The De-definition of Art

Lucio Fontana, Spatial Concept, Waiting, 1960



I'm reading The De-definition of Art by Rosenberg. Highly recommended.

"Fontana...called himself a "spatialist," his gouging holes in his canvases had always seemed to me a Dadaist nose-thumbing at the formalist dogma of "preserving the integrity of the picture plane." With his punctures Fontana transformed his paintings into a species of relief (they are sometimes referred to as sculptures)."

More on Fontana

International Fiber Collective

I just talked to Jennifer Marsh on the phone--so exciting! She runs the International Fiber Collective, you may have heard of her gas station wrapping project which she got a lot of press for, including a feature in FiberArts Magazine. Jennifer's current project is Interdependence. Participants will create a full-sized tree for display in April 2009 in Huntsville, Alabama. The concept is, "much like a live tree is interdependent on its leaves and roots for survival, societies are interdependent on the greater whole, family units, communities, and countries."

Participants from around the world are invited to create leaves to contribute to the creation of the tree. In total, up to 30,000 leaves may be used. For more information on how to participate, click here. This is open to all age groups and levels of artistic ability.

Jennifer's next, highly ambitious project after the tree is wrapping a NASA rocket! But she needs help raising the money to rent the expensive crane required to install the artwork. Click here to see how you can help and become involved. She needs your help!

Jennifer will be representing Alabama and Community-based medium for my 50 Artists, 50 States, 50 Medium exhibition at The Eclipse Gallery in October 2009. I am still accepting submissions from artists, crafters, and designers. Click here for more info.

I am also working with her to plan a solo show for her amazing sculpture.

25 Disegni

I love Blu--artist behind the famous MUTO animation. The image below are his drawings that were included in 25 Disegni, a publication of artists drawings. Each soft-cover, 48-page flip book features two artists, one going in either direction. Alas, the one seen here, featuring the work of Blu and Eric Ailcane, is sold out...but there are other interesting books to buy here.

Eric Ailcane (great website--check out his exhibition installations)

Lawrence Fane

I just came across Lawrence Fane and completely fell in love with his work, more of which you can see here at his website.

His current show is Studio Alchemy at the Zabriskie Gallery in NYC.

You can also buy a book about his sculpture: Machines of the Mind

Koons Tenets

I'm reading Art on the Edge and Over by Weintraub right now--I find Koons to be one of the most interesting artists in this book, as he explains that his work, "is about embracing guilt and shame and moving forward instead of letting this negative society always thwart us--always a more negative society, always more negative."

Koons' artwork is based on the following Tenets:

Tenet 1: Sex is not embarrassing, private, illicit, or sinful

Tenet 2: Egoism and exhibitionism are prerequisites of fame

"I was there with two pigs--a big one and a little one--so it was like breeding banality. I wanted to debase myself and call myself a pig before the viewer had a chance to, so they could only think more of me."

Tenet 3: Fine art is a commercial enterprise. (Koons is not a hypocrite)

Tenet 4: Kitsch is captivating.

"I try not to use it in any cynical manner. I use it to penetrate mass consciousness--to communicate to people."

Tenet 5: Price determines desire and merit.

"What I'm saying is that the seriousness with which a work of art is taken is interrelated to the value that it has. The market is the greatest critic."

Tenet 6: Art is a luxury item.

"I'm...trying to capture the individual's desire in the object, and to fix his aspirations in the surface in a condition of immortality."

I rather enjoy egotistical artists, probably because I am one myself. You have to be at least a bit narcissistic to be a great artist, I think.

Peter Plagens: A Painting as it's Painted

Untitled
mixed media on canvas, 96 x 144 in.
2007

Peter Plagens is a painter and critic in New York.
What is unique about his website compared to other artist websites is the slideshow of the above work in progress, "A Painting as it's Painted."
You can also read his essays and see examples of his other work. And make sure to read his artist statement while you are there--since he is a writer it's quite good.

I came across Peter Plagens because he reviewed the book, Seven Days in the Art World by Sarah Thornton in the current Art in America. The review was so good I had to see who this guy was. I do think his work is really interesting.

As far as said book, here is a quotation: "In [an art] world that has jettisoned craftsmanship as the dominant criterion by which to judge art, a higher premium is put on the character of the artist. If artists are seen to be creating art simply to cater to the market, it compromises their integrity and the market loses confidence in their work."

More on Seven Days in the Art World
More on Peter Plagens

Sculpture, Furniture, or Both?

David Delthony's sculptured furniture = GORGEOUS!

Music Book Art

Yes, they are books that make music.
And they are for sale here!

Texan artist Jennifer Khoshbin also makes other amazing book art, which you can view here.

Definitely check out her site it is a treat!

