Arch Connelly

Arch Connelly, at La Mama's La Galleria. Closes 4/8.




at nose level




leaf (pre-tomaselli?)


Culture and Landscape, 1984



MY WORK

is MANNERED, is HOMOSEXUAL, is EFETTE, is BASE, is SNOBISH, is SELFISH, is SELF CONTAINED, is SELF RIGHTIOUS, is EGOTISTICAL, is REAL, is RETARDED, is RUDE, is RELIABLE, is RENTED is also owned, loaned, enthroaned, and WELL HONED, A HONEY, AND HAD MONEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
IT WILL implicate, try, kill and honor, NEVER DIE, point, thrill, and fill SPACE, DECORATE, IMPLICATE, be loose, be uptight, win the fight, move, prove, GROOVE, VISUALIZE, cover and be your lover, IT WAS denounced and has NOT YET POUNCED, pranced, danced BAD, is GOOD, and WOULD!!!!! MMMMMMMEERRLLLLYYYYYYY MMMMMMMMAAAAGGIIIINNIIFFIICCEENNTTTT PPPPPPPPPEEEERRRRFFFEEECCCCTTTLLLYYYY PPPPOOOTTTEEENNNTTTTTTT TTTTTTTEEEEERRRRRIIIBBBBBBLLLYYYYY
TTTOOOO TTTTOOOO TTTOOOOOO TTTTRRRRUUUULLLLEEEYYYY TTTOOOOOOOOOOO MMMUUCCCHHHHHHCHCHCHAA TTTTEERRIIFFIICCLLYY TTRRAANNSSIIEENNTTTTT TTTRRAAAASSSSHHHHHH


Arch Connelly 1950-1993

Liz Markus

Liz Markus, at Zieher Smith.

Painting above is a glam memorial of old art magazine advertisements + glitter. Ads for shows with galleries like Pat Hearn and American Fine Arts; old shows for Polly Apfelbaum, Jonathan Borofsky, John Dogg, Richmond Burton, Meyer Vaisman.

I'm a geek for these new paintings that are portraits? homages? of different artists.


Charlie is right I was reeling around in front of the Double Rotten...

and I liked her Summer 2007 show at the previous space too.


RELAX with Joshua and Tisch Abelow.

Steven Parrino

Steven Parrino, Glam Racket, 1997, enamel on canvas, duct tape, and glitter, at Van De Weghe Fine Art... more photos.


Frank Stella - this was at Van De Weghe last month... check out the paper-stapled side.

1/4 career flashback - Humberto!

Welcome to my ongoing Quarter of a Career retrospective.

Today I would like to introduce to you an old and dear friend from 1990-1991, Humberto Maturana. All my work was potatoes until one day I happened upon a blackboard in a hallway, full of mysterious diagrams and the name "Humberto Maturana". I dragged the blackboard back to my studio and it became my inspiration. I had no idea the potatoes were people until I saw the name "Humberto Maturana" - the most wonderful name ever.

This is maybe the first Humberto painting; note his brain - it's a potato! Humberto is a hater. Humberto has delusions of grandeur. Humberto can't take it anymore and commits suicide by eating a poison potato. Here's a detail of his potato soul leaving his body. Humberto achieves a higher state of awareness. Humberto's autopsy. Humberto comes back with super-powers and armor.

I eventually discovered that Humberto Maturana was a REAL PERSON, a scientist, and a noted doctor in the Chilean School of Biology of Cognition. An expert on the nature of time, metadesign, and the ontology of observing. Here is his personal website; I swear to god that if you watch the opening graphics at one point a potato flies across the screen.*

My plan was for Humberto to become a *star* and to make character goods, keychains, endorsement deals, maybe even a cartoon! Unfortunately, the five Humberto paintings I debuted at the Philadelphia Art Alliance in 1991 were unfavorably reviewed by Ed Sozanski in the 10/24/91 issue of the Philadelphia Inquirer - "Martin Bromirski's large cartoonish drawings are the least compatible with the show's overall tone and tenuous concept". Alas - the artworld was not ready.

All of my Humberto paintings continued with the black/white/yellow pallette I had started with the potatoes and are all works-on-paper. EVERYTHING I made from late 1989 until 1999 was on paper. Paper only. I almost always began with a layer of yellow legal pad paper as a ground. I was so pissed when Ellen Gallagher came on the scene gluing notepad-paper grounds too, although I understand now that she wasn't copying me. But still!!

*I had no internet in 1991. I learned he had written a book and ordered it not having any idea what to expect. My how times change! Things are so much easier now. That book was COMPLICATED. Now that we have e-mail and internet I think I will forward this post to the real Humberto!!!!!!

RELATED: my resume, Quarter-Career, 1990-2005, 1/4 career flashback - the potato years.