Iran Displaying Little Seen Modern Art Masterpieces

While the work of artists such as Monet, Picasso and Warhol are enjoyed by art-lovers around the world (and many of the artists' images are as recognizable and well-known as McDonald's Golden Arches), the masterpieces of famed Western Artists were not appreciated by the leaders of Iran's Islamic revolution, and thus, they were kept out of view in the nation for decades.

Now, one of the greatest collections of contemporary Western art - put together under a Western-leaning monarchy before the revolution in Iran - is open to the public at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, with some works on display for the first time in over 30 years!

In a land where the US is considered the "great Satan" and where decadent music, movies and other popular culture entities are seen as "Godless," the exhibition is full of Iranian cultural contradictions. (For example, a colorful Roy Lichtenstein bronze portrays a giant glass filled with a fruity cocktail - an uncommon site in Iran, where alcohol is banned).

Visitors entering the museum will first see images of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (picture, above), the founder of the Islamic Republic, and his successor as supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. These portraits are compulsory features of all public buildings throughout Iran.

The galleries of the stark concrete museum - built especially to house the collection during the latter years of American ally, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi's reign - are works by pretty much every major Western artist of the late 19th and 20th centuries.

The exhibition, which runs through the summer, includes French impressionist paintings, Van Gogh lithographs, the self-portrait of Edvard Munch, sculptures by Picasso, Henry Moore and Alberto Giacometti, and more.

The collection contains around 4,000 pieces and has always been stored in good conditions. Furthermore, Iran's authorities have no desire to suppress the exhibiting of the collection, but there is no room in the museum to display the entire collection at once. Hopefully, in the future, the museum will be able to mount theme-based exhibitions, rotating the collection through various schools of art.

Click here to read the entire Washington Post article related to this story.

Jasper Johns Painting Sells for $28.6 Million, Setting Impressive Record for the Artist

Last Tuesday one of Jasper Johns' "Flag" paintings from 1960-66, which had previously belonged to the late Michael Crichton, sold at a Christie's New York postwar and contemporary art auction for $28.5 million. The painting, which sold for nearly double its high estimate of $15 million, marks a very impressive accomplishment for Johns - his highest selling painting to date.

Richard Rossello, a Bryn Mawr, PA-based art dealer of American paintings, purchased the Johns' painting (although it is not known who he bought it on behalf).

Throughout the evening, (Christie's first week of postwar and contemporary art auctions) Americans dominated the buying, as Christie's officials estimate that 75% of the buyers were American. "Flag" was one of 31 works being sold from Crichton's estate. The famed author, who died in November 2008, had met Jasper Johns during the early 1970s and bought the painting directly from the artist in 1974. The fact that the painting had just one owner (and a big named-one at that) - contributed to its high selling price.

Crichton's collection got to know most of the artists whose work he collected - including David Hockney, Roy Lichtenstein and Robert Rauschenberg (image, left). Last week's sale featured works by all of them.

Click HERE to read the entire story from the New York Times (including details about the other works on sale from Crichton's estate as well as information about the auction's high sellers and stats about the sale)

Click HERE to see where Jasper Johns is exhibiting around the world

"Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present" at the MoMA

NYC's Museum of Modern Art is currently exhibiting a performance retrospective that traces the career of bountiful Yugoslavian artist Marina Abramović. "The Artist is Present" (which runs through May 31st) displays fifty works that span over four decades - including the artist's early interventions and sound pieces, video works, installations, photographs, solo performances and collaborative performance made with Ulay (AKA Uwe Laysiepen).

The exhibition marks three important "firsts" (one for the museum and two for the artist). These include: the first time the MoMA has devoted a retrospective to a living artist; the first live re-performances of Abramović's works by other people ever to be performed in a museum setting; and a new piece by the artist that marks the longest original solo performance Abramović has ever created and executed.

In order to allow visitors the chance the experience the timelessness of the works in the exhibition, all performances in "the Artist is Present" will take place throughout the entire duration of the exhibition - starting before the museum opens each day and continuing until after it closes.

Additionally, a chronological installation of the artist's work will run concurrently (on the sixth floor of the MoMA), revealing different modes of representing, documenting and exhibiting Abramović's ephemeral, time-based and media-based works.

