"what kind of art do you do?"

Jamie Diamond
The Harmonies
Archival Print, 2008

Did everyone else survive the holidays? Get ready for art season round II coming.

Gyan Shrosbree @ Haus Gallery (Pasadena)

GYAN SHROSBREE @ Haus Gallery
DECEMBER 18 - JANUARY 10, 2008

This is one of those exhibitions that just begs for review and discussion. Let's just say that this show can be entered into and discussed at two different levels (a lot of that depends on where you are in your art viewing craft and reference points), but if it helps in your viewing, Gyan has an MFA from Cranbrook. I get the rejection of painting, the spoof of and cutesy cynical and comical take on "I'm just girl" and other character sketches including cats in outfits, but this for me is just one of those deals where you really want to meet the artist to get a sense of her thought process. That is if I am giving her more credit than potentially deserved. But also after reading the statement I guess if it boils down to making me laugh and being somewhat curious rather than job well done, because I am definitely more curious than anything else. The works remind me of Stella Vine or even book illustrator Maira Kalman. When it is all said and done, I more happily and comfortably put the show in a category of illustration than conceptual art.

Sidenote: This was a first visit for me to this gallery-in-a-house-that's-not-a-house and I look forward to upcoming shows/openings and tracking the artist-run space.

Haus Gallery (about the space HERE)
517 S Sierra Madre Boulevard
Pasadena, CA 91107

OP-ED // Winter

Did anyone else catch that Op-Ed piece Kara Walker did for the Times today? I didn't know that Kara was a "contributor" to the paper in that sense. Why aren't there more art editorials by local artists in more papers....hello, LA Times?

Kara Walker, "Four Seasons, Winter of Contentment." Paper and graphite, courtesy of Sikkema Jenkins & Co., 2008 /// NY Times

LA blahblahblah

"If you don’t live in LA, it’s a good place to come to gain some perspective. If you do live here, it’s the easiest place to lose it..." Christy Lange, assistant editor of frieze

Also, Christy gets high on perspective and disses some dudes.
Me "livin' the news" went into a descriptive coma but others might get a tingle in their farty heart for this city.

"I Think I am Seeing Things"

Jacob Feige
After Dense Fog, November 20 - January 10 @ lombard-freid

Andrew Guenther
Looking for Culture Part III: Back to My Old Ways, November 22,2008 - January 10, 2009 @ freight and volume

Charlie White
Teen Idols #4 16 X 20 inches, Teen Idols #2 16 X 20 inches
(as seen on iheartphoto)

choose your own adventure

LAtimes headline
NYtimes headline

quiet riot

There aren't enough protests these days!

"Students of the New School University, along with our partners from other universities and groups – like NYU, Hunter College, City College of NY, CUNY Graduate Center, and Borough of Manhattan Community College, have organically risen up to demand the resignation of President Bob Kerrey, Executive Vice President James Murtha, and Board Member/torturer Robert B. Millard (he multi-tasks). We have come together to prevent our study spaces from being flattened by corporate bulldozers, to have a say in who runs this school, to demand that the money we spend on this institution be used to facilitate the creation of a better society, not to build bigger buildings or invest in companies that make war..." source and pic: eflux

more info HERE

NY's next big art installation

My vote is for the most dangerous! I predict a rise in "accidental" hobo drownings and lockjaw in the city!

"This Viennese collective proposes installing a series of rusty Dumpsters in streetside parking downtown. The insides will be painted a suburban-swimming-pool blue and filled with water."

see more proposals:
ny mag pics and SOURCE HERE

TRYHARDER's 2009 Holiday Shopping Guide

TRYHARDER's 2009 Holiday Shopping Guide
SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL ART MUSEUM STORE!



With the mess that is happening at MOCA-LA (see post below—they're resorting to bake sales!), I decided to look into the goods available at contemporary art museums' online stores, and it turns out they have some great gift ideas. Why didn't I think of this earlier? Now you can support a great cause (art museums) while taking care of your holiday shopping list (mom, grandma, uncle Jerry), instead of just giving some standard gift of American consumerism. Here are some of TRYHARDER's favorite picks.

