’KEITH HARING – FDR 1984′ / CHINATOWN TAKE-OVER |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | April 17th, 2018, 9:38am
‘KEITH HARING – FDR 1984’
OPENING WED APRIL 11, 2018 / 4 – 8 PM
the show runs thru APRIL 30, 2018
99 CENTS FINE ART, 167 CANAL ST, CHINATOWN NYC 10013
HRS: SAT & SUN / 12-6 PM / or by appointment
99 CENTS FINE ART . .
is pleased to announce the installation of a significant section from the KEITH HARING mural, ‘Untitled (FDR NY)’, at their temporary location at 167 Canal St.
read more: KEITH HARING FDR MURAL / 99 CENTS FINE ART
& where you can also find some truly awesome, early, archival photos of the project, from which set – the photo posted below belongs.
“Created in situ on a preexisting fence, the work is part of a monumental frieze that ran along nearly 300 feet of the New York City highway and was visible for most of a year. Haring, who worked frequently in public, placing his work in the world, once said: ‘If I only made paintings in a gallery, I would probably be frustrated.'”
~99 Cents Fine Art website
IMAGE COURTESY: 99 CENTS FINE ART
~’KEITH HARING – FDR 1984′ / 99 CENTS FINE ART/ OPENS WED APRIL 11 / 4-8 PM |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | April 10th, 2018, 8:31pm
Off-White Columns . . . !!
getting back to . . . alternative spaces / micro-brewed !!
sometimes, all it takes is a little wit, a good eye, and . . Instagram !!
@offwhitecolumns: @offwhitecolumns is extra pleased to present @ryanrusso19 (RYAN RUSSO / BROOKLYN) in ‘Big Trouble in Little China II’.
VHS tape transfer and acrylic on canvas.
20 x 25 in.
2017
here’s a guy . . who runs a ‘viewing’ gallery, hung on the standard-issue, NYC office building white column, opposite his day-job work desk, (at Phillips Auction house, btw) !!
and it’s only happening . . on Instagram.
@offwhitecolumns: @jryan (JACK RYAN) on the column in ‘off-white science’ until April 9th. Hyped and excited!
Untitled
oil on canvas
24 x 20 in.
2017
artist-gallerist-curator, JASON OSBOURNE . . aka @offwhitecolumns,
only started publishing the ‘gallery’ a few months ago / Jan 2, 2018 was the inaugural exhibit.
what sets him apart** . . is his dry humor / great clean, cold, poetry-in-motion ‘eyeball’, & his cutting-edge dip into the new pool of new wave, new gen artists coming to the city, like they alway do every year. wave upon wave. being an artist himself, and also just naturally mingling in the art community, also helps give him an edge, but his edge is . . well curated.
no doubt about it.
so, he’s also ‘generous’, as in, taking of his time & ingenuity . . to platform & make a case for other talented artists, for other voices, and in so doing, just by virtue of his all-around-smarts & IG . . to be able to grab some fiercely-held critical, & attention-savvy territory for his ‘friends’.
he’s also making . . a new scene.
tell me about it !!!
new gen !!!
go-go.
**apart from the fact that the name, is a great riff, on that old school new artists platform, big old clunky white box, White Columns. (no diss-respect).
@offwhitecolumns: @jyryan Jack Ryan’s paintings have a comforting bleakness.They remind us we are awarded the experience of witnessing what we are losing (happy Friday). It’s been a pleasure to hang out with this work. They remind me of the writing of W. G. Sebald. On the column through the weekend!
Thanks Jack!
I can also relate to this fellow, dedicated art viewer, in that even a shift measured by mere millimeters, makes a big difference, photography-wise / makes a whole new way of seeing things, open up.
and, to his writing, too.
sometimes all you really need, to know it’s good art – is how it opens up a hole in your head, and the poetry . . just spills out.
blood, guts, gore & gush.
see: JASON OSBOURNE – ARTIST WEBSITE
Jack, I’m wondering if you will give yourself / a shout-out one day, too ?
though I am struck by your poem . . ‘HOW TO QUIT PAINTING’ !!
