‘ADIEU SEPTEMBER’ . . has been extended thru .. FRI NOV 15, 2013
SPACE WOMB GALLERY . . 22-48 JACKSON AVE #1 – LONG ISLAND CITY, QUEENS
HRS: 12 NOON – 6PM / WED – OPEN BY APPOINTMENT ONLY
7, G, E & M TRAINS – COURT SQ. STOP/JACKSON AVE EXIT
see: SPACE WOMB
MIDORI OKUYAMA . . tell us that the show is very exciting, and that SPACE WOMB has just recently acquired a new location on the Lower East Side – more news on that, as it comes in.
Midori has 2 pieces in this big group show.
I first saw Midori’s work in the recent . . ‘NO CONSENT’ show, which was the first exhibit at AMY LI’S . . 166 MOTT STREET.
Good luck .. to all.
IMAGE: MIDORI OKUYAMA
see: MIDORI OKUYAMA
POSTER ILLUSTRATIONS:
TOP IMAGE: KIYOUNG KIM . . ‘TWIN’.
LOWER IMAGE: MARJORIE VAN CURA . . ‘UNTITLED’ 0912.
BOTH ARTWORKS ARE IN THE EXHIBIT.
~ADIEU SEPTEMBER . . SPACE WOMB |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 30th, 2013, 6:29am
ok. the last word on the KENT DORN show.
KENT DORN . . . ‘SHADOWLAND’
OCT 17 – NOV 16, 2013
FREIGHT+VOLUME – 530 WEST 24tH ST – CHELSEA, NYC
it’s strange to consider, or at least an indication of what’s on the table here . . to see what a dominant, and yet undefined, against-the-grain role .. the painterly orbs of the sun, and/or the moon .. play in these paintings. in a show titled: ‘Shadowland’, these light sources .. go, well .. pale. cold.
alert, warning. biosphere .. break-down.
society .. break-up. culture dead-end. the end of the ‘hippies’, and Woodstock is .. over.
way over.
although there is a ‘glow’ of light around these cosmic light sources, they don’t really heat up, or light up the paintings.
nor the activities within the narrative.
it’s not that the paintings are really that dark, as much as they are .. cause for pause. but there were also some very optimistic notes in the show, namely .. two candlelit paintings. where the glow of the tiny flicker that a candle burns with, a man-made radiance, extends much further than the cosmic-scaled rays of the suns of the larger .. landscape paintings.
something to think .. about.
these paintings are not just about compositional/plastic virtues, or narrative consequences. I’m thinking, with the inclusion of these 2 paintings .. it’s us, the one, the human .. against .. the universe.
bio singularity in a digital world, counts.
the individual contributing .. to the collective unconscious, counts.
with the emphasis being on .. the difference, the impact .. one passionate voice, one tweeting person can make – as our bio world degrades, the cosmos is unraveled, our sun is discovered to have a finite life span, and we are more machine, more ‘half computer’ .. everyday.
and apparently, performance enhancing drugs .. are up next.
TRINEE.
the opening was fun. the paintings were serious, but more in the sense of something .. to really get your mind around.
not ‘burn’ you out.
even Rebecca Goyette’s video, gross as it was .. was ridiculous, theatrical .. in your face .. clueless. you could walk away, and laugh it off.
candle in a glass jar.
KENT DORN, ‘Untitled (Seance)’, 2013.
mixed media on canvas, 45 x 35.
($5,000)
omg, are we really calling up the dead here, crossing over to the other side . . ?
no wonder the show .. spooked me.
it was like bookends. a candle in a glass jar / and a candle in a Chianti bottle. kind of like, jam meets wine ? and a little flame .. ignites ?
both titled: Seance.
somebody else can write on that .. I’m done talking. I’m just laying down the tarot cards, one by one.
KENT DORN, ‘Untitled (Seance)’, 2013
mixed media on canvas, 45 x 35 in.
($5,000)
ok, listen up .. up there.
if the sun don’t shine, and the moon don’t, either.
at least that little candlelight of mine .. can.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~KENT DORN .. SHARE THE LIGHT |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 29th, 2013, 8:56am
MORE PIX FROM THE OPENING . .
