contemporary magazine 76 ?!?!

hey! i just found out that this blog, anaba, was mentioned in an article last year in an art magazine!?!? and an anonymous commenter was quoted!?!?

Daniel Davidson

Daniel Davidson had a PICTURE BOOTH at ADA on Friday... five dollars to get in the booth and have your picture drawn. This kid coming out didn't get his portrait done.. he just sat down and put some nickels in. I don't think he "got it".


Here is a guy with his portrait. Sort of looks like a Dickens character in the portrait, like he is about to give Oliver Twist a beating.


Inside you sat on a stool and looked at a square mirror, under bright lights, with square light reflections in your eyes. It was hard to stare straight ahead at the mirror and pose for a portrait, knowing that it was a two-way mirror with Daniel Davidson sitting on the other side staring back, drawing your picture.


The other side of the booth... that is Daniel Davidson's entrance.


This was so funny, and cruel. There is a sign over a box, some pencils, and a pile of index cards... inviting you to write down your comments and criticisms and put them in the box. I watched this woman spend some time writing stuff and carefully drawing something and then putting it in the box... and then it got shredded and came out in strips from the bottom, falling to the floor. This picture is taken just as the card has gone in and the strips are coming out.

It happened over and over, John kept kicking away the shredded paper strips so nobody would catch on.

RELATED: another artist's picture booth (scroll down) .

i did it!

I did it!

UPDATE - Jerry Saltz came!
UPDATE - installation photos

Tonight is First Friday, Stuffy's is open until 9pm, on Harrison right around the corner from Nonesuch, on Grace. Nonesuch is having an opening for Shawn Creeden. GO!

Also tonite.... Daniel Davidson will be drawing five-dollar portraits in the ADA PICTURE BOOTH, Cory Arcangel at Solvent Space, Terry Brown at Art6, Sally Mann at Reynolds Gallery.... MUCH MUCH MORE.

in a thrift store

i saw this in a thrift store last week, it was only fifteen dollars. I bought shoes and a couple shirts.. but want to go back and get this if it is still there.

i like the weird perspective, like fukinuki-yatai, and it makes me think of daniel buren... he always paints out the last stripe.

PLUS, what is that thing in the drawer? a piece of toast, with a face, clenching flowers between it's teeth?

i hope this is still there.

UPDATE 11/4/06: it was... i bought it.

Guggenheim Richmond

The Bizarro Guggenheim...


Some patches...




Lots of patches in the third floor...


Cracking under patches...


Each of the three floors is encircled by a single 555-foot sheet of aluminum, but the attached stairwell is made of pieces "stitched" together.




Me like pretty museum... Me want to have SOLO SHOW in pretty museum. Me do it... SMASH PUNY GALLERIES.

SPEED - - - at VMFA

Went to the VMFA on Sunday to drop off some of my postcard announcements. They don't have a bulletin board so I just taped them up in the men's room stall... oh well.

Speed is the latest of the four "work-from-the-collection" themed shows they are doing... I think the last one was Food, or something like that.

SOME HIGHLIGHTS:

Nicholas Krushenick - Nicholas Krushenick is one of the first artists featured, with Jungle Jim Liberman, from 1969. Krushenick is an artist I have been looking at recently, and it was a nice surprise to see this, and to be able to say "hey, that looks like a Krushenick", as I approached it. Now, whenever I see a painting dated 1969 or so, I relate it to the start of the High Times, Hard Times show... and think about how difficult it must have been to make selections for that show. There are/were so many artists! So many good artists!

I've just come from the Stephen Westfall lecture and am seeing some Krushenik in Westfall, although Krushenick isn't an artist Westfall mentioned. Not that Westfall was holding out or anything, he was very generous sharing the work of his friends and influences...


Malcolm Morley - This is Malcolm Morley's The Grand Bayonet Charge of the Legionnaires of the Sahara, 1979. The inspiration for this big painting of charging soldiers is actually one tiny little toy soldier that he painted large many times.

There is a painting in the collection, not in this show, that this Morley painting makes me think of and would have been good to include... one of my favorites and something I'll feature another time.

I really liked that Malcolm Morley I saw at Art Basel last year, but what is up with his NEW stuff? Am I not getting something? Yuk.


These tiny African equestrian figurines were a nice inclusion in the show, especially if you know about the Morley toy soldier thing.


Allan D'Arcangelo - U.S. Highway 1, Number 3, 1962.

This is good timing, because D'Arcangelo's great-nephew, Cory Arcangel, has a show opening at Solvent Space this Friday -


A Cory Arcangel GIF.

Stephen Fox - Local, shows at Reynolds. I think this used to hang next to that Gregory Gillespie.


Chris Nissen - This isn't a painting I am into exactly, but it's a 1981 painting of interstate construction in Philadelphia... maybe underneath that painted overpass-in-progress is the future location of Zoe Strauss' I-95 shows???