Click here to read more about the exhibition (and to view Abramović's first performance)

Click here for related exhibitions at the MoMA

A New Type of Art Patronage

The rich and powerful have always expressed a love of expensive art (among other luxuries) and kings / czars / popes (etc) of the past, seemed to have artists on hand to create masterpieces for their wealthy bosses. But Andrew Jeffrey Wright, a punky, independent-minded Philadelphia -based artist devoid of convention, defies the ideas of art patronage.

While Wright admits that his own drawings and paintings are "too expensive for people who don't have that much money," he displays his desire for everyone to have access to his art.

"I love poor people, and not just because I am one- I think poor people have great style and taste," says Wright.

Because of this, the artist recently launched a low-cost subscription series for fans who pay a yearly fee for what he has to offer. Wright's "patrons" are to receive one of every colorful screen print he produces for the calendar year of 2010. The subscription, which includes a guaranteed minimum of twelve prints for each patron, starts at an annual cost of just $300 (and includes shipping and handling).

Wright's excited about the "fun connection" his lower-cost art generates, as he appreciates the people who really like his work (and is happy that they can now enjoy their very own Andrew Jeffrey Wright screen prints).

In addition, Wright is one of the co-creators of Philadelphia's Space 1026, a communal gallery and studio launched in 1997, intended as a ten year experiment. Since its debut, the collective has become known for its innovative (and sometimes wacky) works in photography, video, animation, painting, drawing, collages, zines, performance, sculpture, t-shirts, and screen printing - all of which Wright does handily, with both humor and enthusiasm.

Space 1026, along with Los Angeles gallery owner Justin Van Hoy (who bought one of Wright's pieces at 1026 - but worried about keeping up with the artist after leaving Philadelphia), and Wright's zine-making friend Mark Price (who achieved much success with his "zine-of-the-month" club) are the three contributing factors that inspired the creation of Wright's subscription series.

Last words: the witty and personable Wright says,

"There is no feeling of loss even though I am selling my prints for a lot less money. It creates a connection between me and the people who dig me ... if they feel they are receiving way too many screen prints, they could use some as currency - go into a five-star restaurant and pay for a meal. Or book a trip to Paris..."

Read the entire article about Wright and his Subscription Series here.

Michail Pirgelis' First Solo Show in Berlin

German-born artist Michail Pirgelis, who grew up in Greece, is currently exhibiting his first solo exhibition in Berlin at Sprüth Magers Berlin. The exhibition, called ‘Ακρόπολης – Acropolis,’ includes sculptures and objects based on (and made from) original airplane parts.

Pirgelis collects airplane parts, salvaging them from scrap yards around the world. His Berlin exhibition displays seven new objects – plus two sculptures from his 2009 “Airsaddles” series. Some of his new works include brightly polished outer fuselage sections, which casually hang from the gallery wall and a series of baggage storage compartments, which have been transformed into loudspeaker towers.

Through cutting, collaging, highlighting, covering and polishing, the artist transforms his rescued pieces, which have escaped their ill-fated destiny of ending up as scrap metal, into elaborate sculptures. Upon completion, each piece’s rejuvenation represents the once-evident prominence of aviation (which has seemed to disappear due to today’s mass air transportation).

Likewise, Pirgelis’ creations surpass issues plaguing the airline industry and airplanes today – those of safety, terrorism, and ecological effects – and touch on themes of technology and how humanity works with and transforms materials, turning them into masterful marvels, like airplanes.

This powerfully intriguing exhibition is on display through April 1, 2010.

Read more about the artist, his exhibition and artwork.

See what else is going on in Berlin's Art Scene

Nicky Philipps Paints the First Double Portrait of Princes William and Harry

London's National Portrait Gallery recently revealed the first (official) double portrait of Princes William and Harry of Wales. Painted by artist Nicky Philipps, the candid-like portrait shows the royal brothers engaging in conversation while wearing their Household Cavalry uniforms.

The artist hoped to capture William and Harrys' "brotherly banter." The juxtaposition of regal charm - the Princes in their royal military garb - and everyday normalcy - the brothers engaging in relaxed conversation - give the portrait a welcomed balance.