KENT DORN . . . ‘SHADOWLAND’
& video projection in the back room by REBECCA GOYETTE
OCT 17 – NOV 16, 2013
FREIGHT+VOLUME – 530 WEST 24TH ST – CHELSEA, NYC
KENT DORN and NICK LAWRENCE at the opening.
I’m so . . into ‘big’ hats. Hash Halper wears one too.
CORY in front of KENT DORN’S . . . ‘Almost Paradise.’
KENT DORN, ‘Almost Paradise’, 2013.
mixed media on canvas, 45 x 60 in.
($8,000)
so I was wondering why Nick would pair REBECCA GOYETTE’S over-the-top video with a KENT DORN show.
maybe this painting is a clue . . .”almost paradise”, anybody ?
even with 2 suns, this painting also says: paradise lost.
KENT DORN, ‘Shadowland’, 2013.
mixed media on canvas, 75 x 60 in.
($14,000)
2 suns ?
maybe that’s a truly .. mutated world, of the future.
it’s kind of a ‘fierce’ .. image / metaphor.
well they both, GOYETTE and DORN have a lot to say about water, though one references the secret and terrifying ‘life’ beneath salt sea water . . while the later, Kent Dorn: the ‘mystery’ life atop a kind of ‘fading glory’ .. lake water. they both speak .. ‘fierce’.
esp in terms of pure visual ‘technique’.
they both speak to human desire, and ‘mating’. and degrading. ritual. being lost, and not in control.
though it’s a bit of a . . raw call. an over-the-top contrast.
but while Ms. Goyette, is deliberately .. very trashy in her expression, she is at least racially diverse. Mr. Dorn zeros in a counter culture that is all white, and counter culture trashy. but then, the painting is damn: serious.
both are very: entertaining. for all the darkness, it’s really just .. food for thought.
a kind of a visual ‘fish’ food . . that comes drifting down the everyday pipeline.
I mean it’s strange to write about. Rebecca’s work is so outrageous, so fun, and yet ultimately, reads .. sad.
Kent Dorn’s work .. is harder to peg.
it skews ‘dark’, and yet .. reads extremely beautiful.
I’m sure someone could dig into those 2 opposing landscapes, and come up .. with a book.
Almost Paradise . .
human behavior . . for the soft-fleshed creatures we are, with brains, and comprehensive history, Kent Dorn’s paintings aren’t that far from saying . . what Ms. Goyette is saying ..
maybe we do need . . shells.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~KENT DORN . . ALMOST PARADISE |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 28th, 2013, 10:24am
REBECCA GOYETTE has a ‘performative’ video screening in the projection room, as well.
OCT 17 – NOV 16, 2013
FREIGHT+VOLUME – 530 WEST 24TH ST – CHELSEA, NYC
the opening had it’s theatrical moments, mostly provided by Ms. Goyette, although this BANKSY wannabe duo, was making the rounds that night, as well.
BANKSY, not.
FANTASTIC NOBODIES, yes.
that be DAVID HENRY BROWN JR, making an almost plausible Banksy, minus the t-shirt (!!), with his partner in crime, MARC GRUBSTEIN as Little Bo Peep.
speaking of which, Little Bo Peep .. straight out of Mother Goose – 2 unicorn mermaids, courtesy of Ms. Goyette .. wandered around dispensing saltwater taffy.
was I the only one to think it was . . a tray of colorfully wrapped condoms, at first glance ?
