Chronicles of My Adventures

Reviews of places I’ve been, shows I’ve seen, things I’ve eaten, etc. These posts are past tense rather than discussions of upcoming events.

Nude with a Goose Strikes Again!

May 30, 2010 in Chronicles of My Adventures | No comments

Nude with a Goose, the fledgling curatorial partnership of Berit Hoff and Shannon McEneaney, recently had their second exhibition. If you didn’t read my post about their first show you should check it out for all the background info… These lovely ladies have taken it upon themselves to singlehandedly bring to light the strange, beautiful and thought provoking art that is hiding in the studio apartments of young artists all over the city. At the same time they are creating opportunities to curate instead of waiting for the art world to give them their dream jobs.

Their latest exhibit, Exposure, brought together 60 artists for a one-night-only event that was part exhibit and part nightclub, with Essential (a 12 year old party/event organization) handling the second part. The works shown ranged from oil paintings to sculptures made with unrecognizable materials. I will just tell you a bit about a few of my favorites.

Elisa Garcia de la Huerta’s brilliant photography addressed the theme in a more subtle way than some of the other works. The vibrant colors exposed details of her images in such a way that the viewer was continually drawn back to them from far corners of the room. I haven’t been able to find them online but if I do I’ll provide a link- check back.

Carlton Sturgill’s work connects to the theme in a more direct way; the semi-nude woman in his painting is faceless and inviting.

Carlton Scott Sturgill

Emily Johnson’s charcoal drawing is more disturbing the longer you look at it. At first it appears to be people stacked up in a formation like cheerleaders performing, but as you look closer you see that instead of torsos each figure has a second set of legs, making the structure a tower of legs alone. To me this plays with the idea of exposure in a unique way- the exposure of the viewer’s first impression as false. I have failed to find a website for Ms. Johnson but I will appeal to Nude with a Goose- check back.

Marisa DeMarco’s painting of a face in black and white, framed by pink headphones, is lovely. The chord to the headphones is unplugged and pointing straight to the left, as though waiting for the right music to color in the person, to expose them, or perhaps to show that when we are unplugged we are exposed as colorless. The style feels very Pop Art and while thought provoking the piece doesn’t feel overly combative.

Finally, while I cannot explain how Abdolreza Aminlari’s piece deals with the theme, I can tell you that I found it compelling. It reminds me of Etch a Sketch in a strange way, but also of experiments with magnets in my High School physics class.

Abdolreza Aminlari

I am looking forward to seeing the next show by Nude with a Goose and I encourage you to keep tabs on them in the future!

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Pushy by Discovery

May 30, 2010 in Chronicles of My Adventures, Upcoming Events to Consider | No comments

Everyone has certain music that immediately brings them back to a particular place and time. On New Year’s Eve 2009 K and I found ourselves, somewhat by accident and somewhat by design, listening to a band we had never heard of in Cameo Gallery in Wburg. The singer was wearing these absurd sequin covered pants (or was it a dress? I’ll admit parts of the evening are blurry) and she was rocking them. I mean this woman had serious style and the music was exactly right for that moment. We felt energized and empowered. My photos of that show are even blurrier than my memories but when I hear Broke by Discovery I instantly get that rush of excitement.

I have got to find some peace

I can’t afford to go

but I can’t afford to love you anymore…

Can I walk the night alone?

Discovery recently released a new record, Pushy, (available on iTunes), and it’s full of Kathleen Cholewka’s intense personal style, together with the impressive musical additions of her bandmates. I particularly enjoy Lex Marsh’s sax. It’s the sort of sound that makes you want to be in a crowd of people, toasting to new experiences with your very closest friends. You can check them out in June at Goodbye Blue Monday.

Discovery

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Culture High & Low

March 16, 2010 in Chronicles of My Adventures, Upcoming Events to Consider | No comments

If you’re feeling a bit blue, stuck in NYC while your friends are rocking out at SXSW, you should be reminded of some of the amazing cultural events happening in our fine city- both High and Low.

This past weekend G and I attended, among other diversions (he met my mother for the first time this weekend! It went well!) Franco Zeffirelli’s legendary production of La Bohème at the Metropolitan Opera. More than perhaps any other opera La Bohème has captured the imagination of generations of artists. Its compelling story was the basis for the musical Rent. Baz Luhrmann’s version also spent time on Broadway. Recently there was even a production without music.  As G said after the performance, the characters are much more familiar than most characters in opera; these are people you can imagine knowing. Anna Netrebko was an incredible Mimi; both her acting and her singing were intensely evocative. I cried (of course) when she died but I also felt that the story had a message for the audience, much more so than the melodramatic plots of Aida or Tosca. If you haven’t seen this classic I highly recommend finding a way to do so.