& the cornbread recipe, looks good too.
all images via Instagram @offwhitecolumns
except the last little one – is from JASON OSBOURNE WEBSITE
~JASON OSBOURNE . . aka @offwhite columns / Instagram |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | April 7th, 2018, 11:20am
DAN ASHER, STILL FROM: ‘SALARY MAN’, 1997. 1 min VHS-to-digital
THE VIDEOS of DAN ASHER – ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVES
32 SECOND AVE, NYC / LOWER EAST SIDE
TUES APRIL 3, 2018 / 7:30 PM
TOTAL RUNNING TIME: ca. 75 min.
read more: DAN ASHER SCREENING – ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVE
This program of videos is presented on the occasion of a solo show of large paintings, smaller drawings & small table-top clay sculptures . . .
‘DAN ASHER – AN ANTHROPOLOGIST ON MARS’ . . now up at MARTOS GALLERY, 41 Elizabeth St, Chinatown . . thru APRIL 22.
DAN ASHER, ‘Untitled (self-portrait)’, color photo print, 11 x 14 in.
signed & dated on the back: 1998 / Dan was always in search of . . shamans. literally.
Collection: NANCY SMITH
I was Dan’s studio assistant when he was printing up a series of photos, mostly based on his travels to Antarctica.
I got paid in cash (and well !!), sushi . . & art work !!
Dan was rolling in cash then, mid-1990s. he had just inherited something like $200,000, or was it $400,000 . . when his mom died. needless to say, it was all gone by the end of the decade.
Simon (Cerigo) actually put $100,000 of it into Apple stock in 1996, but Dan quickly converted it into penny stocks and lost it all.
Dan would have been . . a millionaire, many many times over, if he had just left it alone, but no matter how much both of us screamed at him, trying to get through his stubborn, obstinate ways . . . he would just respond: ‘It’s my money, I’ll do what I want.’
end story; he was desperately broke, and became very sick at the end.
DAN ASHER, b. 1947, Cleveland, Ohio. d. 2010 New York City.
but, I’d rather leave this following story of his stubbornness, as part of his colorful legacy.
Dan left high school, in what must have been the late 1960s, to follow & photograph . . . Bob Marley.
much against his parents wishes, of course.
the box of black & white photos, which he brought with him to New York, got lost at a party early into the 1980s. flash forward more than 25 years later, sometime in early 2000, he was at another party – when a girl he used to know, comes up to him and says . . “I just found your Bob Marley photos in my closet.”
he promptly sold the bunch to the Marley estate for $100,000 on the spot.
that was Dan.
a little bit of magic and a lot of stubborn / sometimes it set fires, and sometimes it . . flamed out.
DAN ASHER, ‘Iceberg’ color photo print.
16 x 20 in. // signed & dated 2000 on the back.
Collection: NANCY SMITH
~THE VIDEOS of DAN ASHER . . ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVES / TUES APRIL 3 / 7:30 PM |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | April 2nd, 2018, 4:02pm
HALEY JOSEPHS . . ‘WHEN MEN ARE FAIRY TALES in BOOKS WRITTEN BY RABBITS”
OPENS FRI MARCH 30, 2018 / 7 – 10 PM
the show runs thru MAY 6, 2018
DELI GALLERY, 10-16 46th Avenue
Long Island City, Queens 11101
HRS: SAT & SUN / 12 – 5 PM
or by appointment
HALEY JOSEPHS (b. 1987, Seattle, Washington) is a Brooklyn-based painter.
This is her second solo show with Deli Gallery.
“When I was alive, I believed – as you do – that time was at least as real and solid as myself, and probably more so. I said ‘one o’clock’ as though I could see it, and ‘Monday’ as though I could find it on the map; and I let myself be hurried along from minute to minute, day to day, year to year, as thoguhI were actually moving from one place to another. Like everyone else, I lived in a house bricked up with seconds and minutes, weekends and New Year’s Days, and I never went outside until I died, because there was no other door.
Now I know that I could have walked through the walls.
You can strike your own time, and start the count anywhere.When you understand that – then any time at all will be the right time for you.”
~The skull from ‘The Last Unicorn’, written by Peter S. Beagle.