Province Town based REBECCA GOYETTE graduated from RISD and went on to get her MFA from SVA, here in NYC.
apart from her well-placed ‘tail’, her ‘lobsta’ rendition, at least at this opening .. was rather colorful, but subdued.
according to the National Geographic .. she shoulda come out swinging . . those padded claws !!
not to mention squirting drug enhanced ‘urine’ from a bladder – atop her head.
if you really want to get into the mood this Sunday, you know, art meets science head on .. just google: sex life of lobsters . . which has been described as “an endless round of ruthless, ritualized violence, and kinky, territorial sex practices that would make a porn star blush.” source: SALON.
here’s a few starters.
see: KINKY SEX SECRETS of LOBSTERS .. SALON.COM
see: UNKNOWN LIFE of LOBSTERS .. NAT GEO
in which case .. Ms. Goyette comes off as rather: soft, fuzzy. and cute ?
but yo, Miley Cyrus . . heads up !!
tongues out, is way over.
here’s your next move. put a squirting bladder on top of your head.
the video, in the back room . . starts off . . Pilgrimish.
but then goes quickly south, though not really violent.
more like, black humor ?
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~REBECCA GOYETTE . . F+V |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 27th, 2013, 8:46am
MORE PIX FROM THE OPENING . .
KENT DORN . . . ‘SHADOWLAND’
OCT 17 – NOV 16, 2013
FREIGHT+VOLUME – 530 WEST 24TH ST – CHELSEA
KENT DORN, ‘Outsiders’, 2013.
mixed media on canvas, 80 x 60 in.
($15,000)
I like this particular piece because it’s about .. outsiders. just joking. NOT !!
I like the way it has a foot in both camps. the sunlight does manage to come through, the vast darkness of the woods . . the guitar player, and the little dog lapping water, the ‘shared’ social overtones. the vast growth, and the flowing water. still not polluted, not submerged in litter or pollution.
but the rural life is bittersweet, there’s a feeling things are not all they should be .. life’s not that sunny. the forest is degrading, tree limbs are breaking in front of our eyes, the water seems . . icy cold.
there’s a dead end there, lurking just off center.
a vacuous in the faces, that says these are not just revelers, these are hard-times folks.
it’s bittersweet, one foot in the light, and one foot in the dark.
it’s interesting to note the contrast between this show and Kent Dorn’s previous solo show, at FREIGHT+VOLUME . . back in NOV 2010.
in his previous show, titled: ‘REMAINS” . . it was a little heavy going on the portraits, of which .. single portraits there are none – in this show. a nice evolution. it’s nice to see how he moves around in his ‘gray’ area, rather than being ‘trapped’ by it.
see: BIG STREET PARTY/KENT DORN
see: KENT DORN/more opening pix
detail, ‘Outsiders’.
things are not quite as dramatic as a car crash. but they still speak .. plenty.
though the narrative is still there .. to draw out, reflecting off the way the world has moved forward (?), since 2010. though it seems to be afternoon, it feels more night, than .. day.
but not totally .. creepy. just hazy, just at that midpoint, where good meets bad.
light meets dark.
detail, ‘Outsiders’
the painterly technique has evolved, too. it’s a touch cooler, still dramatic, but kind of submerged, like a pulse rather than a shout. with delicate moments, among the big brushstrokes.
flat and linear areas flares up, just as easily as those that are built-up, with painterly 3-D modelling . .
all good.
detail, ‘Outsiders’.
the detailing .. is a road trip – all in itself.
as in most of Kent Dorn’s paintings, esp the landscapes, the sun .. and sometimes the moon, and sometimes both – is really a big part of the game.
a big multi-layered concept / metaphor . . to consider.
a big aspect of the emotional content.
this painting also really fascinated me. it had a sun, and a moon, and a . . vignette.
the light from the sun and the moon . .
vignette: “a brief evocative description, account or episode.”
vignette: “a small illustration or portrait ‘photograph’ that fades into its background, without a definite border.”
source: define vignette
KENT DORN, ‘Campfire Song (Waiting for the Eclipse)’, 2013.
mixed media on canvas, 72 x 96 in.
($16,000)
there is always a surface play – a physical approach to the paint – that is a trip in and of itself, but that also, obviously .. informs the narrative, and contributes to that sense of ‘darkness’.
it’s also a balancing act. counter-balancing, really.
the paint is applied with such ‘passion’ .. yet the overall result is: cool. dark abstract, haunting.
both scratched in, and . . layered over.
nice scene, the red tent and the fire .. the glow around all, yet .. darkness prevails.
sadness prevails.
it’s almost oriental . . in it’s gray area, no border yin yang approach.
it’s not, your standard . . gung ho Americana, that for sure.
