This post is lazily reposted from Wired...

"There's a voracious bacterium nibbling on Italy's priceless cultural relics — and historians are shouting, "Bravo!" Over the centuries, air pollution has formed a thin black crust on the stone surfaces of statues and buildings, and Desulfovibrio vulgaris vulgaris is being used to remove that crud in a very Italianate fashion: by eating it. Unleashed on works of art and architecture, the bacteria metabolize the sulfate in the crust, converting some of it into — oh, please excuse them — gasses. So far, microbiologist Claudia Sorlini and her team at the University of Milan have applied the biotreatment to parts of their home city's gothic Duomo and Michelangelo's Pietà Rondanini. Next, Sorlini says, she's itching to let her peckish little friends gorge themselves on Notre Dame."

From Wired

Labels: ancient world, Europe, international

New Acropolis Study Center
I was informed that I would actually be able to visit the New Acropolis Study Center. I was really excited to do this, however I soon found out that the center is not yet open. I don't know what the problem is - the center was scheduled to open for the olympics - the last one in 2004.

Color Field Painting Conservation
I met an art conservationist (on Hydra, the island I was on) who is well versed in restoring color field paintings, I thought that was interesting - because what little bit I do know about conservation tends to rely on the method of deconstructing the layers of traditionally painted objects. Color field art with its emphasis on staining of raw canvas has always struck me as impossible to truly clean. Believe it of not, he has developed a method that uses bread to lightly scrub the surface. I'm in the process of finding out more and will share as soon as I can.

Guernica Pronounced Too Fragile to Move
Fiona Govan reports in the Daily Telegraph that art experts, after an exhaustive study, have concluded that Pablo Picasso's famous masterpiece, Guernica, is in "stable but serious" condition. The monochrome canvas that epitomizes the horror of modern warfare had "suffered a lot and requires special care," said the head of restoration at the Reina Sofia museum in Madrid.

Labels: Europe, international

Printed Matter, Inc. is launching Real English Tea Made Here, an anthology of the cut-up tapes of William S. Burroughs (I would assume with Brion Gyson).

From the press release: "The tapes curated as Real English Tea Made Here were originally created in Tangier and New York in the early 1960s using reel-to-reel analogue tape, sound-on-sound technology. The cut-up collage concept, with its roots in Dada soundworks and the simultaneous poetry of Hugo Ball, Richard Huelsenbeck, Marcel Janco and Tristan Tzara, released Burroughs from the constraints of linear narrative.

Many later pieces (now lost) were recorded by Burroughs in 1965 in Paul McCartney's small experimental recording studio in Montagu Square, London, managed by Burroughs’ friend Ian Sommerville. Burroughs was a frequent visitor and watched as McCartney put together Eleanor Rigby there. McCartney in turn, learned all about cut-ups."

I have spoken about the book The Third Mind before - these recordings are some of the work that was derived from the process outlined (or transmitted if you will) from that seminal work.

The event is Saturday, June 14 from 5:00 – 7:00 PM at Printed Matter (NYC).

My earlier post about The Third Mind.

Labels: 60's, Europe

Daniele Pinto reports for The New York Times that italian authorities have announced the discovery of a late second century Roman sarcophagus in the outskirts of rome. The coffin is in excellent condition and gives a solid representation of life (or death) of the Roman social elite of the time who regarded culture and education as essential to reaching the afterlife. The remains are currently being analyzed by the National Museum of Prehistory and Ethnology in Rome. So, I guess there will be more news to come...

I'll admit to not being the greatest with knowledge of the ancient world but, I'm always fascinated when something like this appears. I always assume that most of these antiquities are already found, but something like this happens and suddenly we get another chance to learn about the past in a far deeper and careful way than the past has been examined in the past.

Labels: ancient world, Europe

I was recently pointed in the direction of Blinky Palermo by JW Mahoney, who thought that I would enjoy his work because of the titling of his work as well as the geometric approaches of his work. Well when someone is right, they're right. Palermos work has connected with me in a lot of ways recently. I have been compulsively reading and re-reading the book Palermo which as a catalog of the recent show at Kunsthalle Dusseldorf, this has proven to me to be a gold mine of discussion and thought about an artist who was for the most part, unknown to me. As a cherry on top - I've learned quite a bit about artists that I knew a good deal about.

