OPENING NIGHT PIX . . .
JOE BRADLEY – ‘LOTUS BEATERS’
OPENED MAY 16, 2013
the show ran MAY 17 – JUNE 29, 2013
Gavin Brown’s enterprise – 620 GREENWICH ST – NYC
the star of the evening .. JOE BRADLEY, looking like an ex-pat novelist, from the 20’s ?!!
p.s. the exterior of the West Village gallery was plastered by a RIRKRIT TIRAVANIJA project.
art world publisher & collector – PETER BRANT, made sure to get there early so he could reflect over the paintings.
I thought that was pretty impressive, and really indicative of his true feelings, since he runs a pretty hectic schedule. he had hosted PRINCE HARRY at a polo match in Greenwich, Connecticut – just the day before.
art writer CARLO McCORMICK.
he told me the KOSTABI SHOW – just isn’t the same, without the notorious showboating .. SIMON CERIGO.
painter ANDREW GUENTHER.
Andrew’s been showing some paintings at the VARIETY coffee in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. he’s calling the series of works: DOLPHIN SOUNDS.
see: ANDREW GUENTHER at VARIETY
well .. that makes sense, seeing as this is the image that fronts his website !!
see: ANDREW GUENTHER
ANDREW GUENTHER also sent along this image for a project of t-shirts and tote bags, called ‘Eat the Leaf’ that he was working on for Cafe Press . . .
SEE & maybe even .. ORDER: EAT THE LEAF by ANDREW GUENTHER
haha .. talkin bout bongs !!
it was just a few days before the notorious bong throwing caper of AMANDA BYNES – splashed over the tabloids !! ‘Bynes is busted in bong toss’.
BYNES is a newly transplanted New Yorker.
lucky she didn’t hit anybody – down on the street.
hey, great art, re: Andrew’s Hampton’s Bong, who’d a guessed – – always, lands on the DOT !!
artist PATRICK BERRAN, at the JOE BRADLEY opening – Joe’s work behind him.
PATRICK just had work in a 2 man show at STOREFRONT BUSHWICK.
see: PATRICK BERRAN & JACK HENRY.. STOREFRONT BUSHWICK
PAINTING BY PATRICK BERRAN
see: PATRICK BERRAN
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~JOE BRADLEY .. the PEEPS |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | June 30th, 2013, 9:06am
JOE BRADLEY – ‘LOTUS BEATERS’
MAY 17 – JUNE 29, 2013
Gavin Brown’s enterprise, NYC
the WALL OF DRAWINGS . . . in the last room.
here’s the premise:
it’s funnie to think of JOE BRADLEY and KANYE WEST, in the same breath – let alone the same sentence.
for one thing . . .
KANYE can be annoying, whereas JOE BRADLEY: never.
but both produce work, that speaks l-o-v-e, and: cries out . . . ANGST.
as for drugs, Lotus eaters and . . . beaters !!
KANYE says it best:
“my ego is my DRUG. My drug is, I’m better than all you other motherf—ers.”
WELCOME TO THE ART WORLD !!
KANYE WEST – W MAG QUOTE: HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
the last room presents a wide, yet solemn wall .. of Bradley drawings – on paper.
most are charcoal. some are crayon and charcoal, some are pastels.
they go back to Joe’s ‘figurative’ roots.
they seem as if they sprung freely – but, questioningly.
take a note: the wall of drawings is just as ‘grid’ organized as the individual compositions of the paintings.
so much for free fall.
but no doubt, the free fall is in the drawings, for sure.
and so is EGO.
if A is for – angst.
than . . . “B” is for – BRADLEY ?!!!
Lotus eater, or Beater ?
Beater . . .
BRADLEY and KANYE, now that’s . . .
a funnie . . thought.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~JOE BRADLEY .. ANGST ? |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | June 29th, 2013, 8:04am
that’s the funny thing about JOE BRADLEY, the work has ‘legs’.
continuous meaning. absolute relevance.
every time you go back to it . . . some life force, prevails.
the work keeps jumping back at ya.
JOE just keeps on .. giving.