MOCA - Los Angeles

MOCA GIFT ADMISSION FOR 1
Help save MOCA!
Support MOCA and give the gift of admission. Have an admission ticket mailed to your home or directly to a gift recipient. Each ticket is good for one adult admission during regular museum hours and comes with a MOCA note card.
$11.00

LITTLE FRIEND TOY - Mike Kelley
Wow, sounds creepy...
This subversive plush toy by Los Angeles artist Mike Kelley is a blue, pillow like toy that speaks when squeezed. 20 phrases including “Don’t play with yourself, play with me.”
$225.00
$202.50 Members


New Museum - New York

New Museum Cap
Now your gifts can declare they aren't re-gifted!
The offical New Museum cap
$18.00
$16.20 Members

Hell, Yes! tote - Ugo Rondinone
You can never go wrong with a "Hell, Yes!"
Ugo Rondinone’s 2001 work Hell, Yes!
$28.00
$25.20 Members

Lisa Yuskavage Shower Curtain
The perfect gift for your high-powered-art-loving-kitten.
$1,500.00

Tote I Need Money - Chris Caccamise
Ain't that the truth!
Chris Caccamise’s 2007 work “I Need Money” is reproduced on this 100% cotton tote made by Banana Republic in a limited edition exclusively for the New Museum and NADA Art Fair 2008.
$30.00
$27.00 Members


Deutsche Guggenheim - Berlin

Dune - The Sandmans Ashtray
Nothing says Happy Holidays to an artist more than the gift of an ash tray. And you can boast about its quality German design!
Design: Jakob Diezinger, Berlin; made in Berlin. Pure sand; comes with extra sand in gift box.
15.00€


Saatchi Gallery - London

Rama Lama Ding Dong T-shirt (using imagery from the work by Dan Colen)
No cooler way for a street-art kid to get his cred than on a T-shirt. (You can tell I am joking, right?)
£15.00


MCA - Chicago

Askew Watch
There is nothing better than conceptual time.
This timepiece is characteristic of Hungarian-born Tibor Kalman and his iconoclastic design firm M&Co. His motto of "WASTE NOT A MOMENT" is imprinted on the back of the watch.
$100.00
$80.00 Members

Bubble Calendar 2009
Crap, those are some big bubbles to pop all year long! But can you just pop one?
"Popping bubbles is something everyone loves," says Stephen Turbek, designer of the Bubble Calendar, explaining the inspiration behind it. 48" tall x 18" wide.
$36.00
$28.80 Members


MOCAD - Detroit

COMME DES GARÇONS: Men's and Womens's T-shirts
Get 'em while they're hot! I am loving these shirts, and even better—they help out a new contemporary museum. Holla to my hometown!
Original t-shirt designs by the Comme Des Garçons fashion line
$95.00


TATE - London

Swatch Bracelet - Tatty Devine
You've gotta get those art hags something.
Cult jewellery label Tatty Devine has created a range of jewellery exclusively for Tate. Each acrylic piece is made at Tatty Devine's London studio.
£34.26

Tate Artist Timeline - Sara Fanelli
A small stocking stuffer for a visual art historian.
Sara Fanelli's timeline runs along the concourse walls of level 3 and 5 at Tate Modern, providing a glance at the highlights of twentieth-century art. Reproduced on card, you can now own this road map to the major movements and important artists of the last 100 years.
£6.80

Two Tone T-Shirt
Please no more Santa tees, that is unless you have an ironic hipster friend. Your fashionista girlfriend will appreciate this one.
£22.02


MOCA - Cleveland

Dana Schutz Limited Edition Lithograph
Yes, on the pricier end but a nice investment when the market does come back around!
Relic, 2006 10-color lithograph, 30 x 22 inches, Edition of 100 Printed by Doug Bennett and Rob Swainston of S11 Press, Brooklyn, NY Courtesy of the artist
$2,200.00


SFMOMA - San Francisco

Tykho Radios
Cool a radio that isn't complicated and can take a bath with me. Pheww, problem solved!
Encased entirely in silicon, there are no complicated buttons or distracting display. It is water and shock resistant, allowing you to use it in the shower, by the pool, or at the beach. Designed by Marc Berthier.
$60.00


Walker Art Center - Minneapolis

Snowdome: Spoonbridge and Cherry
Now you can give the paper boy something special this year. Oh wait, seems that he is out of work too. But if you see him, you can give him this and tell him that it can be used to hold down all those poor little tears.
Snowdome of the Minneapolis landmark , Spoonbridge and Cherry, a sculpture by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje Van Bruggen from the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.
$12.95

Chuck Close: Adult T-Shirt
Hey, who hasn't heard of Chuck Close?
T-shirt featuring the work Big Self-Portrait, 1967-1968 by Chuck Close part of the Walker Art Center permanent collection and aquired in 1969.
$18.95

Pantone Mugs
Need the perfect gift for that designer in your life? Choose a Pantone mug in their favorite color!
$14.95 each

Shot Glass Moose
In the spirit of moose hunting, this one tops the list!
These dark and beautiful glass animal heads can be simply interior decor, or invert them on their antlers and use them as shot glasses.
$30.00

Automoblox Car C9 Sportscar
For your car-crazy child or husband.
The creation of something new and unique - born of a child's imagination - is the idea behind Automoblox by Patrick Calello.
$38.00


ICA - Boston

Cocktail Shaker
This goes to your art dealer, or the gallerist you want to woo! Or get drunk to show your work...
Stainless steel. Designed by Robert Giacomucci.
$86.00
$77.40 Members


