Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Friday, November 19, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Random stuff
First of all, back to a lighter design palette for the post-Halloween blogging.
Second of all, ever since that brutal election day, I've had the full E Street Band version of Ghost of Tom Joad, with Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine guesting on guitar, in my head.
Third, made a trip to the Met a couple weekends ago when an old friend was in town. Big show there was John Baldessari. A quick look around my blog and my website and my picasa albums will probably tell you I'm no conceptualist. I am a painter. I like the stuff of paint. I like to do stuff with paint. And I probably wouldn't have even bothered with Baldessari, except our friend wanted to see it.
And...I wasn't bored out of my skull. There was some playfulness, some fun, some surprises. His use of film stills is interesting to me. But all in all, a lot of it just seemed kind of fussy to me. Odd, because the fussiness and preciousness seems anathema to his ideas.
The Gossaert show - pretty good, in a weird kind of oddly drawn way, until I got to the last room, the portraits. Which blew me away. Gorgeous, and an example of how direct observation can outstrip idealization and fashion. Damn, it was good. I'd go back and only visit that last room.
Some big Hodgkin prints I wish I'd spent more time with. The Starn Brothers' roof installation was cool. Saw it just in time, but didn't have the right shoes to go climbing in it.
A vaporous Degas monotype of factory smoke. A silky Seurat drawing of a similar subject.
My son loved the Arms and Armor and the Greek galleries, where we looked for some of his favorite heroes and monsters. And I liked 'em too, of course.
A whole case of rococo snuffboxes, which puts me in mind of my unfinished novel.
Second of all, ever since that brutal election day, I've had the full E Street Band version of Ghost of Tom Joad, with Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine guesting on guitar, in my head.
Third, made a trip to the Met a couple weekends ago when an old friend was in town. Big show there was John Baldessari. A quick look around my blog and my website and my picasa albums will probably tell you I'm no conceptualist. I am a painter. I like the stuff of paint. I like to do stuff with paint. And I probably wouldn't have even bothered with Baldessari, except our friend wanted to see it.
And...I wasn't bored out of my skull. There was some playfulness, some fun, some surprises. His use of film stills is interesting to me. But all in all, a lot of it just seemed kind of fussy to me. Odd, because the fussiness and preciousness seems anathema to his ideas.
The Gossaert show - pretty good, in a weird kind of oddly drawn way, until I got to the last room, the portraits. Which blew me away. Gorgeous, and an example of how direct observation can outstrip idealization and fashion. Damn, it was good. I'd go back and only visit that last room.
Some big Hodgkin prints I wish I'd spent more time with. The Starn Brothers' roof installation was cool. Saw it just in time, but didn't have the right shoes to go climbing in it.
A vaporous Degas monotype of factory smoke. A silky Seurat drawing of a similar subject.
My son loved the Arms and Armor and the Greek galleries, where we looked for some of his favorite heroes and monsters. And I liked 'em too, of course.
A whole case of rococo snuffboxes, which puts me in mind of my unfinished novel.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)