Anna Netrebko

Anna Netrebko

I will be seeing a much less classic opera next week- The Nose is a surrealist opera based on a short story by Gogol.

Artist William Kentridge defies genres with Shostakovich’s adaptation of Gogol’s story. “The opera is about the terrors of hierarchy,” Kentridge says. “There’s a mixture of anarchy and the absurd that interests me. I love in this opera the sense that anything is possible.” The new production is conducted by definitive Shostakovich interpreter Valery Gergiev. Acclaimed baritone Paulo Szot, who won a Tony Award® for South Pacific, makes his Met debut as the man who wakes up to discover that his nose has disappeared.

You can get a taste of Kentridge’s work at the MOMA, which is currently hosting a retrospective.

Best known for animated films based on charcoal drawings, he also works in prints, books, collage, sculpture, and the performing arts. This exhibition explores five primary themes in Kentridge’s art from the 1980s to the present, and underscores the inter relatedness of his mediums and disciplines, particularly through a selection of works from the Museum’s collection. Included are works related to the artist’s staging and design of Dmitri Shostakovich’s The Nose.

I haven’t visited the Kentridge exhibit yet but G and I did take a look at Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present, which just opened to the public on Sunday. The exhibit documents her various performance pieces, both through video and photographs of the original performances, and through recreations by actors. The most interesting, and disturbing, of the latter was a pair of naked actors- one female, one male- standing within a narrow archway; you had to pass between them to get into the next room. It was impossible not to touch the naked pair and this was hugely unnerving but, simply because it was unnerving, forced you as the viewer to think further about the piece. I am thrilled that the MOMA has chosen to showcase such challenging work. The exhibit is a triumph for the curator, Klaus Biesenbach, who has succeeded in creating a retrospective of performance art, something never done in the MOMA, and possibly never done as successfully in any other major museum.

You can see some less established artists in the Jonathan LeVine Gallery’s Five Year Anniversary Exhibition.

Since 2005, Jonathan LeVine Gallery has been an important venue for Street Art (ephemeral work placed in public urban environments) and Pop Surrealism (work influenced by illustration, comic book art, and pop culture imagery). As such, the pieces in this exhibition—comprised of paintings, drawings, and sculptures—will be primarily figurative with a strong sense of narration.

I am quite a fan of this image (Ray Caesar, Arabesque):

Ray Caesar, Arabesque

Ray Caesar, Arabesque

On the lower end of the culture spectrum, this Thursday you can attend a retrospective of a rather different sort- a burlesque tribute to Dolly Parton! I expect The Queen of Country Music would be thrilled!

P.S. Best way to spend St. Patty’s Day- Benefit Concert for City Reliquary at the Knitting Factory!

Please follow myself and Miss Scorpio on twitter for the latest and be sure to sign up for the G&S listserve so you can benefit from the editing that eats up so much of my time… Enjoy!

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Art Review: Execution

December 17, 2009 in Chronicles of My Adventures | 3 comments

For most artists the joy of creation is closely linked to the joy of appreciation; they want their work to be seen, and hopefully enjoyed, by the public. In NYC finding a way to exhibit the work of young and unknown artists is an ongoing struggle. Few established galleries show the work of unknowns and while there are some venues that focus on new talent the competition to show work is extreme. At the same time up-and-coming curators are struggling to move from assisting to designing their own shows. A new organization called Nude with a Goose is working to offer a solution to these dual problems- exhibits in free venues. Since they’re not working to cover overhead costs they can show work by unknown artists, and have the exhibits designed by unknown curators.

Their first show, Execution, was curated by Shannon McEneaney and included works by fourteen artists. The curator asked the artists to submit works that dealt with the concept of execution- the process by which art is created. Since contemporary art is often dismissed as being ’something anyone could do’ she wanted to allow the artists to open a dialogue with viewers about their mode of execution. To this end she had each artist submit a statement, all of which were available for visitors to read, though they were not placed beside the artworks themselves. Walking through the exhibit first without the statements and then with them allowed me to compare my impressions of each artists’ methods with their own insights. In some cases the new information changed my view of the work dramatically and in others it augmented my original understanding.