MORE PIX FROM THE OPENING . . POSTING SUNDAY.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~KENT DORN . . SHADOWLAND .. PART II |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 25th, 2013, 9:20am
KENT DORN . . . ‘SHADOWLAND’
opened THURS, OCT 17, 2013
the show runs thru NOV 16, 2013
FREIGHT+VOLUME – 530 WEST 24TH ST – CHELSEA, NYC
TURNS OUT, NICK LAWRENCE & HIS FREIGHt+VOLUME CREW . . HAVE ANOTHER ONE OF THE LIVELIEST, & SERIOUSLY !! PAINTERLY . . SHOWS TO OPEN SO FAR, THIS SEASON. THE OCT/NOV LINE-UP IS – A CRUCIAL MONTH FOR THE GALLERY SCENE. IT’S WHEN THE BIG COLLECTORS COME OUT TO BUY THEMSELVES SOME PRETTY HOLIDAY TRINKETS . . TO HANG ON THEIR WALLS.
NOTHING LIKE A LITTLE PAT-ON-THE-BACK TROPHY ART .. ESP WHEN, IT’S .. THE REAL DEAL.
PIX FROM THE OPENING – PART I
painter KENT DORN, NICK LAWRENCE of FREIGHT+VOLUME, and ERIN SIUDZINSKY. . . at the opening.
KENT DORN, ‘HOME’, 2013.
mixed media on canvas, 72 x 96 in.
($16,000)
this show is KENT DORN’S 3rd exhibition and 2nd solo show at FREIGHT+VOLUME. the Texas-based, Carolina-born painter, b. 1977 . . currently lives and works in Houston.
‘suns’, and sometimes .. ‘moons, and . . their eerie light figure prominently in Mr. Dorn’s paintings. they anchor the narrative and help ‘cast’ the spell. worldly and yet decidedly .. other worldly, these paintings move into the dark, just as easily as they reference landscape.
from the gallery:
“with a nod to horror movies, hippie counterculture, and the rural Southern landscape of his youth, Dorn’s distinct landscape paintings are not as concerned with an idyllic representation of nature as much as as constructing a virtual stage for an unfolding melodrama.Littered with debris, overgrowth and remnants of past inhabitants, his landscapes are a conflation of the real and the imaginary, where myths come to life.”
read: more
the backgrounds turn towards the dark, dark secrets .. esp when the paint volume, as opposed to the realist ‘subject’ . . is turned, way up. expressionistic, detailed pointillism merges with free form impasto.
what . . goes on in this houseboat ?
there’s a sun, but it sure ain’t .. no sunny day.
yep. there’s some serious dark poetry, some mystery, some human depth .. in these canvas narratives. not quite a moment in time, as a deeper , darker dream unfolding.
lyrical, not.
haunting, yes.
the dark, on the other side . . of ‘counterculture’. the underbelly – the deeper, darker, sadder seams and dreams .. of the American dream ?
I guess that’s why they call the show: ‘Shadowland’.
paintings with an ‘afterlife’ . . all of Kent Dorn’s paintings, do not end at the canvas edges.
they turn over, turn inward, kind of tunnel down into the deeper recesses, like glow worms.
they continue, well on into further viewings and .. musings.
and, yeah initially you do come away, kind of stunned.
KENT DORN, ‘Outsiders’, 2013.
mixed media on canvas, 80 x 60 in.
($15,000)
TO BE CONTINUED.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~KENT DORN . . SHADOWLAND .. F+V |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 24th, 2013, 7:45am
going on a road trip . . to VERMONT.
back in 5.
5 days.
artlovers will resume posting WED 23, 2013
~road trip |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 19th, 2013, 7:30am
DEDICATED TO: SIMON CERIGO, our music reviewer supremo, and big art buddy ..
who sadly left us, meaning earthly life in bio form .. this past Jan 2013.