~HALEY JOSEPHS . . ‘WHEN MEN ARE FAIRY TALES ..’ / DELI / OPENS FRI MARCH 30 / 7 – 10 PM |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 29th, 2018, 2:54pm
ahhh, moving into . . . AIRES !!!!!
cosmos – on FIRE !!!!!
guess who’s an . . AIRES on steroids ?!!!
‘How to Build a Fire: Sow/Reap’ – FRI MARCH 30, 2018 / 8 PM
OPEN SOURCE, 306 17th St., South Slope, Brooklyn
If you look into a fire, you’ll never see the same flame twice. Fire Flickers. It dances. it sways. It moves. It is constantly changing and going with the flow. Our 2 dynamic co-hosts ALENA SINGLETON & EMILY RAY REESE, are here to guide us through evenings of stories from a diverse array of voices, including old favorites & newcomers alike.
~OPEN SOURCE
WITH STORYTELLERS:
WAQIA ABDUL-KAREEM
BRIDGET KENNEDY
DEANNA L. MARTIN
CRYSTAL VELASQUES
what ?????
FIRE . . as a working / definition of: INFINITY ?????
I guess so !!!!!
~’HOW TO BUILD A FIRE: Sow/Reap’ . . OPEN SOURCE / FRI MARCH 30 / 8 PM |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 29th, 2018, 10:50am
SELDON YUAN – ‘NO PHOTOS’
OPENS SAT MARCH 31, 2018 / 7 – 10 PM
show runs thru APRIL 29, 2018
SELENA GALLERY, 37 TROUTMAN ST., #3, BUSHWICK, BROOKLYN
SELDON YUAN, ’20 HUF in my pocket, 5300 HUF short (Budapest Strip club), 50 x 38 in., 2008.
IMAGE VIA SELENA GALLERY
SELENA is pleased to present ‘NO PHOTOS’, a solo exhibition of drawings by New York based artist Sheldon Yuan. Yuan’s multi-faceted practice explores poetry, memory, and the width of language.
~press release
~SELDON YUAN . . ‘NO PHOTOS’ / SELENA GALLERY / OPENS SAT MARCH 31 |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 29th, 2018, 9:57am
I got to visit OLIVIA SWIDER at the 2 person show, just before it came down.
‘THE TEXTURE OF WANT’ – OLIVIA SWIDER & DALIA AMARA
FEB 24 – MARCH 17, 2018
MOUNTAIN, 284 SEIGEL ST, 1B. BUSHWICK, BROOKLYN 11206
the show’s postcard
Image: Olivia Swider, 2018
OLIVIA SWIDER, Mountain Gallery . . Sat, March 3, 2018
Ms. Swider also co-founded, & now solely runs SELENA, also a Living Room / apt gallery . . . in Bushwick, Brooklyn.
left: DALIA AMARA, ‘Touching a Cactus’, 2014.
Archival pigment print. 14 x 21.5 in.
right: OLIVIA SWIDER, ‘Muy Picante’, 2018
Lace, felt, rosary, wire, spray. 5.5 x 17 in.
while both artist’s works are ‘wanting’ to express desire, need, & need-to-understand (!!), self-identity and, ultimately, longing . . . their approach could not be more different. Dalia is about the ‘narrative’ of longing, and is on an . . inner search. contemplation. observation. thought. process. all done with a well-tempered ‘coolness’, even distance. Olivia on the other hand, is all about screaming out, tearing to shreds, and intense, hands-on expressionism.
Dalia’s work centers around her ‘self’ / through many self-portraits, as well as the formal distance of recording .. of herself, & inanimate objects / in very patient, realistic ways & settings.
Olivia’s work is self-portraiture . . through created, and often explosive ‘fictional’ narratives. both artists express . . ‘I want’ / not only as ‘desire’, or a ‘longing’ for self-knowledge, but also, as a verb . . as in a ‘demand’. an ambition, as in: I want . . ‘to be heard’, ‘to be understood’, ‘to be felt’ !!