Philipps remarked that the Princes were "good company," and Sandy Nairne, the Director of the National Portrait Gallery, stated

The first portrait of the Princes captures them formally dressed, but informally posed. It is a delightful image which extends the tradition of royal portraiture."

Click here to read more about this topic.

William Klein's Never-Before-Seen Fashion Photos Exposed in New Book

Artist William Klein, who arrived in Rome in 1956 and wandered around the city with film director Federico Fellini, poet Pier Paolo Pasolini, novelist Alberto Moravia, and other avant-garde Italian writers and artists, masterfully photographed images of the city and the fashionable men and women who inhabited Rome. Klein's visual displays were published in an a book that featured the artist's observations and descriptions (via extended captions) as well as quotes and statements about Rome by some of the world's most famous writers.

To celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Rome book's 1959 release, the Aperture Foundation and Contrasto are collaborating to publish a revised version. The new edition includes two volumes of many never-before-seen fashion photos that Klein had taken while in Rome and text updated by the artist. The book introduces society's newest generation of photography lovers to Klein's daring and experimental work (which, during the 1950s and 60s, shocked the art world) and today still captivates viewers and inspires creative thinking.

To read the ArtDaily article associated with this post, click here.

"Six Decades" of Kazuo Shiraga at McCaffrey Fine Art

McCaffrey Fine Art is currently displaying Japanese artist Kazuo Shiraga's first ever solo show in the US. The exhibition, titled "Six Decades," shows paintings by the distinguished artist who uses the style of "foot painting" in his work.

A style often associated with artists who cannot use their hands (or whose hands have been amputated or otherwise destroyed), Shiraga says he first experimented with this method in order to go beyond (the already complex) style of Abstract Expressionism. He has used foot art since the 1950s (hence the title of the exhibition).

The avant-garde artist sought inspiration from Robert Rauschenberg, Cy Twombly, Yves Klein and Jackson Pollock during the 50s - but developed his own unique methods of placing large sheets of paper on the floor, then sliding, spinning, and swirling his feet into heaps of boldly colored oil paint and letting his feet and mind create masterful paintings.

Although the artist's work has been included in various museums' surveys of Japanese Art throughout the United States in the past few decades, he has remained largely unknown in the American Art World until now. The current exhibition at McCaffrey Fine Art also accompanies the first in-depth publication on Shiraga's work in English.



To read more about the artist, his influences, and past exhibitions, click here.

Alejandro Corujeira's New York Debut

Internationally acclaimed Argentine painter, Alejandro Corujeira, will debut his first New York show at Marlborough Gallery. The artist, who now lives in Madrid, creates abstract works that mix curvy lines, subdued colors, and layers of transparency. His paintings radiate a calming - almost trance like - effect on those who are drawn to the soothing nature of his creations.

The artist's use of earth tones and pale blue and green hues gives many of Corujeira's paintings in his new exhibit a unique essence, which is precisely what the artist strives for. As he states in a recent article from Art Daily,

“In this painting ["El comienzo" or The Beginning ... ] there is a sinuous plane, organic in nature, which is left suspended over the surface; with the colored lines, energies of tinted light, causing it to palpitate permanently in a respiratory rhythm.” "Melodías inventadas" (Invented Melodies) ... is invested with a similar vibrating energy. Here graphite circles move like cells over the surface of the painting, seemingly attempting to settle upon pale red and green lines and producing, in the artist’s words, a continual movement like an audible impression.

Check out Corujeira's first NY solo show - which promises to be a welcoming and calming display - from November 19th until December 19th.

Above Images ( "Álbum de los días" and "El comenzio," respectively) courtesy of Marlborough New York

Glenn Barr's First Solo Show in Seven Years: Old Style/ New Style/ Creative Mix

Artist Glenn Barr, who worked on Nickelodeon's "Ren and Stimpy Show" in the mid-1990s and was one of two artists from Detroit's 1990s underground art scene to make it big, will be presenting his first local show in seven years. Barr is most known for his surrealist and noir-styled paintings and prints, but along with his re-emergence comes the added style of lighter, more realistic works.