SIMON was a big fan of ARCADE FIRE, and wrote up a definitive review for us, that posted on MAY 7 of 2007.
as you can see from the essay, Simon held a lot of oral history in his big, round, often .. partied-out, but way friendly .. head.
ARCADE FIRE is a Montreal based-band, and me and Simon both grew up on those long Montreal winter-time streets, too.
read: ARCADE FIRE – by SIMON CERIGO . . . including, images of the original graphics
ARCADE FIRE is making ‘waves’ . . this weekend, it’s a nautical weekend.
what can I tell you, Manhattan is an island !! and so is .. Montreal !!
because they are playing ‘underground’ under a barley disguised ‘nom de band’ – the REFLEKTORS, at a Bushwick, Brooklyn underground arts venue – 299 Meserole St, which only opened last November 2012. apparently tickets went on sale this past Wed to fans, who had pre-ordered the new album, but opened up to the general public yesterday. Formal attire or costume .. mandatory.
some background from yesterday’s WALL STREET JOURNAL . .
“Three years ago, the ARCADE FIRE, the Grammy-winning Canadian Indie rock band, released their album ‘The Suburbs’ with much fanfare, playing to a sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden.
This weekend, they are taking a different approach. The band is planning to introduce New Yorkers to their new double album, ‘Reflektor’, with a pair of lightly publicized concerts, played under a false name, in a former sheet-metal and plastics factory in an industrial pocket of Brooklyn with enough room for just 3,000 people . . .”
see: The Arcade Fire, Far From the Maddening Crowd, WALL STREET JOURNAL
note: re-paste the link in your browser, if necessary.
see: 299 MESEROLE ST, BUSHWICK
check it out: ARCADE FIRE, ‘RFLEKTOR’ . . the first song, on their new album . . is posted to YouTube
interestingly, esp for ‘small’ social media sites, like this one . .
the WALL STREET JOURNAL goes on to state:
“The Arcade Fire has taken a calculated, low-key guerrilla marketing approach to promoting ‘Reflektor’ and the band’s coming world tour. Interviews with the band have been extremely limited and despite a few positive early reviews, the album – one of the most anticipated of the year – hasn’t yet leaked on the Internet.”
SIMON would have swooned over the music and driven us all crazy playing it endlessly – at top volume.
but, he also would have been crazy – for the video, and so am I.
mostly what’s so great, are the BIG IDEAS !! but also that the production is so low-key, and as Simon would have stressed: authentic.
but what really freaked me out, was the poignant subject line.
they are transporting a coffin, the dead . . to the country, and we are doing just that, this weekend !!
we are taking a road trip . . to Vermont, and finally letting go of the ghost, Simon’s ashes . . into a rushing . . autumn fast turning winter – rural stream. in fact, as we found out, Simon’s last wish, as told to each one of us – at different times.
rural, inland water . . plays a big part in this video, and so does .. dancing !!
and I guess, celebrating the dead.
so, this is a nice send-off, or what.
“just a reflector ..
we all have things to hide,
see you on the other side.”
“we’re so connected ..
but are we even friends ?
see you on the other side.”
if you knew Simon, this will be a familiar pose . . he did dance like this, with his hands in the air.
our ‘REFLEKTOR’ . . sets off on .. his next journey.
Simon would have liked the metaphor of the mirrored man, the ‘reflektor’ !! – for the artist, the musician, the soul man, the time traveler, in all of us.
he esp prided himself, not just .. on being a natural born ‘mirror man’, but on being able .. to pinpoint a ‘mirror man’, for the rest of us.
Jack Goldstein, ca 1986 . . . anybody ?
P.S.
I did, incredibly . . cross paths with Hash Halper’s brother, astrologer OMKAR LEWIS last night, who actually told me: “WATCH OUT FOR VOICES WITH NO .. BODIES” !!!
hey, you know what they say: no man is . . an island.
SIMON and KATE, at the last band concert . . .
SIMON and THEO . . note the rubber admittance .. wrist bands.
~ARCADE FIRE .. REFLEKTOR .. SIMON CERIGO |
Posted in Indie Music Reviews, The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 18th, 2013, 9:43am
meanwhile back on Earth, or is that: back to EARTH !!
er, SEA . . better yet, RED HOOK !!