JOE BRADLEY, ‘Untitled’, 2013.
oil on canvas. 120 -1/4 x 123 in. framed.
there were just 2 canvases, hung side by side in the third gallery . . .
realizing just now, the obvious simple truth, they were interactive.
and yes, THEY WERE ABOUT .. LOVE !!
JOE BRADLEY, ‘Love Boat’, 2013
oil on canvas, 124 x 158 in. framed.
haha. North West is out of the picture.
North West got her very own face time . . all the better to see ya.
North West got her own – face time !!
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~JOE BRADLEY .. LOVE BOAT ? |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | June 29th, 2013, 7:54am
JOE BRADLEY .. the artworld’s answer to KIM & KANYE’s baby name ?
I think it’s a great name. and no, you can’t be all serious – all the time.
esp if you want to understand contemporary art – you have to consider contemporary culture.
art 101.
JOE BRADLEY, ‘Untitled’, 2013.
120-1/4 x 123 in. framed.
currently on view in:
JOE BRADLEY – ‘LOTUS BEATERS’, Gavin Brown’s enterprise, until JUNE 29, 2013.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
it’s funny how sometimes the most simple, and most minimal ‘enterprise’ – is the most provocative, and therefore: profound.
and, as is usually the case with art – right on the – proverbial .. dot.
case in point. ‘untitled’ above, the only untitled painting in this show.
well, maybe Joe felt the title hadn’t revealed itself yet ?
well, how about . . ‘North West’ ?
there’s so much one could project upon this simple .. one color, green on white; one form, flower-like .. large canvas.
apart from the ‘a-cute’ cultural note .. little baby Kimye receives a name !! and so, poetic.
first of course is the quilt/grid orientation, and the essential/eternal 4 points – north, south, east and, west. d-i-r-e-c-t-i-o-n.
solar orientation. the 24 hrs of the day. the way we chart .. the round ‘ball’ we live on.
what’s really going on here.
is this painting .. a ‘color’ chart with regard to show’s BIG QUESTION: Lotus Beater v.s Eater ?
is it all, that is: life .. all blank, without that touch of the ‘green’ divine ?
the green divine of floa and fauna. of man’s spirit, and mind. body and soul.
that ONE quarter of flower burst.
is WILD.
is it – the key to: Beauty, Creation .. life itself. inspiration.
is it ok, and, in fact NECESSARY . . to be ecstatic, and to experience altered consciousness – to wake up the north west – region – in an otherwise white, unwrit, mundane, banal, well: muggle-like complacency ?
is a little magic .. in order ?
is Lotus eating, ok in moderation, or does the need for Lotus Beating .. and the constant tension and war that ensues, .. yin yang, play a part in our world’s dynamic and cycles.
in life and our understanding of it and .. therefore: creativity, too ?
is this how .. a painting begins ?
is that painterly north west sector – the birth of the universe, the big bang. not just the setting of the sun.
is this how .. an abstract ‘platform’ begins to take on a wordless .. voice ?
is this how we face a painting – like a mirror.
do we need absence, as in the other 3 ’empty’ quarters to know, to realize .. the beginning of form and color and expression ?
do we need contrast of form vs empty – to know and realize the diff between ‘engaged’ and beckoning vs nothingness. angst in a nutshell ?
is this a poem to love ? to know life, is the beginning / is this an ode .. to “bio”-ness.
is creation, more easy to discern, in the field of ’empty’ ?
I offer these thoughts to you . . . on a summer’s hazy afternoon.
LOTUS EATER .. of the mind.
LOTUS BEATER of the run-away . . im-pulse.
P.S.
they are going to call her NORI for short. Nori means ‘believe’ .. in Japanese.
well it could be worse, Knori ?!!
Knorth, haha. as in ya, silent k – know !!
all good. (in the universe.)
continues . . .
~JOE BRADLEY .. NORTH WEST ? |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | June 22nd, 2013, 9:49am
THROW EM’ UP, and let them stick, er . . . RIP !!
JOE BRADLEY – ‘LOTUS BEATERS’
the show opened MAY 16, 2013
MAY 17 – JUNE 29, 2013
Gavin Brown’s enterprise – 620 GREENWICH ST – WEST VILLAGE, NYC
JOE BRADLEY, ‘Dutch’. 2013.
oil on canvas, 105 x 150 in. framed.
the paintings in the following rooms, were less all-over dense ‘mind sets’ or ‘heartbeats’, than actual ‘metaphorical’ or ‘evolutionary’ depictions of . . things, and thoughts. it’s up to you, to connect the . . . passages.