John Salt - This was like walking up to the Krushenik, and saying "hey, that looks like it might be a Krushenik", except I was wrong because I thought this might be a Bechtle. It is not a Bechtle, it is a Salt... someone I have never seen and maybe my favorite from the show. This crushed silver car was making me think of the Markel Building. This painting, Pontiac in a Desert Lot, 1971, is all silvery, the frame is silver. Nice.

Jacob Lawrence - Sweeeeet. I love his stuff, and all of the people coming up from the subway and crossing the street, mostly wearing green and red, echoed all the green and red lights and reflections on the wet road in Stephen Fox's painting.

All my highlights are men today, sorry ladies! Were there any women in that show? I can't even remember.

Haigh Jamgochian and his Markel Building

Here is the new sign outside Haigh Jamgochian's Markel Building.

"The Markel Corporation commissioned architect Haig Jamgochian, a Richmond native, to design their headquarters in 1962. The aluminum clad conical structure was inspired by a baked potato wrapped in foil served to Jamgochian while attending an American Institute of Architect's dinner. Each floor consists of a single piece of 555-foot aluminum. They are the longest unbroken pieces of aluminum ever used as siding material. Jamgochian personally sledge-hammered crinkles into the 3rd floor siding before contractors finished the job on the other two floors in 1965. The building is a unique architectural example of its era."

(uh oh, did they spell his first name wrong? every other thing i have read spells it "haigh")

Jamgochian's original plan for the site was larger; six mushroom pods under a circular frame made of masonry and glass. One of the two newspaper articles linked to below states that "the site was built over a creek, so mushrooms naturally came to mind, he said. His inspiration for the one pod office came at a dinner -- a foil-wrapped baked potato". I think that the original, larger plan came in within the budget, but they then asked what he could do for half that much; I guess they were really impressed with how much he could do within the budget?

Each floor of Jamgochian's Markel Building is wrapped in a single 555-feet piece of aluminum. 555 feet because that is the height of the Washington Monument. Jamgochian used a sledgehammer to hammer all the dents into the third floor band himself, in only four hours. The whole building is covered in metal patches and duct tape today, which makes it look even better, somehow. Click on that top photo to see it larger and you can see some of the patching.

Richmond was the headquarters of Reynolds Metals (Reynolds Wrap), so aluminum was a natural choice; the former Reynolds headquarters building, designed by Gordon Bunshaft, is now the worldwide headquarters of Philip Morris, and that building too is made almost entirely of aluminum, including the threads in the carpeting. Wow!

The Markel Building is one of the only two of his designs that were EVER built, the other was known as the Moon House. The Moon House was built for a used car salesman named Mad Man Dapper Dan. Mad Man Dapper Dan wanted a house that was out of this world. The moon house was built with bullet proof glass because of the threats on Dapper Dan's life. Mad Man Dapper Dan's real name was Howard Hughes. Sadly, the Moon House was bought by a developer and torn down a few years ago, so the Markel Building is the only Jamgochian building left now.

READ THIS ARTICLE on Haigh Jamgochian... he is so interesting. He's been a locksmith, a teacher, a plumber, and was a yoga teacher long before yoga was fashionable. Jamgochian is still alive, maybe eighty-two or so, and spends most of his time and energy re-arranging his land.... moving rocks and logs around.. making some kind of paradise garden. The first time I heard of him was on a tv news profile a few years ago, it was good, he was so exuberant. I'd like to see that again.


I can't believe I am having a show in the Markel Building!!!

RELATED: Style Weekly; 4/5/2006, Richmond Times-Dispatch; 6/12/2006, some photos (but I'd like to get some better ones).

Vincent Brooks, senior archivist for architectural records with the Library of Virginia, has collected all of Jamgochian's papers and models, and is planning an exhibit for next year, I think. Can we go and look at the models and things? I want to see them.

THANK YOU to Pettus LeCompte, current owner of the building, and to Mike Pittman and Joe Throckmorton, for helping me get my work up.

Art Basel: Stuffy's!!!!

Art Basel: Stuffy's is now open! You can see many booths, and art!!!

Featuring:

Michelle Arthur
Martin Bromirski
Travis Conner
Don Crow
Paul Dipasquale
Scott Eastwood
Micheal Lease - don't miss Alley-Oop!
Drew Liverman
Oura Sananikone
Tom Harte
Rachel Hayes
Timothy Sean Johnston
Fiona Ross
Barbara Tisserat
Bruce Wilhelm

October 23 - November 30, 2006

Stuffy's Subs
411 N. Harrison Street
Richmond VA

The postcard announcement is also a coupon, good for 10% off your next purchase at Stuffy's!

Bloggers, apply for press passes! You won't be turned away! Photographers, send me your photos from the fair!


RELATED: Meatballs at Stuffy's

Alley-Oop Opens FRIDAY

This looks like it will be an interesting show.... look at the documentation.

sometimes i miss posting shows

This is a photo of Imi Hwangbo's piece from Ashley Kistler's Garden, the show that recently closed at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond. They have good shows... but for some reason I never get around to featuring them here... not often enough anyways.