Back to Palermo. Adopted and his name changed to Peter Heisterkamp (1943-1977) he later assumed the name of the American gangster and boxing promoter and became known to the world as Blinky Palermo. The namesake Palermo was famous at the time for "owning" Sonny Liston, who would later be defeated by Cassius Clay (Later to be known as Mohammed Ali)

Probably most famous for his initial works - spare monochromatic "fabric paintings". These "paintings" would be stitched together and then stretched over a traditional canvas stretcher, where they resonate with the works of Ellsworth Kelly, Brice Marden, Rothko, Albers and Daniel Buren (to name a few) later his work would shift to a triangle motif for a few years and then move into installation type works. One of the most interesting parts of his work was the fact that these installations were subtle and easy to miss, a fact not missed by many looking (and not finding) his work.

What I'm finding most interesting is that his work keeps opening like a flower and is multi-layerd like an onion. His sense of humor is evident in almost all his work in an age where reductivist work was so very earnest, clearly we have an artist who is thinking in ways that not everyone else is, while at the same time covering similar issues in ways not thought of by his contemporaries.

I'm just really getting to know this artist, I suggest you take a look yourself.

The Palermo catalog has a cast of thousands in it as far as the writing and interviews go (27 different artist and writers contributed) is a great read - and frankly less of an exhibition catalog - but all the better for it.

One last quirky note: Did you know that Donald Judd based a portion of his work on the colors of Harley-Davidson motorcycles? Neither did I.

Labels: 70's, Europe, Galleries

PERFORMANCE, SILENCE AND SPACE (WITH BRIAN ENO + TOM PHILLIPS + VESNA PETRESIN ROBERT)

Royal Academy
Monday 21 April [6:30 - 8pm]
Burlington House, Piccadilly, W1 T:020.7300.8000

Silence and space are at a premium in our bustling industrious city, with architecture defining the limits and possibilities of engaging with it. The relationships between buildings and music are many, with repeating patterns, harmony of shapes and textures, order of sequences and intervals being essential ingredients of both. When John Cage offered up his seminal work 4' 33", focusing on the silence around us, it was clear to listeners that we need not fear about the future of music: it's around us in all forms. This performance and talk will explore how artists have imaginatively transformed our environment and stimulated thought around notions of place and sense. Painter and musician Tom Phillips RA will be in conversation with his former student, musician and theorist Brian Eno, and architect Vesna Petresin Robert, expanding upon ideas of intellect, intervals and liberty within our environment.

The event will be hosted by Scanner (Robin Rimbaud).

Labels: Europe

Daniel Buren has threatened to destroy his signature black-and-white striped columns in the Palais Royal courtyard in Paris, saying the government has let them go to ruin, the London Times reports. The 260 columns, which form Les Deux Plateaux (1986), one of Paris's most controversial sculptures, are crumbling, the lights for illuminating them are broken, and the fountain has run dry.

In response, culture minister Christine Albanel said Palais Royal would undergo a $20.6 million restoration starting in 2009, with up to $4.7 million allocated to the courtyard and the sculpture. Buren said he had been pressing the Culture Ministry to repair his site-specific sculpture; his supporters said the renovation may come too late.

This is from Artinfo

Labels: 70's, Europe, Sculpture

Elisabetta Povoledo writes for The New York Times on saturday, about the digitization of Veronese's The Wedding at Cana being installed on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore a few weeks ago. The article goes into great depth about the painstaking work of how this masterpiece was scanned, scrutinized, and eventually printed, and touched up to become very close to the real thing or at least a photo of the real thing - or something that resembles the original as it now exists.

The group Factum Arte has digitally recreated, in what I understand is in amazing detail and has hung it in the same place it was removed from almost 210 years ago.

Here's a bit of the backstory
Napoleon's forces removed the painting from the refectory of the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore as war booty - cutting the painting into pieces and reassembling it back home. It currently hangs at the Louvre (Paris) directly across from the Mona Lisa and is claimed to be viewed by 9 million visitors a year by the French authorities. (sidebar: do you remember any of the other paintings in that room? - I don't)

Venice has always wanted this painting back - they still occasionally have mock trials of Napoleon and every few years someone wants to sue the Louvre or the French Government for it's return. That return is not going to happen since it was resolved (diplomatically) in 1815.