As mentioned in an article from the Detroit News:

"When I started out, my work was irreverent, campy, erotic, alluring and somewhat dangerous in theme," Barr says, as if that's all safely in the past. But even a cursory look at his new stuff suggests the continuing vitality of those themes...

...By contrast, Barr's recent, realistic works spring from the mythic realm of vintage advertisements and noir paperbacks -- and more recently the folk art decorating the sides of Detroit beauty salons.

It's this move into realism that tickles Tom Thewes, who carried Barr's work at Detroit's late C-Pop Gallery until it closed earlier this year. In particular, Thewes points to "Evening," a tension-filled work in which a well-dressed man helps a woman into her fur coat.
"It's beautiful and in the vein of an old 1950s illustration," Thewes says, noting that Barr collects old illustrations by the masters. "There was a whole story there that didn't need all kinds of crazy weird creatures. I loved it."

Barr does continue to use his darker creativity to produce the quirky noir works that everyone associates him with, and his approach of combining elements from his old and new styles create an innovative mix of art worth seeing.

Exhibition Details:

Start Date/ Time:

October 28, 2009 at 6:00pm

End Date/ Time:

November 27, 2009 at 9:00pm

Location:

323East Gallery
323 E. Fourth St
Royal Oak, MI

Tel: 248-246-9544

For the little ones

I previously wrote about the Lascaux cave paintings on this blog, so imagine my delight when I came across this precious children's book over the weekend. First Painter by Dawn Sirett tells a fantastically fictional tale of how the first cave paintings were created. I know that it's well, a little more "youth-geared" than most of my recommendations, but it's never too early to create an art lover!

America through the eyes of its first painters

An interesting new book was published this year that examines the first years of America through the portrait artists that documented the great politicians of the time. The Painter's Chair, by Hugh Howard, chronicles George Washington's relationship with these artists.

When George Washington was born, the New World had virtually no artists. Over the course of his life and career, a cultural transformation would occur. Virtually everyone regarded Washington as America's indispensable man, and the early painters and sculptors were no exception. Hugh Howard brings to life the founding fathers of American painting, and the elusive Washington himself, through their evolving portraits. We meet Charles Willson Peale, the comrade-in-arms; John Trumbull, the aristocrat; Benjamin West, the mentor; and Gilbert Stuart, the brilliant wastrel and most gifted painter of his day.

Howard's narrative traces Washington's interaction with these and other artists, while offering a fresh and intimate portrait of the first president. The Painter's Chair is an engaging narrative of how America's first painters toiled to create an art worthy of the new republic, and of the hero whom they turned into an icon.

Dennis Hopper and his new billboard paintings

From NYMag:

Before his self-directed performance in 1969's Easy Rider made him the Dennis Hopper you know, he was but a promising young photographer documenting the sixties in all its cinematic glory. On display at Shafrazi through October 24 is his new show, "Sign of the Times," a collection of Hopper's pre-'67 photos of Warhol, Rauschenberg, Lichtenstein, and other twentieth-century art-world luminaries, along with a dozen of his never-before-seen "billboard paintings." Vulture spoke with Hopper this week about the show, his career, and a job opening at the Vatican.

click here to read the interview

Painting her son's final images of Iraq

Typically, this site is devoted to posts about artists' first endeavors, or breakthrough moments in art history, but I was really moved by an article I recently read in the Los Angeles Times that may be more appropriately categorized as a "last".  Suzy Shealy, the mother of a soldier who lost his life in Iraq, is painting images of the last things her son saw in his short life.  An excerpt of the heart-wrenching story is below:

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Suzy Shealy was one of those preppy Southern moms whose artistic streak found expression in what she calls "crafty-type things": cross-stitched towels, Christmas ornaments, knitted scarves.

It was stuff to give away at school auctions or offer to neighbors, stuff with little hearts and frills, the comforting, precious visual language of mother-love.

Yet here she was on a balmy June afternoon, in a studio overlooking a yard full of petunias and marigolds, painting the kill-or-be-killed scowl of an American soldier patrolling on the streets of Iraq.