Sun Jar
The gift for moms and California sunshine state lovers.
The light is diffused by the frosted jar and give the appearance of sunlight emitting from the (warm-colored LED lights are used to give a more natural and warm light). Designed by Tobias Wong.
$45.00
$40.50 Members

Conceal Shelf
This item wins best in show for me. I want this shelf now! And did I mention it's only $12?!
Powder-coated steel floating book shelf becomes invisible behind stack of books. Mounting hardware included.
Designed by Miron Lior.
$12.00
$10.80 Members

Read more...

breaking news: mid-day MOCA bake sale

pics TRYHARDER

The bake sale is slow-going but probably to be expected as a mid-day sidewalk sales go on Grand St. downtown, but I do have to report that the other fast food lunch spots just around the corner were much more attended. I overheard some people say, "what a lame idea..." but I think it is just another carefully planned press strategy to keep MOCA in the headlines.

- also reported earlier today in Culture Monster

MOCA GRAND AVENUE

Artlog interviews Terence Koh

What brought you to art or what brought art to you?

Koh: one is born an artist. whether you choose to accept this path of torture is completely up to yourself. the path of an artist is pure torture because you have complete freedom. its not limited by the constraints of the body like dance or fashion, the barrier of language in poetry. art is infinite. and i am a universe unto myself.

interview: artlog, photo: asianpunkboy

the idiot's guide to start a gallery: step one - marry rich

Edward Winkleman has a book coming out (Amazon July 2009):

How to Start and Run a Commercial Art Gallery

"...Mr. Crawford assured me that the book will be marketed with a shelf-life in mind of about 10 years, and that in that context, now is actually a very good time to get such a book into the market, as now is when people who may want to open a gallery when the market turns up again should begin planning for it...I think there is plenty in it that could help artists wishing to work with a commercial gallery, collectors, and budding dealers. Much of it is based on interviews I conducted with experts in the gallery business and related fields, but much of it is also based on the very conversations we've had on this blog... As the market turns down, some galleries close, non-profit spaces see their budgets tightened, and exhibition opportunities in general become harder to find perhaps, now is the time to think past the recession in terms of where your career can go. That may mean scaling back on your studio expenses but taking advantage of how much nicer everyone becomes when times get tough to network more with curators, collectors and other artists..." edward winkleman

just your typical bake sale to save a museum

Eat a cookie, save MOCA?

noon to 2 p.m @ museum's Grand Avenue building

source info/pic HERE


MOCA GRAND AVENUE
250 South Grand Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90012

...

your looks bore me
tryharder08 ([art]you've ruined me series)

time to visit new orleans

Art Fag has a nice feature on Prospect.1 New Orleans:

Prospect 1 New Orleans: The Antidote To Miami

"...I’d probably be a lot more cranky right now if I hadn’t just spent a few days in New Orleans visiting Prospect 1., curator Dan Cameron’s Biennial brainchild, and the literal antidote to art fair malaise. Organized in part to help rebuild the city after the devastating effects of hurricane Katrina, the biennial takes place in seemingly countless locations across town. Three days ago I probably would have complained about having to drive through traffic, but in contrast to Miami, a very unfriendly car city and one often noted for it’s robust and expensive T&A culture, exploring the city of New Orleans offers stunning architecture, rich cultural history, great cheap food, amazing music, and right now a large amount of phenomenal art. Probably the most exciting aspect of Prospect 1. lays in the artist’s response to Katrina and the city itself, a focus that could have easily backfired..."

PR: Prospect.1 New Orleans [P.1], the largest biennial of international contemporary art ever organized in the United States, opened to the public on November 1, 2008 in museums, historic buildings, and found sites throughout New Orleans.

Jaro Straub and Matthew Burbidge: Complete Communion Celebration

PRESS RELEASE:

Complete Communion Celebration
Jaro Straub (Germany 1973) & Matthew Burbidge ( GB 1970) made the video installation Complete Communion Celebration based on an eight-hour performance during which the artists juxtaposed improvised guitar sounds and voices with passages from Guy Debord's autobiographical book `Panegyric' for an absent public, under a river-side bridge in Berlin. The performance is presented as two distinctly filmed parts, which are projected simultaneously: in one part the artists are performing in a seemingly interior space; in the other the sun is setting over a landscape, which rapidly becomes obscured in darkness

GALLERY FIVE THIRTY THREE
fivethirtythree.org

pics TRYHARDER

artist of 12:42 AM: MICHAEL VAN OFEN

MICHAEL VAN OFEN
ohne Titel (Landschaft)
oil on canvas, 57 x 63 cm, 2008

this is tonight outside my window /// buildings can feel cheer too

pics TRYHARDER
The tallest North American skyscraper west of the Mississippi River.