PIONEER WORKS is presenting their first annual . . MARITIME FILM FESTIVAL
AN EVENING of LIFE & EXPEDITION on the WATER – SAT, OCT 19, 2013 / 4PM – 12AM
it looks to be a great classical nautical line-up – documentary-wise, 3 cheers for that. but also, not to fear . . this is an artist-run joint, and the evening will also run full sail ahead . . into the wide open sea adventure fantastical, while ‘tacking’ into some mighty fun, and mighty serious DIY . . contemporary Maritime folk art & folklore – with the inclusion of featured artists,
such as . . SWOON and DUKE RILEY.
see: the full line-up
reserve tix: suggested donation, here
some highlights:
BOTTLED HISTORY
a SMITH JOURNAL and Melbourne-based COMMONER Production.
SMITH JOURNAL is a quarterly Australian magazine, for guys (?!!)
MUSIC by BEN YARDLEY.
“RAY GASCIOGNE has been around boats his whole life, as a shipwright, a merchant sailor, and now as a shipbuilder on the on the smallest dry dock there is, a bottle . . .”
read more . . .
MARIANA
a film by ROMAN WOLTER
“tells the the story of DON WALSH and JACQUES PICCARD’S diving mission to the deepest point on earth in 1960. The film is based on real events and features original film material from the 1960s.
The graphic style of the film is inspired by popular science magazines of the the time. One of the last interviews with JACQUES PICCARD in 2003 forms a voice-over that accompanies the viwer throughout the the film.”
see more . . .
OYSTER HARVESTING
Canadian Council of Professional Fish Harvesters
“there’s a man in Prince Edward Island, whose passion for oysters has him out at sea at the age of 82 …”
read more
see: DUKE RILEY: ARTIST & PATRIOT
DUKE RILEY: BATLLE FOR BROOKLYN
looks to be . . that short film the DUKE made about his great homemade submersible adventure .. a few years back. you could subtitle it: THE ACORN MEETS THE NYPD – IN NYC HARBOR.
see: DUKE RILEY artist statement
~NAUTICAL SATURDAY . . at PIONEER WORKS |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 17th, 2013, 7:13am
what’s up with the BIG, PINK .. FUZZY ?
haha, the girls – have it all over the guys this season.
if the summer of 2013 was the SEASON of the UNKNOWN, the FALL is . . the SEASON of the ABSURD !!
3 smart chicks: TWO EYE-TALIANS, and ONE JAP !! got the beat !!
we are talking . . PAOLA PIVI, LAURINA PAPERINA, both born in Italy – and, now up pops . . MISAKI KAWAI !!
MISAKI KAWAI at MALMO KONSTHALL, PHOTO via CONTEMPORARY ART DAILY
MISAKI KAWAI, opens at the HOLE, don’t get me started !! apt name, and let’s leave it at that – to-nite.
see: MISAKI KAWAI .. fluorodigital
see: MISAKI KAWAI .. OHIO
check out: MISAKI KAWAI .. artist website
PAOLA PIVI . . and her ‘bears’ were the debut show at the new GALERIE PERROTIN, NYC outpost.
in fact the show . . is still up !!
SEPT 18 – OCT 26, 26, 2013
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
see: PERROTIN .. NYC DEBUT
well, LAURINA PAPERINA .. isn’t quite as fuzzy. would that be: deadly / hysterical ?
same diff: ABSURDIST.
LAURINA PAPERINA, image from the short animation, ‘How to Kill the Artists’, episode 7, 2010.
the RONI HORN .. sequence,
at FREIGHT+VOLUME, THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ART WORLD, PART II: THE OTHER 99%
SEPT 12 – OCT 12, 2013
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
see: THE DECLINE & FALL – F+V
see: more LAURINA PAPERINA
see: RICHARD PRINCE .. CLOBBERED by a NURSE
~BIG, PINK . . FUZZY !! |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | October 15th, 2013, 8:15am
