Joseph Kosuth at the Hirshhorn

Last night I heard Joseph Kosuth speak at the Hirshhorn Museum and what an experience -- I've been attending artist lectures for over a decade and nothing compared to this one. Where to begin? This is an artist who pioneered conceptual art, most notably in the 1960s when he undertook his series of "investigations" into ways in which art could exceed the limitations of institutional and structural hierarchies of art and art history. Kosuth is known for his brilliant and ironic appropriation of words -- in which the reading of the words and the subsequent understanding of its meaning (by the viewer) is the ultimate goal of the artwork and aesthetics. Whether or not the viewer deems it ugly or beautiful is besides the point -- the process is what matters. Which again goes to the heart of my own perspective about "where" art resides -- it's in the interaction between artwork and viewer, when the viewer is moved/disturbed/inspired/puzzled/etc.

Prior to hearing Kosuth speak, I was most familiar with his neon works. But during the lecture I was really intrigued with his larger-scaled pieces, particularly the permanent installations at various venues in Europe, in which he employed significant portions of texts and ideas -- that contradicted each other -- resulting in textures and overlays of meaning and ideas. His installation in Copenhagen was one of the pieces I was most struck by. He began with a section of Hans Christian Anderson's "Emperor's New Clothes" (one of Kosuth's favorite childhood stories) and then visually interspersed it with fragments of Kierkegaard's damning review of the same text - but took these fragments out of context and connected them in such a way that it read in defense of Anderson. Brilliant. I absolutely love Kosuth's genius and rebellious nature, which (in this particular instance) was defiant against the philosopher who had criticized his beloved author, but in a larger context, defied the very annals of art history in the making of his highly intellectualized text art that negated the requirement of paper and paintbrush that had come before him.

Initially signed with Leo Castelli (when Kosuth was a mere 24 years old), he has been represented by Sean Kelly Gallery for many years, has exhibited around the world (including several years at Documenta and the Venice Biennale) and is currently showing a large holding of his work at the Hirshhorn Museum. I will continue to enjoy learning about and viewing his work.

Joseph Kosuth, Self-Defined Object (White), neon, 1966

Looking at Art -- The Phillips Collection

Could there be a more inviting way to look at (and converse about) art?

Quote of the Week - Eric Fischl

"To have the art experience is to change places with the object. It is for one to become still, to become frozen in one's tracks, to leave one's body for a brief moment, to stand outside oneself and reflect on one's life meaning by looking through the object, which now stares back. It is a profoundly complex process of identification and transference."

Eric Fischl, from his essay "A Meditation on the Death of Painting", The Phillips Collection Fall 2008 magazine.

Bourgeois and Basquiat at Christie's NY sale

Okay, my few yet loyal readers, the rant portion of my blog is done (well, at least for now!!) and it's time to move on to the major Fall auctions being held in New York at Christie's and Sotheby's next month, which I think will be the true test of how the art market is faring in context of our current financial meltdown. Just yesterday the Christie's Post-War and Contemporary Art catalogue arrived in the mail, and I'm so excited to start reading through the material. Browsing through these hefty books and studying the exceptionally written essays ("lot notes") is absolutely my favorite moment of the Fall season. So here are a few highlights, with more to come in the weeks ahead:

Louise Bourgeois
Spider V, 1999
Bronze and steel
21 x 38 x 44 in.
No.2/6 (edition of 6 with one AP)
Estimate: $1,500,000 - 2,000,000:

Jean-Michel Basquiat
Untitled (Boxer), 1982
Acrylic and oil paintstick on linen
76 x 94 in.
Estimate not provided:

Review of the Christo exhibit in today's Post

Did anyone else read it, and what are your thoughts? Here is the link to the scathing review given the current Christo exhibition at the Phillips, written by Blake Gopnik for the Washington Post. And here are my thoughts --

Number 1. Gopnik condescends that the artists are asking the viewers to consider art that "doesn't exist" and "may never be made". Well, I think he misses the point entirely -- that in fact, the art does exist, it exists (as the artists themselves stated quite clearly in their written and verbal presentations) in the process of acquiring permits; in the process of spending decades planning for it, raising money for it, creating the materials for it; and in the minds of those who are for it and against it. And perhaps then, existentially speaking, whether or not it is actually made (which it will, given their track record) is irrelevant.

Number 2. I don't think Christo or Jeanne-Claude have ever claimed to be "environmental" or green artists, so Gopnik's argument (that people driving to see the finished project in gas-guzzling SUVs and that the use of excessively large quantities of fabric is in contrast to the artists' values) is a bit off.

Number 3. This is what really got me going -- he claims that "everyone" agrees that museums are on a "special-exhibition treadmill" that is "exhausting" them and creating a "problem". As I see it, special exhibitions are perhaps the best way that a museum can actively engage in the current trends of the contemporary art market. And that they also provide a substantial revenue source for their budget, as well as invaluable publicity. For example, the recent Jeff Wall retrospective was immensely important for both the artist and the organizing institution for all the reasons I just stated. Without a special exhibition program, a museum is left with a permanent collection alone, which by itself is too slow-moving and arduous in acquiring new pieces (which can take years sometimes) to stay active and relevant in today's art conversation. I think that the REAL "easy measure" for the "worth of any show" is whether or not it makes someone want to visit the museum in the first place. And while they're visiting - either for the special exhibition OR the permanent collection - they will visit the other as well.

Certainly, this exhibition might not be for everyone, but just as certainly, it is not a waste of time for either the artists, the museum, or for many of us art lovers who understand and appreciate their work and vision.