JOE BRADLEY, ‘Smoothie Maypole’, 2013.
oil on canvas, 96 x 102-1/4 in. framed.
these paintings were more lyrical, and more . . . narrative. the action, took place outside the body, and out . . in the world. there was a lot to look at, and a lot to . . . consider.
a lot to figure .. out.
detail, JOE BRADLEY, ‘Smoothie Maypole’.
the colors were . . unpredictable, and .. ‘talkative’.
there was a lot to consider, a lot to figure out. a lot of feelings . . . and mind ‘grabs’, without ‘words’.
JOE BRADLEY , ‘Smoothie Maypole.’
it was kind of a super smart game of: what you see . . .
is what . . . you ‘behold’.
whatever . . you were: ENGAGED into the surface. into the process. into the artist’s thoughts.
and all, most definite: NON-DIGITAL.
JOE BRADLEY, ‘Love Boat’, 2013.
oil on canvas, 124 x 158 in. framed
was it a guy thing ?
or just a ‘tough’ thing ?
I thought it was pretty beyond ‘pure’ academic, and very . . emotional.
it was also a ‘quilt’ thing. and therefore . . women’s work !! haha.
look at the ‘grid’, it’s a ‘quilt’ – that’s . . . the under-lying organization.
JOE BRADLEY, ‘Lotus Beater’, 2013.
oil on canvas, 105 x 150 in. framed.
the show got it’s name from this painting, which also is the one painting which seemed, ‘human-centric’. the body/figure on the left.
Lotus ‘beating’, and Lotus ‘eating’ . . do some of the research for yourself !!
profound, mystical, and . . mysterious.
there is no one definitive .. in sight, it’s a relevant yin yang, even today . . .
well, you don’t want to walk your lifetime on earth submerged in the mud, in the banal. but you also don’t want to lose grip of ‘real’ life going by, with your head totally . . in the flowers/clouds.
it’s funny to consider that, a such sweet flower . . in a pond, can be so capable of . . rockin’ the boat.
background: Lotus-eaters
IMAGE: Nymphaea Lotus
it’s interesting to note that many of the paintings in this show, seem to begin with, and retain: a surface composition that is divided into ‘quarters’. in fact many of them do have a dominating ‘quarter’ – that remains as a ‘focal’ point . . . see: ‘Love Boat’ above.
‘Lotus Beater’ also has a quadrant ‘organization’.
‘Smoothie Maypole’ – is a classic ‘9 patch’ / a grid of 3 by 3. 3 down, 3 across. 3 wide.
this botanical illustration, is also, in fact . . a classic nine patch – in organization.
sometimes the surface of the Bradley painting is broken down a bit further, into a slightly smaller system . . say: sixths. as in ‘Dutch’ above. like a quilt, these divisions are grid-like. they retain an up-right orientation. the paintings are not quite as all-over ‘messy’, as in old school abstract expressionists, Jackson Pollack or Mark Rothko – as they might appear to be – on first glance.
and in fact, VERY much like, or HOW … this botanical flower illustration is divided into ‘organic’ and compositional . . quarters/sixths. look for the squares. if you are not quite an experienced artist, just look for the ‘squares’ – they are there, unspoken, but ‘ruling’ the plant’s separate element / boundaries . . . in the background.
esp take note of the the top right hand ‘quarter’, the single white flower in bloom. that’s obvious.
‘realist’ botanical flower painting vs. Joe Bradley ‘abstraction’ . . . quelle / interesting.
so contradictory. and, yet .. NOT.
JOE BRADLEY, ‘untitled’, 2013.
oil on canvas, 124-1/4 x 123 in.
I guess on that note, we should conclude .. like this.
yes, JOE BRADLEY . . is a many-splendored . . mind.
you know what they say, “beauty is in the mind of the beholder.”
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~JOE BRADLEY . . throw ’em, up |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | June 21st, 2013, 7:40am
DEDICATED TO: JAMES GANDOLFINI – JERSEY BOY.
who died today, Wed June 19 age 51, in Rome – a huge heartbeat, lost.
