Editorials
And?
We're
thrilled to be inundated with all the art on view in NYC right now...at
Sothebys and Christies...not to mention the myriad galleries, uptown
and downtown.
We
also have a curious sense of...unease. Sometimes, when we get face-to-face
with the Old Modern Masters...we are brought up short by the unfinished
and/or unpolished nature of their early work.
This is probably because we haven't seen these works in awhile...instead
we've been seeing reproductions...in print or online. As we were so
rudely reminded (the Hofmann and the Warhol) these look very different
when you are standing right in front of them, and not seeing them
"smoothed out" via printing ink or the tyranny of pixels.
This
brings us to...And?
And what are the Young Artists to do now?
Repeat,
Repeat, Repeat is NOT the answer. Wildly striking out in a frenzied
effort to "Be Different At All Cost" is equally flawed.
A
favorite word for us right now, is Progression.
Painting
in Series; establishing visual links from Stage To Stage...in a word,
growing. That's the right idea. Another way to say it is Building
On Success.
Ask
yourself: Is there ANY POSSIBLE MARK that a painter can make...that
has NOT been made earlier...by someone else? (The answer...with new
materials and new media...is "Yes." Thank goodness.)
We
look for certain qualities in works of art. When we find those qualities...in
an ancient piece of pottery or a painting fresh off a painter's easel,
we respond.
For
us, "And?" is really "Next?" The Search continues.
Richard
Calderhead
The
Dating Game
We
were in at the beginning of the Conceptual Art movement; we met and
admired (and collected) such stars as Christo, Arman, Fontana, Yves
Klein, Anastasi and the whole Dwan stable of artists.
At
that time, we became acutely aware of the vital importance of "Getting
there first." Meaning? Meaning spotting the New Graphic Image...and
getting your name on it...along with that now crucial date!
What
mattered was really "Who Got HERE First?"
It’s
no good to be the 10th conceptual artist to (finally) stumble onto
the artistic merits of...for example...a crushed tin can found in
the middle of 7th Avenue.
Picking
up a crushed can and framing it is...well, it’s certainly an
Artistic Discovery...if not Great Art. But over time, these Firsties
have become very significant in the world of Art.
It
was a Tabula Rasa...and the clever artist who "got it"
first ...was the winner.
Now
these early Discoveries are both prized and quite valuable.
We
enjoy the Time Travel... back to the origins of these "outside
the box" ideas. We will from time to time pick up on Sons and
Daughters of the Originals. This should not appear condescending or
some sort of "Gotcha!" game... although young artists need
to be keenly aware of who actually DID get there first.
-Richard
Calderhead
If
you want to talk about this, contact us: injabib@aol.com
Archives:
The
Art Bubble
- 04/28/06
You
say "toe-mah-tow," I say "toe-may-toe."
It
all started here...in caves...lit by torches...in France. There are
other examples of early art...but this is the Louvre of earliest Known
Art.