Back to the story
So what we have is a very serious digital reproduction sitting in place of what is now somewhere else. Do understand that I believe that this digital copy - which took 18 months to do - is probably one hell of an object. However it is not an art object. It carries no authenticity as art. The thing is, I believe in art, the real thing - not copies, duplicates or substitutions. I want to experience, the presence of something, it may be ancient or temporary - but I want to experience that thing. I want to see the same paint, rock or whatever the artist did when he or she made it. This is as close to religion as I have, and I care for it deeply. This "new" The Wedding at Cana bothers me, I feel like it's starting a bit of a trend where this will become an acceptable way to view art in the future. This is the crux of why I'm even bothering to write about this.

A couple of years ago I wrote about a Caravaggio exhibit that exhibited all of his paintings in one place as digital reproductions. People would say "It's just as good" or some such thing - but the truth is the show had the stink of not being real - and the public agreed - the show quietly went away.

I will give credit to Factum Arte who has insisted that the digital work is "not a clone but a deep and detailed study". I just hope that the public understands this when they see a artwork that looks like the real thing in the place where it was always meant to be, and is now for lack of a better word, home.





A Footnote Richard Hell, speaking about his first band, Television, stated; "All we did was cut our hair and played in street clothes, and people, so hungry for the real thing, worshipped us like gods".

Labels: Criticism, Europe, international, Painting

Palais De Tokyo is presenting "The Third Mind" September 27 through January 3rd. These three words are loaded for they speak directly to a seminal work about artistic process written by William S Burroughs and Brion Gysin.

I will not be in Paris during this event, however I learned a lot from "The Third Mind" when I read it initially (as well as when I re-read it). The book or series of writings introduced the world to the idea of collage as a writing tool. It has become (to me) the definitive writing on the power of collage and chance in artworks.

William S. Burroughs and Brion Gysin worked out the cut-up method which consists of cutting up and reassembling various fragments of sentences to give them a completely new and unexpected meaning. The Third Mind is the title they devised following this method. They were so greatly impressed by its contents that they felt it had been composed by a third person, a third author, a synthesis of their two personalities. 1+1 = 3.

About The Show
Ugo Rondinone sets out to cut up and remix the contemporary artistic landscape to allow a new meaning to emerge from it. A new artwork(s) composed from the assembled works of thirty-one different artists, constitutes a fully fledged work in its right, a new, spectral work created by a third mind, a third artist, the product of the meeting between Ugo Rondinone and his selections.

For more information:
www.palaisdetokyo.com

Labels: Europe, Galleries

Be sure to check out the retrospective of Pierre et Gilles at Jeu de Paume. Pierre et Gilles practically invented David LaChapelle and while you can't blame them for that, the hyperstylized/hypersexualized images are clearly expanding where Helmut Newton left off. Mix in vibrant color, kitsch, and homoerotic fantasy.

I won't be able to attend, however if your there, buy me the t-shirt.

Pierre et Gilles on google images.

Labels: Europe, Photography

A woman has been arrested on suspicion of kissing a painting by American artist Cy Twombly and smudging the bone-white canvas with her lipstick, French judicial officials said Saturday. According to the Associated Press, via the Guardian.

Read the whole story here

Labels: Europe, Museums

The Acropolis is quite a wonder - and it's a wonder that they continue to allow people to visit it the way they do. If I can take a moment to tell a brief story about ancient spots here in the states versus Greece - this is as good a time as any. About 5 years ago Catherine (my wife) and I went to the Williamsburg area (Virginia not New York) because we were given a free vacation. We brought along our good friends Jan and James and the four of us were going to have a great time. The fact is we did have a good time, however Williamsburg had nothing to do with our good time - just spending time with friends and laughing about the same things made this weekend memorable.

O.K., here's the story - we deiced to go to Jamestown (the first permanent English settlement in the new world) and see what the past was like. We pay the overpriced $15 admission and soon we are getting toured around "Jamestown". Notice I have just thrown up the "quotation fingers" in referring to "Jamestown" because we were told during the tour that the REAL "Jamestown" was a few miles further down the road. It was like that scene from the movie "A Christmas Story" where little Ralphie has been waiting for his secret decoder ring all winter and when he finally gets it - it turns out to be a commercial for Ovaltine. All four of us stopped in our tracks when we were told the real "Jamestown" was a few miles down the road. To make matters worse the real "Jamestown" was free as opposed to this fake English and Indians sideshow.