Execution

Execution

The one video piece on display, a work by Dana Kash, was choppy and dizzying, showing vague images with only a few seconds of clarity. When I read her statement I discovered that the footage was taken with a cell phone camera, a method she sees as more spontaneous and evocative of her moment-to-moment experience. In this case an understanding of her methods made her work much more accessible.

Paul Bergeron’s quilt-like painting intrigued me to begin with; I found the geometry of it interesting and I liked the textures- thickly smeared paint and patches of fabric. In his statement he discussed his use of motifs, in particular images he associated with childhood, as the basis for his paintings. This psychological foundation is clearly responsible for the emotional power of the piece.

McEneaney sought to include works in a variety of mediums. Christine Wang’s blending of mediums was particularly eye-catching.

Christine Wang

Christine Wang

The rays of light are created by cutting fragments out of the canvas and the actual light is positioned so that the “rays” and the actual rays blend. The presence of a working lamp created a connection between our reality and the world shown in the painting. Although the painting is not strictly realist you had a sense that you could easily step between them. This was certainly a piece that wore its process on its sleeve; the steps leading to the final product were easily apparent and obviously carefully planned.

Undoubtedly my favorite work was the series of photographs by Este Lewis. Photography is a medium often dismissed as necessarily the work of amateurs. Lewis demonstrated her thoughtful execution through her choice of subject matter; the photographs depict an elderly woman, Thelma, with whom Lewis formed a close relationship. The images are touchingly personal and give you an intimate sense of their subject. Portraiture is a difficult business and Lewis’ use of props, different in each photograph, is well thought out and effective.

Thelma in Fur by Este Lewis

Fur from the series Color Me Thelma by Este Lewis

Taken together I felt that Execution not only demonstrated the deliberate thought process and skill of the artists and curator but also left the viewer with a sense of optimism about the future of the art scene in NYC. I am looking forward to their next exhibit.

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An Afternoon at the MOMA

December 14, 2009 in Chronicles of My Adventures | 3 comments

This weekend, in between the Biblioball and a ride with the Levys on a subway train from 1931, G and I spent an afternoon at the Museum of Modern Art. It was overcrowded and hectic but the art on the walls is well worth battling the crowds to see! I’m a member so we had no problem strolling into the Tim Burton exhibit, but if you’re not a member be sure to buy your timed ticket in advance because they have been selling out.

The Tim Burton retrospective is the first exhibit of its kind celebrating the work of this mad genius, and a mad genius he most certainly is! From the quirky sketches of his early career to the ephemera related to his more recent films, Burton’s art reveals the workings of a very unusual imagination. The imagery is almost always unsettling even when it’s humorous and the thought process of the artist remains opaque. I came away from the exhibit admiring his talent and creativity but also feeling a little bit afraid of Tim Burton. I think this segment of Mars Attacks truly epitomizes the macabre slant of his imagination. This sketch is on the lighter end:

Tim Burton Sketch

Tim Burton Sketch

It was interesting to walk through the exhibit on the Bauhaus School directly after seeing the Burton exhibit; much of Burton’s imagery seems at least tangentially related to the art that originated at Bauhaus.

The exhibition gathers over four hundred works that reflect the broad range of the school’s productions, including industrial design, furniture, architecture, graphics, photography, textiles, ceramics, theater design, painting, and sculpture, many of which have never before been exhibited in the United States. It includes not only works by the school’s famous faculty and best-known students—including Anni Albers, Josef Albers, Herbert Bayer, Marianne Brandt, Marcel Breuer, Lyonel Feininger, Walter Gropius, Vasily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, László Moholy-Nagy, Lucia Moholy, Lilly Reich, Oskar Schlemmer, and Gunta Stölzl—but also a broad range of works by innovative but less well-known students, suggesting the collective nature of ideas.

We also wandered up to the 6th floor for a members-only preview of the new Gabriel Orozco exhibit (now open to the public!). I think the curator made a mistake in placing some of the more questionable pieces at the start of the exhibit; when I saw that the empty shoe-box next to the guard was “art” I considered not venturing any further. I recommend forgiving Orozco for both the shoe-box and the subsequent yogurt caps and heading into the center of the exhibit, where you can see my favorite piece- a Citroën automobile surgically reduced to two-thirds its normal width.

orozco

Though certainly one of the more expensive and crowded museums in the city, the MOMA remains an essential stop if you’re looking for the the truly remarkable art of the last century. You should also read my earlier post for some smaller galleries worth checking out this winter.