Whish-whish went her brush, and as if by magic, the planes and angles of the soldier's bones emerged from a light haze of grayish paint: gun-metal cheekbones and nostrils flared and fierce. She outlined the suggestion of a right arm, and a hand clutching an M-16 assault rifle.

The snapshot she painted from was attached to the canvas with a potato-chip clip from her kitchen. In the photo, a second soldier hovered in the background, his torso emerging from a Humvee turret.

But Shealy will not paint her dead son. She is not ready.

"I'm just not," she said. "I don't know why."

Some of Sgt. Joseph Derrick's personal belongings were returned to his family in boxes. Some of it came back in little velvet jewelry bags with "UNITED STATES ARMY" embossed in golden letters. His mother has kept nearly everything, no matter how trivial: the phone card he used to call her from Baghdad, his cellphone, his boot laces, his civilian clothes.

A mother learns that every one of her children has a signature scent. The old T-shirts and sweats still smell like her first child. She can still picture him the day he was born -- those perfect hands and perfect feet, those big blue eyes. How could she throw his things away?

Among the belongings that came back from Iraq was a tiny Flash drive she had sent to him as part of a care package. It returned to her filled with more than 500 photos. Some of them were taken by Joseph. Others were taken by his fellow soldiers. Before Sept. 23, 2005 -- before the insurgent sniper fired the bullets that pierced his neck -- Joseph had told her about the pictures. He couldn't wait, he had said, to come home and deliver the stories that the pictures promised. But without their narrator, Shealy found that the photos amounted to a chain of riddles. An eternally incomplete slide show.

Click here to keep reading the story

Chagall's first artwork

Marc Chagall, the painter associated with Modernism and France, was actually born Moishe Segal to a Russian-Jewish family in 1887. At the time of his childhood, Jewish students were not admitted to Russian schools. However, with a bribe to an official, Chagall's parents managed to get him access to attend, where he fell in love with drawing.

It makes perfect sense that, considering Chagall's contribution as a Jewish artist, his first artwork ever created was an illustrated Haggadah for Passover (a text that details the order of events for Seder) for his family. I couldn't seem to find any images of his particular Haggadah... perhaps it's still in his family and not on public view?

"Damien Hirst's auction" or "Hirst rhymes with first"

It's been almost a year since Damien Hirst's infamous auction took place at Sotheby's in London. Hirst is an interesting figure in the art world - his splashy work and astronomical prices have earned him a spot as one of the most loved and despised artists in the world. September 15, 2008, Sotheby's held a special two day sale of works by Hirst, which is nothing rare (I joke). However, it was incredibly rare, in fact the first time that a set of work went straight from an artist's studio to the auction block - no galleries, no exhibit, no public display. It was sensational. It angered many. It made a lot of people smile, and a lot more people curse his name.

Agnes Denes

The artist Agnes Denes, known for her "Whatfield - A Confrontation" in Manhattan, created a piece entitled "Tree Mountain - A Living Time Capsule" between 1992 and 1996. The drawings and renderings were the beginning of a project that the Finnish government would make as their Earth Day contribution at the Earth Summit. Denes invited 11,000 people to each plant a tree on a mountain, using a mathematical pattern. This marked "the first time that an artist has been commissioned to restore environmental damage with an artwork that is global in scale, international in scope, and unsurpassed in duration."

keep reading

Hong Kong artists at Sotheby's auction

This past Spring auction of contemporary Asian art at Sotheby's was the very first time that an auction house had a series dedicated specifically to Hong Kong artists.

From Art Radar Asia:

"The artworks are concerned with significant historical Hong Kong events including the 1997 Handover of the British colony to China, the 2003 SARS epidemic and the annual July 1st protests as well as the experience of living in Hong Kong’s cramped urban cityscape.

All of the lots were sold at estimate or more. Kum Chi Keung, Kevin Fung and the Kowloon Emperor achieved sale prices which were double or several multiples of the estimate."

Kum Chi Keung

John Fung, Kin Chung

Herb and Dorothy

Last night I saw an amazing film - Herb & Dorothy - at Cinema Village. I must say that I was in tears for much of it - so sweet!