Auction Results - Phillips de Pury & Company, Contemporary Art, Evening Sale, London, October 18

My favorite lots didn't sell this weekend - withdrawn at auction - which is not unusual by itself, as many sellers (either private collectors or galleries) will place a minimum "reserve" amount during consignment, and if that amount isn't reached during live bidding, the piece is "bought in" or withdrawn and then returned to the seller. However, I was a bit surprised to see that most of these works didn't go:

Takashi Murakami, Tongan-kun
Estimate: 3,500,000 - 4,500,000 GBP
Withdrawn












Richard Prince, Untitled
Estimate: 100,000 - 150,000
Sold: 133, 250








Zhang Xiaogang, Bloodline Series: A Boy
Estimate: 200,000 - 300,000
Withdrawn










Joan Mitchell, La Grande Vallee XIII
Estimate: 2,000,000 - 3,000,000 GBP
Withdrawn












Donald Judd, Untitled, 1988
Estimate: 550,000 - 750,000
Withdrawn

London Contemporary Sales -- Precursor to NY

Update 10/25: Sold for $9,400,000

It seems my curiosity about the NY sales are right on track - as reported below by Judd Tully for ArtInfo on October 15 (which also includes a wonderful photo gallery of some of the pieces auctioned this week in London). Sales results to follow:

LONDON—Given the chaotically gloomy status of the global economy, it seems almost foolhardy to assess relative value in the art market right now. That said, the world’s top auction houses made their bets early this past summer on what contemporary property would fetch in October during Frieze week in London. The acid test begins Friday evening, October 17, at Sotheby’s and continues over the weekend with further sales, including at Phillips and Christie’s.

While there are no safe bets — not even blue-chip works — in this incendiary climate, the one thing we know is that no matter what unfolds, the London sales will set the psychological tone for the much larger New York sales taking place in November.

Lucian Freud, Francis Bacon (Christie's Post-War and Contemporary Sale, London, October 19, Estimate 5,000,000 - 7,000,000 GBP)

Auction Results -- Sotheby's Contemporary Art Evening Sale, London, October 17

Just a few lots below, from the 69 that went up at Sotheby's on Friday, most of which fell slightly short of the estimate or sold within the lower part of the range. I'm very curious to see how the NY sales fare next month, in light of these results and our largely growing economic crisis:

Lucian Freud, Strawberries
Estimate: 250,000 - 350,00 GBP
Sold: 229,250






Gerhard Richter, Abstraktes Bild (R07)
Estimate: 3,000,000 - 4,000,000 GBP
Sold: 2,841,250







Rachel Whiteread, Pressed
Estimate: 120,000 - 180,000 GBP
Sold: 109,250







Damien Hirst, Beautiful Jaggy Snake Charity Painting
Estimate: 100,000 - 150,000 GBP
Sold: 115,250

Looking at Art -- De Young Museum

"Self-Portraits" taken by my old friend Mike Aracic, October 2008, De Young Museum, San Francisco.

Quote of the Week - Jeanne-Claude

"After living in Paris we moved to the United States -- No, what am I saying, we didn't move to the United States, we moved to New York City!"

Jeanne-Claude at the Phillips Collection artist lecture, October 16, 2008 (photo taken afterwards at the book signing)

Christo & Jeanne-Claude at The Phillips Collection

I just returned from a lecture by Christo and Jeanne-Claude at the Phillips, where their current exhibition, Over the River: A Work in Progress, is currently being exhibited. And what an amazing experience -- it reminded me of why I love (and miss) working in the art world -- the enormous personalities and ability by artists to see life in ways that escape most of us. And within this world, Christo and Jeanne-Claude are singularly remarkable; I can't think of anyone else who compares to them in terms of the parameters given to their projects and the devotion they outwardly show each other and their work. They spend upwards of tens of millions of dollars (all earned through the sale of drawings and collages of Christo's preliminary plans), hundreds of skilled laborers and engineers, and decades of planning, acquiring permits, and educating people along the way about their work and vision.

And the result -- fabric installations or wrapped objects - exist for merely 2 weeks before being taken down, forever. And if they had their way about it, they would be deinstalled after just 4 days. Amazing to me -- all of that work, money, and years of planning for a fleeting moment. Nothing is permanent (save for a few precious sculptures in museums collections around the world and the aforementioned collages). It's truly remarkable, and I was moved tonight when Jeanne-Claude, in her self-deprecating, witty and pointed way described the process of how she & Christo infuse into their art, as an aesthetic principal, "love and tenderness", which we have for our childhood, and for our own lifetime, which we know won't last forever. So when she looks at one of their completed projects, there is love and tenderness for that work, which is made more poignant and powerful with the knowledge that in just a few days it will no longer exist. In contrast with the oil paintings and steel sculptures that occupy our landscape, these ethereal artworks are indeed "precious" and fleeting.

To the point that I've tried to make in these posts about my own perspective about art -- that when you define "what is art", it's not about the object per se, but about "where" is art. Art exists, in opinion, in the experience of viewing. When a person is moved by a work of art, or disturbed by it, or inspired, or puzzled, or delighted, or even offended, that is where art is found. Christo said something tonight along similar lines -- that their art exists not only in the completed project, but in the process of completing it, in the process of decades spent trying to obtain the necesary permits, and in the minds and souls of both the people who support their work and of the people who want to stop them. Basically, it's in the experience of it.

My two favorite works are pictured above -- Running Fence, of which the west end literally dives into the Pacific Ocean by 1/4 mile (knowing that the work continued beyond a person's ability to see it absolutely thrills me) -- and Reichstag in Berlin, because of the visceral polarity between the rigidity and formal structure of the building and the soft and sensual quality of the fabric.

This post is dedicated to my late graduate school professor and thesis advisor, Doug Adams, who worked with and absolutely adored Christo and Jeanne-Claude. You are missed.