Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Late night thoughts

Today I reviewed the recent magazine issues of Art in America and Art Forum. I was completely unimpressed by any of the artworks. Flipping through the glossy pages conjures my larger feelings about the art world. Why am I an artist and yet so disappointed in the art realm? Why do I strive to have validation from the outside? Is it important to have a forum in which to create a live space? Do I need a gallery as a space to create an experience for an audience? Why do I feel the desire to open dialogue and to broach taboo subjects?

Hold on...this tangent then leads me to consider that this year I will not be applying to grad school for the first time in 6 years. I guess I've had it with THE institution. It does not accept me and I will not accept IT. But yet, many give merit to this farce called a MFA.

I discussed with my accountability partner, Honey McMoney, that this year I will instead apply my energy to Artist In Residency programs and showing in Berlin and New York.

That is all.

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Rainy day sketch

I made an agreement with my accountability partner that I would take some time sketching. I only spent a little time, and many of the proportions are off, but felt good.



Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Museum visit

Yes, it was a busy day as my friend and I made our final art stop at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, where they were featuring a show by Nayland Blake and Nathalie Djurberg.

I really enjoyed the queer works of Blake and especially found the installation work Ruins of a Sensibility full of personal memories and a strong sense of nostalgia crept over me. It conjured past experiences of staying at a nightclub until it closes and then stumbling home drunk wearing some crazy and skimpy outfit. Of course, I played a Peggy Lee record.




Nayland Blake
Ruins of a Sensibility
1972-2002 (with thanks to Lynne Tillman)
Records, electronic equipment, and plywood 
Dimensions variable






 The works of Nathalie were quirky, yet disconcerting with some rasist imagery in the stop motion video pieces. I would have liked to sit and watch them, but I was exhausted.



Gallery Visit

After visiting the SFMOMA, my friend and I headed over to Catherine Clark Gallery, one of my favorite San Francisco galleries. I would love to show my work here. Anyway, the show featured a painter Chester Arnold who teaches painting at the College of Marin. I like his previous work that focused on prison yards, however I was not blown over by this current body of work. I still enjoyed the impressionistic style and especially liked this larger work.


SF

CHESTER ARNOLD: A PILGRIM'S PROGRESS

November 03, 2012 – January 12, 2013

Reception Saturday, Nov 3, 3-5pm
image description
60 Years in the Forest, 2012
Oil on linen
71 1/2 x 56 inches

Day at SFMOMA

Today spent the day in SFMOMA with my friend Douglas Good. I was excited to see the Jay Defeo retrospective and my favorite piece still remains Incision which is part of the museum's permanent collection. It is one of the thickest oil paintings I have experienced and the textures are wonderful.


Incision, 1958-61
Jay DeFeo
Oil and string on canvas mounted on board
118" x 55 5/8" x 9 3/8"

Walked VERY quickly through the Jasper Johns show and was bored silly. I really do not care for his work on many levels.

On the other hand, I stumbled upon a contemporary painter, Adrian Ghenie, who I really admire for his aesthetic techniques as well as his concepts. The works are powerful, politically charged, and dark.

Adrian Ghenie - "Dada is Dead", 2009, oil on canvas, 200 X 220 cm
I look forward to seeing more of his works in the future.