BIG QUESTION: so . . . is a Lotus ‘beater’, as opposed to a Lotus EATER .. just . . a muggle ?
as in, you know . . Harry Potter.
that is: a common no-inspiration, no magic . . . ordinary lowlife human-type sub-species.
is lotus ‘beating’, something you want to achieve, or eschew ?
JOE BRADLEY – ‘LOTUS BEATERS’
the show opened May 16, 2013
MAY 17 – JUNE 29, 2013
Gavin Brown’s enterprise – 620 GREENWICH ST – WEST VILLAGE, NYC
the ‘first’ gallery was home to just one series of 4 big paintings, hung in a tight row, and titled, from right to left:
“Muggles #5, Muggles #4, Muggles #3, and Muggles #2.
they didn’t seem to make sense . . individually. at least on first impression.
they didn’t seem to make sense, at all. actually.
I’ll be the first to admit. coming after my huge rush . . on the hyper real, totally graphic, so graphic it’s abstract .. work of JACK GOLDSTEIN, it was hard to make the . . leap.
hard to transition.
in fact, coming off of Joe Bradley’s own early work, which seemed ‘abstract’ – but always referenced the human form, or the human ‘feature’, as in grin, or Superman logo, scroll down to the intro post below – it was hard to catch the drift, though the work did have roots in Joe’s early no-name, no-form ugly brown rug wall piece ?
maybe that was the deal.
these were MUGGLE paintings. these were portraits of a mind-set. so yep, they still referenced: HUMAN.
these were anti-art trophy paintings. these were anti-Jeff Koons paintings.
these were . . heartbeats.
these were pumping mysterious heartbeats . . not euphoric exactly, but background bass beats. you know, you have your Jean Michel on one wall, your Andy Warhol centered on the next, your Jack Goldstein, sharp as a knife on the third, and a couple of Bradley heartbeats, pumping away, below the surface – on the last. you sit in the room, and your pulse rises.
Lotus Beater, ha.
still Lotus – eater !! if you ask . . me.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
~JOE BRADLEY . . MUGGLE MUDPIES |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | June 19th, 2013, 7:09am
RULE !!
just happened to catch the closing party for a small group of Jersey City high school seniors – who are off to some exciting college fine art programs, this coming September 2013.
all on FULL SCHOLARSHIPS . . .
KELSEY REILLY, SUMEET MEHESH, and DILENIA RODRIGUEZ are some of the latest, and obviously very successful participants in what is apparently a very dedicated and ambitious . . . JERSEY CITY ARTS HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAM – a specialized course that takes local young artists-in-the-making to a well-run and very serious art work / study space, apart from their regular high school – for a good period of time, 5 days a week. for 4 years.
DILENIA RODRIGUEZ, with her painting, ‘Girl and Stripes’, mixed media – is off to RISD / RHODE ISLAND SCHOOL OF DESIGN.
DILENIA RODRIGUEZ, ‘Mina’, acrylic and ink.
KELSEY REILLY, with her painting, ‘Daddy Playing I’, acrylic paint, 2012 – is off to Parsons, here in NYC.
KELSEY REILLY, ‘A Different Time’, acrylic paint, 2012.
SUMEET MEHESH, beside her painting, ‘Test Strips’, acrylic & test strips’, 2012.
Sumeet is off to the MARYLAND INSTITUTE COLLEGE of ART, this fall.
SUMEET MEHESH, ‘Langa’, acrylic, 2013.
congrats all !!!
JERSEY CITY ARTS at HENRY SNYDER HIGH SCHOOL presents:
‘Socially Inadequate’
featuring works by: KELSEY REILLY, SUMEET MEHESH, and DILENIA RODRIGUEZ
MAY 30 – JUNE 14, 2013
THE DISTILLERY GALLERY – 7 HUTTON ST – JERSEY CITY, N.J.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH. JERSEY CITY HEIGHTS, N.J. JUNE 14, 2013.
~JERSEY GIRLS . . . |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | June 15th, 2013, 6:59am
just in case you’ve had your head up your .. I mean, stuck in the sand . .
there’s a big controversy over the newly re-designed WHITNEY MUSEUM LOGO !!
haha.
you know when there’s too much ‘type n’ text’ – you’ve got a problem.
read: The Whitney Museum .. Nowhere.