Stay tuned for more upcoming events and follow me on twitter for the latest!

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Brklyn Meatup Lacked Meat

December 10, 2009 in Chronicles of My Adventures | No comments

Let me begin by saying I have great respect and affection for both The Bell House and Brooklyn Based; in fact I have very high expectations for events either of them are involved in throwing. That said, I was terribly disappointed by last night’s event; it was poorly planned, badly executed and hyped totally out of proportion with reality.

The most glaring issue to begin with was the ratio of women to men- I estimate 3:1. You simply cannot have a successful singles party with that ratio. I understand that to some degree this is out of the control of the organizers but I don’t think it would have been impossible to remedy. Your average club lets girls in for free as a way of helping to even things out; couldn’t they have allowed men in for free? Perhaps that trick would have cut into their revenues but it might also have made for a rewarding experience for attendees.

Speaking of cost, what exactly were we paying for? Music was provided by DJs, something you can get for free all over the city; there was open bar for only one hour (and who gets there at 7 anyway?); supposedly there were free massages though I never found them; and we all got name tags. For $10/adv, $15/door I have to say that is fairly outrageous.

For a singles party to function the atmosphere and activities should be geared towards people mingling and making connections. Taking pictures with Santa? Cute but not really going to form a connection (except between you and Santa). Raffle? Cool if you win but again, this doesn’t add to the mingling. Most upsetting on an atmospheric level was the absurd volume level; it is impossible to have any kind of conversation in a room too packed to move with music too loud to hear yourself think.

I certainly hope that the next Meatup incorporates some of this constructive criticism; I would love to give this another go.

Stay tuned for news of events coming your way this weekend and be sure to follow me on twitter for the latest!

The Jaguar Club

October 23, 2009 in Chronicles of My Adventures, Upcoming Events to Consider | No comments

The Jaguar Club is one of those unique bands who can hook you in with a great sound but also hold your attention with interesting lyrics. I particularly like the chorus from ‘This Summer,’ off their album ‘And We Wake Up Slowly’:

And are we living in the same town/ and are we getting back to nature/ in a way/ and are we caring for our mothers/ and our fathers/ at the end of the day/ we still got our memories/ some kind of weapon and some kind of hope…

I saw them play at Cakeshop and despite the bad acoustics and the fact that they were, by their own admission, quite ill, they played an excellent set and I’ve been listening to their album ever since. They’re fun to see live both because they obviously put a lot of emotion into their performance and because they’re all quite adorable. Of course I bought their CD from one of their wives so this is meant purely as a compliment, no hidden agenda (haha). Here are a couple of pictures taken by Amy Davis at the Cakeshop show; see the whole album HERE.

jaguar club

jaguar club 2

You can see them for yourself Saturday night at The Delancey, right before My Teenage Stride; it’s sure to be a great show!

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Tosca- It’s a whole new Met

October 8, 2009 in Chronicles of My Adventures | 3 comments

G and I saw the Metropolitan Opera’s new production of Tosca a couple of weeks ago. I had read a few of the articles about the boo-ing on opening night so I was prepared for all sorts of atrocities. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. Yes, the sets are dull and a bit dreary in comparison to the glitz of the old production (by Franco Zeffirelli), but in some sense their very drabness refocuses the audience on the music. Certainly opera has historically been about pomp and pageantry but it’s a brave new world and if we’re looking at opera in a new way that may not be such a bad thing.

Franco Zeffirelli Production of Tosca

Franco Zeffirelli's Production of Tosca

Richard Peduzzi's Production of Tosca

Richard Peduzzi's Production of Tosca

I had a long conversation with some older women during intermission about the pros and cons of various new productions presented in recent years. While one of them vehemently hated the new sets for Tosca she assured me that she was not against the updating of opera in principle. In fact she thought the production of Madama Butterfly performed last year was one of the most beautiful she had ever seen.

In trying to modernize the Metropolitan Opera Peter Gelb is paying less attention to its older audience in an attempt to bring in a younger one. What attracts young people? As a young person myself I feel ill-equipped to answer for my demographic. G and I loved the new production but both agreed that we would have loved the old one as well. What we found powerful and exciting was the experience of having the singers’ actual voices, un-amplified, surrounding us even from the cheap seats. It will never cease to amaze me that a human being can create such a sound. I tend to feel that seeing opera in HD is less magical because of the lack of contact with those sound waves but if you’re interested in experimenting with opera before taking the leap watch the new production of Tosca on the big screen this weekend at BAM. Let me know what you think.