Well the Acropolis is the complete opposite of that.

The Acropolis and surrounding buildings have been under repair basically since the dawn of time, but with the olympics recently held in Athens the whole city got a bit cleaned up and the Acropolis was just sparkling since I last saw it (14 years ago). The basic facts about visiting The Acropolis is this:

1. Buy a ticket
2. Go pretty much anywhere you want - don't touch anything roped off
3. The Acropolis Museum is free - enjoy it.

But the great thing about visiting the acropolis is the freedom to just walk around it and soak it all in. You can buy a guidebook just about anywhere and most of your travel guides have enough on the Acropolis to allow you to just use that. One thing I do like about The Acropolis is how they have restored the amphitheaters and use them for modern events as well. Elvis Costello was playing there a few nights after we left.

The Acropolis Study Center is nearing completion - its about 2 blocks from the Acropolis and looks to be a world class facility. Hopefully I'll be back next year and will give you a run down then - but for now it's just a nice building.

The Archeological Museum
The AM is your first semester of art history come to life. There is really no other way to describe it. Just like the Acropolis, there are really minimal barriers between you and the objects - I love that, but wonder what we are doing long term to some of these treasures.

The AM doesn't spend a lot of time recontextualizing things for you, it shows them and allows you to soak them in and move on at your own pace. I'll admit, I like that about some museums - they lighten up the educational element and allow those with previous knowledge to go at the speed they wish - without having to constantly bump into the tour group.

Labels: Europe

I am pictured above being interviewed for a series of documentary programs about islands without cars. Evidently there are only something like 12 islands without any kind of transit at all in the world (this might be Europe only - not sure). Anyway to cut a long story short - the interview was going to be at my Aunts (She was interviewed as well) but after lugging the camera equipment all over the island, the documentary team basically said screw it - we are settling into this taverna - if you want in, show up and get interviewed. Which of course, is what everybody did.

It is ridiculous how much of a media whore I can be, because you would have thought I was the Mayor of Hydra as much as I spoke...

Labels: Europe

Sorry for the late posting, it just got to be too much of a pain - expect catchup stuff from Athens and Hydra for the next couple of days, then we will be right back on schedule...

The land where Leonard Cohen and Lee Hazelwood are still played nightly in the bars and tavernas, Greece is different than many european countries and Hydra is the biggest throwback of all - an island of no cars, motorcycles or bikes of any kind and lets just say that the "infrastructure" of the island is a little bit weak and leave it at that. Oh and hope they don't lose your luggage - it will take 5 days to reach you here (trust me on this one). That said, it's a wonderful island to be on - rustic, warm and friendly, with long summer days and even longer summer nights.

If you remember or have ever heard the song "Suzanne" by Leonard Cohen, you might be interested to know that "Suzanne" lived here on the island. If you are not familiar with the song, think of "Suzanne" as the european "Girl from Ipanema".

Enough of the back story of Hydra for now - if I get requests, I'll dive a little bit deeper.



Antigoni Kavvatha at the Verena Foundation
"Tracking Erebus" is the tile of Kavvatha's show, If your following your mythology properly, you will recognize Erebus as the place between Earth and Hades - Erebus is often referred to as the world of shadows and this is the space that occupies the majority of the show at the Verena Foundation. These large scale drawings (as large or larger than many painters canvases) are work in shilouete - not unlike Kara Walker - however Walker's body, race, and sexual politic does not live in these images. Kavvatha focus's on the shadow (or shilouete) and approach to these images - usually scenarios (of people or animals in nature) where the implied message or action is only that. Much of the "action" in this show is up to the viewer. The viewers questions; are we witnessing a simple conversation or a heartbreaking moment? come to the forefront. The work carries some interesting approaches physically - it is in these approaches that I would love to seen further exploration.

I have said of late that the "how" of making the art is more important than the "what" of the art - in this case that could be the lynchpin from being very good to great work. Please don't get me wrong, I like this show very much, it's just that I could see these being even more interesting if the viewer were offered more in the way of the handling of the physical material against the backdrop of the immaterial world that the work is representing.

With Hydra being an island that is quite literally a cubist painting come to life, a little bit of shadow and intrigue can go a long way with much success.

Labels: Europe

Hello there:
I'm in greece for the next week or so and have a ton of stuff to say - look for a solid post monday or tuesday.

Labels: Europe