OLIVIA SWIDER, ‘Muy Picante’, 2018
lace, felt, rosary, wire spray. 5.5 x 17 in.
talk about . . ‘I Want’.
as in ‘I demand’ !! to be heard, and understood / my fave piece in the show.
it looked more like a snake’s giant ‘fang’, than an embroidery sentiment. more of a demand, than a . . ‘wish’. it also spoke to Olivia’s cultural mash-up of a DNA background / Polish (the stern cross), and Mexican (the vibrant red lace, the seashell chain) / composed on a very contemporary, ‘shaped’ ‘platform’, 3D.
it was like an arrow, though being in the rough shape of a hot pepper, probably a better metaphor might be – a kind of ‘stake’ . . to the heart of the matter of things.
‘things’ . . being ‘things – in motion. creative, & emotional momentum !!
nothing is standing still, here.
detail, ‘Muy Picante’.
Olivia told me the rosary had been her grandmother’s.
I liked how it referenced the ‘texture’ in the title. plush carpet, silvery, thin metallic snaking chain, more solid souvenir trophy, & the abrupt, plastic pink, of the shiny, retro, vinyl rosary ‘envelope’.
OLIVIA SWIDER, ‘My Rosary’, 2018. another fave.
Rosary, vinyl, plastic, spray on rug. 11 x 17 in.
this one was more subdued, more sentimental. more story-telling.
more . . I was a young femme teenager once, filled with . . longing / the very definition of: want.
I liked how it referenced the ‘texture’ in the title. plush carpet, silvery, thin metallic snaking chain, more solid miniature souvenir trophy, & the abrupt, plastic pink, of the shiny, retro vinyl rosary ‘envelope’.
it had a longing, and a delicacy – that could not be denied.
two gallerist/curator/artists: OLIVIA SWIDER and MICHAEL FLEMING.
throwing some luck-of-the-Irish, in . . with the big drama of the Polish and Mexican !!
Michael Flemming runs his gallery space in his Bushwick, ground floor apartment living room. so it’s quite deliberate, both casual and intense / aspiring, and intimate.
yes. real people live here. art ultimately belongs in homes.
though this might be the last show for Mountain, in this space – word is . . Mountain and Selena are combining forces, and looking for a bigger . . living room !!
those are DALIA AMARA’s works on the wall.
top: ‘Rose with hair extension’, 2017.
archival pigment print. 14 x 2.5 in.
lower: ‘Simulation’, 2017.
Full HD Video.
DALIA AMARA, ‘Simulation’, 2017.
video focused on her ‘self’ . . in physical space / and, stance.
there’s a sense of curiosity, and poise.
running in a ‘window box format’, these ‘projections’ . . were inward-focused.
Olivia, meanwhile is never . . in the box !!
quite the contrast.
case in point:
OLIVIA SWIDER, ‘Party Frog’, 2018.
ceramic, el yucateco hot sauce, ceramic plate. 5 in. tall.
it’s like one is a ‘science’, (Dalia), and the other is a ‘science experiment’ (Olivia).
or: the full range of: want !!
DALIA AMARA, ‘Posing’, 2017.
Full HD Video.
the title says it all / looking into the mirror.
realism & questioning. finding, and . . wanting to understand, more ?
DALIA AMARA, ‘Posing’, black & white.
DALIA AMARA, ‘Posing’ . . black leotard, glass, and mirrors. steel.
& meaning – their textures, not just their colors. but, their surfaces. almost non-textures. hard, pristine, definitely narrative, realist shiny, reflective surfaces.
OLIVIA SWIDER, ‘Hello Liar’, 2017.
Bleach, tajin, sand, acrylic on hand towel. 16 x 26 in.
hello: YIN, yang !!
Dalia and Olivia.
polar opposites of expression, steel vs thick textile.
in both concept & literal texture / precise observation vs sandy, screaming !!
grace . . vs ripping to shreds, lol.
differences of texture – make the world go round.
yet, it’s still: always . . endless wanting, between the both of them.
I want you to look = at this. see me in my projection – Dalia.
see me in my acting out . . Olivia.
crusty. fried. angry. sad.
you were NOT, what I wanted !! LIAR !!
Lena Dunham: this towel has your name on it.
my heart is out there / and, I’m so . . over you.