~W .. who ? |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | June 13th, 2013, 12:12pm
BROCK BRAKE, the photographer dude who took those great SKEWVILLE snaps .. in San Fran-cisco, has an interesting website, and style of hi own.
esp like his clean format and fashion-forward fonts – esp as to how they meet head on with .. romanticism, optimism & content.
landscape, too.
turns out, see about on site: he is born and raised in MARYSVILLE, OHIO.
and is currently a PHOTOGRAPHY MAJOR at COLUMBIA COLLEGE, CHICAGO.
CHICAGO, been hearing about the advanced art education scene in Chicago for awhile now . . . started with meeting NICHOLAS STEINDORF and the FLEMING TWINS . . . ALLAN and MICHAEL FLEMING, a few years back.
see: BROCK BRAKE – PORTFOLIO WEBSITE
PHOTO BY BROCK BRAKE, from his website: WORK / PHOTOJOURNALISM.
his landscapes – transfigure into the abstract. and the romantic.
PHOTO BY BROCK BRAKE, from his website: WORK /SKATEBOARDING.
~BROCK BRAKE |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | June 13th, 2013, 10:09am
FILE UNDER: and, so.
I’M not the o-n-l-y artist in NYC – who feels this way.
in fact, I bet even Dustin Yellin, feels this way.
(on a bad day.)
RED, WHITE, and BLACK . . . ALL OVER.
HUBERT DOBLER, ‘Handlebar #1’. 2013 / image: HUBERT DOBLER
when I saw that image – it really resonated.
I think it all started with that SIX KEYS TO HAPPINESS (?!!!) show, ‘Six Things: Sagmeister & Walsh’ at THE JEWISH MUSEUM, still up until August 4, 2013, bye the way . . . shortly followed by the museum’s tragic / magic . . . ‘JACK GOLDSTEIN x 10,000’ portrait.
also still up, thru September 29, 2013.
red and black, the Hubert Dobler fused scewdrivers bespoke frustration, and ultimately: strength and insight, inspiration – going nowhere. and having to butt heads with its own dynamic.
tell me about it.
I quickly realized I had seen this visual ‘statement’ / metaphor that speaks volumes . . . on the truly alive and kickin’ but mostly underground NYC art scene – in a slightly different format, but still red and black – via Brooklyn-based artist twin bro duo – SKEWVILLE . . . via BSA / BROOKLYN STREET ART.
SKEWVILLE, mixed media assemblage on wood. 30 x 75.5 x 3.75 / image: WHITE WALLS GALLERY
yeah . . . that about says it ALL.
check out the story for yourself: BSA / SKEWVILLE TWINS “AMUSEMENT” at WHITE WALLS, S.F. CALIFORNIA
and check out: SKEWVILLE “AMUSEMENT” – WHITE WALLS, SAN FRANSISCO, CALIFORNIA
the image is also the ‘header’ or title image for a neat video – on the installation . .
WATCH: SKEWVILLE PUT UP: “AMUSEMENT” / VIMEO
so, ok.
whose the FAIREST OF THEM ALL ?
SKEWVILLE – PHOTO: BROCK BRAKE / BSA
actually, come to think of it, the JACK GOLDSTEIN show – has a signature, RED & BLACK, and white .. signature image, that also speaks to the same issues.
except he worded it slightly differently.
he called it: THE BURNING FOREST.
as they say, haha.
JACK GOLDSTEIN, ‘THE BURNING FOREST’, red and white vinyl. from ‘Suite of 9 Records with Sound Effects’, 1976, 45 rpm record. Courtesy of Galerie Daniel Buchholz, Berlin/Cologne and the Estate of Jack Goldstein.
INSTALLATION PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
of course not to be totally down, obviously, there’s real WINNING in the NO WINNING EQUATION.
Burning forest . . and all.
I just don’t know about . . . mainstream art world art / fair happiness, is all . . .
~THERE’S NO WINNING, SUCKS / EITHER WAY . . . SKEWVILLE |
Posted in The Bomb | By Nancy Smith | June 8th, 2013, 12:23pm