Other good shows at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond that I've seen but spazzed out on spotlighting were Judith Shaecter's , Barbara Tisserat's, and Carrie Mae Weems'. Barbara got a good review in Art Papers.


Reed Anderson - Reed Anderson's piece from Garden... kinda liked it, but then not; I liked slowly noticing all the owls. Saw those owls in some student work recently, he inspired some kids. Nice studio shot... maybe I need to see more stuff.


Dario Robleto - One of Dario Robleto's pieces from his Weatherspoon show, a little like the Anderson; so much stuff, but something still missing for me. He'll be speaking at VCU soon.

RELATED: My "garden" piece, One Day in the Garden. You blew it, Kistler!

on the street

Art of This Century

My SOLO SHOW 2006 is NOW UP at GUGGENHEIM RICHMOND, also known as the "BIZARRO GUGGENHEIM", also known as the MARKEL BUILDING.

UPDATE: photos from the installation!
UPDATE: read the review!

The show runs October 20th - November 30th, 2006, at the Markel Building, 5310 Markel Road, Richmond VA. The building is only open Monday - Friday, about 9-5.

Directions from NYC: Get on the Chinese bus to Richmond, get off the Chinese bus in Richmond, look right and you will see the building.

There will be no reception.

Interview with ADA Gallery's John Pollard at Scope London

Here's a video interview with ADA Gallery's John Pollard at Scope London. Getting into these fairs had been a big goal of his... I think he took work by Kate Woodliff, the Spahr Brothers, Daniel Davidson, Eric Sall, A.J. Liberto, Bruce Wilhelm, Casey Jex Smith, Charles Yuen, Tricia Keightley... others.


Here is John scoping out Scope Miami last year... trying to figure out how to get in.

UPDATE: That video has now had more "views" than any of the other London art goings-ons videos (Frieze, Scope, etc.) on that site....

upcoming lectures

Some upcoming lectures, let me know of others and I can add them -

10/25 Ron Johnson, 7pm, Reynolds Gallery - Oh man, did you see that photo in the Richmond Times Dispatch? Poor Ron.



10/30 Dario Robleto, 3pm, VCU Commons Theatre - We saw his show at the Weatherspoon; I wasn't very interested, but the interns were into it.

10/31 Stephen Westfall, 3pm, VCU Commons Theatre - I'm psyched for this one (Westfall on Artnet, Westfall on The Brooklyn Rail, Saltz on Westfall).

11/1 William Pope L., 10am, VCU's Art Foundations Building


Strident orange is people!!!

11/1 Beverly Semmes - Where and what time I don't know. Is this really the same day as PopeL?

11/13 Sina Najafi, 3pm, VCU Commons Theatre - this is the Editor in Chief and Co-founder of Cabinet Magazine.

11/15 Eric Fischl, 4pm, VCU Commons Theatre

11/20 Jennifer Pastor, 230pm, VCU Commons Theatre

11/29 Kehinde Wiley, 6pm, Viginia Museum of Fine Arts - Good Kehinde comments on this post.

Also coming will be Cory Arcangel and Josiah McElheny, both of which should be good. Not sure of the dates.

Cory was my Friendster friend for a little while, but then he commited Friendster suicide... BUT, I took a screenshot of him (and others) and saved them to disk. It is part of my Time Capsule now. Anyways, now you can be Cory's friend on Myspace. Or mine, I just did it.

I am still on Friendster!!!

good grief, jonathan franzen

Jonathan Franzen on Charles Schultz -

"Schulz wasn't an artist because he suffered. He suffered because he was an artist. To keep choosing art over the comforts of a normal life ......is the opposite of damaged. It's the sort of choice that only a tower of strength and sanity can make."



RELATED: Powell's interview with Jonathan Franzen, BOMB interview with Jonathan Franzen, Slate's "Jonathan Franzen: A Defense".

ZOMBIES!!!

Zombies are coming! This was kind of scary, standing here until the last second.


There was a girl zombie in an orange shirt around here who was a super good zombie, all my pictures of her are blurry or lost because when I would stand still to focus on her she would start to shuffle toward me and I had to escape before I could press "store".


The one on the right almost got me.


A few more zombie photos on my flickr. Whooooaaah!!!! I am only just now noticing that zombie hand in the bottom left corner! Holy fuck, that was close!!!

Nice zombie shadow.

zombie walk

where is this going to be? and when exactly? i think saturday... but where?
anybody know?

i want to see some zombies.

Steven Parrino

Skeletal Explosion




Death in America #1, 2003


The No Title Painting, 2003


.

sorry, art basel

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addresses, please

Please send me your mailing addresses if you would like to be sent postcard announcements... I'm putting up a couple shows... both in Richmond, but postcards are nice to send anywhere.

E-mail me.