‘The Texture of Want’ / is the Theory of Want . . . in 360 degrees.
from the precise, optical autobiography of the unblinking camera lens / to the shredded, crying, ripped-up towel of . . dude, it’s ‘over’.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~OLIVIA SWIDER & DALIA AMARA . . ‘THE TEXTURE OF WANT’ / MOUNTAIN GALLERY / PHOTOS |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 27th, 2018, 9:19am
NICK POE / SOPHIE STONE
OPENED FRI MARCH 23, 2018
the show runs thru . . APRIL 22, 2018
SAFE GALLERY, 1004 METROPOLITAN AVE, BUSHWICK, BROOKLYN 11211
HRS: SAT & SUN / 12 – 6 PM
read more: SOPHIE STONE & NICK POE – SAFE GALLERY
SO . . .
I came for the ‘tapestries’, and left . . with a pencil-toned drawing of flowers in a vase, embroidered on my heart.
SOPHIE STONE . . .
I had admired her re-purposed, orange-toned, hand-worked ‘rug’, done so painterly . . it was a ‘tapestry’ !!
when I first caught sight of it, at the Safe Gallery booth at this year’s recent NADA.
Sophie Stone received her BFA from RISD / Rhode Island School of Design in 2009.
She lives & works in New York.
detail, SOPHIE STONE, ‘Piano Rug’.
SOPHIE STONE, ‘Piano Rug’, 2018.
Cotton, plastic, sisal, paint. 48 x 48 in.
re-storing / re-claiming . . old & worn-out household objects – that was a big topic at the ESSEX FLOWERS collective, last month.
that’s definitely the way to go. honoring both old & new skills / sustaining resources. bringing the depth of diverse cultural life, and a sense history home. and most importantly, giving a wonderful old, yet newly functional object . . another 100 years of joyfully spinning . . on the dance floor !!
all the while admiring . . the new vision, creative repairs & art-worthy embellishments – that brought new life.
and spirit.
SOPHIE STONE, ‘Untitled (Two Hammocks)’, 2017.
Cotton, sisal, wire, house paint, 78 x 120 in.
textile repair . . is so fascinating, beyond just the sustainable / renewed / skills / innovation aspect . . and, of course renewed . . function.
as someone who hand-stitches old quilts back to life, myself, I know . . part of the attraction, is just getting to understand, in a real hands-on way – how things were made. and thus, understanding how lives were lived.
. . through the materials, whether they be woven or patchwork, whole cloth, or industrial dye-jobs, and as well, the level of craftsmanship that went into each piece.
conceptually, as you work on these projects, you get a real sense of what. . random, and infinite mean.
random, in the random, worn-out & very varied ‘pieces’ . . that come your way / as if by fate.
infinite, with regard . . to the infinite creative possibilities / ceaseless innovation that goes onto making each one – first strong, according to it’s needs, and then . . lively . . according to your mood !!
the only given is this: it is worn-out / fix it.
detail, ‘Two Hammocks’ . . .
setting to work on a lowly, worn textile . . for a craftsman / artisan / artist . . is a total delight / a never-ending potential, for self-expression.
SOPHIE STONE, ‘Pee Stains’. 2018.
cotton, acrylic, plastic, sisal, ink. 131 x 77 in.
trying to hide a hole, or a stain – gives new meaning to the term: turn a lemon into . . lemonade !!
it’s such a creative . . jumping-off-point.
detail, ‘Pee Stains’.
it’s like a game / of real skill, and . . courage.
how to . . hide the damage, esp the bio-stains, lol.
detail, border, ‘Pee Stains’.
and, then once the piece is shored up, strengthened, and made . . presentable !!
it’s time for the real games – to begin.
the joy is – self-evident.
and very much – a part of the contemporary art / cutting edge – canon.
NICK POE, with his framed pencil drawings.
a native New Yorker, born & breed on Great Jones St., in Lower Manhattan.
“his work captures the subtlety of architectural elements and magnifies these details to compose new experiential occasions.” ~gallery
NICK POE, ‘Pool Table (with Flowers)’, 2018.
Gandy 8 foot pool table, custom printed billiard felt, pool balls, pool cues, and hanging lamp.
58.5 x 105 x 31 in.
pairing Sophie Stone’s colorfully jubilant work with Nick Poe’s tapped-down, grey-toned minimalism, was such an interesting contrast / concept.
each artist’s work was in effect, brought to ‘greater’ life . . by the contrast.