Anyway, the movie documents the married couple Herb and Dorothy Vogel - unlikely but very prolific art collectors. Living on goverment incomes, they amassed an amazing and significant art collection that they housed in their one-bedroom Manhattan apartment for years, until donating most of it to the National Gallery of Art. Because they were willing to schlep downtown to "dangerous" neighborhoods, they often got work for very cheap from emerging artists and developed relationships with artists - they traded with Sol LeWitt for one of his first geometric works. Their story is moving and beautiful - a love story - they loved each other and loved art - unlovable art. Whether you are an artist, a collector, or just are an interested person, definitely go see this movie. Click here for theatres and showtimes.

HERB & DOROTHY Trailer from Herb & Dorothy on Vimeo.

Ross Bleckner - UN Goodwill Ambassador

(Photo: Anna Rosario Kennedy/United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime)

This year Ross Bleckner was named the first fine artist to be a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador. Long known for his abstract paintings and work about AIDS, Bleckner recently went on an official trip to the Uganda district of Gulu, where abduction and human trafficking has traumatized the people.

Using supplies shipped over from New York Central Art Supply, Bleckner worked with 25 children to create over 200 paintings. The work was exhibited and sold at a UN exhibition. Bleckner plans to return to Uganda and continue the project next year.

Click here to see the NY Times slideshow featuring the children's work

Below is an excerpt from the very moving speech given by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon at the opening of the exhibition:

I imagine many of you are invited to more fabulous parties in more glamorous locations. But you are here this evening because you care about the issue of human trafficking. And you understand the profound contribution that Ross Bleckner is making through his work.

Today, Ross Bleckner will make history by becoming the first fine artist to be named as a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador. I welcome him to our family and I hope many others follow.

His tremendously powerful exhibition, “Welcome to Gulu”, proves that art has a unique and important mission in advancing peace and human rights. With his eye, Mr. Bleckner has been able to show the world a side of human trafficking that a diplomat never could. I have my role to play in fighting the horrendous abuse of children we see in northern Uganda and elsewhere. But only an artist as visionary and compassionate as Mr. Bleckner could allow the victims to express themselves so eloquently.

Their paintings show that, although they have endured terrible forms of abuse, these children retain a purity and love of life that are the birthright of all youth. Only art -- the kind of empowering art that Mr. Bleckner has facilitated through this life-changing project -- can offer such a profound perspective.

It is vital that we shine a harsh light on the terrible trade in humans. I recently reported to the Security Council on the extent of this problem. I listed parties that are recruiting children to fight in conflicts, and abusing girls as sexual slaves. We call this “name and shame”. I urged the Security Council to take action against those guilty of these atrocities.

At the same time, I am all-too-aware of the limits of my office. Naming and shaming are critical to confronting perpetrators. Punishing them is essential to fighting the culture of impunity. But none of that will truly heal the boy who has been forced not only to witness killings but to commit them, or the girl who has suffered multiple rapes.

That is why I so deeply appreciate Mr. Bleckner’s contributions. He has done more than just expose a problem -- he has taken steps towards solving it. For him, the victims are not just poster children trotted out to show the devastation caused by human trafficking. They are people with full rights, talents and aspirations. They are speaking in their own voices, painting their own images and healing in the process.

I was delighted to learn that proceeds from the sale of these powerful paintings, and from Mr. Bleckner’s compelling portraits, will benefit former child soldiers and abducted girls.

Two years ago, my wife opened another exhibition sponsored by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime [UNODC] here at United Nations Headquarters, called “Human Trafficking: Images of Vulnerability”. She decried the trade in people, and she said, “Thanks to this exhibit, it is staring us in the face.”

Then she called for action. “Let us not just look at these pictures and walk away”, she said. “Let us be moved to act.”

There was an artist in the audience that day who took those words to heart. His name is Ross Bleckner, and we see today the results of his passionate activism.

So I repeat the words my wife spoke then: Let us be moved to act. You may not have the same painting skills as Mr. Bleckner, but each and every one of you can make a difference in your own sphere of influence.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime is showing the way through its invaluable activities. By supporting UNODC, we can stop human trafficking so that the people who are today in shackles can tomorrow be free to contribute to a better world for all.