Wisdom by Andrew Zuckerman

One of my favorite and most influential quotations ever is included in this film/book:

"Inspiration is for amateurs. I just get to work."
--Chuck Close

See more

Buy the book

Michael Neff: Chalk

"Photographs of things you might otherwise miss"

These images from Michael Neff's Chalk series really intrigued me. One of those times where I stop everything and say--I need to buy one of those photographs right now. Unfortunately, I can't--because if I had all the artwork I wanted my kids wouldn't eat--but this work definitely made the top of my list.

See more.

Ink & Spindle

What is better than hand screen printed, limited edition fabric? Hmm....maybe the fact that it is also environmentally friendly.

Ink & Spindle

Cross Stitch a Banksy

Street art in cross stitch is the latest in subversive cross stitch. How cool is it to be able to cross stitch a Banksy - rather than picture of a kitten holding some flowers?

The patterns are provided free and are surprisingly simple to do (although it’s a whole world of pain reading the charts).

I would recommend doing your street art cross stitch with a bottle of Jack Daniels next to you. It will help the hours fly by.

Also if you are not a fan of Banksy then this cool site also offers patterns in guns, Michael Jackson and for those with a fetish out there people wearing gas masks.

Source: fuldesign.se Via: radicalcrossstitch and trendhunter

Lazerian Lampshades

The talented Lazerian duo of Liam Hopkins and Richard Sweeney continue to amaze with their exquisite ‘Light Modulator.’ Certainly not content with being called a mere lampshade, this computer-generated form is carved from birch plywood using a CNC router. The construction is composed of 26 individual units to create its lace-like symmetry.

Lazerian works out of their studio in Manchester, UK, which used to be a hat factory.

Source: lazerian Via: yatzer and trendhunter

Chain Reaction from Honda

I love chain reactions. They are fun. And hard to do. My favorite is The Way Things Go by artists Peter Fischli and David Weiss. This link is a little bit of it, but the entire video is really worth watching. I had to do a chain reaction for an art course and I thought it was completely pointless at the time...but now I get it.

Insecurity Envelopes by JK Keller

I'm really amazed by the number of spectacular artists I come across everyday that I've never heard of. So many artists, so little time!

It's even better when a spectacular artist has a spectacular website. Check it! You won't be sorry :)

New Fave Publisher

The publisher is Laurence King, UK-based, and they publish books on architecture, art, design, fashion, graphic design, and interior design. Just browsing through their website is delightful. I found out about them because I WON a copy of Key Urban Housing of the Twentieth Century from a Dezeen contest. I never win anything!

Soon I am having a give-away of my own so stay tuned :)

Especially exciting is Laurence King's new book Stickerbomb--the first collectable, fully peelable sticker book featuring illustration, graffiti and graphics. It is filled with an amazing collection of more than 250 specially commissioned stickers by artists, illustrators and graffiti writers from around the world.

Their books are very reasonable on Amazon! Check out my Wish List.

Variable Media Art

Derek Lerner, (IN)BETWEEN, 2007 Variable Media 984.6 cm x 594.2 cm x 59.1 cm, 247 prims rezzing as 1 prim

New media that changes due to its nature, whether that time-based, performance-based, interactive, etc. is considered by some to be non-medium or variable media art since there is no way of categorizing it within the old medium format.

Do new media artists agree with that label?

What does that mean to you?

What does this mean for curating, conservation, etc?

We are just scratching the surface--

I would be very interested in accepting a non-medium work for my upcoming 50 Artists, 50 States, 50 Mediums exhibition.

Links: PADI-Variable Media Art

Archiving the Avant-Garde

Capturing Unstable Media

Rhizome

Variable Media Network

Conflux

Related: When logic-type people try to explain art vs. non-art

And they keep going...

Bruce Mau Design

I'm in love with Bruce Mau Design.

Need some good advice on being a creative person?
Read his Incomplete Manifesto. Then buy Massive Change.

From the Publisher:

Massive Change is a modern illustrated primer on the new inventions, technologies, and events that are affecting the human race worldwide. The book is a part of a broader research project by Bruce Mau Design intended to provoke debate and discussion about the future of design culture, broadly defined as the "familiar objects and techniques that are transforming our lives." In essays, interviews, and provocative imagery aimed at a broad audience, Massive Change explores the changing force of design in the contemporary world, and in doing so expands the definition of design to include the built environment, transportation technologies, revolutionary materials, energy and information systems, and living organisms.

NAKED ART by Matthew Rose

Also read about Matthew's exhibition, The End of the World, in whitehot magazine.

Matthew is multitalented.

Project October-Bryant Dameron

Just got an e-mail from a video artist-Bryant Dameron. He is working on Project October, which is really worth checking out. Also his blog.

I think his work is really interesting and his artist statement is concise and informative:

In a world of media saturation the 2D image is validation. Stoic screens leave us more connected to unnatural, flat celebrity faces than to our rarely seen next-door-neighbors. We feel a power over the strange 2D world where we can “pause, rewind or fastfoward live TV,” that doesn't exist anywhere else in life. Flickering ghost simulacra is our new longing. The digital experience created here is as much a simulation of experience as the idea is a simulation of an ideal.