NICK POE . . was all about new things, new infrastructures, new functional / house-hold objects; most of which he designed & built himself, the bookshelf, the bar / he designed the custom felt on the pool table.
EXCEPT, for one very important non-variable: the classical / truly retro, catalog illustration of a still-life, the vase & flowers scene, which inspired and anchored his new house-hold ‘objects’.
though, here again, there was that still that sense of a random . . jumping-off-point / something seen, an illustration . . in an old publication . . made new, again.
just flipping . . pages, and zooming in.
an old illustration, and a very low-contrast one at that, in terms of tonality & subject matter . . . gets a second dance !!
and, a whole new . . lifetime of enchanting a new gen of viewers.
the work is also obviously about . . skills / craftsmanship.
and, vision.
detail, NICK POE, ‘Bookshelf (with Flowers)’, 2018.
latex on wood, painted frame with flatbed print on dibond, bouquet wrapping paper, white oak, wax.
70 x 96 x 12.5 in.
detail, NICK POE, ‘Bookshelf (with Flowers)’.
NICK POE, ‘Bar (with Bar Back)’, 2018.
latex on wood with tempered glass and mirror, Duralex drinking glasses,
41 x 39 x 24 in (bar) / 48 x 96 x 11 in. (bar back)
NICK POE, ‘Drawing (with Flowers)’, 1,2,3, 2018.
Painted frame, with pencil on paper, uv plexi, bouquet wrapping paper, white oak, wax.
21 x 24 x 1.25 in.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~NICK POE & SOPHIE STONE . . SAFE GALLERY / OPENING PIX !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 24th, 2018, 10:20am
DAN ASHER – ‘AN ANTHROPOLOGIST ON MARS’
up thru APRIL 22, 2018
MARTOS GALLERY
there are a few great books about DAN, available to browse though, when you enter the gallery, on the desk.
one, a hardback, is very rare . . so it’s a definite / stop & browse.
titled . . ‘DAN ASHER – GUESTARBEITER on the PLANET’
it was published by AUREL SCHEIBLER Gallery in Koln / Cologne, Germany . . sometime pre-1993.
Aurel showed & sold Dan’s work in Europe for a time, and quite well, enabling Dan to live in Germany for few years. it was there that he had access to a clay workshop.
*guestarbeiter . . translates as immigrant / guest worker . . I believe in this case it meant ‘outsider’.
it also has a number of archival photos of Dan.
the other is a wonderful book – to buy, $10 / limited edition of 1,000.
DAN ASHER – ‘CLASS NOTES’
pages from notebooks 1991-92
published by Shoot The Lobster (Martos Gallery) / RATSTAR
2018 ed. 1000
soft cover / staple-bound / 42 pages
a wonderfully produced ‘zine’ it reads like a school ‘notebook’, and is in fact a selection from Dan’s many, obsessive, notebooks – filled with scribbled thoughts, random words, lists, appointments & sketches.
DAN ASHER / ANTHROPOLOGIST . .
Notes on being a . . man
DAN ASHER / ANTHROPOLOGIST
Notes on being a . . woman
DAN ASHER / ANTHROPOLOGIST
Notes on . . navigating society
DAN ASHER . . ANTHROPOLOGIST
Notes on . . observation !!
DAN ASHER . . ARTIST
how to find a way – through this ?
DAN ASHER . . PERSONAL DIARIST
Dan could be easily insulted, just the day-to-day hypocrisy of life insulted.
if you wanted to spend a day with him, without hassle . . better be sure to be armed with any number of random small jokes and . . soothing comments.
let’s just say . . I was eating lunch with him on a number of occasions, in any one of his favorite haunts / depending on how much dough ($$$) / he (or I ) had in pocket, from 4 star sushi bars, to Borscht with Challah slingers for $2 / when he sent a dinner plate flying like a frisbee !!
oh no – busted again / 86ed from another joint !!
it was mostly the vegan places that provoked him most, go figure – something about that healthy clientale.
DAN ASHER . . SHAMAN
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~DAN ASHER . . a couple of books |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | March 22nd, 2018, 1:15pm