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The Tonys of Burlesque- The Golden Pasties

October 7, 2009 in Chronicles of My Adventures | No comments

The burlesque community gathered in all their splendor at the 7th Annual Golden Pasties Awards; the audience was decked out in glitter and sequins and giant fake eyelashes and more hair spray than I have ever before seen in use at one time (and I’ve been to the south). If the Oscars were half as entertaining as The Golden Pasties they would have more viewers than the Superbowl.

Highlights included Miss Astrid as the most caustic announcer you can imagine, especially when interacting with timid Scott Rayow.

Miss Astrid and Scott Rayaw

Miss Astrid and Scott Rayow

Dulce de Leche’s performance, set to the song Tainted Love, was positively delicious. The presenting of awards seemed a bit secondary, though that may have had more to do with Miss Astrid’s intense scorn (all part of the act I’m sure). Some of the awards were more, ahem, colorful than those distributed at your average award show. I was particularly a fan of “Most likely to end up in Bangkok missing their liver.” Now that is one hell of a distinction.

One of the most beautiful acts was a truly ethereal piece performed by Miss Orchid Mei.

Miss Orchid Mei

Miss Orchid Mei

Legs Malone had one of the most creative acts; she danced to Smoke Gets in Your Eyes… with a giant match. Props for props!

Speaking of props, The Love Show put on an adorable show with paper umbrellas set to It’s Raining Men. It was particularly fun to have Miss Astrid glowering from the back of the stage during the large ensemble pieces.

The Love Show

The Love Show

Finally, Chata must be given credit for making limbo sexy in a way it has never been before! Look for these performers and all the others from The New York Burlesque Festival at their regular gigs around the city! I’ll send you more info on my favorite shows soon or you can search the site to read about shows I’ve seen in the past.

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Falling in Love with Dance

October 5, 2009 in Chronicles of My Adventures | No comments

As a somewhat clumsy individual with very little sense of rhythm I am totally in awe of dancers; the grace and expressiveness of their movements never cease to dazzle me.

In-I at BAM was especially interesting as Juliette Binoche is not a professional dancer and described this piece as ‘acting through movement.’ She and Akram Khan created a new sort of dance together; it is brilliantly evocative. What I liked most about the style was that while it was much less acrobatic than most dance it seemed to be more physical; the interaction between the two bodies seemed more emotionally charged than the more technical movements I’m used to seeing (especially in ballet). The weakest portions of the piece were the spoken narratives; they lacked the emotion and drama of the movement. Juliette Binoche has said that she does not intend to dance again but if she does be sure to snag those tickets early!

Juliette Binoche and Akram Khan in In-I at BAM

Juliette Binoche and Akram Khan in In-I at BAM

I also attended two of the Fall for Dance performances at City Center (remember when I waited in line all morning for tickets? It was worth it!). Each of the programs consisted of four pieces, each performed by a different dance company. I will just tell you a bit about my favorites.

Les Biches, a rarely seen work from the Ballets Russes, was an adorable depiction of the 1920s flapper scene. I particularly loved seeing the ballerinas hiding behind a big blue couch to spy on the men. This ballet was considered very provocative when it was first performed and while it’s hardly scandalous the mood it evokes is no less enjoyable.

Snow, choreographed and performed by Sang Jijia, was hypnotic and intensely beautiful. The “snow” drifting down on the stage made the scene ethereal and Jijia’s repetitive movements pulled the viewer into a trance. I couldn’t tell you how long the piece went on, only that afterwards I felt lonely and expectant. The program reads

When snow begins to fall,

The world is silent

And the mind begins to speak aloud…

I believe that is a perfect description of the piece.

Diana Vishneva’s performance of The Dying Swan was truly exquisite. The piece was originally danced by Anna Pavlova and I felt as though her elegance was inhabiting the stage. Vishneva is a prima ballerina at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg, so we can only hope her company visits The Big Apple again soon!

Diana Vishneva as The Dying Swan

Diana Vishneva as The Dying Swan

Many of the companies who participate in Fall for Dance perform here throughout the year; I will certainly be alerting you to exciting events but keep your eyes open for news of those dancers in particular and be sure to let me know if you find something before I do!

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